Publishing Industry Myth (half-truth) #1

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by Seli

Music at least is a different business from book-publishing. The core of music has always been performance, in a way recorded music is only tacked on. Books/stories were always meant to be copied and passed on.

*BOOKS* may well be meant to be 'passed on', but storytelling is pretty much a 'performance-oriented' art. (And then there's the whole, "You can have my books when you pry them from my cold, dead hands" viewpoint - to which I happen to subscribe! )

You now ignore 'cover design' (even an ebook needs a graphic to catch attention), editing and proofreading to start with, all of these would have to be paid by the author.
How many self-published authors do you know that sell 12.500 copies @ $2 let alone at $6?

Don't know, but self-publishing sales figures is a relevant point. Still, the question also arises, how many publishing-house, mid-list authors have books that have reached the 12,500 copies sales volume??? Thus, if we can determine that the average first-time genre author sells 7,000 copies @ $6.99 (or 5,000 or even 2,700), then after deducting editing, formatting and art costs, the self-published author who chooses the Amazon DTP ebook route *WILL* make more than one who sells to MacM for a $10,000 advance and an 8% royalty rate. ($4.05 * 7,000 = $28,350 - less, of course any editing, layout and formatting and cover art fees.)

And you're right again, cover art, even for an ebook is very important. I'd no more buy an ebook with a generic white w/black-color text 'cover' than I'd buy a box of cereal with that kind of packaging.

Derek

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by delphidb96

*BOOKS* may well be meant to be 'passed on', but storytelling is pretty much a 'performance-oriented' art. (And then there's the whole, "You can have my books when you pry them from my cold, dead hands" viewpoint - to which I happen to subscribe! )



Don't know, but self-publishing sales figures is a relevant point. Still, the question also arises, how many publishing-house, mid-list authors have books that have reached the 12,500 copies sales volume??? Thus, if we can determine that the average first-time genre author sells 7,000 copies @ $6.99 (or 5,000 or even 2,700), then after deducting editing, formatting and art costs, the self-published author who chooses the Amazon DTP ebook route *WILL* make more than one who sells to MacM for a $10,000 advance and an 8% royalty rate. ($4.05 * 7,000 = $28,350 - less, of course any editing, layout and formatting and cover art fees.)

And you're right again, cover art, even for an ebook is very important. I'd no more buy an ebook with a generic white w/black-color text 'cover' than I'd buy a box of cereal with that kind of packaging.

Derek

Pardon me, folks, but think this through. If you're going to do cover art for the hardback/paperback, please explain to me why you can't use the same art for the e-book? If you are going to electronic typesetting, explain why you have to have different proofing/editing for the e-book? These are common expenses, not matter what form (or how many forms) you reproduce the work in....

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

Pardon me, folks, but think this through. If you're going to do cover art for the hardback/paperback, please explain to me why you can't use the same art for the e-book? If you are going to electronic typesetting, explain why you have to have different proofing/editing for the e-book? These are common expenses, not matter what form (or how many forms) you reproduce the work in....

Your are right. You *can* use the same artwork - *IF* the publisher has purchased the rights for that purpose. But then, I've seen some HC artwork that wasn't near as good as MMPB or ebook cover art.

Derek

[guyanonymous]

There's been big issues with photographers, at least, and magazines making the assumption that they could use photographers' images in digital releases without renegotiating those rights. I believe National Geographic and their release of a DVD box set were the ones to take it to court. I could be mistaken, as it was some time ago, but I'm fairly certain NG got their a$$es handed to them in court.

[Greg Anos]

I merely point out that if you are commissioning artwork, do it for the whole package. We're talking about new books here, of course.

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

I merely point out that if you are commissioning artwork, do it for the whole package. We're talking about new books here, of course.

But of course.

Derek

[drplokta]

Originally Posted by tyche

What an author needs is an avenue to reach their readers.

