HACHETTE VS. AMAZON: Amazon wrote me a letter today, I just had to respond #Pubtalk #ASMSG

I got a letter in my email today from Amazon, and I just had to respond. This is the email I wrote to Hachette CEO, Michael Pietsch, Michael.Pietsch@hbgusa.com.

Dear Hachette:

Amazon wrote me a fascinating letter today, which prompted me to weigh in with my opinion on this funky contract dispute happening in a very public format.

Here is a copy of the letter Amazon sent me: http://www.readersunited.com/

Before I tell you what I think, here's a little about me:

I am a bibliophile and an author and an Indie publisher. In July, I became a NYT and USA Today bestseller.  I have never once written a query letter to an agent or submitted a manuscript to a megacorp publisher.

My eight books are available on Amazon, B & N, iTunes, Kobo, and Smashwords. In addition, I participate in five blogs and contribute to four Emagazines in various genres that are uploaded in various websites that distribute them freely.

I have a new book planned for preorder in October, The Nightlife Moscow. I am collaborating on Passionate Bites, a vampire romance box set with 9 authors also going preorder in October, and I am partnered with another author, Kayla Stonor, to manage her new edition releases and social media marketing.

I have never cared who publishes a book. Publisher brands are irrelevant to me.

I have over 1900 books on my Kindle, which I read on my PC, phone, and tablets. I get new books every day.

I rarely read a paperback these days. When I do, its from authors I have been a fan of for many many years, like Dean Koontz and Laurell K. Hamilton.  When I buy paperbacks, its because I caught a deal at the Dollar Tree, or a used copy off Amazon for $4-$5, or I found them in a used paperback store.

I used to read three+ books a week, now I'm too busy writing and publishing, so, its more like one book a week -- apart from editing and critique work I do for several author friends.

Moving on, here's what I think about the debate of Amazon vs. Hachette, and its harm to authors:

Amazon, a retailer, knows exactly how their business works best for them and their consumer.  Their interests are not necessarily the best interests of megacorp publishers, regardless of the fact that these megacorps are making shittons of money off of Amazon's phenomenal book discovery engine -- the best system of its kind.

Side note: did you see the new thingy on Amazon, below each book, "Frequently Bought Together" which miraculously directs the buyer to get even more books in one purchase?  Isn't that awesome?

Back to my point: Megacorp publishing contracts typically pay authors a pretty crappy royalty on ebooks, which is quickly decreasing their overall royalty payouts as ebook sales overtake paperback, and yet still publisher revenues are increasing with the continued growth of the ebook market...

How is this?  

Because ebook sales booms often happen at lower price ranges (which is what Amazon is all about).  Sadly, at those prices, the author's royalty is also lower, and often, megacorp publishing contracts cut the royalty percentage lower for special sales discounts.

What's funky, ebooks have zero cost, and zero distribution issues, and yet, megacorp published authors still make less money on them? Ebooks should be the highest profit/royalty item for an author, because no one has to print, warehouse, or ship them, no infrastructure necessary to the supply. There is no overhead to ebook sales and distribution.

Ebooks are the fastest growing sector of publishing sales, accounting for huge gains in profit margins of megacorp publishers last year and this year thus far, yet authors are making less royalty because of funky publishing contracts?

Who is supposedly harming authors? Amazon?

My message is this: I have loads of sympathy for authors of Hachette who are being victimized by their megacorp publisher. 

Hachette gets no sympathy from me. The company is whining in its beer -- very publicly about how Amazon is hurting the authors, about how authors are losing sales (read $$), but, its the contracts that Hachette uses and the royalty percentages that Hachette pays its authors and the asinine insistence on price-fixing (to the detriment of sales volumes) that is the true source of harm to authors. 

Lets not forget the monster antitrust lawsuit against Hachette and other publishers for price-fixing. Hachette is now attempting the same kind of tactic with Amazon.

Today's world of book retail is focused on highly competitive price structure, where discounting digital products is expected by consumers. Yet Hachette is fighting tooth and nail to retain the right to price-fix their ebooks, and block Amazon from discounting.

How does price fixing and blocking a retailer's ability to offer discounts help authors?  

It isn't helping the megacorp authors whose books cannot compete with lower priced offerings. It isn't helping consumers who statistically buy more volume of books when offered at lower prices.  It isn't helping the propagation of quality literature.  

Price-fixing is an attempt to preserve paperback sales, against the natural flow of the market as it adapts to and falls in love with ebooks and other digital entertainment and information products.

So, all this screaming and crying and arguing and other BS is for what? 

So that Hachette can try to preserve its paperback sales by having ebooks priced the same as paperbacks?

How the hell does this have anything to do with the concept of protecting authors and quality literature?  

Sounds like Hachette has engaged its book publishing PR organization to spin propaganda and fling it across the media worldwide to put pressure on Amazon in their negotiations.  

Since when has Hachette ever publicly stated they are the self-appointed protectors of authors and literature? From their demands on Amazon, it would seem they are a megacorp who wants to protect a certain business model, and that business model is proven harmful to authors.

My bullshit detector is screaming like a firetruck.

From where I stand, Amazon isn't the one in this negotiation that is responsible for hurting Hachette's authors.

Hachette needs no help at all to hurt its authors, its been doing a fine job of that all on its own.

