E-book success story: ‘From the trailer park to the New York Times best seller list in zero to sixty’
The p-book world is looking more and more to tested e-authors, even if some entertainers like Ed Howerdershelt have yet to be discovered. Here’s an excerpt from Sara Fitzgerald’s Romance, Writ Large in today’s Washington Post:
MaryJanice Davidson [link added], a 36-year-old Minnesota writer, described her career as going “from the trailer park to the New York Times bestseller list in zero to 60.” She had been trying to sell her manuscripts since she was 21, and “was tired of being told that no one was interested in paranormal or really sexy books.” So she turned to e-publishing. Her first book, “Adventures of the Teen Furies,” was a young adult fantasy about a group of teenagers who were into gaming and their gaming personalities took over. It was published by e-book publisher Hard Shell Word Factory. “Little did I know,” Davidson said, “that the New York publishers were keeping an eye on the e-books.”
In 2003, Cindy Hwang, then senior editor for Berkley Books, read Davidson’s novel “Undead and Unwed” online and called her, seeking to buy the print rights and offering her a three-book contract. It was, Davidson acknowledges, ‘like winning the lottery.’…
On Ellora’s Cave–topic of earlier coverage in the TeleBlog:
E-publishing successes have helped print publishers identify new market niches, including erotica.
One company that pointed the way to the market for what it now trademarks as “romantica” is Ellora’s Cave Publishing Inc. In 2000, Tina Engler was frustrated by her inability to sell her manuscripts to traditional publishing houses. So she decided to do it herself, setting up a Web site and writing erotic romance under the pseudonym Jaid Black…
The site took off, largely by word of mouth. By early 2004, the company began purchasing ads in the New York Times Sunday Book Review and distributing its titles in print through retailers Borders and Waldenbooks, as well as BarnesandNoble.com and Amazon.com. Now, the company says, close to 200 authors receive monthly royalty checks from the company, ranging from $20 to $20,000.
And on Harlequein:
In addition to last week’s cellphone-service announcement, Harlequin has announced deals to provide downloadable audio books through Audible.com and began selling novels for e-book readers. Company officials pointed with pride to the recent day when two novels in the Harlequin Presents line, one of the company’s older imprints, topped sales of ‘The Da Vinci Code’ on Ereader.com, a major outlet for books in that format…
Regarding the company’s e-book sales, Laycock says that “on a relative basis, it’s still very tiny within the Harlequin world.” But, she says, the company has exceeded the targets it set for itself. This summer, she said, a Harlequin book will be part of the package when Sony’s new e-reader platform is launched.
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