I Can Get it For You Wholesale
I was trying to figure out the pricing for Everything I Know last week. Mindful of my duty to keep up with trends and directions in my industry, I considered starting at a lower price point. It’s 28K novella and usually I would price that at $4.99, but I’ve been reading a lot about the magical $3.99 price point, so I thought…okay. Maybe. I’m dubious, but I’ll give it a try.
My personal experience has been that dropping my stories a dollar or two makes ZERO difference in sales. And I’ve had a lot of time and a lot of books with which to experiment and compare. Basically when I charge less, I make less. It’s that simple. It probably has to do with the fact that M/M is still -- you may or may not struggle with this concept -- a niche sub-genre of romance. So the hundreds of thousands of sales that a mainstream writer of romantic fiction might -- might -- get lucky and generate, won’t happen here. I dropped the first two Adrien books in price last month and they are selling EXACTLY what they sold before. I’m just earning less. I dropped some of my earlier titles last year. Same deal. They sell no better and they sell no worse. I am simply earning less. I plan to raise the price on all of them at the start of next month.
But I don’t like to go only by my own experiences. I do sincerely want to keep up with what’s happening in the rest of the publishing world. So I did some browsing around various romance reading sites and skimmed the usual debates. Although all the sales data indicates lower pricing isn’t working like it did, the people who comment on these sites are almost always the I WON’T PAY MORE THAN X $$$ AS A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE!!
Which…sure. Call it principle -- although I’ve yet to hear a coherent explanation of what that principle actually is. We’re all working within our budgets. I don’t want to gouge readers, but I feel I should be fairly recompensed for my work. Can any of us can claim a moral high ground based on a dollar value?
I tend to price my short stories a bit higher than a lot of writers. $2.99 is my starting point. A lot of writers give short stories away. This has created the notion that short fiction is a throwaway. And, in all honesty, a lot of short fiction IS throwaway. A lot of what writers now call “a short story” is actually flash fiction or vignettes or codas. Not really a short story at all. A short story actually demands quite a bit of skill and discipline. I'm not saying I'm O. Henry, I'm just saying I know what a short story is -- and that's what I try to write.
But just as we’re dealing with writers who don’t know what a short story is, we’re also dealing with readers who don’t know -- and don’t care -- what a short story is. Fair enough. We all like what we like.
The idea of charging based simply on word count -- stories by the pound! -- is an odd one for a number of reasons. But I’m not going to get into that. I can’t imagine by now we haven’t all heard these tiresome arguments. My feeling is…buy my book or don’t buy my book. I don’t think you should feel guilty for paying what you think the work is worth, and I don’t think I should feel guilty for charging what I think the work is worth. Fair?
But here’s why I charge what some consider a premium price for a short story. Those first five to ten thousand words are probably the hardest work an author puts into any story. All the characterization, all the setting, the conflict, the interpersonal dynamics… it all happens in those first few thousand words. However long the story may end up being, the first few thousand words generally determine whether it succeeds or not. This is why publishers and agents evaluate manuscripts based on the first few thousand words. The first few thousand words are the test of skill, of craft, of experience.
If you understand anything about the process of writing fiction, you understand this.
Now plenty of readers just prefer a longer, more complex story. A lot of readers don’t like short stories. Who doesn’t understand that? I certainly do. But that’s a different argument than trying to pretend it is a “matter of principle” to never pay more than a dollar per ten thousand words or whatever the equation is supposed to be.
From my perspective it makes a lot more sense to charge less for a larger work than to discount how much effort goes into those first few pages. I don’t dash off ten thousand words and then settle down to write the real story. The first ten thousand words are probably the most reworked and rewritten in the manuscript. And if the manuscript is only about ten thousand words, it’s all the more difficult because I've got to condense and cut and yet somehow tell a complete story in miniature.
See, a writer’s goal is actually to tell the story effectively in the fewest words possible. It isn’t the number of words that determines the value of a literary work. Any more than the number of brushstrokes determines the value of a painting.
Anyway, Everything I Know will be $3.99 for the first week, but then, unless some amazing insight convinces me otherwise, I plan to kick it up to the normal $4.99 price point.
Oh! Lest that seems not nearly enough time to get around to buying a book, you can preorder through All Romance Ebooks or Smashwords.
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I think all your books are very reasonably priced and many of them are less than a cup of coffee (London coffee prices). The most important thing for me is the quality of the story telling and I always get the quality I want with your stories. I am looking forward to the new release.
