Independent Publishing: On Its Way and Here To Stay!

Shake, Rattle, and Roll!

If you’re like me, you’re a little tired of slams you hear against self-publishing and independent presses. They call it a substandard industry, a vanity pursuit, a joke. But you know it isn’t. It takes a lot of work to write a book and bring it to market, and if you independently publish your own books or are associated with a small press, then you are shaking up the book world!


You know what the problem is, don’t you?

Traditional publishers have long held an exalted position. They were the gatekeepers of ideas. They determined who was in and who was out, who was worthy and who was not. They decided what the public could read and what messages or entertainment to issue. They were the gatekeepers of ideas.That’s over now, and we have some statistics to prove it. The July 2014 Authors Earnings Reportsaid that self-published authors are “dominating traditionally published authors” in sci-fi/fantasy, mystery/thriller, and romance genres, and are also taking “significant market share in all genres.” The report also said that, “We can now say that self-published authors earn more in royalties than Big 5 authors, combined.”

Further, the October 2014 Author Earnings Report concluded that, in the eBook market, independent authors are gaining share of daily revenue and Big Five authors are losing it.

So what about the gatekeepers? Quite simply, went around them. And thanks to the culture of karma and cooperation in the Indie market, you can produce a world-class book. But only if you’re determined to be a professional.

 

Rise to the Market!

Let’s face it. The first generation of self-published books was pretty awful. The author designed their own cover or had their child do it, skipped the editing step, and often used a 14-point font—double-spaced—to make their book seem longer. That’s not independent publishing. That’s do-it-yourself publishing, and there’s no excuse for that.

In this second generation, the bar has been raised, and independent authors produce products that stand shoulder-to-shoulder with what comes out of publishing houses.

You can do it, but you can’t do it alone. So how does an independent author take their manuscript and turn it into a finished, professional product that’s marketed around the world?

You work with professionals.

An entire author services market has emerged to usher you through the process. In the beginning, some providers took advantage of trusting authors and charged you an arm and a leg for substandard work.

Now reputable providers have raised the bar, and they keep the author at the center of the process. They cooperate with you. They’re givers, not takers. They know that the good they give out will return to them. That’s good karma!

 

 

 

By Nancy Baumann, CEO, Bookarma.

Karma and cooperation have changed the game in book marketing, too. Bookarma (pronounced book-karma) is a revolutionary new platform where authors help authors market their books globally through shared social networks.

The entire concept is based on karma and cooperation. Authors realize that they are not in competition with each other and they cooperate with each other. There are plenty of readers for everyone, and what you give out will return to you. That’s karma. That’s cooperation. That’s authors helping authors. And that’s what allows indie authors to reach a global audience without having to cultivate it by themselves.

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