How the Business of Self-Publishing Has Changed - Authors Have to Embrace the Business Side of Self-Publishing

When I bravely ventured into self-publishing some eight years ago, I read Aaron Shepard's Aiming at Amazon. This self-publishing classic still has a lot of valid advice for authors considering taking the plunge into the world of Indie publishing. Print-on-demand publishing through first Lightning Source and then Amazon's own CreateSpace made it possible for authors to publish their work and make money. Morris Rosenthal's Print-on-Demand Book Publishing was also required reading back in those days. Aiming at Amazon provided authors with a detailed marketing strategy using POD to publish and print books and selling them on Amazon. 

The focus of Aiming at Amazon was marketing, particularly the idea of driving all print sales to Amazon and ignoring brick and mortar bookstores, and provides still valuable insight into how Amazon works as a means to promote and sell books..  Print-on-Demand Book Publishing provided authors with a detailed understanding of how the entire POD model worked.

Of course, this was all before the ebook revolution, in particular Amazon's Kindle. With the bar to publish lowered, thousands of authors took advantage of the opportunities provided by Amazon and other ebook publishers. The result, to the dismay of many, was a dramatic increase in competition as the number of new books being published has mushroomed with the advent of ebooks.

I was able to compete quite effectively when POD was the only option available to authors who self-published. Following the advice and strategy provided in Aiming at Amazon, it was possible to drive your book up the all important sales rankings and generate a reasonable return on your efforts as an author.

Today, the process of entering the business is quite a bit more complicated. Simply writing the best possible book, editing it, getting a great cover with a well designed interior and publishing it are no longer enough to produce sales. Truth be told, it was never that simple, but it certainly seemed that way.

For a book to succeed financially, meaning sales, an author must delve into the business side, or at least the marketing side, of publishing. Regardless of how your book is published, traditional or indie, today's authors are responsible for marketing their own book. Only proven best selling authors receive any marketing help from traditional publishing houses.

Marketing a book has to start long before it is ready to be published. As I am in the process of having my first work of fiction edited (The Predator and The Prey: Book I of the Thomas Sullivan Chronicles), I have been focusing on what has come to be called building my Author Platform. In theory, this process will allow me to provide my book with the best possible launch.

In order to meet my self-imposed deadline of publishing The Predator and The Prey in February of 2017, I sat down and made up a list of tasks that have to be accomplished. For the benefit of authors new to this process I have included this list below:

• Obtain domain name 
• Register with hosting company
• Website/Author platform
• Obtain custom e-mail for domain name
• Register with e-mail service - find a free one to start
• Rewrite after receiving manuscript back from editor
• Finish first chapter of next book in series for inclusion in The Predator and The Prey
• Interior design - POD
• Interior design/conversion - ebook (mobi, ePub and Smashwords)
• Back cover copy for POD edition
• Cover design - POD and ebook
• Amazon Author Central Page
• Kindle Keyword research
• Write book synopsis for Amazon and other online book retailers product page
• Research ebook promotion sites
• Obtain ARC POD copies to send out to potential reviewers
• Research generating ebook edition reviews (behind on this)
• Have ebook file for uploading on Smashwords professionally formatted - upload after KDP exclusive period ends.

This is not a complete list and I have done a reasonable amount of items on the list. I have also already made my decisions on an editor and cover designer.  

All of this takes time, and in my case involves a learning curve. In order to save money to invest it where it will do the most good (editing and cover design) I am going to really stretch myself and build my own website using WordPress. Supposedly, it's easy. I've heard that before.

I am quite certain I have left tasks I don't yet know I need to accomplish off my list. When I first started in 2008, I only wrote my manuscript, made the corrections asked for by the editor and approved the cover design. I uploaded my files to CreateSpace, wrote the book description and waited for the 24 hours for the book to go on sale.

Things have changed.

 

Are Amazon and CreateSpace Winning the POD War With Lightning Source?

For some time now there have been rumors of a war on Lightning Source on the part of Amazon and its print-on-demand division, CreateSpace. Many indie and self-published authors have decried the sudden change in the status of their LSI distributed titles from "in stock" to "available in one to three weeks" which might as well be listed as out-of-stock.

This in turn led to what has been called "Plan B," an approach devised by Aaron Shepard, one of the foremost advocates of LSI in the past. Mr. Shepard now encourages authors to use CreateSpace for their POD services and distribution to Amazon.