I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bought in a store
I agree with Zoe. I'll spend more on authors that I am dedicated to, who I consider auto-buys but may not necessarily take a chance on a new author if the price is too high. The fact is it's not a point of "principle" but my budget. There is one publishing company out there that charges $8.99 for some of their ebooks. That is a hard one for me to justify. Even if I'm in the middle of that series and the next book is 9 bucks, I'll wait for my free book on ARe or a good kobo code. I have no problem paying $4.99 for Everything I Know, but will I grab it right now for $3.99? Absolutely :)
* I do think it's a good marketing strategy when authors offer the first book in a series at a discount or even free for a period of time. I've gotten sucked into many series that way.
Zoe ~ Is incognito wrote: "Personally I tend to feel ripped off if short stories are more than $0.99, novellas are more than $3.99, and novels are more than $7.99. I can buy paperbacks for ten bucks or less! If it's an aut..."
What makes perfect sense to me is paying what you can afford -- or are willing -- to pay.
What seems illogical is to try and make that decision based on word count. Especially since the goal of all good writing is to say as much as possible in as few words as reasonable.
To me it's like choosing to buy fat-riddled meat over lean beef because you're "getting more" for your value. For me it is always going to be about the quality of words over the quantity.
And the fact that the first few thousand words are the most difficult to write.
Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "I think all your books are very reasonably priced and many of them are less than a cup of coffee (London coffee prices). The most important thing for me is the quality of the story telling and I al..."That's really what I hope the majority of readers see. I don't understand the idea that a short story -- anything under a certain amount of words -- being viewed a throwaway.
I do understand a reader preferring a longer format -- that I get. We all like what we like. But the idea that a short story is worthless? Simply because it's short?
Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bought in a store"
There's a thought.
One thing I like about translations is that other countries don't seem to undervalue the written word they way we do. You don't have all this vendors undercutting each other and prices being slashed down to nothing.
Carey wrote: "I agree with Zoe. I'll spend more on authors that I am dedicated to, who I consider auto-buys but may not necessarily take a chance on a new author if the price is too high. The fact is it's not a ..."I think it makes sense to introduce authors at lower -- not rock bottom -- pricing. Tempting pricing. And I know my publishers will take care of this for me, which is why I don't need to undercut my own pricing. I'm fine with however Samhain and Carina choose to price my work because I know that many readers will be introduced to me through those stories. But we can't all underprice my work or I won't be able to afford to write full time.
Mainstream prices are still holding pretty solid, so I suspect there is simply a lack of respect for the books in our own genre.
Readers are outraged at the idea of paying $8.99 for a digital first title -- but is that because it's digital first or because it is a book in this genre? I find myself wondering.
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Sonia ~Ruber's fiancé in Crystal Court universe~
(last edited May 23, 2014 07:45AM)
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Josh wrote: "Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "I think all your books are very reasonably priced and many of them are less than a cup of coffee (London coffee prices). The most important thing for me is the qua..."I totally get and agree with what you're saying!! I've read short stories that were worth 100 longer ones!! If I love a book/short story/novella/whatever I never regret spending the money. As long as I get what I was looking for (and often more), the fact that I pay a few $ extra is not important.
But as someone else said, there are authors that I think are worth whatever they decide (I love them that much) and there are also instances when I regret paying a certain amount.
Of course it also depends on someone's budget; sometimes I postpone buying a book until the next paycheck, or I wait for a special offer because I already spent the allocated amount for e-books and so on.
But let's be honest, now that we have kindles, e-readers etc. it's a lot cheaper and easier to read. I love it!!!
And last but not least: authors don't write just to be cool, it's their job!! Would we like to be paid less at ours?
Kisses!!!
p.s. sorry for my English, it's not my native language :P
Sonia wrote: "Josh wrote: "Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "I think all your books are very reasonably priced and many of them are less than a cup of coffee (London coffee prices). The most important thing for ..."Your English seems fine to me. You got your point across. :-)
I think you bring up a good point. A lot of writing now is done by hobbyists. And I think perhaps that's part of the difficulty. Especially when so much free fiction is available from people who don't need to -- or know they can't -- make a living writing.
I can see arguing that you don't like short stories and why should you buy them? That makes sense.
But to argue that you don't like short stories so they're not worth anything?
That's not quite so simple.
I don't like any original series on Netflix. Should Netflix stop producing House of Cards? Should they stop charging what they charge for subscription since I don't watch House of Cards?
It's when people try to draw these larger, broader correlations based on their own personal preference (or budget) that we get into troubled waters.
Josh wrote: "Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bought in a store"
There's a ..."
A good translation is very hard! Not only does the author have to translate your meaning, he or she also has to try and emulate your style!!! Translation is an art form and it makes me upset when I see people offering their translation services for words on the dollar. I tried translating a book for an independent author here in Goodreads for free as an exercise to see if I could do it and I found it hard... excruciatingly hard as a matter of fact. I think I could do it (now after having gone through a graduate program in literature) but the genre would have to be something I am interested in pursuing (the book I was translating was not).
