Self Publishing

Posts about self-publishing. Obviously.

Guest Blog Post: Tania L Ramos + Giveaway!

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

Remember that blog tour I mentioned I was taking part in? Well, the day has finally arrived! Today we have with us Tania L Ramos, author of the adult romance/drama Be Still (click here for my review). She’s an extremely talented author who I met over WordPress, and she’s here to share some thoughts with us about how to set realistic, achievable goals.

So here’s what you need to do if you want to be awesome:

1. Read the guest post. I really enjoyed reading it, and I think you will too.

2. Enter the giveaway! Go to Tania’s Facebook page and find the “Blog Tour with Michelle Proulx, Post Comments Here” post (should be easily spotted). Leave a comment saying that you read this blog post, as well as your email address. Then you will be entered for a chance to win a softcover copy of Be Still! For free! Woo!

3. If so inclined, you can also check out Tania’s website. There’s lots of information there about her, her book, etc. Do it!

And so, without any further ado, Tania’s guest post!

Tania L Ramos, author of Be Still

Hello friends of Michelle Proulx and thank you for following my blog tour.  My name is Tania L Ramos, author of two books titled, “When I Thought I Was Tough,” and most currently, “Be Still.” By day I am a registered nurse in a recovery room.  By night I punch away at my keyboard and put on my author hat.  Currently, I am a marketer, publicist, and social media novice all for my most current book.  Most importantly, I am an independent  author and that has been the scariest part.

Like so many others, I dreamed of being published and getting paid for what I love to do.  Then I discovered that was like saying I wanted to be an award winning actress in Hollywood.  Well, I had my fifteen seconds of Hollywood fame when I played (in a non-speaking roll) a paramedic for several episodes of the television show E.R.  I was never discovered and, so, I went on into my role of being a real medical professional then chose to  start writing during a very bleak period in my life.  That bleak period is a whole other story, one of those Hallmark television after-school specials.

With my time off I wrote my first novel.  I thought I would have been happy at that, but all that did was spark a great fire for the desire to be an accomplished author.  What is accomplished? I had a few goals in mind went I  decided to independently publish, “Be Still.”

Goals:

1. Have a professional looking book (accomplished)

2. Have a book signing (accomplished)

3. Reach a rank of less than 1,000,000 on Amazon (accomplished…for a few hours)

4. Have a book party (accomplished)

5. Have a book trailer up (accomplished)

6. Have an author video interview up (accomplished)

7. Do a blog tour (in process of being accomplished)

8. Sell 250 book by August 31,2012 (short about half, but there’s still time)

My guest post today is about having goals and making them realistic. Sure, I would love to be a NY Times Best Seller and have a company pay me to write instead of investing my own money to write, but it takes baby steps.  There are many authors out there who started out self-published and eventually won out the big publishing houses, but even those authors would say they had to first pay their dues. Never, or at least rarely, do things come without working at it first.

I have paid over $6,000 into being published. And I do not mind saying that. There are many authors who refuse to reveal numbers, but I’m here to state the truth, so other authors going this route know they aren’t alone. Over $6,000 in publishing and at least another $2,500 in marketing and publicity.  I have tried it all.  I made a commitment to put any money I make back into marketing or into publishing my next book.  I didn’t expect to  make a profit, but wouldn’t scoff at it should that happen.  I am a relatively unknown author and have prepared myself to pay my dues.

I set goals first off, and placed them on a blackboard in bright shiny colors to see every morning.  The list above are just some of my goals, there are many more: send out a press release, create a Facebook fan page, start using Twitter, etc.  Every day I set out to complete one task and called it an accomplishment.  I celebrated every minor milestone such as hugging the woman who had no clue who I was but bought my book at the mall anyways.  What was all the hubbub? Someone who didn’t know me from Eve bought a book! To me that was a major ordeal. When I sold my first ten books I shouted for joy and posted it to every social media outlet I could.  Again, it wasn’t the 250 by August, but it was a milestone on my way to the bigger picture.  I celebrate everything so nothing too small can ever be a disappointment.