Based on my own experience, I would advise everyone to go with CreateSpace and not LSI if the book you want to publish is your first. CreateSpace is much more user-friendly and it appears LSI now wants all self-publishing authors to use IngramSpark as the gateway to LSI.

In the past my suggestion that authors use CreateSpace was based on the ease of use. Now I would argue it is essential if you want your book to sell. All of my 30+ titles, save one, are printed and distributed by CreateSpace. They are always listed as in stock and available.

The line title, which also happens to be my best selling title in paperback, was also the first book I published. It is printed and distributed by LSI. 

The sales for the paperback edition of this title have collapsed in the last three months. Well, more than collapsed I should say, they have vanished. I have not sold a single copy.

The listing for the book ranges from "out of stock" to the equally dreaded "available in one to three weeks."

Please note, the book was also made available through CreateSpace and I did not authorize the Expanded Distribution feature. CreateSpace would be the lone supplier to Amazon. LSI would supply all other online retailers.

Up until three months ago, that was fine. Evidently, now it is not.

Recent correspondence with CreateSpace drew a response that since there were two possible suppliers, there had to be two listings. I suppose that makes sense. But guess which listing shows up first in the searches?

I guess I will have to break down and finally end my relationship with LSI in order to do something about restoring my sales ranking and sales for this book which had spent three years listed on the first page of results in its category before this sudden death spiral in sales.

Aaron Shepard has recently weighed in on this topic and has much more insight into the situation than I do. To read what Mr. Shepard has to say about the "Temporarily Out of Stock" issue regarding LSI and Amazon, please take the time to visit his post. It will be worth the read.

For those of us who broke in to self-publishing when POD was the way to do it, technology has once again changed the industry. Make sure you have a Kindle edition when you publish!

Amazon to Offer Smart Phone - For Free?

My two daughters think I am a technology relic and so does my wife. My son encourages me to hang in there. He is, like I am, very interested in history and the role old technologies played in history. My current phone is over five years old, paid for and works just fine. I can call people. My daughters and wife can send me texts. My son calls me. What more could you want?

Evidently I need to be prodded into action. My girls tell me not to get my phone out when I am with them in public. They claim it is embarrassing. Of course, they drop the subject when I tell them they could get me my own smart phone or I remind them who paid for theirs.

Still, if the story is true, I might bite. I mean, a smart phone for FREE, and I might be able to continue to use my same cell phone contract? That got my attention. I mean, a dad has to be cool right?

My guess is Jeff Bezos sees this as a way to sell more stuff. There has to be a catch. You get the smart phone for free but you have to shop at Amazon and put up with the advertising. I am OK with shopping at Amazon. I do that anyhow. I just avoid advertising like the plague.

I draw the line at reading books on a phone though. I am not, nor will I ever be, that cool as a dad.

To read a detailed account of Bezos' latest gambit with technology visit the link below.

http://jessicalessin.com/2013/09/06/exclusive-amazon-wants-to-offer-its-smartphone-for-free-who-will-follow/

Amazon Announces Kindle Matchbook!

 Amazon has announced a new program to help Kindle authors sell more books. In Amazon's own word:

We are excited to introduce Kindle MatchBook, an innovative new program which enables you to offer your Kindle book at a discount when readers purchase your print book, so you can sell more books. It's easy to enroll.

Here's how it works:

1. Select your Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) title on your KDP Bookshelf and check the Enroll box for Kindle MatchBook on the "Rights & Pricing" page.
2. Set the discount for your book by choosing a promotional list price of $2.99 or less.
3. Save your Kindle MatchBook preferences.

By enrolling your book, you will be among the first to be able to take advantage of this new program. The Kindle MatchBook discount you select will not appear on Amazon.com until the program is fully launched in the coming weeks. We will notify you by e-mail as soon as your Kindle MatchBook discount is live. Your readers will soon have an easy and affordable way to read your book in both print and digital formats.

Visit your KDP Bookshelf today to enroll your books in Kindle MatchBook.

Best regards,
The Kindle Direct Publishing Team

Amazon to Sell Used e-Books?

Publishers Weekly has published an article about the possibility of Amazon's plans to sell used e-books. Whether is speculation of the part of Publisher's Weekly or the story is based on actual hard news I have no idea.

I do believe if this comes to pass, it will change the world as self-published authors know it, particularly in the Kindle market.

In addition to reading the article, I would take the time to read a few of the comments as some of these give a little insight into whether or not this would be legal piracy on the part of Amazon. 

