Smashwords titles head for Libraries

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

Re: Covers/Titles: Huge Thanks!!!

My library doesn't have the option either. I have a question in to them asking why. The one librarian didn't seem to know such an option existed, whether it would cost money or what it was for so she is looking into it. She said they would look into adding the option when she learned more about it, but she is also going on vacation for two weeks and may not even remember the conversation by the time she gets back...

I don't mind discussing my work. It's been out there long enough and I've been writing long enough that I can discuss it pretty much like any other book I might have read. I can see some of the flaws/weaknesses in some of the various style or plot points now that I've learned a few things. I have discussed enough books to also realize that one person's "flaw" is another person's "I didn't notice that."

However, I've been on the other end of author tirades for daring to leave a review that was "only" 3 or 4 stars or even been blatantly given the cold shoulder for daring to send in a list of typos. Just in case anyone ever wondered, trad published authors can be rather snotty over a typo, but some can be pleasantly engaging and get the error fixed. Pretty much like any given bunch of people.

I can understand the mystery/UF thing as mysteries are a mainstay of Canadian libraries and have been for a long time. Fantasy is popular and well stocked but I would guess it falls after thrillers, general fiction and about the same as romance. Urban fantasy is often (almost always) shelved in the mystery section. And many books I consider as mystery/thriller type
books are shelved in general fiction. Go figure.

I like a lot of things, but probably prefer mysteries and kickass urban fantasy. Romance is fine, but shouldn't be all about romance. The mystery section is always my first stop.

I can understand librarians being a bit intimidated and confused by the various fantasy genres. And if they weren't confused perhaps the shelving would make more sense. One definition of urban fantasy is fantasy set in a contemporary urban city with a mystery theme.

My acquaintance wasn't affronted by what I said. Just wanted to discuss it to death. Dissect each word and paragraph for hours on end. Followed me around to the point where I said sit down or get out. Not blaming him but it was making me wish for a clever disguise

Back to the original topic. I am thinking that Smashwords has a foot in the door with overdrive which may save them from getting squashed or swallowed in the publisher wars. I imagine it wasn't an easy thing to accomplish.

Well enough rambling, sorry for that.

Helen

[BearMountainBooks]

UF is shelved in Fantasy/scifi in my library. It's kind of a step-child. I think they only stock what is donated. They used to have a fantasy/scifi specialist librarian, but he retired. When he was replaced, the young lady was very well-read in YA and middle grade and stocked the library with quite a bit of manga. She's gone now and I don't think they replaced her when she left.

Re: acquaintance. Ha-ha. Hee. That's funny. Okay, funny to me. Maybe not so much for you.

Yes, I agree. Smash has a foot in the door and a beaten up smelly foot may be better than no foot at all. I'm open-minded. We'll see where this goes.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

The trouble with open epub non-DRM library books is they can't be returned early. If you borrow one and finish it in a day you are stuck with it taking up one of your checkouts until the loan period expires. If your library allows only a few checkouts at a time, this can be a problem. I avoid borrowing open epub library books for this reason. If my library starts carrying Smashwords books I hope they will have library DRM.

I have seen some ePub where you have the choice of downloading from the library with or without DRM.

[JSWolf]

Even worse, I check three big libraries (Clevnet, Free Library of Philadelphia, and Boston Public Library) and when you go to advanced search and try to search by publisher, Smashwords is not one of the listed publishers. So even if the library does stock Smashwords titles, there's no easy way to find them.

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Even worse, I check three big libraries (Clevnet, Free Library of Philadelphia, and Boston Public Library) and when you go to advanced search and try to search by publisher, Smashwords is not one of the listed publishers. So even if the library does stock Smashwords titles, there's no easy way to find them.

Did it work for Author's...oh crap. What is that vanity publisher? One of the articles said that the Smashwords stuff was listed alongside the vanity titles--the one that charges authors out the ying-yang for essentially doing nothing?

Although in fairness, Smashwords is NOT a publisher. They are a distributor. One of the reasons I don't have my latest books up there is there is no longer a way to claim my own imprint. They used to allow me to register my own ISBN for 10 dollars (even though they "owned" the ISBN) but they no longer allow that. There is other verbiage they now require that is too close to implying they are the publisher as well.

I shall figured out the vanity publisher and look. I need more tea. Waaaaiter!!!

[avantman42]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

Did it work for Author's...oh crap. What is that vanity publisher?

Author Solutions?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

Did it work for Author's...oh crap. What is that vanity publisher? One of the articles said that the Smashwords stuff was listed alongside the vanity titles--the one that charges authors out the ying-yang for essentially doing nothing?

Although in fairness, Smashwords is NOT a publisher. They are a distributor. One of the reasons I don't have my latest books up there is there is no longer a way to claim my own imprint. They used to allow me to register my own ISBN for 10 dollars (even though they "owned" the ISBN) but they no longer allow that. There is other verbiage they now require that is too close to implying they are the publisher as well.

I shall figured out the vanity publisher and look. I need more tea. Waaaaiter!!!

So what is the publisher listed as? I cannot see most people knowing this and I see them trying to look up the publisher as Smashwords like I tried to do. This whole deal seems like a nightmare gone wrong.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

I shall figured out the vanity publisher and look. I need more tea. Waaaaiter!!!