A few weeks ago I did a book signing at High Desert Oasis Used bookstore’s grand re-opening event.  I sold one book.  Just one.  I called it a bonus day.  You know why? The guy who bought my book met me at the mall the  week before and promised he would show up to the bookstore for my signing event. And he did.  That was one of the most special books I have sold yet.  And still, I only sold one book that day.  It wasn’t so much the sale as knowing he came back to see me because he was very curious about the book. Milestones.

This blog tour has been such a huge ordeal for me.  I didn’t know many people before writing my book.  In fact, I could name all my friends on one hand.  I’m socially awkward and a great savant at being perpetually recluse.  Thusly, I write.  So creating a book tour took so much time and emotional energy.  I had to start networking, start putting myself and my emotions out there, and start speaking up.  Some of you may empathize.

I was turned down by five people whom I invited to join my blog tour.  I was psychologically devastated and emotionally mortified.  But in between all those rejections were acceptance replies. I told myself I would do the tour even if just one person accepted.  Just one.  I had five people accept.  Instead of wallowing in devastation I celebrated my accomplishment.  FIVE PEOPLE ACCEPTED.

Not only am I hitting milestones and accomplishing goals, but I’m changing who I am.  I can talk to people about my book.  And conversely people are asking me questions.  I have joined clubs and volunteered to do speaking events.  People are contacting me now.  But everyday, I still create and reach for goals.  Today I am coming to you from Las Vegas, Nevada where I am working on another goal: research, video and photos of the Extraterrestrial Highway for my next book (based on aliens for young adults).  There is always a goal…

I feel like a superstar and so should you in every minor and major accomplishment. Hug the lady who buys your book and has no clue who you are. Let them know they are superstars in your world.  Rejoice in the person  who remembers who you are and comes back.  Be delighted if only one person accepts your request to host a blog tour, but jump to the sky if you get five.  Take a picture of the moment you sell ten books, twenty-five, fifty and finally hit your goal.  Never, never, never look at a goal as missed but look at it as an extended journey.  Books are forever.  It may take twenty years to hit a goal, but don’t forget to shout out loud on the day you hit that mark.  Never lose sight of your dream, because nobody else can dream it for you.  And when you reach that goal, after the celebration, make a new one. And if you can’t be among the stars…write about them.

–Tania L Ramos

Did you enjoy the guest post?

Sound off in the comments below!

And don’t forget to check out her blog tour stop yesterday at DavidMcGowanAuthor.com. Tomorrow she’s posting a video blog on Youtube, so stop by her Youtube channel to see that!

Categories: Blog-related, Self Publishing, Writing | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Another awesome free eBook about self-publishing …

Posted on July 19, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

You may recall that post I wrote about the “Free Marketing Tips” eBook. Well, today’s post is about the same author, Mark Coker, who started Smashwords and has written yet another eBook about self-publishing that has some very useful information for anyone who has ever, is currently, or will ever self-publish.

The eBook is called “Secrets to eBook publishing success”. Here’s a link to the download page. And it’s totally free, so if that isn’t reason enough to read it, then I don’t know what is!

There’s lots of useful info in there. I’ll share some here so you get the idea (note: these are quotes directly copied from the eBook):

  • 80% of your book’s success will be determined by the quality of your book. The other 20% is distribution, marketing, and luck.
  • A good author name is simple to remember, and simple to spell. Avoid cutesy spelling, because this can make it difficult for readers to find you.
  • Think of each book you release as a fish hook in the ocean. When you network them together with simple mentions and hyperlinks at the end, the fish hooks form a net. Each book becomes a subtle yet powerful advertisement for the others. Each gives you the opportunity to reach new readers.
  • (Giving your eBook away for) free works best if you have a deep backlist or if you write full-length series.
  • Ebooks are immortal. They never go out of print or lose distribution unless the author or publisher willingly decides to remove a book from distribution. Your sales can start off small then gradually build over time as readers start discovering and enjoying your books.
  • Your book is your most effective marketing tool. Write a book that touches the reader’s soul and the reader will market your book for you through online word-of-mouth and reviews.

There’s loads more information in there. Again, here’s the link to download the eBook.

Fun time!