My advice to Hachette:

Hachette, instead of inciting authors across the world into frenzied arguments over half-truths and BS propaganda, why don't you take your dispute and go to court, quietly. I'm sure the DOJ would love to preside over this dispute in court, and I imagine they are watching these proceedings very closely.

Hachette, leave the authors and your monster PR campaign department out of your contract negotiations. This is a polarizing issue, causing nothing but strife between authors at a time when we need to be united and working together to face a rapidly evolving industry. Many authors are so confused about the future of publishing, that some will choose not to publish, simply because of this ugly mess of propaganda you have dragged out into the media.

My advice to authors:

Want to learn  the down and dirty, nitty gritty about this heated debate?  

Check out JA Konrath's blog: http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/

:)

Here Is What I Know (Self-Publishing Lessons Reblogged) #Pubtalk #Selfpublishing #ASMSG

Here's a phenomenal blog post from one of my all-time favorite bloggers, JA Konrath, which I have syndicated. 

The Original POST: http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2014/03/heres-what-i-know.html

Here is what I know:

Be self-aware.

Be deliberate.

Don't be a pinhead.

Publishing is a business. Writing is an art. You may not enjoy the business, but you definitely should enjoy the art.

This is a marathon, not a sprint.

Read the contract before you sign it. Twice. Three times. Then have your lawyer read it.

The secret to happiness is what you give, not what you get.

No one owes you a living.

Success may involve talent and hard work, but it always involves luck. Talent and hard work may improve your luck.

Ebooks are forever. Forever is a long time to get noticed.

There's a word for a writer who never gives up... published.

Denial is a powerful opiate.

Be kind, be generous, be helpful, and be careful.

If you're selling eggs, don't piss off your chickens.

When you're learning how to walk, you don't take classes. You don't read how-to books. You don't pay experts to help you, or do it for you. You just keep falling until you learn on your own.

Before you make the key, study the lock.

People would rather fight to the death to defend their beliefs than consider changing their minds.

It's about what you have to offer, not what you have to sell.

A sense of entitlement is never acceptable. No one deserves anything.

What are the last ten books you bought, and what made you buy them? Use those techniques to sell your books to other people. Do what works on you.

Hard work trumps talent. Persistence trumps inspiration. Humility trumps ego.

Praise is like candy. We love it, but it isn't good for us. You can only improve by being told what's wrong.

Your book is your child. You can't recognize its shortcomings, any more than a proud parent could consider their child dumb and ugly.

The experts don't know everything, and they might not know what's right for you.

Fate is a future you didn't try hard enough to change.

Anyone looking for you can find you. Get them to find you when they're looking for something else.

Less expectations, more work.

Life gives you wonderful opportunities to conquer fears, learn skills, and master techniques. ""I don't want to" isn't synonymous with "I can't".

People seek out two things: information and entertainment. Offer them freely, and they'll come to you.

The Internet isn't temporary. What you post today can lead people to you decades from now.

If writing is your profession, act professional.

Stop Googling yourself.

No one said it would be fair, fun, or easy. But it can be worthwhile.

We're all in the same boat. Start rowing.

If you can quit, quit. If you can't quit, stop complaining--this is what you chose.

There are a lot of things that happen beyond your control. Your goals should be within your control.

Write when you can. Finish what your start. Edit what you finish. Self-publish. Repeat.

The most successful people on the planet have one thing in common: nothing can stop them. Don't expect to reach your goals without sacrificing things that are important to you.

Being your own best advocate is about understanding how people react to you.

Fake confidence, and real confidence follows.

Maybe you can't win. But you sure as hell can try.

Don't write crap.

Always have two hands reaching out. One, for your next goal. The other, to help people get to where you're at.

If you can't be smart or funny, be brief.

Don't ever say anything online that you wouldn't say in person.

If you're not in love with the sound of your own voice, how can you expect anyone else to ever be?

Knowing you're not original is the first step in becoming unique.

People aren't carved out of marble. We're all works in progress. The trick is to define ourselves, rather than let outside influences define us.

Don't prioritize the mundane.

Writers are essential. Readers are essential. Publishers are not.

Stop thinking if. Start thinking how.

The more you fail, the closer you are to success. If you don't have success, you haven't failed enough.

Envy, jealousy, guilt, regret, shame, and worry are all useless emotions. Focus on love, patience, tolerance, and forgiveness.

There should only be a few people in your life whose opinion matters. The opinions of everyone else do not.

One of the greatest journeys in life is overcoming insecurity and learning to truly not give a shit.

If you're reading this blog, you aren't writing. Get back to work.

Digital Book World Freaks Out at Hugh Howey's Accusations! #Pubtalk #DigitalPublishing #ASMSG

Freaked out Publisher Face,
which just so happens to look like Jim Carrey in Liar Liar...

Hugh Howey, author of the wildly popular bestselling 'Wool' series, blasted the world with jaw-dropping statistics on ebook sales vs. print, and Indie/Self-Pub stats: 

Via Hugh's new website http://authorearnings.com/, he revealed surprising statistics that demonstrate Indie/Self-Publishing is a massively growing trend, gaining in sales and market-share, and that a portion of Indie/Self-pub authors have been making more money than their counterparts in 'traditional-legacy' publishing.