Yes, but what a reader needs is a roadblock to stop almost all authors from reaching them, because almost all authors are terrible. That's the service that publishers provide effectively, and authors can't do for themselves.

[guyanonymous]

Alas - many excellent authors get caught in the cracks. They aren't writing in the current popular genre. They don't write in a currently popular way (look at writing styles from the 40's and compare to now....or the 1800's....or 1700's)... I agree with you, but only to an extent.

And there's always that example everyone pulls out to support something - JKR being rejected 11 times...

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by drplokta

Yes, but what a reader needs is a roadblock to stop almost all authors from reaching them, because almost all authors are terrible. That's the service that publishers provide effectively, and authors can't do for themselves.

That is a need. and a place to find where the books are. But good and bad are a matter of taste as well, as guyanomus notes as well. The person(s) who crack this problem will single-handed kill the publishing business...

[drplokta]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

But good and bad are a matter of taste as well, as guyanomus notes as well.

You've never read a publisher's slushpile, have you? Most of the bad is simply bad, not something that is not to one publisher's personal taste, but that another person might like.

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by drplokta

You've never read a publisher's slushpile, have you? Most of the bad is simply bad, not something that is not to one publisher's personal taste, but that another person might like.

What I'm trying to point out is that reading the slush pile and other editorial works are only one expense in modern publishing. When somebody figures out how to peel that expense out and make it self-standing, the rest of the edifice will collapse. To be quite frank, fancy New York addresses, literary parties, big executive salaries, have nothing to do with selecting and polishing books, e or p. Nor to agents have anything to do with writing a book.

The biggest problem for current writers is existing art. Why buy (and pay a premium) for new art when older art is so plentiful? Close to a million books are published a year nowadays, and even 50 years ago, there were 10's of thousand. Even ignoring piracy, go to American Booksellers Exchange (www.abe.com) and search for obscure books. There are literally millions of titles available, most at modest prices. From a readers perspective, it's just like a infinitely large bookstore. Shucks, look at the Project Gutenbergs, or here. 10's of thousands of books for free. It's only stretched copyright laws in the last 50 years keeping it from being millions. (If the Us hadn't changed it's copyright law in 1978, anything from 1954 on back would be P.D.)

The old publishing model was - find an author that will sell, publish him for a while, when he stops selling as much as the publisher likes, replace him with another, and let the first one drop out of print. Once out of print, the author is forgotten after a while, and is no longer a threat to new publishing, as nobody could easily find the out-of-print books, even if they wanted to.

Well, the world has changed, and the old ways aren't ever going to come back....

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by drplokta

Yes, but what a reader needs is a roadblock to stop almost all authors from reaching them, because almost all authors are terrible. That's the service that publishers provide effectively, and authors can't do for themselves.

The problem with your statement - despite it's factual absurdity - is that this is exactly the position taken by the publishers!

Derek

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by guyanonymous

Alas - many excellent authors get caught in the cracks. They aren't writing in the current popular genre. They don't write in a currently popular way (look at writing styles from the 40's and compare to now....or the 1800's....or 1700's)... I agree with you, but only to an extent.

And there's always that example everyone pulls out to support something - JKR being rejected 11 times...

Curse that 12th publisher!

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by drplokta

You've never read a publisher's slushpile, have you? Most of the bad is simply bad, not something that is not to one publisher's personal taste, but that another person might like.

But that problem is solved by the customers themselves as the first few read a sample, post scathing reviews and the potential follow-on customers read the reviews and stay away. Thus, there really is no need for publishers to act as roadblocks.

Derek

[tompe]

Originally Posted by delphidb96

But that problem is solved by the customers themselves as the first few read a sample, post scathing reviews and the potential follow-on customers read the reviews and stay away. Thus, there really is no need for publishers to act as roadblocks.

Well, seeing what people describe as good books here at MR I would not trust that such a system would work. Also, an important function of the roadblock is to enhance the book until it passes the roadblock.