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Self-Publishing a Free eBook + Party Rock Cantina

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

Today’s topic is a very subjective one, as everyone I’ve met seems to have different opinions on releasing free eBooks. The concept of free-publishing (as I call it) is to get your name out there as an author in a format that everyone loves – free! On the flip side, as authors publishing our intellectual property that we have slaved over for years, we rankle at the idea of giving away our babies without any form of monetary compensation. Thus the debate: is it a good idea to publish a free eBook?

Why it’s a good idea:

People like free stuff. Online piracy is through the roof, with no indication that it’s going down any time soon. Odds are that if you publish a book, a good percentage of your readership will have downloaded it for free anyway. So why not take matters into your own hands and deliver it free of charge from the very start?

No one will buy a book from an unknown author. I’m not talking about indie authors, I mean authors that nobody knows about. So, logically, you need to become a known author before you publish a book. But how do you get known as an author of awesome books if you haven’t published anything? Catch 22, baby. Unless you publish free eBooks. Then you can spread your literary wings and get your name out there. People are far more likely to download something that’s free because, as I’ve already stated, people like free stuff. You don’t even have to write original fiction – several fanfiction authors I know of have had moderate success publishing original fiction using their fanfiction fanbase as a jump off point. So it’s really all about exposure, exposure, exposure.

It’s a great way to hook an audience onto a series. My mother’s rather rich, rather market-savvy friend, suggested that I release the first book in my Imminent Danger series for free. I didn’t listen to her, although perhaps I should have. Her reasoning was that if I can get lots of people to read the first one for free, they’ll be more likely to shell out a few bucks when the sequel drops. If you look at current best-sellers, the vast majority of them are part of a series. Fifty Shades of Grey, Twilight, Harry Potter, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, etc. You lose money at the start, but theoretically you’ll make it up in the long run.

Why it’s a bad idea:

You run the risk of being seen as just another free-eBook author. I don’t know about you, but when I see something offered for free, one of the first things that pops into my head is “What kind of quality can something given away for free really have?” It could be the greatest book in the world, but many people might have a hard time overcoming those sorts of thoughts. And the thought isn’t at all unfounded. Go to a site like Wattpad, where hundreds of thousands of authors post their books for free, and you get a sense of what I’m saying. There are a few real gems hidden there, no doubt, but the vast majority isn’t the greatest literature I’ve ever seen.

You don’t make any money. That sounds kind of haughty, but it’s true. When I was struggling over whether to self-publish with iUniverse or release the book for free, this was one of the main factors in my decision. Here’s my reasoning. Your book is your intellectual property, something you’ve poured your heart and soul into, and you deserve to market and sell it just like any other product. Sell it at a discounted price, because it’s a new book from a new author? Sure. Give free copies as part of giveaways or contests? Absolutely. That’s basic marketing strategy. But give it away for free? This is the same problem that you get when you discuss whether selling an eBook for 99 cents is too cheap. Your book is valuable. It is worth something.

There are other ways to gain fans. You don’t have to give away your book for free to get fans. What about contests and giveaways? What about social media and word of mouth? There are other ways to market yourself.

It ruins your chance for traditional publishing. I don’t know for sure about this one, but logic dictates that it’s true. Self-published authors get taken on by traditional publishers all the time. But what’s the point of a traditional publisher spending all that money releasing your book if you’ve already given it away to the entire world?

Ultimately, it comes down to personal preference.

Both publishing methods have their pros and cons. I myself am considering free-publishing a book I wrote a few years ago. It’s in a completely different universe from my soon-to-be-published Imminent Danger book, and while it’s a light, fun read, I don’t know if it has the staying potential to become a best-seller. It’s tempting to give it a good proof read and release it to the world, but as should be obvious from this post, I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea.

What do you think? Is free-publishing a viable option for self-published authors? Are the pros of free-publishing worth the cons? Have you ever free-published, and if so, was it a good experience? Did it gain you followers and friends that you wouldn’t have reached otherwise?

LMFAO goes Star Wars:

Image cred: http://www.fantasybooksandmovies.com/best-fantasy-books.html

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Free Marketing Tips eBook link

Posted on June 15, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

Greetings, blogosphere. Today’s post will be a short one, as I’m off to my cousin’s graduation this afternoon and then home for Father’s Day weekend.