(To get a complete picture, please visit Author Earnings, or JA Konrath's phenomenal blog post outlining the whole deal)

http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2014_02_11_archive.html

Now, the problem, Digital Book World, Bowker, and whole bunch of 'Industry Professionals' have staked their reputations by a completely different set of numbers. If you believe them, print sales are actually 70-75% and the rest is ebooks and audio-books.  And, if you believe them, Indies/Self-pubs and Amazon publishing book sales are not really eating up over 50% of the marketplace (the pros have it as a much lower percentage).  

Hugh Howey's numbers and well-defended conclusions have wrought CHAOS in the establishment. Digital Book World is repeatedly blowing up email newsletters filled with non-stop defensive arguments from Mike Shatzkin and Dana Beth Weinberg trying their damnedest to bring Hugh's data into question. 

Hmmm...The lady doth protest too much.

(check out Konrath as he blasts the 'industry professionals')

http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2014/02/indies-eat-publishers-lunch-semi.html

http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2014_02_14_archive.html


Email after email of denials and analysis of the analysis:

Setting the record straight, again, and again, and again...

Still trying hard to set the record straight....

In reading article after article of 'Industry Professionals' trying so hard to defend both their industry, and their sketchy data (skewed in their favor of course), a couple of things become clear through the quagmire of mud-flinging and accusations:

1)  Traditional Publishing does not yet understand that their business model is largely obsolete, and they are coasting on momentum, and the fallacy of belief that authors still need a publisher.

2)  Traditional Publishing has many proponents out in the media and industry. This myth that authors are better served by using a traditional publisher is still an entrenched ideal.  

But the foundation of this house of cards is starting to crumble, and the ugly truth has been exposed: 

We (Self-publishers) don't need you, Mr. Publisher. 

I don't need you, Mr. Publisher.

Why?  Because my books are sold worldwide, via Apple, Amazon, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Allromanceebooks.com, Smashwords, and even as an emagazine on Issuu.com.  

I am already making money publishing my books, and I only have three of my seven novels in paperback, and I don't even have a single audiobook. 99% of my promos are happening in social media, with very little paid promotion.  I run rebelmouse social media hubs. I run tribes on Triberr. I run several facebook pages, twitter profiles, and my fingers are pretty deep into Goodreads (haven't messed with Shelfari yet).

I am one of the many new publishers, both an author, and a publisher, and a social media promotional consultant.

I am making money in ebooks. 

I have never written a single query letter, not one. I have never downloaded a query letter format or bought a course on how to write query letters or attended seminars on how to query agents and finagle submissions to publishers.  

I have never bothered.

I, Travis Luedke, am part of a new breed of authors, who have never wanted or cared to have a publisher.  The only thing publishers can offer me is bookstore print placement, and some foreign rights (subrights).  I don't want a publisher in control of my editing. I don't want a publisher in control of my metadata. I don't want a publisher screwing up my blurbs and cover art, and sponging off my 60-70% royalties. 

I have seen authors struggling with their publishers, struggling with garbage cover art and having zero control over pricing, price promotions, giveaways, freebies, and yet they are still expected to do what I do in social media, to gather fans, to promote their writings, their blog, their books, and still they give up the lion's share of the sales royalties to the publisher. For what?  What value do publisher's bring to the table?

If authors must do all this work to connect with fans and sell their books out in social media, then what do they need a publisher for?

Obviously, Traditional Publishing is still the primary route for an author to get their books on the shelves of nationwide bookstores. Indies/Self-pubs are all waiting for the day that changes, we are biding our time for the moment a service provider offers a straightforward route into that final distribution point. 

That is what's called a vacuum in the marketplace. How long before a service provider comes along to fill that vacuum and blast open bookstores to Indie/Self-pubs?  

Amazon has offered to allow bookstores to sell Kindles and products, a wholesale/affiliate kind of deal.  Lightning Source has some limited access to bookstores for Indies with a certain amount of clout.

Okay, I was rambling, forgive me. 

The point is HUGH HOWEY, or more specifically, his numbers. 

Hugh's numbers and pie charts and line graphs and all that fun stuff is a classic case of data proving what I have learned by experience. These numbers are not wrong, they are a statistical confirmation of what I already knew, but never had the data (or time) to articulate.

:)

Are New York Publishers Still Relevant? (REBLOG) #PubTalk #ASMSG

Laugh at the Indie Math all you like, I'm laughing at the end of every month
when Amazon's direct deposit comes in.

Just today I found this awesome article from Huffington Post, courtesy of Digital Book World's daily email. Though I tend to get angry at DBW for some of their ridiculously slanted editorial postings, I always read their emails. Occasionally they post a gem like this:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/are-new-york-publishers-s_b_4763640.html

Are New York Publishers Still Relevant?

Posted: 02/10/2014 9:47 pm EST Updated: 02/11/2014 9:59 pm EST

For years New York publishers (also called legacy publishing or corporate publishing) were at the top of the publishing food chain. They decided which books were released and when. They created books that started pop-culture trends and, in a word, they ruled the world. But as we've evolved through the publishing mecca and other, viable options presented themselves, the issue of how to publish and whether the big New York publishers still control the industry is very debatable. Even bigger are the issues surrounding what, if any, value these publishers bring to the author. Great industry equalizers have been eBooks, eReaders and, of course, the often-hated and always mysterious Amazon.

