What if you had to live entirely off your royalties?

[Steven Lake]

You're only shooting for 50!? Dude, I sold that in the first month after I released Oort Perimeter, my very first novel ever published! And aside from all my followers in the FOSS community, I was pretty much an unknown. Wow, I guess after hearing that I don't feel quite as bad anymore about how many I'm selling right now per month. heh. I thought that you were doing bad if you sold less than 100 a month, and here you're saying that you'll be happy if you sell 50 overall! 0.0;;

I figure I could probably sell a LOT more than I do per month now if I could only find a way to get better know, but that seems to be an uphill battle under heavy fire these days. T_T

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

You're only shooting for 50!? Dude, I sold that in the first month after I released Oort Perimeter, my very first novel ever published! And aside from all my followers in the FOSS community, I was pretty much an unknown. Wow, I guess after hearing that I don't feel quite as bad anymore about how many I'm selling right now per month. heh. I thought that you were doing bad if you sold less than 100 a month, and here you're saying that you'll be happy if you sell 50 overall! 0.0;;

I figure I could probably sell a LOT more than I do per month now if I could only find a way to get better know, but that seems to be an uphill battle under heavy fire these days. T_T

mod·es·ty
   /ˈmɒdəsti/ Spelled[mod-uh-stee]
–noun, plural -ties.

1. the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc.
2. regard for decency of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
3. simplicity; moderation.

[jaxx6166]

Originally Posted by HistoryWes

Do you have an xbox in your basement? Wifi?

Wes, for you I'll buy one. And I'll get one of those new fangled 3D televisions so that it feels like you can live in the wasteland of New Vegas.

I may be able to swing a Wii too, but you're going to have to work for it. Now, get back in that room and get to writing. You've got a bestseller to make me.

[Steven Lake]

lol, sorry about that Bilbo. I wasn't trying to brag. I was just stunned that average sales numbers for most authors were that low. I had always pictured them being much, much higher. In fact, I thought my sales numbers, as they are, were a pittance in comparison to what the majority of other authors here were getting. I didn't realize they were actually in the upper 10% rather than the lower 5% where I had thought they were. Now I feel like a complete ass for even replying. T_T;;

[Luke King]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

You're only shooting for 50!? Dude, I sold that in the first month after I released Oort Perimeter, my very first novel ever published! And aside from all my followers in the FOSS community, I was pretty much an unknown. Wow, I guess after hearing that I don't feel quite as bad anymore about how many I'm selling right now per month. heh. I thought that you were doing bad if you sold less than 100 a month, and here you're saying that you'll be happy if you sell 50 overall! 0.0;;

I figure I could probably sell a LOT more than I do per month now if I could only find a way to get better know, but that seems to be an uphill battle under heavy fire these days. T_T

Steven, I'm surprised you're doing as well as you are. I've visited your website twice in recent weeks. I've followed your ebook links and got nowhere: one is broken, one leads to the sign in for goodreads (I don't have an account), and the other leads to the Smashwords home page (where you have no books). I've searched for you on Amazon, where there appears to be only one book -- a print copy of The Oort Perimeter. And I can buy print copies of your books from your website. It's a little hard to understand how you can be lamenting not being better known. I'd suggest offering a book for free. If there were one, I'd take it. Are the hundred sales per month print sales, or is there somewhere I can buy an ebook from you?

[twobits]

Originally Posted by Luke King

I'd suggest offering a book for free. If there were one, I'd take it. Are the hundred sales per month print sales, or is there somewhere I can buy an ebook from you?

http://www.realmsofimagination.net/the_oort_perimeter/ look at the bottom of the page, has links to epub and mobi downloads.


It seems like writing is a lot like many art forms. The top in the field make a lot. It is very hard to get known enough to get to that level of sales. Many of the rest make far less then they would have spending that time at an entry level job. Has to be something you do because you like doing it, and not something for the money it seems.

[doreenjoy]

There's an old joke about writing as a profession -- You can make a killing, but you can't make a living.

Even in the mainstream publishing world, it's difficult to get by on royalties alone. Over 80% of the authors with books currently in print still have day jobs. Of the other 20%, I'd guess more than a few are being supported by spouses or trust funds.

Another old saying -- One writer's trough is another's pinnacle. For my own books, I consider sales of less than 500 copies in the first week to be failure. I have friends who consider not making the NY Times list to be failure. As with many things, YMMV.

[EileenG]

What really annoys me is that if I went back to work as a journalist, I'd be able to afford a cleaner and two family ski holidays a year. As a novelist, when I finally get published, I'll be doing well to pay for a weekend in London.

