Quote:
Originally Posted by stonetools
One of the facts that MR folks is assuming is that Baen is highly profitable. Of course, neither we -nor the publishers-KNOW that. It may be that Baen is making just enough money to keep the wolf from the door.
Frankly, without knowing what Baen's finances are, we really don't know that Baen's models work all that well.
I think publishers would be a lot more willing to follow Baen's lead if they know whether Baen's models actually made money.
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Given that publishers aren't into trying much, I doubt they would follow Baen's model (or anyone else's model). Baen has been doing non-DRMd books at reasonable prices for a while. They've posted that it works for them. No they haven't posted numbers or profits--but I'm guessing they would *stop* doing it if it *didn't* work for them.
Baen is one of the few publishers out there that tries things. Not all of them succeed (Baen's Universe comes to mind; a recent attempt to reach the short story market.)
Yes, they are niche, just as indie authors are niche. And not everything I do would work at a large publisher. The kicker is: They don't seem to be trying *anything.*