As usual, I was wandering around the internet looking for interesting things when I came upon this free eBook on Smashwords.com. It’s called Smashwords Book Marketing Guide, by Mark Coker, and it’s very informative. Basically, he goes over 33 tips on how to market your eBook. I was hesitant about downloading it, because I figured it would just be promotion for Smashwords, and it was, but it also had some pretty great ideas for marketing. I’ll share two or three of the tips below, and then I encourage you to go download the eBook. It is, after all, free!

Tip #1: Update your email signature. Your email signature is one of the most powerful marketing tools at your disposal, yet few authors take advantage of it. Most of us send emails to dozens if not hundreds of people each week, and each of these people (often friends, family, business associates, fans) represent potential customers for our book. By updating (or creating) an email signature, you’re providing email recipients a low-key, unobtrusive path to discover and purchase your book. Nearly every email program and service allows you to create a single email signature file, usually a simple text file, that then automatically appends to every email you write.

Tip #18: Invite other Authors to Post to your Blog. If you operate your own blog, invite your favorite authors to write guest posts for your blog. This is a great way to offer your fans interesting new content that increases the value of your blog. It also helps fans of the other author learn more about you.

Tip #26: Create a reader’s guide at the end of your book. You’ve probably seen these in print books: Publishers append short discussion guides for reading clubs and book groups at the ends of their books. Make it fun and easy for a book group to discuss you book. While most of us like to read books in private, we enjoy talking about books with our social circles, both online and offline. If you create a reading guide, be sure to advertise it in your book description with a simple statement such as, “Contains a helpful discussion guide for reading groups.”

Tip #27: Insert sample chapters from your other books. The last page of your book is valuable real estate. Your reader just loved your book, and they want to read more from you, so give them more book samples to read at the end of your book.

He also lists a variety of top eBook listing sites that you can put your book on for maximum exposure at the end of the document. A lot of them deal with free eBooks, but some of them list normal eBooks as well.

So check out the eBook — again, here’s the link to the site where you can download it for free.

And now for something completely different:

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

When Big Time Authors Self-Publish

Posted on June 14, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

I just found this article at Publishers Weekly that talks about how Terry Goodkind, best-selling author of the Sword of Truth series, is self-publishing his next novel. It makes me wonder what a famous, successful author like him is doing self-publishing a book. I mean, I would probably die of happiness if I were to get traditionally published, but Goodkind is walking away from it. And the more I consider the matter, the more it makes sense. Here’s my reasoning:

1. He already has a fan following. As such, he can be pretty much assured that anything he publishes in the Sword of Truth series, people will buy, myself included.

2. He has the money for marketing/publicity. Self-published authors are generally 9-5ers trying to write on the side, and don’t have the funds to launch international marketing campaigns. But Goodkind, and other big-time authors, do have the time and money to do that kind of thing. His publishing house probably could get his book into more stores, place advertisements in better locations, but as per #1, he already has a huge fan base. They’ll find out about the book regardless of how limited the marketing campaign is.

3. He’ll get higher royalties. This one is a no-brainer. When an author self-publishes, they set the price. Traditionally published authors usually get between 5-15% royalties — good if you’re in the 15% range, terrible if you’re down at 5%. If you’re self-publishing, you obviously make way more, plus you decide how much the book goes for. I guess he’ll be losing the prestige of having a traditional publishing house’s logo on the spine of his book, but he’ll probably survive.

4. He has complete creative freedom. I’ve heard horror stories of editors ripping apart books and sewing them back together in pathetic imitations of their originals. I have no idea if this is true — probably not, let’s be realistic. However, that doesn’t change the fact that self-publishing allows you to write whatever the heck you want, regardless of what anyone else (or society in general) thinks. My only problem with this is that some authors do need to be reined in by editors, Goodkind included. He has a tendency to get very preachy, and I’m worried he’ll just go crazy with the rants once there’s no one there to stop him. Of course, for all I know, he’s been deciding what goes into his books for years, and the publishing house has just been crossing their fingers and hoping things worked out.