During Digital Book World in New York, this topic was pretty heavily discussed. In fact, Dana Beth Weinberg presented on this very issue, why publishers should be worried about losing their author base. The Indie Math, as she calls it, would show that authors who have self-published could potentially earn more money than if they had published traditionally: http://www.amarketingexpert.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/2014-01-15-10.55.41.jpg

The real problem with this is that while publishers are aware of the options that authors have, they still do not feel that their existence is in jeopardy. Or, most of them don't. I have spoken with a lot of publishing colleagues who are in-house at publishers who completely get that the axis of power has shifted. The author now holds all the cards. Let's celebrate that for a moment because I remember when I was first in this industry and self-publishing (now renamed the ever-trendy indie publishing) was the little stepchild never invited to the table. If you self-published you were considered somewhat akin to a bottom-dweller. Sorry if that's harsh, but it's the truth. New York looked down at self-publishing, and I know this firsthand because I've always self-published and, frankly, I've been proud to jump on this trend. When I started my business some thirteen years ago, someone in publishing asked me why I'd even bother to spend time on the self-published book or promote the author of such a tome. My answer was always the same: don't judge what you don't know and even if you know it, don't judge. You never know where the great ideas will come from or the things, like print-on-demand or the initially poo-pooed Kindle e-Reader, that will change the world.

So, back to my original question: are the New York publishers still relevant? The answer is: "it depends" and often, just flat-out "no." I think it's time that we offered publishers a glimpse of the future, a future that is not all too far off and where they have to prove their relevance to authors. Everything that was once exclusive to a publisher has become much more accessible to authors. If you're trying to decide if you should wait for a publisher, perhaps it's time to reconsider that question altogether.

Let's have a look at where publishers have succeeded in the past and how that's changed:

Book Production: At some point during Digital Book World one of the speakers showed a survey that indicated that authors generally felt that publishers could do a better job of creating a marketable book than they could. They worried about things like editing, cover design and general market segmentation. Many authors still feel publishers can do a better job, but guess what? They can't. We work with a number of high quality self-published titles and, for most of them, I'd dare you to find something about them that screams self-published. These days, there is a font of information out there for authors who are willing to educate themselves enough. The competitive advantage is in the hands of the author who can go the distance with this and, if you do it on your own, you could end up making a lot more money.

Distribution & Bookstore Access: There was a time when only publishers could get you into a bookstore or airport store. That's simply not true anymore. You can get distribution, and you can get yourself into a bookstore, gift shop, or airport store.

The Ring of Fire: This is perhaps one area that scores an advantage for the publisher, and it's something I call the ring of fire. This is the process by which a book is filtered through the publisher's system and a process that really helps educate authors and gets them ready for the hardcore process that is publishing. During this process you'll have an editor requesting changes, you'll be tinkering and rewriting until they feel it's perfect enough for publication. It's hard and often humbling and it helps an author realize how tough it is out there, I mean really tough. With 3,500 books published every day in this country, be good or be gone, and remember: hope is not a marketing plan.

Media and Marketing: Most often authors feel like this is where publishers succeed, and for the authors who actually get some marketing for their book, this is probably true. I know a lot of very talented publicity people who work in-house and believe me when I say that they know their stuff. The problem is this: there isn't always an aggressive marketing and publicity budget assigned to each book. In almost 90% of the cases, authors have to do their own marketing.

Money: The all-important driver behind book publishing is the bigger question: "Will they make any money?" The challenge with this question is that no one knows, at least not with any certainty. Publishers (understandably) have become more risk averse, publishing titles by authors who have huge followings or who are celebrities. This becomes somewhat of a challenge for the rest of us, especially if you're considered a newbie, no-brand, non-following author - which is, candidly, most of us. Is the money really better on the other side? What about author advances and such? Well, as the link shows above, the advances may not bear out, given the higher sales percentage you can get self-publishing your book. And advances have also shrunk in recent years, which is, again, understandable. The caveat to this is that you can embrace the indie revolution, and forgo traditional but you have to think big time. Especially if you're a newbie. By "big time" I don't mean hoping for a movie deal, but rather holding your book up to a set of very high quality standards. So, that's the long answer. The short is answer is: yes, you can make as much money or more by self-publishing, but you have to do it right.

Cachet: The cachet of being published by a big house once was a big deal and I think that for many this still holds true. The media was sensitive to self-published books and often didn't feature them, not because they didn't want to or had a bias against them, but because they were, in a word: garbage. But now that the bar is being raised and authors are beginning to understand the expectation of the industry, this is changing. So that cachet isn't really having the publisher's name on the book, it's about having a book that looks like it came from a Simon & Schuster or Random House. Get the picture?

So in looking at all of the above, authors have to wonder why on earth they'd even go with a big house. Yes, why indeed? Now publishers, realizing that there is money to be made in self-publishing, are offering self-publishing as an extension of their brand and this creates even more confusion. Penguin bought Author Solutions but if you publish with Author Solutions it does not, in any way, make you a Penguin author. Problem is, many authors think that's the case. In fact, last week I got a book sent to me by an author who said he was published by Penguin. He wasn't. It was Author Solutions. When I attempted to explain this to him he became upset and thought I was selling him some misaligned bag of goods.

I get that buying Author Solutions was probably a great business decision for Penguin. But as we see more and more of this, the issue of publisher brands is going to get even murkier and hard to define. As they find ways to remain relevant, despite the fact that the earth is shifting beneath them (and often in the author's favor), it's becoming more and more difficult to survive.

