Connecting Readers and Writers discussion

I'm not sure where to put this but I have been looking for a while some way to get a message to authors.

There are a number of titles that I would like to read but there is no ebook edition available. Especially on backlists. Authors, could you talk to your publishers about making your books available for the Kindle/Nook/Kobo/etc.

Please don't take this as a complaint. My intention is only to let authors know that demand for ebooks is growing with all the ereaders that have been released. In this year alone, we've seen 4 new Kindles, 2 new Nooks, 2 Kobos. More and more people are reading electronically.

Thanks for listening.

Krista wrote: "I'm not sure where to put this but I have been looking for a while some way to get a message to authors.

There are a number of titles that I would like to read but there is no ebook edition avai..."

If the books you are looking for were published by traditional large publishing houses, the authors probably have no control over when the e-book is released, or even if it is released. Check who published the titles you are after because it may be the publishers you need to talk to, not the authors.

Mhairi wrote: "If the books you are looking for were published by traditional large publishing houses, the authors probably have no control over when the e-book is released, or even if it is released. Check who published the titles you are after because it may be the publishers you need to talk to, not the authors."


I'm sure publishers are more likely to listen to the authors themselves, which is why I asked the authors to speak to their publishers about it.

I think they are currently picking up pace, I think my second book was out in ebook format before paperback. I think some companies want to try to get the sales out of physical copies first since that's usually more money for them.

I began with ebook publication and had planned for it. The publishing industry is shrinking fast. Harder than ever to be published. Established, successful writers are realizing they can have control and make much more income if they control their ebook publication and Amazon has moved to sign authors. An effort by Barry Eisler is in the process to totally control his work from here on.

The ebook world will get a big shot in the arm with the Kindle Fire, and more and more readers are realizing the iPad and Kindle and Kindle Apps make reading very mobile. Their books follow them across their devices.

I realize it is a different tactile experience not holding a book, flipping the page, even marking a page in a paperback. But, readership is what we seek. This ebook thing can reach billions of people paper cannot and never did.

I miss bookstores and owning books on a shelf, but digital books are just as real. They create the same emotional impact and thought processes.

I have two novels in ebook format. They are as follows: , the story of two young pioneers in the wilderness of Upper Canada, and , the rise and near fall of a young, Canadian politician, during the 1950s - 1970s. Publisher's price, $4.95 ea.

My novel, 'Heart's Promise' is available in ebook format:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/...

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/heart...

or you can visit my website:
http://www.jeanettehornby.com.au/

My children's book, The Secret Lake, is available in the Kindle Store in the UK and USA and I'm hoping to upload it to the Apple store later on today.

Here is is on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/The-Secret-Lake...

And on Amazon.co.uk
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Secret-La...

I will need to go via Smashwords to get it to Barnes and Noble as they don't allow UK authors to upload unless we have a USA bank account and credit card!

Parisian by Heart

just became available as a Kindle edition:
http://www.amazon.com/Parisian-by-Hea...

I used CreateSpace to do both the paperback and ebook, and am pleased with both. I really like my Kindle but as a bibliophile, LOVE bound books and wouldn't give them up!

It's interesting that there are still so many books not available as ebooks, but I would guess that traditional publishers don't want to spend the resources formatting it for the different formats (Kindle, Nook, Kobo) out there, if it has already reached what they feel is a book's peak.

My book, In My Shoes is available in hardcover and most digital formats. It can be found on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and many other sites.

It's not the cost of formatting, which is very minimal. If retail cost is $99 to format for all device versions, then wholesale cost would be something like $20-30.

It is the lowering of the list price, the lessening of their hardcover and paperback sales and the further weakening of bookstores, their allies in high prices, as point of sale. The publishing industry should have led this revolution to reach a bigger reading market. They are being dragged into the future, screaming and crying.

Publishers of hard and soft cover versions take the lion's share of money (they have real costs and therefore, more risk).

Digital versions are extremely low cost. But, commoditizing book prices is not the game the non-digital publishers want to join.

Amazon will eventually dominate distribution and most publishing and nearly all self-publishing. The next gen of writers will simple go directly to digital. The book market has changed.

Technology can't be ignored except at one's one peril and loss.

Serracin wrote: "It's not the cost of formatting, which is very minimal. If retail cost is $99 to format for all device versions, then wholesale cost would be something like $20-30.

It is the lowering of the lis..."

Very good points indeed. I have already decided not to publish in hardcopy again.

Interesting point regarding cost of formating, though. CreateSpace, Amazon's self publishing arm, quoted me a price of $350-$375 for formating.

Go look at BookBaby. Very good operation, low cost, nice people, and you get a ISBN for $19. $99 +19 to be on Amazon, iBook, Nook and Reader and you get all the money. They don't take another dime. And there are coupons which will reduce it another 10%.