5. He’ll get a lot of attention for self-publishing. Traditional publishing houses are worried about self-publishing, because it cuts into their profit margins, and will do so more in the future. Once a decent amount of big time authors join the self-publishing bandwagon, I don’t see things going well for publishing houses. Since self-publishing doesn’t happen that often right now, Goodkind should get media attention for his decision to self-publish based on that fact alone, regardless of how well his book actually sells.

Looking at it this way, it seems crazy that big time authors wouldn’t try out self-publishing. On the other hand, there are many excellent reasons to stay with traditional publishers. So I guess it really comes down to individual choice.

What do you think?

Imagine you’re a big time author, and you’re planning to release a new book. Would you consider self-publishing?

Image cred: http://www.fanpop.com/spots/sword-of-truth-series/images/684599/title/cover-art-faith-fallen-photo

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

2012 Contests for Self-Published Authors

Posted on May 24, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

I’ve recently been doing research into contests for self-published authors, and I now share them here with you! Obviously I can’t enter any of them, as my book is still in the editing stage, but hopefully someone out there will find these links helpful.

Click the title of the contest to go to their website. They are listed in order of entry deadline.

Disclaimer: Scam contests have been known to operate. These links are for reference only. If you decide to enter one of these contests, double-check that they are legitimate before sending your money!

2012 New York Book Festival

  • Deadline: June 1, 2012
  • Prize: $1,500, flight to New York for the awards ceremony
  • Cost: $50 per entry
  • Categories: all genres

Writer’s Digest 20th Annual Self-Published Book Awards

  • Deadline: June 15, 2012
  • Prize: $3,000, national exposure, paid trip to Writer’s Digest Conference
  • Cost: $100 for first entry, $75 for additional entries
  • Categories: all genres

Hollywood Book Festival

  • Deadline: June 25, 2012
  • Prize: $1,500, flight to LA for the awards ceremony
  • Cost: $75 per entry
  • Categories: all genres

Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards

  • Deadline: August 31, 2012
  • Prize: site is unclear – potentially national exposure
  • Cost: $75-$95 per entry
  • Categories: children’s literature

2012 Anderbo Self-Published Book Award

  • Deadline: October 15, 2012
  • Prize: $500, announcement and publication of book excerpt on Anderbo website
  • Cost: $20 per entry (“reading fee”)
  • Categories: fiction or non-fiction

Happy writing/entering! Also, let me know if you do enter, so I can wish you good luck!

Funny and relative comic: click here.

Categories: Self Publishing, Writing | Tags: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Shelf Space for your Self-Published Book + SpaceX

Posted on May 23, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

Publishing an eBook is awesome, no doubt about it. But for me, the ultimate goal of a self-published author is getting your book onto a bookshelf in an actual brick and mortar book store. Imagine walking into your favourite book store and watching as a complete stranger picks your book off the shelf. Heaven!

I’d love to just walk into my local Chapters (Canadian book store) and ask the manager to put my books on their shelves, but tragically it’s more complicated than that. Big book stores don’t want to deal with random little indie authors – they have international best sellers to push. So where can we get our shelf space fix?

Good news for Wichita, Denver, Louisville, and Chico!

First of all, check out this article. Basically, there are a handful of indie book stores in the USA that have started programs that enable local self-published authors to sell their books in the stores. These stores operate mainly on “consignment” – meaning that you give the book store copies of your book for free, and if the books sell, the book store pays you back an agreed-upon price. So, if I were to bring in my made-up-on-the-spot book, Tuna on a Cloudy Day, that retails at $20, the book store would give me a set consignment rate (let’s say 50/50). My book would then go on the shelf for a limited time, and whenever a book is sold, I would get $10.

Some of the book stores listed in the article also have programs where you can do book signings, or they will help you create promotional materials for your book campaign, etc. My personal favourite is Lyon Books in Chico, California, which holds an annual Local Author Holiday Open House. They run ads in the newspaper featuring thumbnails of the local authors’ books and short blurbs, then get all the local authors together in the store for a huge book-signing event. How amazing does that sound?

