The Good Publishing Deal Is Dead

The idea of ever landing a good publishing deal is dead. A publishing company may believe they still have an important role to play in getting your book out there, but moving forward I believe the truth is going to become more and more apparent to all authors, that means you too, that 1.) with the onset of e-books, self-publishing is now a very low-cost vs high yield business model that just about any small business person can duplicate. 2.) With the internet as their retail bookstore shelf, a prolific writer can self-publish multiple titles while bypassing the heavy-handed up e-book royalty takes publishers charge and just about all of the money for themselves.

Here's why good publishing deals are dead. Kind of like how the recording industry didn't prepare for the mp3, or how the print news industry didn't prepare for the blogosphere, publishing houses opted out of innovation and decided to cling for dear life to the dead tree book  business model, ignoring both how customers want to buy and how you as an author desire to be compensated.

The trending is there. As I wrote in Amazon's Numbers Don't Lie, Amazon now sells more e-books than they sell print titles, and the e-book sales continue to rise. This tells me that the way customers want their books delivered is changing radically. Seriously if trends like these continue, how long do you think the current print publishing business model can sustain itself?

Another reason why the Good Publishing Deal is DEAD is because it leaves the you, the author, waiting longer for a lesser monetary stake for no reason at all! Here's why. If you sign with a publishing company and finish your book by April 2011, even though you start selling e-books right away, they're going to hold off so as not to preempt the print launch scheduled for months later. So get this! You've worked hard to write the perfect book! The result is a book that can earn you money right now! But, because your publisher is hooked on selling print, you're left waiting months to start earning royalties! The kicker to me is that if you had self-published, you wouldn't have to wait to start making money. If not for a contract,  a signed author is equally capable of uploading books to Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Kobo as a paid worker for a publishing. They are equally as capable of hiring good editor and graphic artists. So why have a contract that actually costs you royalties at all?

Yes the Good Publishing Deal is Dead because you're losing out on royalties. Here's how, though publishers know there's little overhead, though they know more people are purchasing e-books than print, the often mark them up much higher than needed to cover overhead simply to make the cost of print editions look more attractive to buyers. Again, there's very little overhead in e-book production and distribution. It also convenient for your readers. Unlike ordering a printed book and having to wait for it come in the mail, e-book delivery is instant. An Amazon customer can take out a credit card, buy a title, and start reading right away. Are you seeing the light yet?

If not, that's okay. This is a relatively new business model. Here's what you need to know. In this model the cost of entry to self-publish is next to nothing yet the demand for e-books is higher than ever and growing. So, believe it or not, a self-published author now has potential make bigger profits from an e-book they sell at a lower price point than a signed author does selling their print and e-book titles. I'll say it again, the Good Publishing Deal is Dead!

The reason for this is simple. In the same way it affected delivery of music, journalism and even Hollywood films, the internet has created a delivery system for books that circumvents traditional channels severely diminishing the incentive for authors to ever need a publishing. The publishing company has failed to adapt and are making deals that help to prolong against the obvious: that you can do it yourself now.

So don't believe the hype. Let that dead dog lie. Then write your stories, get them formatted properly as e-books and start getting paid the royalties you truly deserve right now!