[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by viceant

I think publishers are lying us about paper books costs you mentioned. There are many ebooks which prices are half the printed books.

And where do those books come from? The economics for self-published/indie-published books is very different than for traditional publishers.

And if they believe on Laffer's curve, why they don't offer much more cheap ebooks?

If the publisher in question is a traditional publisher, they can't. They'd lose money.

Sorry, but I almost never believe what a seller says about what he/she/it sells...

Believe what you like. I've been following traditional publishing for over 40 years. I know people in the industry. I've seen book budgets. I know what the actual costs are for print/bind/warehouse/distribute on a title.

Let's look at what happens in a typical book sale to a traditional publisher. Publishers work on a project basis, so people working on a book will fill out time sheets documenting the time spent on that particular book.

A writer finishes a manuscript. $DEITY smiles on them, and they interest a reputable agent in representing them. The agent successfully places a book with a major trade publisher, and an editor makes an offer. The size of the offer will depend upon the author's track record. A brand new author will get a far lower offer than an established author who has a good sales record.

The agent will sit down with the publisher's contracts folks to negotiate a deal. (And it's why you want an agent. An agent can negotiate a contract better than you can - it's her job.) A contract is agreed upon and an advance is offered to the author for the right to publish the book.

Costs have been incurred. The time of the acquiring editor in looking at the book, deciding it's something her house can sell, and deciding to make an offer, the time of the contracts folks who actually write the contract, and the amount provided to the author as an advance.

The next step is developmental editing. A line edit occurs to try to improve the manuscript and polish it for publication. The line editor does not have to be the acquiring editor (though in the case of fiction ,it probably will be.) A back and forth iterative process ensues until there is agreement on a final manuscript between author and editor.

More costs - the time of the editor doing the developmental edit.

Now a completed manuscript is ready to be turned into a book. It must be copy edited and proofread. More costs - the time of the folks who do that, who are professionals expecting pro pay scales.

The end result is a final manuscript. It goes to DTP. DTP does markup and typesetting, working to specs provided by a book interior designer. The end result of that process is a PDF the printer will make plates from to print the book. So you have the cost of the book designer's time, and the DTP specialist's time.

Meanwhile, the book needs a cover. An art director will commission one. You have the time of the Art Director, and the fee paid to the cover artist. The cover will be married with the interior to produce the completed book.

Depending upon the book, the publisher's legal department may be involved. Controversial books produce lawsuits, and Legal's concern will be that anything the book says that might provoke a suit can be proven to be factual and the publisher can defend itself in court. So you may need to add the Legal time to the costs.

You also have the cost of overhead. Publishers have employees not directly involved in the production of the book who must be paid, plus rent and utilities for their offices, and estimated taxes. An allocated share of overhead will be part of the book's costs.

Please note that all of those costs are incurred before the book is actually published in print or electronic form. Tell me which you think can be dropped to lower the cost enough to let you get a cheaper price?

If what you read is fiction, and you can find stuff self/indie published that satisfies you, you can get the pricing you like.

I read far more non-fiction these days, and the stuff I read does not get issued as self/indie published work. It can't be.

An example here is a book called The Path Between the Seas, by David McCullough. I have it in paper and electronic form. It's the best history I am aware of of the building of the Panama Canal. It won the National Book Award for History. It was the author's full time job during the period in which it was written. That won't happen as self/indie published. It needs a traditional publisher to subsidize the writer while to book is in process.

I'm on a budget. I can't afford all of the books I might like. But one of the first things I learned as a small child was that I couldn't have anything I wanted, when I wanted it, just because I wanted it. When I became an adult, I learned that I needed to prioritize and make choices. I couldn't buy all the books I wanted, so which were most important to me?

And ultimately, my scarce resource isn't money - it's time. I have more books now than I have time to read. I tell folks "If I could learn to read a different book with each eye, I might reduce the rate of growth of the To Be Read queue." I also say the nice thing about eBooks is that you don't have to call the EMTs is my To Be Read stack topples over on me. (You would it the hardcover stack ever did.)

I don't blame you for wanting lower costs. I just don't see that happening, for reasons outlined above.
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Dennis