Unfortunately, I don’t live in Wichita, Denver, Louisville, or Chico. This somewhat limits my options. I’ve tried the obvious Google search for book stores near my house that offer such a program for local authors, but all I got was an eHow article on How to Get a Self-Published Book Into Bookstores. Not very helpful, internet.

My “solution”, such as it is.

There is a self-publishing company called iUniverse. I signed with them and sent them a boatload of money back in April. Now, I don’t want to recommend them to anyone just yet, because I haven’t even gotten as far as the submitting my manuscript stage. More updates on that as the publishing process progresses. Anyway, they have this really neat program called the Indigo Chapters Publishing Package that is only available in Canada. It’s your basic self-publishing service – they edit your book, design the cover, format the interior, create print and eBook versions, and distribute them on all the major book-selling sites. However, there is the added bonus that they will put 8 copies of your book into a Chapters book store of your choice for 8 weeks. The best part is that, if the books sell, Chapters is obligated to re-stock the book so long as the 8 week period is in effect. This means that if you can generate enough interest in your book, Chapters will keep re-ordering even past the end of the 8 week period. Exciting stuff! I’ll let you know if it works XD

Know any good indie book stores?

Obviously my “solution” only works if you live in Canada and have $2,999 to spare. Okay, I didn’t exactly have it to “spare”, but you get the point. Does anyone know of any local/indie book stores that offer programs like the ones I mentioned for self-published authors? It doesn’t have to be only for Canada – I’d love to know about any/all of them!

Also, does anyone know anything or have tips about getting your book into a physical book store? I’m sure at least one person in the big, wide world of WordPress has accomplished this feat!

And now for a change of pace – SpaceX!

Not technically on the topic of writing, but still noteworthy – SpaceX has successfully launched their first commercial spaceship. It’s unmanned, and is currently in orbit around Earth and preparing to dock with the International Space Station (ISS). Read about it here. Why am I so excited about this? Because NASA shut down the spaceshuttle program, and have been relying on Russian rockets (not the most reliable form of transportation) to get up to the ISS. SpaceX is the first private company in the world to launch their own rocket successfully. And they aren’t the only company doing it, either. I envision a future (hopefully within the next few decades), where space tourism will be a real thing. How awesome would it be to go up into space for a few hours and float around in zero G? If SpaceX succeeds, this could very well happen, hence my enthusiasm.

And for those of you who don’t want to read the article, here is my personal favourite tidbit from the very bottom:

“The rocket also blasted into orbit around the Earth the ashes of more than 300 people, including Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper and actor James Doohan, who played Scotty on Star Trek. The ashes were in a section of the rocket that was jettisoned during the climb into space.”

That’s right, you can now send your ashes up into space to orbit the Earth for eternity, in the company of astronauts and Star Trek actors. Anyone else intrigued by this concept?

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

eBook Pricing – A Conundrum

Posted on May 21, 2012 by Michelle Proulx
FreeDigitalPhotos.net

FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How much is a good story worth?

If you’ve been following recent news, you’ll know that several major publishing houses (Harper Collins, Apple, etc.) are being hit with an anti-trust lawsuit regarding their attempts at fixing eBook prices. See here for an explanation of the issue. The problem is that self-published authors are selling their books at $2.99 or less, and publishing houses feel that this is devaluing eBooks. They are worried that people will stop buying their higher-priced, best-selling novels in favour of mass-consuming the self-published books that are flooding the market. The obvious solution would be for publishing houses to simply price their eBooks lower in order to compete with self-published authors… but it isn’t as easy as that.

I had always believed that eBooks were overpriced – it costs nothing to produce an electronic file, after all, so why should I pay $14.99 for it? But then I read this article. When you print thousands and thousands of books, the cost of printing only amounts to a few dollars a copy. That’s why you can find $5 books on the discount shelf at your local book store, because they really don’t cost that much to actually print. So why are books priced so high? Because of all the overhead costs the publisher must pay – author advances, marketing fees, etc. All these things still have to be paid for, whether you’re making a print book or an eBook. The only difference with an eBook is that you’re saving those few dollars that would have been used for printing. So in that respect, eBooks could logically be priced almost as high as print books. And most of them are fairly costly – usually half the cost of the print book’s list price.

