Thrilled to be a Paperback Writer

Electronic gadgets don't thrill me. I don't rush out and buy the latest and greatest tools or toys. In fact, I didn't even purchase a CD player until well after the rest
of the music loving world had moved on to IPods and MP3 players. So when I
became a proud Kindle owner last year I automatically assumed I was the last
reader in America to embrace e-books.

That's why, when I self-published my first novel, Playing the Genetic Lottery, in November, 2011, I released it solely as an e-book. At that time e-book sales were climbing steadily, and people were speculating that traditional books would soon become relics of the past, like 8-track tapes and rotary phones. After all, e-books are more affordable than traditional books. The electronic version of my novel sells for $4.99, for example, while the paperback is $14.99. E-books are also convenient. You don't have to leave the house, or even get dressed, to buy them, and they arrive almost instantly. That's a definite plus if you're impatient, or, like me, get anxious when you run out of reading material.  Lightweight and capable of
containing an entire library of books, e-readers are idea for travel, especially
by air where each extra bag costs more than the average hardback. And, even a
luddite like myself has to admit, e-readers are pretty cool.

By publishing an e-book I thought, for the first time in my life, I was on the cutting edge.My first clue that I wasn't came the day after my e-book became available. “Sounds like a great book, but I don't have an e-reader,” a friend said. “Let me know when it's out in paperback so I can buy a copy.”

It was a theme I heard over and over as days went by. It seemed, as strange as it may be, that I wasn't the last e-book owner after all. While I sold a handful of
e-copies in the first month, I realized I needed to publish a paperback version
as well if I was serious about attracting readers. 

Self-publishing your own paperback book is much more complicated than putting out an e-book.  It 's also a lot more expensive. It took months of hard work to get it print-ready, and a big leap of faith to pay for the first press run.

Was it worth it? You bet! I had been excited when my novel was published as an e-book. I was thrilled when I held the first copy of Playingthe Genetic Lottery in my hands. And by the end of the first week, I had already sold more paperbacks than I had e-books. It's also available in my local bookstores, which increases its
exposure, and boosts my ego.

I also discovered something interesting.  A number of people who had purchased the e-book also bought a paperback copy. Some bought them as gifts, and, I suspect, to help support my endeavor. Others surprised me by admitting they hadn't read the e-version because they found it easier to read books in a traditional format.

 I don't know if my experiences are unusual or not. I do know, however, that I'm glad I went to the trouble to publish my novel in paperback. Even though I do still love my Kindle.