Smashwords is free to set up, including free ISBN. You keep over 80% sales. So I suppose it's a toss up as the distributors will take a cut either way. Smashwords will get you on Nook, kobo, ibook, etc... Amazon soon (tm).

The market is Amazon. The rest are a very small percentage of the market. Yes, you don't have the fee up front, but you are not in the most dominant marketplace.

Amazon is a bit of a worry actually. And it has some of the worst royalties scales. KDP is just as free though. ie you can publish on amazon for free and bypass BookBaby.

I'm not a great fan of Amazon, and the same of CreateSpace. With my second novel, Amazon or CS neglected to include a "product description"--the kiss of death for sales. When I contacted CS they gave me the runaround so that it was never resolved. Moreover, mine is not the only author's work treated this way, for I have noticed several others without a description as well.

Add to this that Amazon-Canada doesn't carry Kindle editions.

And as far as finding a "contact" link to complain, forget it. However, you can access/edit your info by going to www.amazon.ca (uk, etc.).com/publisher/.

Yes, three of my titles are in ebook format.
The Fate of America in the Ninth Hour
A Journey into Biblical Numbers
Visions of God's Coming Judgments are all at http://barnesandnoble.com
http://www.amazon.com
as well as my website, http://kimberlyjacksonbooks.com

My devotional book, Random Ramblings of a Raving Redhead, has recently come available in all e-book formats.

Mobi version (Kindle)

ePub version (Nook, Sony, iPad, etc.)

When I published my first novel, Baby Jane [image error] , I published first to Kindle and then to print and finally the ePub everywhere else. With my new book, The Global Indie Author: How anyone can self-publish in the U.S. and worldwide markets, just released and awaiting listing with Amazon, I am publishing to print first and will put up the Kindle and ePub versions as soon as the print edition is fully distributed.

@Karen: B&N won't deal with any foreign authors, even if they have a U.S. bank account. You must have an account, a U.S. credit card, and a U.S. tax number tied to an American address. In other words, B&N only contracts directly with U.S. residents.

@Gerry: Amazon-Canada doesn't "carry" Kindle because Kindle US handles all Kindle sales for N.A. And not sure where you are based, but if you have a book with CreateSpace there is a contact number accessible from your dashboard. Americans and Canadians can call toll-free six days a week. I've found CS's customer service to be excellent. The quality isn't always there, but the service is really good.

@Serracin: BookBaby doesn't take a cut of royalties but if you read the fine print they charge a hefty $50 fee for revisions, and $50 for price changes over once per year -- making for very expensive promotions. They also charge an annual fee of $19 per title.

M.A. wrote: "When I published my first novel, Baby Jane , I published first to Kindle and then to print and finally the ePub everywhere else. With my new book, The Global Indie Author: How anyone can self-publi..."

M.A.
Revisions cost a new ISBN, so at BookBaby, the cost would be $50 + $19. Seems reasonable.
The wonderful thing is there are many ways of creating a business model for self-publishers and each person can find their own way that fits their book and their budget.

I am content with my first steps. And my second book will follow suit shortly.

All print books should be available in eBook format.
Considering all the editing and typesetting that takes place, it makes sense (and sometimes a few cents on Amazon) to convert to eBook.

I did a fair amount of research before publishing, and BookBaby seemed to be the best choice.

Cheers,
Brendan.
Empire: How to Succeed with Nothing but Passion, Great Ideas and a Wealthy Family

Serracin wrote: Revisions cost a new ISBN, so at BookBaby, the cost would be $50 + $19. Seems reasonable.

Serracin: revisions do not require a new ISBN. It depends on the nature of the revision. Only material changes such as a brand new cover or additions to the text such as a new chapter or foreword would require that a new ISBN be assigned.

I also looked into BookBaby but ended up with eBookIt for sales to B&N, Apple, and Sony. eBookIt charges a lower set-up fee ($49) if you supply them with a fully compliant ePub. They charge $15.00 for price changes. There is no annual fee. They take 15% of royalties, but unless you have a hit, the fees at BookBaby will eat up the royalty difference.

MA

You leave out the cost of the ISBN, originally. What did you pay for yours?

I don't want to go round and round. I stick by the comment that there are optional routes for authors, and that is good. Each has to choose what they think works or will work for them.

I'm Canadian. ISBNs are free.

I wasn't criticizing your choice, Serracin. Only adding more info.

Krista wrote: "There are a number of titles that I would like to read but there is no ebook edition available. Especially on backlists. Authors, could you talk to your publishers about making your books available for the Kindle/Nook/Kobo/etc.