[Steven Lake]

Originally Posted by Luke King

Steven, I'm surprised you're doing as well as you are. I've visited your website twice in recent weeks. I've followed your ebook links and got nowhere: one is broken, one leads to the sign in for goodreads (I don't have an account), and the other leads to the Smashwords home page (where you have no books).

Well, I *DID* have ebooks up there, but, well, it's complicated so I'll save you the Tolkien sized explanation on that. The short answer is, it's being fixed. (as the note next to the link on my site mentions) As for the broken links on my site, I'm not finding any. If there are some, by all means report them. I try to stay on top of things like that, but I'm not wetwired into the web (oh, would I ever love to be though!) so I can't catch everything that breaks, regardless how much I try. So in the future if you ever see a broken link or feature on my site, by all means use the feedback form to report it, or drop me an private message here.

I've searched for you on Amazon, where there appears to be only one book -- a print copy of The Oort Perimeter.

It only takes a little hunting to find the books on there. It would probably be easier if I'd used a uncommon pen name. But I hate pen names, because they confuse me. So I use my real name which kinda sucks as it's rather popular apparently. Here's links to the three (3) books I have up on Amazon right now:

Oort Perimeter
Destiny's Mission
TDA1

As for ebooks of my novels on Amazon, I don't have them in kindle format yet because I still haven't decided if I want to offer them in that format. (which, sadly enough, is the only version Amazon will allow. Argh.) Mostly because I don't want to encourage Amazon's dominance of the market (never encourage a tyrant to further oppress people), nor do I want to foist Amazon's DRM onto people, or their reader. Does it hurt my sales? Probably. But I'm one who prefers to stick to his ideals. If at some point I think that it'll be alright to put my books up for offer in Kindle format, then I'll do it. Until then, I'm only selling dead tree editions through Amazon.

And I can buy print copies of your books from your website. It's a little hard to understand how you can be lamenting not being better known. I'd suggest offering a book for free. If there were one, I'd take it.

Yes, as twobits pointed out, I *DO* have a free ebook available on my website. You just have to scroll down to see it.

Are the hundred sales per month print sales, or is there somewhere I can buy an ebook from you?

Right now about 99% dead tree sales. I only started getting into ebooks when I came here. Before that I was selling nothing but print editions. I figure that once I can get all the ebook issues sorted out (why does this stuff have to be such a pain right from the get go!?) then my sales will probably be about 20% ebook, 80% print.

Originally Posted by doreenjoy

Another old saying -- One writer's trough is another's pinnacle. For my own books, I consider sales of less than 500 copies in the first week to be failure. I have friends who consider not making the NY Times list to be failure. As with many things, YMMV.

Congrats Doreenjoy! I haven't reached the point of 500 first week sales on new releases just yet (I'm having too bloody much trouble getting out of the f'ing gate without faceplanting! *sounds of profuse cursing* Just once I'd like to have a flawless release!! Argh!), but I would love to have that some day. And even if I don't, I think that you getting that is awesome. It's always wonderful to see authors succeed like that!

Originally Posted by EileenG

What really annoys me is that if I went back to work as a journalist, I'd be able to afford a cleaner and two family ski holidays a year. As a novelist, when I finally get published, I'll be doing well to pay for a weekend in London.

I'm actually starting to find that the books are only the foundation on which your income is made. Believe it or not, I've been doing some research into merchandising my books (ie, posters, bookmarks, dolls, etc) and so far from what I've seen of the results from other authors doing the same thing, depending on how memorable the book/characters/story is, or how popular, cute, cuddly, etc they are, pure merchandise can make up 50% or more of your income.

Case in point. I ran into one author locally who writes children's books. Her books have sold like mad, but the stuffed toys she had made of her book characters have gone like gangbusters. Even people who haven't or won't read the books have been snatching them up by the case. (ok, not the case, but certainly the handful) I think she told me that for every new book she releases, only about 20% of her income is from the book, and the other 80% is from merchandise she's made to sell as companions to the books.

Now I'm not all about selling out and going the merchandising way, but dang, if you can 2-4x your income just by adding a few collectible items to your list of things for sale, then I'm game. And for those who are getting all moral about how this spoils the true nature and reason for writing, I think that you're wrong. Why? Well, if the extra items pay your bills and keep a roof over your head, and allow you to write to your heart's content without having to worry if the gas will be shut off, then I think it's worth it. If it's done purely out of selfish greed, then it's wrong. But if it is done with the mindset of helping you continue doing what you love, then I see nothing wrong with merchandising your books.

