The Stereotype of Self-publication

Today we have a guest, Robin Cain, author of When Dreams Bleed, discusing the hot topic of self-publication.

The Stereotype of Self-publication by Robin Cain:
I am a self-published author.

I am stating this upfront to bring attention to some preconceived notions many people have about “traditional publisher rejects”. I’m aware that this is what many of you (readers) call us (self-published authors), so why not get it out in the open? I know… you think we couldn’t sell our manuscripts, our writing stinks; we don’t edit our work. Yada, yada, yada. Much of this is true about some self-published authors; some of it is just plain garbage. On the other hand, much of it is not.

Nowadays, while millions of writers are querying agents each year and not getting through, new avenues of publication are becoming easier, more affordable and making more economic sense. Why wouldn’t any new author consider self-publication as a means to an end?

The traditionalists will answer, “Exposure and reputation” and they won’t be too far off the mark.

When an author chooses (for whatever reason) to self-publish, he immediately loses the connections that a big-name publisher brings to the table. That is no small loss. Being backed by a Simon & Shuster can go a long way to getting one’s books in readers’ hands. Additionally, when an author chooses to self-publish, they immediately have the stereotype branding – “self-published: must not be any good”. These two items are tough to argue, but…news flash, folks: This is all changing.

With the advent of e-publishing, social networking, online media and book pricing wars, the book selling market is changing – and changing rapidly. The book business, once rationed off in predetermined slices, is now anyone’s market. More and more of the “unknowns” are getting a piece of it – a piece which up until now would never have been theirs for the taking. One may or may not be a fan of the Kindle or e-books in general, but their impact on the book-buying market can’t be ignored – particularly after Amazon’s announcement that Kindle book sales recently surpassed regular book sales for the first time in history.

With an increased market share and greater exposure, it is now possible for a self-published author to attain the same level of success as traditionally published authors - as long as they follow the same rules:

Write quality work

Get it professionally edited

Have it reviewed by a multitude of unbiased readers (and re-write if necessary)

Hire a professional cover designer and formatter

Create a good platform… and then market the hell out of yourself!

Unfortunately, there are a great many writers out there who don’t follow these rules and it makes it awfully difficult for those of us authors that did (and do). Regardless, whether traditionally published or not, reputation still has to be built one book at a time.

So how do we get rid of the stereotype and reach those readers who otherwise wouldn’t give us a second look? Like any author (super star or rising star), we just hope the cream rises to the top, word-of-mouth does us some favors and generous bloggers (Thanks, Anita!) give us some of their spare space…

© 2010 Robin Cain, Author of WHEN DREAMS BLEED

Robin Lives in Scottsdale, Arizona with her husband, daughter, three dogs, three horses and an adopted donkey named Sophia. As a novelist and regular contributing writer for The Examiner, she spends her days searching for the perfect words to amuse, enlighten and touch her readers. A 3-chapter excerpt of her book, WHEN DREAMS BLEED, can be found on her website, http://www.robincain.com/


Robin's blog:  http://robincain.wordpress.com/

Guest Blogger Pat Bertram: The New Era in Publishing

The New Era in Publishing.


When I was studying the publishing industry, trying to figure out how to get published, one thing bothered me. There you are, a debut author, and because the publisher does not promote you -- spending their promotion dollars instead on the big names -- your books sit on bookstore shelves or in warehouses until finally the publisher gives up on you and remainders your book. That is the best scenario, because if it is remaindered, at least it will still be available for a time. Generally what happens is that it is pulped. 25% of a publisher’s total output (including your beloved book) is destroyed. This after shipping costs incurred to and from the publisher’s warehouse.
My books, More Deaths Than One and A Spark of Heavenly Fire are being published Second Wind Publishing, which uses digital printing technology, and because of it, I do not have to fear my novels succumbing to such a fate. Nor do I have to fear an inadvertent error showing up in thousands of volumes. As soon as an error is found, it can be corrected. Because of this new technology, there is no reason to destroy unsold merchandise. And there is no reason to stop publishing a novel because it does not live up to the bottom-line demands of the traditional publishing houses.
Small presses today are where independent movie producers were in the late eighties and early nineties. They have the ability to publish books that need time to reach an audience, books that might not appeal to the masses but could still be loved by many (and turn a tidy profit in the process.)
Although I have nothing but admiration for self-publishers, I like knowing that my books went through a submission process, and I like knowing I was chosen. I also like having a say in the editing, the cover choice, the arduous copy-editing. I even like promotion -- what I’ve done of it, anyway.
So, new era in publishing? Good for us all. And I am pleased to be a part of it.
I’m also pleased to be here on A.F. Stewart’s blog today. To celebrate the release of my novels, I am doing a reverse sort of blog tour -- instead of promoting myself, I’d like to promote a few of the people who helped me with my promotion efforts. A.F. has written a wonderful Squidoo Lens -- How to Become an Independently Published Author -- which gave me many suggestions on how to promote. So, thank you, A.F. Best of luck with your book.

