[ondabeach]

"Uhm... In case no one let you in on it, this is pretty much how capitalism works"
Yes, but people can choose to boycott companies that are ripping them off and turn to ones that do not.

"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."

The services you mention are common to all eBook library sites. Where the similarities end are: Our cut is (15% AFTER PayPals fee of (2.9% + 30 cents)), The AUTHOR gets the rest! In your example the author gets probably less than $1 for an eBook which sold for $9.99. If the author sold the same eBook for $3.99 through our library they would receive $3.04.

$3.99 sale price
-0.42 (paypal)
-053 (us)
=
$3.04 (author)

If an author really beleives he can get $9.99 for his eBook and is successful then the breakdown would be a follows:

$9.99 sale price
-0.59 (paypal)
-1.41 (us)
=
$7.99 (author)

I'd say that's infinately fairer wouldn't you?


"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."

No, I agree that no author would want to reduce the royalty rate they receive. The royalty rate authors receive from us is far in excess of anything that is on offer by apple, amazon or any of the existing major distribution channels.


"and like it or not, the smidgen of prestige of working with a real publisher."

Sorry, we only want to put your money back in your pocket, not stars in your eyes or stroke your ego.

"Heck, to authors getting a big advance now is like a contest."
Ever heard of the carrot on a stick, we would never insult your intelligence by dangling what is in effect for 99.98% of aspiring authors an unatainable goal in front of your eyes.

"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?"

You're guess is probably the same as mine, none. But only because the technology to allow effective marketing on a global scale with a shoestring budget simply didn't exist, so if you were not independently wealthy then you had no choice but to accept the terms of the publishing industry of the time. My point is that people do now have a choice, and we are offering it.

If only 1% of manuscripts written have ever been published and only 2% of those ever made any money for the author then something is definitely amiss. We are attempting to address that anomoly, if we raise a few hackels in the process then please accept our appologies. But we will keep rattling the bars until everyone is aware of how poorly authors are remunerated for their work. Especially the authors that don't realise it yet.

"What's your experience been of this, compared to your books sold through a traditional publisher? It'd be good to get detailed feedback from someone that isn't just an armchair quarterback."


Yes, we do have personal experience of publishing traditionally and independently. Don Stallman (Iqy), a friend and business partner tried desperately but in vain to get published. I've known Don for years, in fact his story is what inspired me to create an eBook library in the first place. You should PM him and ask him about it if you want to hear a horror story with a happy ending.

"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"

Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, correct. But considering that the ratio of applicants to recipients when it comes to carrots (advances) is somewere in the order of .02%, the advances answer doesn't really count, so you're 0 for 4.

Don (Iqy) decided he wasn't going to sit by the phone waiting for a faceless stranger to ring him up and say "hey, I woke up this morning and thought, I feel like giving that Don fella $50,000.00". Instead, he went out and did something about it.