It appears Amazon has been granted a patent that would allow Amazon to have the means to sell used e-books. This seems to imply that authors whose work has been sold in Kindle format would lose the ability to collect royalties on their works.

This seems to all hinge on the results of a lawsuit currently in the courts that will define this issue as it pertains to digital content.  

Here is the link once again: 

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/55849-amazon-poised-to-sell-used-e-books.html

Amazon Sales Rankings or Amazon Search Results - Which is more important?

Understandably there has been lots of interest on the part of authors, both self-published and legacy published, in Amazon Sales Rankings. While Amazon refuses to publish data that will allow authors and publishers to determine exact sales figures based on sales rank, statistically minded individuals, such as self-publishing authority Morris Rosenthal, have done the grunt work necessary to try to build statistical models that correlate to actual sales figures.

It's fun to check the Amazon Sales Rankings for your book, particularly when it first starts to sell shortly after being published. 

What's more relevant to your success is Amazon Search Results. If you want to see your Amazon Sales Rankings improve, pay attention to your Search Results.

Amazon's website is both an eCommerce site and a search engine, and an elaborate one at that. Since as authors we have to do the bulk of the marketing of our books, particularly self-published authors, it pays to know how to get the best possible search results for your book.

Since Amazon is so secretive about its alogarhythms, it is hard to determine exactly what to do to boost your search results.

Several facts are reasonable to conclude about the process, some of which you as an author can control. They include:

1. The more your book sells, the higher it will turn up in search results.
2. If using POD with CreateSpace, Amazon allows you to list five keywords for your title. Since I only use CreateSpace now for all my POD sales for Amazon, I cannot address this issue if you use LSI or a different POD service.
3. Your book's title will have a lot to do with the search results.
4. The sub-title of your book is the key.

Since self-publishers need to take as much control as possible, lets look at the tools Amazon does provide authors/publishers to use to increase sales, the key to the first item in improving search results.

One of these programs is Amazon's Look Inside program. Authors have differing views about this program. My take on the program is simple. I participate in the program. Amazon prefers it if authors sign their book up for the program. Why? Amazon is concerned with making its consumers happy as its first priority, not authors (that being said, don't forget Amazon is the self-published author's friend). Consumers want to be able to "pick up the book and thumb through it" like they would in a brick and mortar book store. Look Inside is Amazon's way to allow consumers to do this. As an author I believe if a potential reader skims through my book he/she will buy it because of the information contained.

 

For authors who want to learn more about the entire process of selling books and getting a book listed on Amazon, there are few sources better than Amazon itself. Take the time to visit the Amazon Help FAQ page.

Amazon provides suggestions on how to optimize your book for the best possible search results. Since it's Amazon's search engine it is probably a good thing to pay heed to what Amazon has to say.

 

Categories and tags can help a book in the search result process. So let's take a look at what Amazon has to say about these two tools.

 

Categories:

Tags:

 

The title of your book can also play a huge factor in the search results for your book. No less of an expert than Aaron Shepard suggests dividing the book titling process into two distinct parts. The main title of the book needs to be named in the traditional process.

 

It is with the sub-title that Amazon's search results needs to be considered. Amazon allows the author/publisher to list a sub-title that does not necessary appear on the cover of the book. The sub-title should be crafted using keywords and in such a way as to provide the book with the best possible results in the search process.

 

Self-publishing is a business. Selling books is where the revenue comes from for self-publishers and for most of us, Amazon is where we sell our books. Amazon Sales Rankings are fun, but Amazon Search Results are what matter. Optimize to get the best possible search results for your book and you will generate more sales. You'll also have more fun checking your Amazon Sales Rankings as a result.

Inside the Great Machine: Confessions of a Former Amazon.com Technologist - a Book Review

Since the overwhelming majority of my source of sales comes from Amazon, I feel it is important to learn as much as possible about my "business partner." When Amazon "suggested" I read this book, I agreed with the company's computer.

Kalpankis S. is an immigrant from India who has made a home here as an American. He makes no bones about his sense of humor being a bit different, yet he manages to inject subtle humor Americans can understand and get a laugh from.

The author is a skilled computer software designer who worked in Silicon Valley before being lured to Seattle, Washington, to join the book selling giant Amazon. Kalpankis shares his experiences in an easy to read and identify with manner and traces his excitement upon joining Amazon through his departure to another company.

Without being a spoiler, my suggestion is to read the book. I enjoyed it and was able to develop a little insight into why Amazon is successful, how it makes mistakes and how hard it works to be a dominant force in the publishing and book/media selling industries.