A best-selling E writer on a glory of e-books: Less need to fixate on trends
Moderator’s note: TeleBlog contributor Katherine Smith, in her Emma Wildes incarnation, is among the best-selling authors at Fictionwise. But as someone out for more than the buck, she also writes more serious books, and I’m delighted to share her thoughts. - D.R.
One of the things an author—and reader—cannot escape is the sweep of popularity. We all know it, because how could we not? Right now, it tends to be fantasy action/young adult, but let’s not forget blockbuster suspense novels. The books sell incredibly well. The movies follow. Let’s all write them! With this type of impact on the media in general, written or film, maybe this is what the public wants.
Well, maybe.
E-books, like all mediums up for sale, are impacted by the latest trends, perhaps more than most. E-books are also affected by the latest technology at this point, so they are buffeted by the winds of change on all sides. Will my book be up in a certain format for sale? When will it load to the latest hot distributor?
But wait.
Pros and cons
As with all things, the good comes with the bad.
The bad? Oh yes, all the common problems any publisher/author faces. Sales, numbers, ratings, reviews. It all applies across the board. The smaller companies have the same troubles the big ones do.
The good. This is my take, and my take only. E-books have a unique advantage. Here, because the investment isn’t so immense, publishers take chances. Or I think a better way of putting it is that they have that discretion. A fabulous book. Wow, yes. Will it sell? We hope so. It deserves to sell. But we won’t sink our company giving it a try.
The joys of E—as an outlet for edgy books
Let us never underestimate the tastes of the public. Yes, we all obviously love the big guns who write the bestsellers and climb the charts’. But how wonderful is it when a very good—but perhaps not commercial—book is given a chance to be read? Big print publishers do this too, I am not selling them short, but with understandable caution. Printing books costs quite a lot of money and it is, after all, a large investment. If you are looking for something a little bit on the edge and out of the box, well, an e-book might not be a bad idea. And you don’t have to get out of your jammies to buy it.
December 20th, 2007 at 9:22 am
Excellent points, Katherine. One thing I’d add is that eBooks can remain in distribution indefinitely, unlike paper books which tend to have a very short shelf life. This means that, even if your out-of-the-box story didn’t sell like Harry Potter in the first month, it can continue to sell a trickle indefinitely, building by word of mouth if its particular niche of readers love it. For me, there’s nothing sadder than walking into a bookstore and seeing them stripping covers off your month-old book.
Rob Preece
Publisher, http://www.BooksForABuck.com
December 20th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Well said, Katherine! Very informative. Thank you for giving us some insight on e-publishing in today’s market!