So, in translations you have to account also for the cost of having the work translated by a competent translator.
message 12:
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Sonia ~Ruber's fiancé in Crystal Court universe~
(last edited May 23, 2014 12:46PM)
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Vivian wrote: "Josh wrote: "Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bought in a store..."
Yes, translating is hard! And should be really appreciated when done good! I still prefer reading in English, even when there's a Romanian translation available because I feel like I'm loosing some of the author's voice when reading an adaptation.
So far, I've come across only a handful of translations that I felt really did an author justice.
:D
Josh wrote: "To me it's like choosing to buy fat-riddled meat over lean beef because you're "getting more" for your value. For me it is always going to be about the quality of words over the quantity."That's a great analogy :D
I do agree, the quality is of course much more important than the quantity. And I certainly don't view short stories as throwaway. A good short story is worth more to me than a bad novel. But I still have to look at it in terms of how long will I experience the enjoyment of reading that book. If i'm going to be finished reading it in half an hour I can't always justify paying heaps for it.
Josh wrote: "..Readers are outraged at the idea of paying $8.99 for a digital first title -- but is that because it's digital first or because it is a book in this genre? I find myself wondering. "For me it has nothing to do with the genre, MM romance is my genre of choice. It just feels like a lot, I know $7.99 is only $1 difference but for some reason $8.99 just feels like too much. I think it may be because the majority are $7.99 and under, so that's what I've gotten use to paying :)
I'll take quality over quantity anytime, if you listed Everything I Know as $5.99 I wouldn't have thought twice about preordering because I KNOW it's a story I will read more than once.
Well now, I hate short stories with a purple passion and try to avoid them altogether. Unfortunately I haven't been able to "avoid" your short stories as you're one of the few mm romance authors who actually knows how to write a really good one. I would pay a fairly hefty price for a JL short story (secretly cursing you for not writing it as a novel), a novella, or a novel. The real point is that I care about quality, not quantity. I don't get readers who complain about the number of words in a book like they're bulk jelly beans at a serve-yourself candy display.
I am not a wealthy person, but books and music are what I spend pretty much all of my "fun" money on. I don't mind paying a little more on a story by an author I know I am going to love because I will read it over and over, getting my money's worth. People sometimes forget that if an author can't earn a living selling his work, then he may stop writing.
Vivian wrote: "Josh wrote: "Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bought in a store..."
God yes!
The difficulties of translation are worth their own blog post.
And I agree that in order to make such an endeavor worth the time of the author and the translator, the book has to be priced a certain way. There are two authors -- and perhaps the publisher as well -- who must make money.
Sonia wrote: "Vivian wrote: "Josh wrote: "Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one paperback novel bo..."
It is very difficult. I had no idea exactly how difficult it would be until I began venturing into translations and began to hear readers complaining about the quality of the translation.
I think I had always sort of imagined it would be a matter of a literal translation. But now I realize that is not at all the case.
Zoe ~ Is incognito wrote: "Josh wrote: "To me it's like choosing to buy fat-riddled meat over lean beef because you're "getting more" for your value. For me it is always going to be about the quality of words over the quanti..."Absolutely.
I think it makes perfect sense to buy the stories you want at the prices you can afford. I am 100% in agreement on this.
The only time I get aggravated is when someone makes a sweeping announcement (as though based on anything other than personal preference) that all short stories should be free or no more than .99 BECAUSE.
Because why?
Since when and says who?
Carey wrote: "Josh wrote: "..Readers are outraged at the idea of paying $8.99 for a digital first title -- but is that because it's digital first or because it is a book in this genre? I find myself wondering. "..."Believe me, I know exactly where you're coming from on this. I too find the notion of $8.00 startling in an m/m or indie title.
I did a little scoping out mainstream book prices yesterday. And there is quite a range -- about $2.00 to $12.00 but the average price for a title on a big name author's backlist seems to be about $8.00.
There's usually a very new $12.00+ title and a randomly changing loss-leader title at $2.00.
I think that's where Riptide (for example) is getting their pricing. They are in line with the mainstream market. But is that a price that readers who mostly buy indie and digital first will pay?
I'm certainly interested to find out.
But again, my concern isn't my larger works. Maybe because I haven't produced that many long works under my own imprint. I tend to do the novels for publishers, and leave that pricing up to them.
Kathleen wrote: "Well now, I hate short stories with a purple passion and try to avoid them altogether. Unfortunately I haven't been able to "avoid" your short stories as you're one of the few mm romance authors wh..."Now here's the funny thing. I very rarely buy short stories. I don't even like short stories unless they are by Chekov or Hemmingway. :-D But I LOVE writing them. I LOVE capturing -- trying to capture -- a brief glimpse into a day or so of someone's life. Usually a turning point moment.
Why it should be so, I don't know. There is a certain sweetness, poignancy to the (relatively few) memories that stand out for us, and I think this is what I am struggling to capture.
