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Originally Posted by ondabeach
why the hell are you perpetuating the myth that it's in any way, shape or form fortuitous to the the consumer that Crapple MIGHT deem it acceptable to sell someone elses goddamn work for $9.99 and keep most of the money for themsleves.
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Uhm... In case no one let you in on it, this is pretty much how capitalism works.
Apple provides a set of services: data storage, data delivery, collecting payments, customer service, software maintenance, security. In exchange, you pay for the content. Apple gets a cut (30%), the publisher gets a cut (70%). The publisher's cut recoups the costs of making the book (advance, editing, marketing, royalties). Since publisher's profit margins are around 15%, I hardly see this as wildly unfair.
Oh by the way, an artist's royalty rate is typically linked to the cover price. So basically if we drive down ebook prices, royalty rates will also fall. I'm not quite sure that every author will want to engage in effectively reducing their royalty rate in exchange for a shot at higher sales.
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Originally Posted by ondabeach
Don't you see that you are begging the corporate giants of the world to keep raping you and our beloved authors over and over ad infinitum.
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Good gravy. Indulge in hyperbole much?
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Originally Posted by ondabeach
THIS IS THE FUTURE OF EBOOKS. All authors are indies and sell their eBooks on their own sites or sites like smashwords or zuluexpress that only take a few penies per copy rather than only leaving but a few pennies for the author.
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Riiiiight.
Most authors will want things that smashwords and zuluexpress will never be able to offer, e.g. top-notch editors, experienced cover artists, media connections, marketing resources, advances, and like it or not, the smidgen of prestige of working with a real publisher. Heck, to authors getting a big advance now is like a contest. Stick to Smashwords, and unless you already have a reputation or really know how to differentiate your work -- and are willing to put in the effort to sell the daylights out of it -- you've just joined the biggest slush-pile in existence. Even if your work is really good, it's almost certainly going to get lost in the mix.
This is not to say that publishers are fantabulous and always treat writers well. But self-publishing has been an option for decades; and how many self-published authors have launched themselves independently into big sales, let alone sales sufficient to actually put a roof over their head?
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Originally Posted by ondabeach
I'm sorry but I've had enough and I'm not gonna take it any more.
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Well, that's your choice. Just don't let the door hit your tuchas on the way out.