Maybe instead of trying to find ways to expand their brand into self-publishing, these publishing houses should be looking at ways to keep their traditional arms more attractive to the author. One has to wonder if, at some point, savvy authors will weigh a potential contract against going it on their own for more profit and more creative license, and I think that this is a big point that publishers are missing.

The problem in the industry, and I would say that this is the biggest problem, is that so many still don't get it. Donald Maass wrote a piece for Writer Unboxed last week that illuminates this point with stunning clarity: the industry does not get it. They see this as a class issue (at some point in his piece Maass refers to the self-published group as "Freight class") (http://writerunboxed.com/2014/02/05/the-new-class-system/). It was infuriating and frightening at the same time. Frightening because despite this self-publishing revolution, no one wants publishers to go away. We do, however, want them to get it. The revolution has arrived, it's knocking on their door and no matter how long they decide to bury their heads in the sand or write blogs about the class distinction and other outdated notions, it is taking over and changing the way we see the industry.

People keep comparing publishing to the music industry, but I think that's wrong. Sure, there are similarities in that they both faced changes they weren't willing to deal with, but the issue of publishing goes much deeper than that. Technically, we're talking about an industry that, if it doesn't change, could face extinction. You can produce a book for a lot less than you can produce an album and with far fewer people. Elements of the music industry will never go away, but big players in publishing might and that's a shame.

When faced with a changing business model, you can either learn how to be a part of the publishing revolution - or step aside and let the revolution take over.

Follow Penny C. Sansevieri on Twitter: www.twitter.com/bookgal

How Can Indie Authors Create Sustainable Competitive Advantages ~ REBLOGGED #ASMSG

This is a posting from ireaderreview.com on June 18th, 2013

It was so well written, I just had to reblog it: 

 

How can Indie Authors create Sustainable Competitive Advantages?

Posted on June 18, 2013 by switch11 

Jack Welch had 6 rules. One of them was – If you don’t have a Competitive Advantage, don’t compete.

This is true in pretty much every field and every business.

Indie Authors currently have lots of competitive advantages and several important competitive disadvantages. Their success, and their ability to ward off all the ‘indie authors are bad for writing’ attacks and the subterfuge of the stores, depends on building up sustainable competitive advantages and rendering Publishers’ competitive advantages unsustainable.

Let’s explore how Indie Authors can create sustainable competitive advantages that will allow them to become the superstar authors of the future.

Cialdini’s Influence & Seeing Reality As It Is

A lot of this post will be based around Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. If you’re an indie author, you need to read this book. It’s that simple.

A lot of this post will also factor in another of Jack Welch’s 6 Rules – See Reality As It Is, Not as it Was, or as You Want it To be.

This (Seeing Reality As It Is, in the Present) is very, very critical. You have to understand that we’re in a different world. There are a few realities to think about carefully -

1. This isn’t the Publisher controlled world any more. Readers will buy your books if it’s good. The relentless drop in prices in ebook stores is proof of this. Only Indie Authors and ex-Published Authors dropped to $1 and $3 initially. Now everyone is being forced to. Readers bought those books without the stamp of Publishers. They still are.
2. Absolutely anyone can top the charts now. This sounds like heresy. However, there are now so many different websites and apps and channels to promote books that you just need enough marketing. It doesn’t matter what the quality of the books is. Price the book at $1, get it listed in enough places, and you’ll hit #1. It’s not just a possibility, it’s guaranteed. If you don’t believe me, then see what Amazon Publishing is doing with its titles. All the titles that people weren’t even buying are now in the Top 100 (with a few exceptions). Note: Amazon Publishing uses all the sites and channels I’m talking about. Strange as it seems, Amazon pays other people to advertise their own books in their own store. This shows how powerful the outside channels have become. The first really hard to believe reality you have to admit, and internalize, is that with sufficient marketing (which is attainable by ANYONE with some money) you can get your book to #1 in the Store. It doesn’t matter how good the book is. Quality and Product Market Fit only determines how long the book will stay in the Top 100.
3. Absolutely anyone is topping the charts now (notice the subtle difference). If you don’t believe this, take a look at what happens with the Kindle Daily Deal. Most of those books are not special. Yet they almost always hit the Top 10 or Top 20. Take a look at all the $1 and $3 books in the Top 100. Read the reviews. These aren’t marvellously written books. There aren’t once-in-a-lifetime books. A few are undoubtedly very, very good. However, most are just normal to good books.
4. Amazon’s job isn’t to help you. In fact, even Amazon isn’t clear what its job is. It’s torn between suppressing lower priced books to make money, promoting its own titles, and keeping book prices low to bring people into its ecosystem. This means that you absolutely MUST assume that Amazon will use books as the loss leader. So the only way you can make a living from books is planning around that. How do you make money if Amazon turns books into loss leaders? In a way, this is already happening. The average selling price of a Top 100 book is $6.287. That includes $13 and $10 books from Publishers - Which means that the average selling price for Indie titles is between $1 and $4. How will you survive in that world?
5. Publishers are stuck. They need to make enough money to keep their massive dinosaur engines running. At the same time prices for ebooks are dropping and the market share of ebooks is rising. What does that mean? It means they have to carve out more for themselves and less for authors. There is no workaround around that reality – If Indie Authors succeed, Publishers and Published Authors die. They aren’t writing long meandering essays on ‘Quality of Books is Falling’ because they care about the quality of books, or because it is (it is, actually). What they really mean is – All these annoying Indie Authors are selling good books for $1 when they should be selling for $10 like we are. It’s unfair.