As mentioned in most cases the author has no say in this. When the contracts are signed the publisher determines which formats to produce and if they choose not to do epub (short sided in my opinion but it happens) then the author is stuck.

In some rare cases (especially older works before ebooks) the ebook rights were not transferred to the pubisher so it is up to the author to get them "out there" and I recommend anyone that is in this situation to get their books on the market. You can't use the same cover (as your publisher owns that) but all you need to do is reformat and make a new one. Formatting for ebooks is easier than you might think. There are plenty of "books on formatting" for $0.99 or $2.99 and once you know what you are doing...you can get the ebook version in just a few hours.

While paying $99 or $49 to format an ebook isn't much money it can add up if you have many titles. It really is such a simple thing that you should just learn what it takes and do it yourself (imho).

I feel your pain -- I'm constantly using the Tell The Publisher button to indicate that I want to read something on my Kindle. It's not that I have anything against print novels (you should see my bookshelves at home...), but sometimes I want to take something with me on a trip, and it's simpler to keep in a digital format.

That said, I would also like to echo what others have said about Amazon and Smashwords: they offer great options for small publishers and indie writers to bring their books to digital audiences. Mine is available at both locations.

Gerry wrote: "I'm not a great fan of Amazon, and the same of CreateSpace. With my second novel, Amazon or CS neglected to include a "product description"--the kiss of death for sales. When I contacted CS they ga..."

As an author on Amazon you should have access to Author Central. Sign up and from there you can add your own product descriptions, bio, videos blog etc. For example mine is here. If you look at the bottom of the items on the right under the videos it asks "Are you an Author?" It then gives a link "Learn how to submit changes at Author Central." Click this and sign up.

And yes, all my books have ebook versions in Kindle, Google and MobiPocket. Find me here David George Richards on Goodreads.

David wrote: "Gerry wrote: "I'm not a great fan of Amazon, and the same of CreateSpace. With my second novel, Amazon or CS neglected to include a "product description"--the kiss of death for sales. When I contac..."

Thank you kindly for responding, David. I do have an Author Central page, and now a handy URL, i.e. www.amazon.ca (...uk, or whatever)/publisher/, where I can edit my info. However, just the other day I came across the page of one of my fellow-authors that didn't have a book cover image. So, either the publisher or Amazon is being sloppy about some very important details.

Gerry wrote: "David wrote: "Gerry wrote: "I'm not a great fan of Amazon, and the same of CreateSpace. With my second novel, Amazon or CS neglected to include a "product description"--the kiss of death for sales...."

Found you on Amazon.ca. They don't seem to have an Author Page for you there. But on Amazon.com you are there in all your glory. I visited your Author page and your two books are listed (Kindle & Paperback) along with your blog. You seem to be doing okay -better than me in fact!

I started with ebooks, but am doing paperbacks because I find a number of friends and family want that. And it's easy to do with CreateSpace or other places.
This Doesn't Happen In The Movies
It's been a fun process to do ebooks.
Thanks.
Renee Pawlish

I published first as an ebook, but made my title available thru Lulu as a trade paperback because I work at a bookstore, and yes, ereaders are the way of the future, but there are still lots of people out there without one. It's available on Amazon and B&N in both formats, and I've sold the paper version on both sites. My sales on Amazon are by far the highest.

My first ebook came out last October, I've just authorised my paperbacks to be created. Should have them out by Christmas hopefully. ;-)

My short story fiction book, Magical Dreams is available via the Amazon Kindle Store. Magical Dreams

This group of posts is a book in itself of writers' journeys. I was wondering if publishers even paid attention to readers who click requesting a Kindle edition. I also wonder about all the readers who buy an e-reader and then start asking where the free books are. Granted, e-books should not cost what print books cost, but many authors have paid editors, illustrators, converters, and deserve compensation for a polished and well-written book, e-format notwithstanding. My husband and I researched print and e-book costs, different sites, even the Espresso Book Machine, and decide to put our time and effort into making polished e-books and using free channels, like Amazon, Smashwords and Scribd. I was an editor and proofreader and also have background in graphic arts, so we do it all ourselves. We purchased our original 10 ISBNs from Bowker but they are not necessary on Amazon or Scribd and Smashwords offers a free or $10 option. Conventional publishers will have to change their thinking or they will be marginalized. I am glad this discussion was started by someone who genuinely wants to support e-writers.

My first novel, "Emily's House," just went live as an e-book (and available in paperback). It's a YA hero quest (fantasy & paranormal) novel. Thank you for checking it out (you can sample 25% of it for for free). If you are interested in purchasing it and would like a discount code, message me and I can give you discount codes for CreateSpace and for SmashWords. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00641WC8C

You know, I didn't like the idea of ebooks for the longest time, but finally when I agreed to review a book that was only available electronically I borrowed a Nook and read it. And I discovered that I loved it! I've read several more ebooks since then.