It's understandable.
Just knowing who they are and what they makes me want to wash my hands with trike...
And since half their business is hiding behind a dozen other names...

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

So what is the publisher listed as? I cannot see most people knowing this and I see them trying to look up the publisher as Smashwords like I tried to do. This whole deal seems like a nightmare gone wrong.

In my case, Bear Mountain Books is the publisher. Lots of authors use their own name. I know that Mark Coker views this as a "vanity" statement as he's said that when asked why they no longer sell ISBNs so that I can use my own imprint, but the bottom line for me is that I am trying to build my brand. That brand has nothing to do with any one distributor. And Mark is trying to build the smashwords brand and Createspace is trying to build theirs.

IF I had done this the right way I would have purchased 30 ISBNs direct from Bowker years ago, but when I started out, I never foresaw wanting to create a printed version and there was no need for them for ebooks. That changed. Then bowker decided we had to have separate ISBNs for epub versus mobi (a total money grab-its the same book) and raised their prices significantly. Then Apple decided we had to HAVE an ISBN for books listed there. In the early days an ISBN wasn't required. Amazon still doesn't require it for their mobi listing and neither does B&N or Kobo. But Sony and Apple both do.

I completely understand Smash and Amazon wanting to expand awareness and control their brand, but neither really publishes. They distribute and have software that may provide formatting.

It's really not a big deal, but it is a sticking point because in can matter in some cases.

Does a nightmare ever go right????

And to put it in perspective, it isn't as though I ever expect to sell a lot of copies to libraries. It is not a huge money making idea/machine. It's a small step towards making sure my books are easily accessible and creating awareness. Awareness is a huge part of the battle--which is why being shoveled into a dark corner on Overdrive defeats the purpose in being listed there.

Yes. Author Solutions. This was reported over at The Passive Voice:

Also, when you look at the home page of their little ghetto, Author Solutions titles are promoted front and center, and no mention of Smashwords unless you search for them. Grrrr!

The blog: http://www.thepassivevoice.com/06/20...comment-219911

[fjtorres]

Libraries are a great resource for readers to explore a genre and discover authors so they properly belong on the marketting side of the business. That the BPHs treat them as lost sales is just another of the many ways those folks have lost sight of the business they're in.

When I was first educating myself on SF, I was compiled a list of authors and books with reputations and my first week at college I took it to the university library card file and worked my way through the list. Those books gave me a foundation in the genre beyond the books that just happened to be on sale in tbose pre-ebook days. Then I did a second pass through the card file picking up every book listed as SF or Fantasy. Took me a year but by then I understood the genre and could better appreciate the books and authors I've bought in the decades since. And over the years I actually made an effort to buy my own copies of the books I found there, so the authors came out ahead in my library expeditions. (They had a great collection, courtesy of the nearby air force base.)

Considering how many times a library book can circulate it can be a very effective marketting tool for the story and the author... if it is allowed to be.

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Libraries are a great resource for readers to explore a genre and discover authors so they properly belong on the marketting side of the business. That the BPHs treat them as lost sales is just another of the many ways those folks have lost sight of the business they're in.

When I was first educating myself on SF, I was compiled a list of authors and books with reputations and my first week at college I took it to the university library card file and worked my way through the list. Those books gave me a foundation in the genre beyond the books that just happened to be on sale in tbose pre-ebook days. Then I did a second pass through the card file picking up every book listed as SF or Fantasy. Took me a year but by then I understood the genre and could better appreciate the books and authors I've bought in the decades since. And over the years I actually made an effort to buy my own copies of the books I found there, so the authors came out ahead in my library expeditions. (They had a great collection, courtesy of the nearby air force base.)

Considering how many times a library book can circulate it can be a very effective marketting tool for the story and the author... if it is allowed to be.

I agree it is a marketing opportunity. And it's one of the more effective ones. But at this particular moment, it's not particularly open to me. Without the covers loading and the other issues, it's not quite there yet...we'll see if it improves.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

So what is the publisher listed as? I cannot see most people knowing this and I see them trying to look up the publisher as Smashwords like I tried to do. This whole deal seems like a nightmare gone wrong.

The author's name is listed as the publisher. This may explain why they are segregated- technical issue. Having 200,000 names listed in the drop down menu would be silly.

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by Fbone

The author's name is listed as the publisher. This may explain why they are segregated- technical issue. Having 200,000 names listed in the drop down menu would be silly.

Well, except that Overdrive already said they separated them because librarians requested it. They did not say it was because there were too many authors to list.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

Well, except that Overdrive already said they separated them because librarians requested it. They did not say it was because there were too many authors to list.

Well, if you had to scroll through 200,000 names, wouldn't you request an alternative method of listing?

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by Fbone

Well, if you had to scroll through 200,000 names, wouldn't you request an alternative method of listing?

Generally speaking though, people request titles by genre, author or title. Librarians have various ways of listing things in the marketplace. And it's not clear WHY or WHO made the request to segregate indies--several librarians have chimed in and said they weren't asked and would like to know WHO was asked. I'm not saying you are wrong in that IF a librarian lists by publisher she would want a shorter list, however I don't think we have the info available to suggest that the reason indies were segregated is actually related. Overdrive certainly could have listed us all under smashwords whether they are truly a publisher or not and left that list as part of the main body of the marketplace.