Monday, January 17, 2011

And this is why I did it . . .

There was a day when I would never have considered self-publishing.  Those days are gone.  Does that mean I'm going to stop publishing with a big New York publisher?

No way!

Contrary to what Joe Konrath (Big Time Kindle Author) says, not everybody has had his success on Amazon.  But self-publishing for established authors makes sense for several reasons:
  • Getting your out-of-print books (and short stories) back in circulation
  • Finishing a series that has been canceled for lack of sales by a big publisher
  • Writing the kinds of books you want to write that big publishers say they can't sell
In my case, I decided NOT to go back to my small publisher with the third (and 4th) books in my Jeff Resnick series.  The rights were tied up for too long, and they only marketed to libraries.  Libraries can be a big market -- or they might not.  There are thousands of libraries across the world--thousands more than wanted to buy my books.  I believe I can (eventually) sell more copies myself.

Two of the Jeff Resnick books are available as Kindle downloads.  Plenty of people have asked me why I didn't make them available as "regular" books.  Well, it's going to happen, but the process is taking much longer than I would have thought.  Part of the problem is I'm working full time on books for my big NY publisher.  I've got a contract with them, they're paying me, they get first shot with my time.

For another thing ... will anyone actually buy the books once they're available in print?  Experience (not mine, but other authors who've done this) says not exactly.  A friend of mine has made her out-of-print books available as trade paperbacks and reports she sells a few every month.  People aren't crashing down her door looking for those books.  She sells far more of the (cheaper) Kindle versions.  Therefore, my expectations are not great either.  Still, for those who are interested, I do want to make the books available.

CHEATED_no_2.sm So . . . I've uploaded the first of the four books to CreateSpace and even as I type this, my proof copy is in the making.  I probably won't see it until next week, and they've already said there's a glitch with the cover.  (I'm working with my cover designer to resolve that.)

It will probably take at least another month before all the wrinkles are ironed out and the books are available, and when they are--I'll let you know

In the meantime, are any of you interested in reading my out-of-print Jeff Resnick books?

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3 comments:

  1. Constant ReaderJanuary 17, 2011 at 8:51 AM

    I am! I actually am switching (for most of my new buys) to ebooks for my B&N Nook. I live in a small space and have way too many books (80% of which are boxed and stacked) to fit in 5 bookshelves.

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  2. BarbaraJanuary 17, 2011 at 9:50 AM

    I self-published my book, O Fairest Monticello, several years ago because it would appeal to a limited market (about Monticello Female Academy 1838) and therefore no publishing house was interested. The problem? Marketing. I had no marketing budget so I did the best I could but still only managed to break even. I still have an attic full of books.

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  3. AnonymousJanuary 17, 2011 at 9:56 AM

    I feel your pain, Rural View. I bought all the remaindered copies of the seond Jeff Resnick book, DEAD IN RED, and I'm selling them (postage paid) for $15 less than my publisher. The paperback edition will cost $3 more without postage. I probably won't make the book available in paperback until I sell the majority of those hardbacks. I see that taking a l-o-n-g time.

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