These are REALITIES. You’ll have to test them (see the facts and then see what the facts show you, not what you want to believe) and then accept them (if the facts show you that these are indeed Realities).

You’ll have to replace all the negative beliefs and misconceptions with these Realities. Get rid of all the brainwashing -

1. You need Publishers to approve you. This might be true if you are looking for validation. If you actually want to sell books and be read and make money, then you only need to publish your books. Self-publishing achieves that.
2. You need to sell paper books. You don’t. Again, if this is part of your need for validation or your need to impress your friends and family, then it’s fine. However, it doesn’t matter whether or not your books are stocked in stores. If you succeed with ebooks, Publishers will flock to you and this will happen automatically.
3. You can’t make money from $1 books. Yes, you can. You just need to sell more. The current ebook stores are optimized for a model of $1 to $5 books that sell at high volumes. You don’t really have any other choice if you’re an indie author. Soon, no one will have any other choice – might as well switch and adapt now.
4. You need Amazon to succeed. You don’t. There are indie authors who are in the Top 100 in B&N and making enough to not care two hoots about Amazon. If you sell well, then it hurts Amazon to not have you, so they will come for you.
5. You can’t make money being an indie author. There are lots of indie authors making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. A few are making hundreds of thousands of dollars a month. If you want to make more than that – well, first you should figure out how many authors actually make millions a month. It’s not a long list.
6. You can’t gain recognition as an indie author. If you get a movie deal or a Top 10 rank – that’s recognition. It doesn’t matter whether you’re ‘published’ or not.

This part is the toughest. This is where a lot of indie authors fail. The more you can drum out all the brainwashing and look at things with a clean slate, the higher the chance you can pick the right approach for you (and that might be Publishers). The key is – Publishers are one option out of many. Same for signing up with Amazon.

Now, on to the real stuff.

Indie Authors’ Competitive Advantages

1. Value for Money. Indie Authors can price their books at $1 and $3. This does two things – Kills Publisher Books at $7 and $9 and $13, Reduces the friction in a user buying and trying your book. At $1 to $5, you’ll have 10 to 3 times more readers willing to take a chance on your book. If you don’t have the first book in a series (or one of you books) free, or at $1, then you’re losing your biggest competitive advantage.
2. Being able to sell at $1 to $3. Not only is this making you more attractive, it is killing Publishers. Literally killing them. If 20 indie authors at $1 and $2 are selling in the Top 100, that means 20 books at $10 and $13 aren’t. Publishers are losing millions every single day. The faster the transition happens, the less time Publishers have to adapt. Indie Authors can not only gain a big competitive advantage by pricing their books between $1 and $3, they can also literally kill off Publishers.
3. No Illusion that Marketing will magically happen. A lot of published authors are under the misconception that they can just write. Apart from the established superstars, everyone has to market themselves. As an Indie Author you are free of any misconceptions that the Marketing Fairy will magically make everyone aware your book exists.
4. A Deeper Connection with Readers. Who do you think readers relate to better - Big large soulless corporations or new authors making a name for themselves? As an indie author, you’re the People’s Champion. Your readers will fight for you. Give them a chance. You have to do your part and give of yourself – be available, talk to your readers, get feedback, be a human being and not a name on a cover. Get yourself out there.
5. Speed to Market. Read this post on Indie Authors being much faster to market. You can react quicker. You can improve your books quicker. You can send out sequels quicker. You can react to and cater to Hot New Markets quicker.
6. Creative Control. There are multiple perspectives on what might work and what might not. The truth is that you don’t really know. No one does. If a Hot New Market exists or is created, you can cater to it. However, there’s no way you can guarantee your book creates a new market. If you just want to write something in your heart, with self-publishing you have total creative control. In my opinion, this leads to better work, provided indie authors embrace quality enhancers like editing and proofreading.
7. Constant Improvement of the Book itself. As an Indie Author you can take the typos and errors and keep adding to them. You can add free stories. You can add sequels. You can add downloads like wallpapers and stories and illustrations. A Publisher will move very slowly and a Publisher will only do this when a book is a success. You, on the other hand, can keep improving the value proposition and the quality of the book. If you don’t do this, you’re throwing away a big competitive differentiator.
8. Betting 100% on eBooks & Optimizing for eBooks. Publishers have to sabotage ebooks to ensure their paper book sales don’t die out. So, you get strange things like delayed releases and crazy prices. You also get a total neglect of ebook marketing, ebook polish and quality, and other factors like social marketing. You are free. You can focus on all the things that are needed. Think of it as Entity A running a hotel and on the side running a Bed & Breakfast. However, it doesn’t really want to run the Bed & Breakfast and that shows through in lots of ways. You, on the other hand, are in LOVE with your Bed & Breakfast and take joy in making your Bed & Breakfast excellent in every way.
9. Incorporating Customer Feedback & Strengthening Customer Relationships. This is different from 4. A Deeper Connection to Readers. There, you were showing your human side and using Likability and Familiarity to create a bond. Here, you are showing you genuinely care about their reading experience and strengthening it. It’s akin to deepening a friendship by taking a road trip together.

Note: We’ll use a lot of principles of influence throughout. We don’t mean it in a sleazy ‘magical and revolutionary’ sort of way. We really mean it. Now you’re one to one with your readers so only integrity and genuinely caring will work. If you don’t really care for readers then work with Publishers so that you can hide that disadvantage.