Pat Bertram is a native of Colorado and a lifelong resident. When the traditional publishers stopped publishing her favorite type of book — character and story driven novels that can’t easily be slotted into a genre — she decided to write her own. More Deaths Than One and A Spark of Heavenly Fire, available at Amazon and from Second Wind Publishing, are Bertram’s first novels.







Book Links:

Amazon:
A Spark of Heavenly Fire
More Deaths Than One

Second Wind Publishing:
A Spark of Heavenly Fire
More Deaths Than One

Book Distribution at Lulu.com.

You get what you pay for.

This is an update on circumstances regarding the buying/distribution status of my book Inside Realms.

This past summer Lulu.com was offering its Published by Lulu distribution package for free, so I took advantage of this deal for my book Inside Realms. I double-checked their webpage to see if there were any restrictions, but they were indeed offering their regular $100 package for free (which gave book distribution on various online retailers, including Barnes and Noble and Amazon, including the international sites). I assumed it was just a time-limited promotion, for their website never changed the description of the distribution package. I repeat, at no time did that description change, so I assumed that I would receive the full distribution for my book, Inside Realms.

All went well at first; my book appeared on the Amazons, then at Barnes and Noble, beginning at unavailable/out of stock status as it was supposed to happen. I patiently waited and then one happy day it was at full status at Amazon.com. I thought it was only a matter of time before all the other retailers followed. In fact I believed it was happening when Barnes and Noble listed it at full status. Then it was gone, back to out of stock status at Barnes and Noble a few days later.

What was happening?

Policy changes at Lulu.com. They changed their Published at Lulu distribution package to a permanent free status, but it now mirrored Amazon’s CreateSpace with only Amazon.com distribution. Which is fine, that is definitely their privilege, although it does make it more complicated for international authors, especially with their new shipping rates.

I thought perhaps these changes were causing some delay or glitch with my book’s distribution, so I emailed Lulu. And found out they were not honouring the full distribution agreement, that they had somehow downgraded me to Amazon.com only.

This is the inquiry email I sent:
I recently acquired a Published by Lulu distribution deal for my book, Inside Realms, just before you made your latest changes. I have been waiting for it to be available for sale at online retailers for over the allotted time, but only Amazon.com lists it for sale. Places such as Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.ca are still listing it as unavailable or out of stock.
Can you enlighten me as to why? I have been reading disturbing rumours on the Internet regarding recent Lulu.com books not getting their full distribution due to your policy changes.

This is their reply:
Thank you for your email. Titles with the Free Published by Lulu distribution package will only be distributed to Amazon. However, we do offer an option to get wider distribution if you have the Free Published by Lulu package. You can check out the Expanded Distribution Package here:
http://www.lulu.com/content/4683045
Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.

(Note: the Expanded Distribution Package costs $50.)

I sent another email after this protesting their stand, but I have yet to hear anything from Lulu.

Further investigations have led me to believe I am not the only author who got downgraded; there are rumblings among the blogs of others. It seems Lulu’s free summer offer was for its new Amazon.com only package, not for the old one they advertised.

I would also like to state that the current situation of my book may be due in part to the fact Barnes and Noble may be phasing out Print-on-Demand books. Everything in POD these days seems to be gearing toward Amazon, and just Amazon.

The end result of all this is one fact: there are only two places people can buy my book. At Amazon.com and Lulu.com; I don’t even have a retail listing in my own country of Canada.

All these recent changes and uncertainty has me asking: Is this the end of POD as a publishing option? I know I am certainly reconsidering my publishing options.