For some reason I read much faster on the Nook than I read with bound books. I can't explain it...it's crazy. I still love bound books but I am no longer the anti-ebooker I once was. I'm even hoping I'll receive a Kindle this year for Christmas!

You can bet I made my book available as an ebook -- in fact, I'm still having formatting issues with the print version so the ebook is the only version that's currently available.

My book is a South Pacific sailing saga, wrapped in a romance with a surprise ending. It's available in e book form(Kindle and Smashwords) as well as paperback.
It's well worth the price, but you can always ask your library for a copy if funds are low. Check out the book trailer http://youtu.be/bMuSXQZkaus for an audio/visual trip to the South Pacific!Right Now Is Perfect

Right now I am having so many problems with my print distribution that I am seriously thinking that my next book will be ebook only.

Hi,
I self published in print first, sales were meager. Published same book in ebook format last week, and have already surpassed my print sales. Friends have told me that having "events" really boosts sales of ebooks, so I'm hosting my very first "Event" next week for my ebook. I'll let you know how it goes! :) Info is posted below if anyone is interested.

On Friday, November 25th, (Black Friday!) I’m hosting a Black Friday 50% Off Sales Event for the eBook version of my Readers Choice Top 10 Novel This Time You Lose. Click: http://smashwords.com/b/104285 and enter coupon code: AE55U to save 50% off retail price. This is a one day only event, and the coupon expires at midnight on the 25th, so don’t forget!

Chris Stralyn
website:www.thistimeyoulose.com
twitter: @chrisstralyn

Obsessive Trap, my new book is available in print and ebook.

Sonya, give us links! If you are a Goodreads author, you can display your book cover and make links to where your book is sold! If you're not, sign up! If you need help, let us know!

Serracin wrote: "MA

You leave out the cost of the ISBN, originally. What did you pay for yours?
..."

Mine was free when I uploaded my book to SMASHWORDS. Amazon was much more difficult and less user friendly to upload (plus there is a 2-3 day wait until your book or revised book is back "up" and available!) With Smashwords, you get free step by step, simple to understand instructions and ISBN's being FREE, kind of a no brainer... Smashwords is the way to go.

http://www.smashwords.com/books/searc...

My book is Paranormal Erotic Romance. E-Book version only. It's gotten some good reviews (thanks to those who read it!) and I'm nearly finished with Book #2.

ITS HERE!! The Black Friday 50% Off Sales Event for the eBook version of Readers Choice Top 10 Novel This Time You Lose has begun! Just go to: http://smashwords.com/b/104285 and enter coupon code: AE55U to save 50% off retail price. This is a one day only event, and the coupon expires at midnight – so do it now – don’t be the last to read This Time You Lose!

No eReader? No problem. It can be downloaded to a computer too! It is also available in paperback at Amazon.com and many local bookstores. :)

Chris Stralyn
website:www.thistimeyoulose.com
twitter: @chrisstralyn

Howdy everybody. I wanted to tell everyone who doesn't already know, about my two literary efforts Mad Gods & it's most recent sequel, Commitment. They're both well represented at my webpage: www.mad-gods.com and are available @:

Mad Gods:

The Antichrist lives. He is wanted dead or alive by Satanists, the Catholic Church and the Dark Nobility.

Kostadino must save him or let the world turn into hell on earth.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004QOA768
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...

Commitment:

Adam watched Mad Gods drag his father to Hell.

Melusine Rothschild, Grande Dame of the Black Nobility wants to raise him. She is part of the World Elite that live by Predatory Ethics and seek to guide him in wielding the power and influence of his dark birthright.

Adam, the teenage Antichrist/AntiXos, wants none of this. He watches his TV shows in one of Danvers Mental Hospital's nice padded rooms, snugly dressed in his own long sleeved, buckled, canvas jacket. He feels safe here away from a hostile, ravaging outside world.

He's horribly wrong.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006098CSC/
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...

I self-published most of my books, and did all the work myself... I'd never pay a company for upfront fees and ISBNs when you can do that all yourself and get into the same places they can... my sales for the last 12 months have been running at around 40% print sales and 60% eBook, but it started 60% print... each month it tips a few sales toward eBooks... I try to make everything available in as many formats as possible...

Armand Rosamilia

Highway To Hell

Both my books are now available as ebooks from Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Hearts-Promise-...
http://www.amazon.com/Where-The-Heart...

my ebook Evangelina Green



is available at SMASHWORDS.com
and Amazon.com

I plan to print all my books (when done writing them) as a collection...
I have a LOT of work ahead of me!