But then you get the difference between owning a pdf file, and having in your hands a real, heavy, paper-cut-inducing book. Yes, eBooks offer the advantage of being able to carry around your entire library in your back pocket. But if I had $15, I would rather spend it on a real book. I’m proud of my book shelf, and I love being able to just plop down in front of it and peruse the book spines for my next read. Not to mention that I like to share my books with my friends, but I don’t think I’d want to share my eBook reader.

At the same time, eBooks are growing in popularity, and publishers do need to turn a profit. If they only charge $2.99 for their eBooks, I imagine the profit margin must be nearly non-existent for the author. Apparently some authors are actually walking away from book contracts because publishers refuse to let them retain their e-rights to their books, because they’ve realized that it’s far more profitable to sell eBooks on their own terms. Amazon Kindle, for example, offers a 70% royalty rate if you price your eBook between $2.99 and $9.99. Who wouldn’t want that?

But then with self-publishing, you get eBooks priced as low as 99 cents. Initially I thought that this was a fantastic idea, because if you are trying to build up a readership, what better way to get people to buy your book than by selling it for less than a dollar? A single cookie costs more than that, especially if you get one of those delicious gourmet ones. But then I remembered a book sale I went to a few years back, where I bought maybe fifty books for about $50. If the cover even mildly intrigued me, I bought it. But how many of those books have I read since then? Maybe a quarter, if that. Maybe eBooks need to be priced a little higher – say, $2.99 – in order to make it worth the reader’s while to actually open up the file. It’s hard to discover new authors if you never read the books that they write.

What do you think? What’s a good price for a self-published author’s first book? I’ve been leaning toward $2.99 – a bit more than 99 cents, but still less than a Starbucks latte. Would you pay $2.99 for a story from an author you’ve never read?

Funny and relevant comic — click here!

Categories: Self Publishing | Tags: , , , , , | 12 Comments

Greetings, Earthlings.

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Michelle Proulx

Welcome to my blog. For a long-winded explanation of what you’ll find here, check out the FAQ. If you’d rather not slog through several pages of increasingly-ridiculous dialogue, keep reading.

So six years ago, I wrote a book. It’s about alien abduction, romance, flashy laser gun battles, aliens with a shaky understanding of logic and morality, and a high school girl named Eris trying to find her way back home to Earth. After innumerable edits and revisions, Imminent Danger and How to Fly Straight into It is finally ready for publication. Since traditional publishing houses are wary of first-time authors, I’ve elected to go the self-publishing route via iUniverse. This means I have to pay them money, instead of them paying me, but that’s the price you pay for self-publication.

This blog is about that book. Well, currently. If people like the book, and buy the book, then I’ll hopefully make enough money to afford publishing a sequel. And then another sequel. And so on. Maybe start a different series entirely. But right now, the focus is on Imminent Danger.

It isn’t published yet, so you can’t buy it right now. But it should be ready to go by the end of Summer 2012. Check back here every few weeks to learn of any new developments. And if you’re an author looking to self-publish, I’ll be describing each step of the self-publication process as it happens to me, so stay tuned.

Talking to people is awesome. As such, you should definitely talk to me. Leave comments, email me, facebook me, anything you want. Honestly, it doesn’t even have to be related to the blog. Read a good book lately? Tell me about it! Heard a hilarious, slightly inappropriate joke? I’m all ears (not literally – that would be strange). I have a Facebook page for the book that you can also check out. If you really want to get in touch with me, I suppose that stalking me down and slipping creepy letters under my door is also an option, but I’d prefer that you take the electronic route if at all possible.

I’m new to all this, so if you think of ways to improve the blog – polls, book excerpts, contests, videos, whatever – please let me know. Oh, and for people new to WordPress.com, there’s some sort of Subscribe button you can press that will let the site email you whenever I write a new post. I promise I’ll keep them to two or less a week so that I don’t spam your inbox.

I look forward to meeting you!!!

Categories: Blog-related, My Works, Random, Self Publishing, Writing | Tags: , , , | 10 Comments

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