[osnova]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

As for ebooks of my novels on Amazon, I don't have them in kindle format yet because I still haven't decided if I want to offer them in that format. (which, sadly enough, is the only version Amazon will allow. Argh.) Mostly because I don't want to encourage Amazon's dominance of the market (never encourage a tyrant to further oppress people), nor do I want to foist Amazon's DRM onto people, or their reader. Does it hurt my sales? Probably. But I'm one who prefers to stick to his ideals. If at some point I think that it'll be alright to put my books up for offer in Kindle format, then I'll do it. Until then, I'm only selling dead tree editions through Amazon.

I do think you are losing out big time. I have personally switched to the all-Kindle buffet. I am not buying books otherwise. I am sure there are lots of people like me.

BTW, DRM is an option that the publisher on Amazon (not Amazon) controls. If you don't like it, don't switch it on.

[Rhynedahll]

Well, since I have a small farm and can live without electricity, gasoline, telephone service, anything bought, sold, or processed, then I probably could escape starvation.

[doreenjoy]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

Congrats Doreenjoy! I haven't reached the point of 500 first week sales on new releases just yet (I'm having too bloody much trouble getting out of the f'ing gate without faceplanting! *sounds of profuse cursing* Just once I'd like to have a flawless release!! Argh!), but I would love to have that some day. And even if I don't, I think that you getting that is awesome. It's always wonderful to see authors succeed like that!

Thanks, I appreciate that. I should add that I'm not self-publishing. I think those who are willing to go that route have to do a heck of a lot more work to get sales than I do.

[Steven Lake]

Well I'm published through a regular publisher too. Oddly enough, I liked what they did with the first book I published with them that I ended up going to work for them. ^_^ And it's been a great relationship and a cool advantage for me because if I ever have to swing it on my own in the future I'll already have a lot of valuable knowledge under my belt that I can use to further increase my sales.

[Roger Parkinson]

I wouldn't give up my day job to live off royalties. I make more in an hour by day than I make in six months from books. Well, so far anyway. Of course I do give two of my three away for free. But that's marketing.

I'm self publishing through smashwords. I notice their Barnes and Noble distribution channel generates the most $$.

[M T McGuire]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

You're only shooting for 50!? Dude, I sold that in the first month after I released Oort Perimeter, my very first novel ever published! And aside from all my followers in the FOSS community, I was pretty much an unknown. Wow, I guess after hearing that I don't feel quite as bad anymore about how many I'm selling right now per month. heh. I thought that you were doing bad if you sold less than 100 a month, and here you're saying that you'll be happy if you sell 50 overall! 0.0;;

I figure I could probably sell a LOT more than I do per month now if I could only find a way to get better know, but that seems to be an uphill battle under heavy fire these days. T_T

Obviously my first instinct is to thank you for your encouragement, tell you how great it makes me feel and add an aside that I'm a sarcastic bastard.

However, despite sounding a little bit cocky, or perhaps, more like a university student asking somebody in kindergarten why they haven't got their head round calculus yet. I know you didn't really mean that in the tone it comes out.

OK. The book's fine. Paperback out next week, e-book out on smashwords only. The killer is time.

Marketing takes research and networking. Research and networking take time, selling takes time, come to think of it, putting my entire book into clean html so I can publish it somewhere other than Smashwords and it might actually achieve some e-book sales will take a SOD of a long time. My problem is, I have 90 minutes a week and I am as CASH poor as I am time poor.

I don't have the time to build up a following on FOSS or anywhere else that might give it the kick up the communal arse it needs to sell bucket loads straight away. I'm bending it backwards getting here for a couple of hours a week.

Hmm... What to do? Slow burn. It's is the only option.

Selling my book can only happen at about the speed glaciers move. But if it's good that doesn't matter because I'll catch up in the end. If my 50 friends and rellies read it and like it they'll tell their friends, they'll write reviews on Amazon and then maybe, just maybe, I'll sell more. Mr Godin's ideas virus, if you like, if it's good it will sell. Book them and they will come.

The thing is, the viral, no money approach isn't going to happen overnight. I know my limitations. I'm piss poor at sales, so the way I have to do it, is let other people enjoy my book, let them do the evangelising and sell it for me. The word of happy readers will carry far more weight than me doing it, anyway.

So yeh, you've more sales than me but watch this space, buster. I may well catch you in the end.

Cheers

MTM