Anita’s Comments (group member since Jul 12, 2017)

Anita’s comments from the Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie group.

The latest issue of Indie Authors Monthly is online and it is filled with great articles.

When I tried to reduce the price of the book a year or so ago, they refused since the cover would have to be redesigned. The barcode on the back has the price imbedded and if the price changed, the barcode had to be changed and the book republished with the new cover.

The second reason they wouldn't reduce the price is because my royalty would be in the red. I had already priced the book as low as I could get it. Of course, this was due to their commission and the artificially high cost of printing that is deducted from the price.

And, this was not a low end publisher. The company is a division of Simon and Schuster.

As Carole said, "another lesson learned."

Whether it is a traditional publisher, a vanity publisher or self-publishing, each option has advantages and disadvantages. With a vanity press, you pay and they publish. They handle everything, which for some authors would be beneficial. Selecting the vanity press path depends on the author's goals for the book.

My first book was non-fiction, a reconstruction of a 1966 accident that killed a witness to the Kennedy assassination. I was clueless about how to publish the book and used a vanity publisher. I learned several things, one-- that I could do everything the publisher did, two--I had no control over the book. Yes, the copyright is mine, but they own the book. I cannot drop the price of the book or even change the price for promotions, and three--I was paying a lot more to buy the book. It is about 100 pages and my cost is $6 per book. The same book from Createspace costs $2.15 and four: their promotion was to put the book in a catalog.

The paper is different. I have discovered that not all 50lb paper is equal. That is why IngramSpark's spine width is more narrow than Createspace. Even though both use 50 lb. paper, Ingram's paper is a bit thinner. Hence, the books from CS are better. If someone has colored illustrations, I would suggest using the 70 lb. option that Ingram offers. Otherwise, the illustration can be seen through the paper.

I like Readers' Favorite and also used their review service for my books. Matter of fact, theirs was the first review for each book. Each got a five star and it was a huge boost. I have used their reviews in the press releases and other promotions for the books. As soon as I get the new book completed, I will be using them again.

Oh, no Ben. That is enough to P... off the Pope as the saying goes.

Smashwords is considered as an international distributor. I just completed the set up of my titles with Nielsen Title Editor in the UK and that includes all three versions of each book (hardback, paperback, and digital). Nielsen only accepts titles that are distributed by an international distributor. IngramSpark and Smashwords are on the list, Amazon is not. Amazon's international distribution is only to Amazon websites. The Extended Distribution Channel is only in the US.

I would recommend Smashwords, and opt out of the distribution channel for Amazon.

Even though, my ebook is distributed by IngramSpark, I am going to load to Smashwords. Ingram distributes to Baker and Taylor (libraries) but not to Overdrive (ebooks for libraries). Smashwords does and I can opt out of all the distribution channels except for Overdrive.

Helen wrote: "Anita wrote: "For those of us on this side of the 'pond' here is a suggestion on shipping your book to Kay. I accessed my Amazon account on Amazon.co.uk. and ordered the books. I used Kay's address..."

Not a stupid question at all, a very valid one. I am paying the retail sales price for the book, but I receive the royalty. Since I have Prime, shipping is free. In essence, my out-of-pocket expense is the retail sales price of the book minus my royalty.

I did a cost comparison and found the cost to purchase and have Amazon ship the book is about the same as buying them from Createspace. If I order from Createspace, there is the cost of the book and shipping. Then I have to buy a box to ship the book(s), the packaging to wrap the book, and then pay for shipping a second time.

Even if it did cost me a bit more, I would still use Amazon if for no other reason than to save a lot of time and hassle. And ... I don't have a lot of books in the house that I have to find a place to store. One other point, it also gives your sales ranking a boost. Hope this helps.

For those of us on this side of the 'pond' here is a suggestion on shipping your book to Kay. I accessed my Amazon account on Amazon.co.uk. and ordered the books. I used Kay's address for delivery. The books will be shipped to her from from Amazon's UK facility. They even qualified for free shipping.

Thank you all. Your good wishes are truly appreciated.

Carole wrote: "Congrats, Anita! Well- deserved!!!"

Thank you. Coming from you that is high praise indeed.

I am so excited. Going Gone! made the long list for Book Viral's
Millennium Book Award. The finalists will be announced on November 1st. Even if I don't make the final cut, just to get this far in the selection process is so encouraging. What a great start to the weekend.

http://www.bookviral.com/2017-bookvir...

Carole wrote: "I think you are so right, Anita. I never noticed them before either- Now, when I do in a traditionally published book- I get a sick kind of glee that it slipped through for them- those book snobs w..."

LOL!! you nailed it. I do the same. The ultimate in hypocrisy. OMG, still laughing.

If your computer has a narrator, use it to read the manuscript. I caught a lot of errors with this technique. Also, take a look at ProWriting Aid. It has several different reports: sentence length, overused words, etc.

I believe it is impossible to catch all the errors. I read two or three books a week. I am amazed at how many have errors, and are published by the traditional publishers. What is interesting is that until I started writing I didn't pay attention to the errors. Now, I am more alert to them, though, they still don't bother me.

I would like to add my book, Sentinels of the Night to the event. I sent you an email.

Good Luck! I have one coming up at the end of the October. Don't have a link yet, but will post it when I do. Another event that is new, what fun.

Carole wrote: "What kind of change did you notice, Anita. AND, what is Overdrive?"

Sorry, to be so late in responding. I am on Amtrak headed to Michigan. First time on a train, what a hoot. Considering my next book involves a train, the timing could not be better for some research.

To answer your question, I was selling some books, not a lot but just enough to keep my ranking out of the gutter. When I discontinued the exclusive right to the ebook, it was like the bottom just fell out. I still had a few sales, but my ranking didn't go back up to the previous levels.

There are two program for libraries. Readers can borrow ebooks. One is Hoopla and the other is Overdrive. Smashwords and Pronoun distribute to Overdrive, but Ingram does not. I am trying to get information on who distributes to Hoopla and so far all I have gotten is they get their books from publishers. Someone from their vendor side is supposed to contact me.

I did the same. I am using Ingram for everything, except I am getting ready to load to Smashwords. Ingram does not distribute to Overdrive, which I found absolutely amazing, but Smashwords does. I can opt out of the rest of their distribution channels and just use them to get to Overdrive.

Kindle is a good program, but I noticed a change when I pulled back the exclusive rights. It wouldn't surprise me to learn there is some hanky-panky going on. LOL

Kudos to you Alex. Well done!

From the pictures she sent, nothing like what was expected. Her brother lives about a mile away. He had no damage, but has lost power. The Tampa mayor said they dodged the bullet. Other parts of the state, though, not so fortunate. The early pictures show the damage, as you said, from a horrific storm. And, there is another one coming.