Concerns about self-publishing, paid reviews, and sales rank tricks

[Alison]

I'm very new to self-publishing having only published last month. I've spent a lot of time looking for ways to promote my book and I do use Twitter and Facebook. I've seen groups both here and on other sites that are all about swapping reviews, some even swapping 'buys' to push sales ranks. I understand that it is frustrating trying to compete with so many other books out there. But I want people to give me good reviews because they have enjoyed my work - not because I'm returning the 'favour' or because I'm paying. Self-publishing still suffers from a lack of credibility - and those that do it properly, taking the time to edit and to produce something worth someone else spending money on are being undermined by these practices. Independent authors will never gain the respect that many of them deserve if others are buying their way to the top. It's a real shame.

[Kait Neese]

Henry wrote: "Alison wrote: "Self-publishing still suffers from a lack of credibility - and those that do it properly, taking the time to edit and to produce something worth someone else spending money on are be..."

Hey ya'll, Kait here (aka the moderator). This was one of the first times I read a "rant" (smile) all the way through in a long time. So Henry for that I say thank you and want to compliment you on your well thought out and personal comment.

I do love myself a good discussion. One where opinions and observations are not ridiculed and then the authors bullied online. Intellectual discussions, debates really, from opposing sides who can engage in professional, respectful and honest exchanges of ideas related to publishing. That being said I am going to step out on a limb here and give my two cents (for what they are worth)…

I have worked in publishing since my senior year of college. After nearly four and a half years of working this new era publishing world I will never forget my very first experience with the “traditional” side of publishing.

In 2010 at my first book fair ever, Book Expo America, I was a doe eyed girl fresh out of college ready to conquer the world. I loved the energy in the air, I was excited to have a job when so many of my other classmates were not as lucky. I was eager to learn and network. Well let me tell you how that went….

I walked into my first meeting proudly boasting our company and our authors and ready to do business. Little did I know I was about to paint a scarlet letter right smack dab on the middle of my forehead. I went on to describe that we were a Self-Publisher who utilized Print on Demand technology and were a 100% virtual organization that loved the idea/concept of e-books. I will never forget that feeling of being looked down upon for these business model traits for as long as I live. In fact it sparked my mission (and passion) to permanently disrupt this industry and show those who haven’t changed in 100+ years that they are old, I am new and digital is the future.

We are certainly still in that fight but I think it is important to realize that there are major shifts in perception among the B2B side (or professional/traditional publishing professionals) regarding the credibility of self-publishing.

As mentioned above traditional publishers care about profit, marketing potential and advertising. Fact.

However lets use the cliché example of “Fifty Shades of Grey”. That book was profitable, marketable and acquired by Random House at a fraction of the typical acquisition price. Traditional, or the Big 6/5, publishers realize there are gold minds being produced by the self-publishing community and the profit margins are exponential if acquisition occurs just before critical mass.

This year at the Frankfurt Book Fair I saw, first hand, a shift in the perception of self-publishing towards a direction I think we all have hoped for. The B2B side of publishing is coming around and for the first time in this digital revolution being self-published is no longer something to hide, or try to mask. You can lead in with it and to some that is now perceived as a strength. If you are self-published you own your rights and you are the direct decision maker. Distributors and book buyers are realizing they can go direct to authors rather than have to work through the 20 middlemen that the larger more traditional publishers employ as gate keepers. It use to take years to get books published, now you can literally do an e-book overnight. The publishing world is changing and although we may still have a ways to go in regards to mass approval by the B2B side of publishing there is a shift taking place and that my friends is what we are after, isn’t it?

- Kait (Moderator)

[Alison]

Exactly Henry. I'm not for one minute suggesting that self-published books aren't as good as those traditionally published, that perceptions aren't changing or that there aren't loads of benefits associated with self-publishing, after all I do it myself! I just feel very strongly that an author needs to build a trusting relationship with the reader. If your reader has spent hard earned money (whether it's 99p or £10) on your book then they deserve honesty. And if you have paid for reviews that give your book a credibility that it hasn't earned then you are being dishonest with your reader.

[Deborah]

I love how the publishing world is changing; but with change, problems, issues, and frustration occurs. However, the big picture is that book publishing has now been democratized! This will create problems in the beginning, but after the dust settles, everyone will benefit.

By dust, what I mean, is at first the quality of books will suffer, as we are all get through this huge learning curve, and the former regime is going down screaming. Some book publishers are joining the "self-published" revolution, such as Authorhouse, and others who are adding POD to their publishing options.

One thing that REALLY BUGS me is the perversion of terms. When you type in self-publishing or self-publish in the search engine a multitude of Print on Demand PRINTERS come up! THEY ARE NOT SELF PUBLISHERS, they are PRINTERS! A self-publisher is an AUTHOR who decides to take on the responsibility of the publishing process to bring their OWN book to the marketplace. This bastardation of terms irks me to the point that I have created a Dictionary of Terms on my site. http://www.publishingsolo.com/self-pu...

I also made a video series called Once Upon a Book, which was a challenge for me; because I am an author not a video director. But wanting to give tools to my clients, and students I created this video series on YouTube to explain the basics of self publishing and print on demand.

Yet, because I explained that 10 bestselling authors received 355 rejections, and sold 2.37 BILLION books in this video, it was extremely controversial video; and I was accused of perpetuating self-publishing books of a low quality because the voice over guy didn't pronounce the words correctly, had some "missed cues," and "misspellings," which I cannot identify. This kind of hyper-criticism is snobbery! I am not a video maker, just a self-publisher and teacher! All of a sudden my 90-second video became an example of why self-publishing is substandard! (In case you want to see the controversial video it is at http://youtu.be/EQPZ3tbnLaY)

I have worked both inside traditional publishing companies and now on the "outside," as a self-publisher of 12 books, and publishing coach. Yes there are and will be a lot of growing pains; but we will get through it!