We have to use influence because our competitors (Publishers, Platforms) are, and because they have way too many unfair advantages.

Indie Authors’ Competitive Disadvantages

Eliminating some of these is important, especially the first.

1. Lack of Quality Control, Lack of Curation. Would it be crazy to suggest that the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library and 5-days-free offers were attempts to dilute the march of the best indie authors? Perhaps. Perhaps truth is stranger than fiction. This (lack of quality control, lack of curation) is the single biggest competitive disadvantage for indie authors. There’s no curation and that suggests that all indie author titles are garbage.
2. Too Much Supply. This is a competitive disadvantage in the sense that it makes it hard for indie authors to make money. However, the workaround is to use Free and $1 for Marketing and then sell the rest of your books at higher prices.
3. No Awareness amongst Readers. This is the second biggest disadvantage. How do you let readers know you exist? There are various choices – Free as Marketing, Cheap as Marketing, buy advertising, build your own channels. Unfortunately, all of these require hard work and they require authors to venture into uncomfortable territory – marketing, sales, pre-sales.
4. No Marketing Channels that Authors own themselves. This has to be fixed. If this isn’t fixed then there’s no point to what you are doing. You want a strong, PERMANENT channel to your readers. Which you own COMPLETELY – 100%. Not a Facebook or Twitter account. None of that nonsense. Your OWN blog (with a custom domain you own 100%) and your own email newsletter.
5. No Money. This is a tough one. How do you market? polish? write? … if you don’t have the money to buy services and time. I don’t have an answer.
6. Lack of Brand and Branding. I think indie authors should just skip this and focus on building their marketing channels and building real relationships with their readers and with their 1,000 true fans.
7. Lack of Market Intelligence. This is a really hard one. The only way to gain this is to sell books. You can try to buy it, but it’s expensive and doesn’t work as well. It helps to create Author Master Minds. However, how do you find 5 to 10 other indie authors who are focused and willing to put aside all their brainwashing?
8. Lack of Belief. Nothing works except you being ready to stop being a serf.
9. Lack of Guile. This is really tough. Guile requires a few things that aren’t easy to acquire – street smarts, experience, a variable moral compass. This isn’t necessary but it helps.
10. No Customer Relationships or Intent to Build Them. This is key. You can do well without customer relationships. However, these (customer relationships) are literally the foundation on which you build a sustainable career. If you aren’t willing to do this perhaps you should consider another line of work or sign up with a Publisher.

These are very big disadvantages. There’s no denying that. The good thing is that the advantages are bigger, and that most of these disadvantages can be neutralized or circumvented.

Creating Sustainable Competitive Advantages

There’s one key thing to understand -

1. A competitive advantage will let you win. A single competitive advantage could be enough to win the battle. An example is pricing – Pricing your book at $1 is powerful enough that it, alone, can allow indie authors to destroy Publishers in book sales.
2. To keep winning, you need sustainable competitive advantages. With a sustainable competitive advantage, you can win the war. Example: A relationship you build with your readers. Publishers and Authors build brands but most of them don’t really put effort into building relationships. Authors are happy to let Publishers handle all communication. Publishers are happy to let booksellers handle all interaction. Any indie author who actively engages with her/his readers will create a sustainable competitive advantage. If all other things are equal, we choose the product from the person/company we like and are familiar with.

Cialdini’s points on Liking and Familiarity are key. There’s the brand recognition aspect and there’s the personal human aspect. The Human aspect wins every single time.

What Sustainable Competitive Advantages can Indie Authors build?

1. $1 to $3 books. If Indie Authors stick with prices that most Publishers can’t survive on, and which most other indie authors won’t go with, for strange reasons like ‘believing my unproven work is worth $10′, they can create one sustainable competitive advantage.
2. Their own channels to readers. Email lists. Blogs. Social Network connections. While every published author depends on Publishers. While most indie authors do nothing or depend on advertising. You can build your own channels that you control yourself. If you’ve sold 250,000 books and release a new one – Guess which readers are the most likely to buy your new book. Well, you better create channels to them and for them. Even releasing an app which has one book free and then updates readers about your other books isn’t extreme. Why? Because when you release new books, you can send a message to the App and to your readers. You can reach all of them quickly and for free.
3. A Human Connection and Relationship. If a reader likes your book and then gets to interact with you – That greatly increases the chances that reader will buy one or more of your other books. You now have the opportunity to do virtual book signings and tours and meet lots and lots of your readers. It would be laziness and stupidity not to. The 1,000 true fans are the most important – If you can’t meet the rest, at least build connections with these 1,000 true fans.
4. Speed & Optimized Processes. Build up processes and tools and procedures so that you can do things faster and better than anyone else. If you can whittle down things so that a book takes you 6 months to release, and most Publishers and Authors take 2 years, then you can release 4 books in the time they release 1. They simply can’t compete.
5. A Large Portfolio. The single biggest sustainable advantage you have is a large portfolio of books. Why? Each book feeds each other. You can create a Book Network. The minute you hit 5-6 books (and not books in a single series) you’ll see serious network effects. If a reader likes your book, and you have only 1 book, then you’re finished. If, on the other hand, you have 21 books, then you might see 1 or 2 or even 20 more purchases from that reader.
6. Marketing Skills and Channels. This is similar to 2. All the channels you build while doing marketing are channels to readers. They are also channels to market your new books. This is why it’s important to build channels you control completely or are run by honest people. Facebook changed the rules so that now you can reach only a fraction of your followers, unless you pay for a ‘sponsored post’. Lesson: Build up your blog and email lists. Build your own little Pottermore or your own free apps.
7. Book Quality. You are nimble and focused on delivering the absolute best reading experience. That means you can take your book from 80/100 to 95/100 in quality and polish. Most Publishers simply can’t afford to get beyond 90/100. Most indie authors never get beyond 75/100. Get all/most your books to 95/100 in polish – You’ll have an advantage that no one else can match.
8. Optimizing for eBooks and Constantly Improving. If you start running in ebooks – learn strategies, polish, learn marketing, learn how ebooks work. Well, you’ll gain a strong advantage. Now, if you keep running and keep improving, everyone else can never catch up. Plus you’ll need comparatively less time and effort to keep improving, while the ones trailing you have to put in 3-4 times more work and effort.