But it's not like I don't understand that a reader might prefer a longer work. I do! I just get aggravated when some twerp on a blog tries to pretend personal preference is actually informed literary criticism.
Michelle wrote: "I am not a wealthy person, but books and music are what I spend pretty much all of my "fun" money on. I don't mind paying a little more on a story by an author I know I am going to love because I w..."That is the bitter reality.
If I can't make a living at this, I have to make a living doing something else. And in the past, that something else has always turned into a hugely stressful, time-consuming endeavor leaving little time for writing. That is the reality of economics in our world.
I do write for my own pleasure, but I write in fragments. I don't need to tell a whole, consistent, publishable story for my own pleasure. I don't need to jump through the hoops of publishing and promotion if it's just for my own pleasure.
Writing for publishers, for readers other than myself, requires an effort that I don't have to exert when I am simply fooling around for my own gratification.
If there is no living wage to be earned from writing, then the only people writing will be HUGE bestsellers and hobbyists. And that may be okay for some readers. JR Ward, fan fiction and amateur fiction may be fine with a lot of readers who only care that there be something cheap to read all the time.
I don't need to be rich. I just need to be paid a fair wage for my work. That's all I ask. Frankly, I think that's all most writers ask. To be able to earn a living doing what you love is almost priceless.
But you do have to be able to earn a living.
Josh wrote: "But I LOVE writing them. I LOVE capturing -- trying to capture -- a brief glimpse into a day or so of someone's life. Usually a turning point moment. [...] But it's not like I don't understand that a reader might prefer a longer work. I do!"And this is why your short stories are such an double-edged sword. You do this very thing so brilliantly—like no one else I have ever read who tries this form—that to leave the characters after so short a time is agony. But I will gladly continue to pay whatever you want to charge...for the privilege. :)
Josh wrote: "Carey wrote: "Josh wrote: "..Readers are outraged at the idea of paying $8.99 for a digital first title -- but is that because it's digital first or because it is a book in this genre? I find mysel..."It was actually MLR I was talking about :) But I wouldn't pay $9 for a mainstream title either. My thriftiness isn't against m/m that's for sure :) I'm actually MORE likely to spend more in m/m if it's from a reliable author because it's my favorite genre. But I will always look for a kobo code or discount if I can, which unfortunately are not usually applicable to mainstream titles anyways. I guess that's when the good old fashion library comes in :)
Price has little meaning for me, if I want it I buy it regardless. I could care less about word count. It could be one sentence, but it just might be the best sentence ever for .99 or 3.99 or 7.99 and I'd buy it. I am not wealthy, but I don't buy everything that is out there. I read what I like and like what I read.
Carey wrote: "Josh wrote: "Carey wrote: "Josh wrote: "..Readers are outraged at the idea of paying $8.99 for a digital first title -- but is that because it's digital first or because it is a book in this genre?..."Yes. I feel the same way. I would definitely pay for m/m since it's my favorite. Unfortunately, I'm not sure everybody feels the same way :(
Josh wrote: "Sonia wrote: "Vivian wrote: "Josh wrote: "Idamus wrote: "I find your prices fair, but then, I'm used to Danish VAT ;-)I can get something like 6 maybe 7 of your $5 books for the price of one pape..."
Yes, it is VERY hard. I have to translate stuff for my job (and I'm not speaking about literature, but everyday things like articles, letters etc) and I find it difficult. I can't even imagine how trying and fastidious would be to actually try translating fiction in a way that you can feel the author's voice and not my awkward rendition :P
I'm late to the party, and haven't read all the comments yet, but...For me, it's about the quality of the work, regardless of the length. Naturally I like paying less, but I would rather pay more for a short story or novella that I get engrossed in and fall in love with than a full-length novel that I like to a lesser degree. I determine before buying based on ratings, reviews, and any previous knowledge I have of the author. So, it's of course subjective to each reader, but value always is.
For you, Josh, I have read several of your short stories and novellas priced at, I think, $2.99 and up (and one was 19 pages long, if I remember correctly), and I connected with the characters, was interested in the plots, and was completely satisfied upon reaching each of their ends. So I will definitely keep buying your stories at any price, because that's how much I appreciate reading them. (Ehm, keep it on this side of exorbitant, though, please!)
I think people in general will buy books (novellas, short stories, etc.) that are more expensive if the ratings are good and it's their cup of tea type of story.
I love writing AND reading short stories. Maybe I have a short attention span... oh look a bird! :)S.C.
If it's an author I really enjoy I will buy it anyway but I'll grumble about it. And if the author is new to me I probably wouldn't buy it if it was too far above those price points.
Dedicated fans are probably going to buy your books no matter what. It's probably attracting new readers that is more effected by how you price your work.