There are other sustainable competitive advantages indie authors can build up. The sustainable part is most important – It has to be something you control and which no one else can take away. It has to be something that can’t be duplicated easily. There will also be sustainable competitive advantages that are UNIQUE to who YOU are. Figure those out.

The key thing to remember is that very, very few people have competitive advantages in ebooks and even fewer have sustainable ones. If you start now and focus, you can get way ahead of the field. It might seem ludicrous to suggest that you could build stronger marketing channels than even Amazon and B&N and Publishers. However, this is exactly what some smart authors and companies are doing – and a few of them will succeed (some have already succeeded).

The very things that were strengths for the Publishers and Platforms are turning into liabilities. You get to start afresh without having to guard any existing assets. It’s a huge advantage. Perhaps the biggest if leveraged right.

Destroying the sustainability of Competitive Advantages Publishers and Published Authors have

This is a touchy subject. The serfs (indie authors and us readers) aren’t supposed to question the God-given right of Publishers and Published Authors. Perhaps the Platforms, once they have more power, will feel they have special status too.

However, we aren’t in medieval Europe. It’s time to fight fire with fire.

What are Publishers striking at – The Quality Perception of Indie Books. Strike back. Publishers spend 90% of their effort on paper books. They then make low-quality ebook versions and sell them for outrageous prices.

Tell readers the truth – Your ebook versions get 100% of your time and effort. They aren’t treated like third-class citizens. They aren’t delayed. They aren’t overpriced. They aren’t sacrificed at the altar of paper book sales.

What are Platforms doing – giving subtle marketing and awareness advantages to their own titles and to high-priced books. They don’t even have the courage to be open about their attempts. The Platforms use small meaningless influence tactics that Cialdini would probably laugh at. Even Sheep (literal sheep, with wool and stuff) wouldn’t fall for that weak stuff. Note: That’s why it isn’t working. That’s why low priced books are still taking over.

Beat them on price and quality. There are already 21 books at $1 in the Top 100. All you have to do is deliver quality. The $1 price does the rest.

$1 and $0 are so Powerful they should be Illegal

$1 is magical – It’s marketing. It reduces friction. It increases sales. It gets readers willing to buy all your books, instead of just a few.

Notice how indie authors who gambled on $1 and $3 saw lots and lots of their books hit the top of the charts.

John Locke and Amanda Hocking had, at times, 3 of the Top 10 titles in the Kindle Store. Including #1. Why would that happen? Because the books were ALL cheap. Very little friction. That’s the power of $1.

$1 can destroy every single handicap and algorithm tweak the Platforms throw at it.

Free? Free is even more powerful.

Guess what Publishers and Platforms can’t afford – $0 and $1. Even Amazon got scared of $0 and ran away from free kindle book promotions. It’s hiding the Top 100 Free Books list now.

As an Indie Author, you aren’t scared. You can use $0 as powerful marketing. Then you can use $1 to get readers more invested. Then $3 to make a decent amount of money.

All of the Competitive Advantages Publishers and Platforms have are Unsustainable

That’s just the truth. Every single advantage they have is based on a world that has already gone. A world where there were gates and there were all-powerful gatekeepers.

There is no Gate, Neo.

Now Publishers and Platforms are using weak freshman year psychology and illusions and fancy words to pretend they still have power.

Just strip away the illusions.

There’s not a single competitive advantage Publishers have that is sustainable.

The only two sustainable advantages Platforms have are ‘Curation’ and ‘Convenience’. All it takes is one intelligent algorithm – whether crowd-sourced or silicon-sourced. That’s all. Those two advantages will be gone. Note: The stores aren’t very good at curation. They aren’t even really trying.

If you can’t wait for algorithms or crowds, then just build your own channels and speak to readers directly. They would like that.

The bottom line is – We’re in a completely different world. All the competitive advantages Publishers and Platforms have are unsustainable. All the real sustainable competitive advantages are ones that Indie Authors can build better than Publishers or Platforms – because they have no baggage and no existing paper book markets to protect. Indie Authors have nothing to lose and everything to gain. They have no old mindsets they have been trained in, unless they are exceptionally attached to past patterns (which makes no sense – you weren’t even getting published, why believe in that ancient world). The entire world of books and publishing is changing and the wolves have been let loose. I don’t see any way that Publishers and Platforms can fight them all off. Now it’s just a question of which wave of wolves tears out the throats of Publishers. How many waves after that before the Platforms are reduced to enablers instead of gatekeepers.