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The $0.99 Debate - Don't do the math!
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HA! The idea is to gain an audience who will buy other books later, but that's funny. No, I don't even want to think about doing the math on that one!
Apparently there are people who make money at that price point, but I think they are mainly erotica writers.
D.C. wrote: "Apparently there are people who make money at that price point, but I think they are mainly erotica writers."I've heard that too. People can read like ten of those a week, so writers pump them out fast and sell them by the thousands. I don't get the feeling that most of the readers care much about heavy editing, either, which makes them even faster to produce in mass. Alas, it will never be me. I can't even read it, let alone write it.
I just did a post on Booksends. Sold 66 copies of my book. Made the price of the ad back ($20)NOW---all I can hope for is out of the 66 buys a few people will actually read the book and review it.
I sell my science-fiction for $.99 because there is less of a market for it and I want to provide a bigger incentive for people to read it. :(I think my science-fiction works actually contain some of my better writing, but mostly people seem to want to read romance. Which is fine, you know? I can write both. And I try to give my readers what they want.
That's the moral here, I guess. Give readers what they want, since they pay your bills. :D
Yeah, Nenia--you are right. Over and over you hear "write what you know" and "write what you love"---don't go chasing after trends.....And you sell a hundred books in a year and make a couple of hundred dollars----and still don't have ten reviews
I really enjoyed my book: its set in 1843 Alta California---and it has elves.
Too niche-y? Have I written myself into a corner where no one really wants to read such a romance?
Nenia wrote: "I think my science-fiction works actually contain some of my better writing, but mostly people seem to want to read romance. Which is fine, you know? I can write both. And I try to give my readers what they want."Sci-Fi Romance? :D
They have some romance in them, yes. :DI do have more romance-centered science-fiction planned in the future but right now I'm on an urban-fantasy spree. :D
I've self-published two short stories and listed them on Amazon for 99 cents each. Two years later and I've made about $25 off of them, which is great considering that I designed the covers myself and had them beta-read instead of professionally edited, so that's $25 of pure profit. :)
J.S. wrote: "I've self-published two short stories and listed them on Amazon for 99 cents each. Two years later and I've made about $25 off of them, which is great considering that I designed the covers myself ..."That's my eventual plan. Right now, I'm building a fanbase with my short stories. Eventually I hope to finish something 50k or thereabouts.
Heather wrote: "J.S. wrote: "I've self-published two short stories and listed them on Amazon for 99 cents each. Two years later and I've made about $25 off of them, which is great considering that I designed the c..."Good luck! I have two novels, too, but they're listed at a higher price. :)
Nenia wrote: "They have some romance in them, yes. :DI do have more romance-centered science-fiction planned in the future but right now I'm on an urban-fantasy spree. :D"
Actually, what I meant in my completely ineffectual way is if you like writing sci-fi but readers want romance than why not write sci-fi romance? Best of both worlds (no pun intended). I'm all about the urban fantasy, though, so keep on spreeing!
J.S. wrote: "I've self-published two short stories and listed them on Amazon for 99 cents each. Two years later and I've made about $25 off of them, which is great considering that I designed the covers myself ..."How short is your short stories?
For a long time (that being relative, of course), I was outspoken in my objection towards any indie author that gave away or sold their books for .99 cents (except for brief promotional events).I felt that giving away or selling books at those prices hurt everyone's sales. Everyone, being indie authors and self-publishers. Traditionally published authors don't set their price, their publishers do; and they in turn, have an established bottom line price by which they all adhere.
Recently, I've had a change of heart / attitude and I'm in complete agreement with D.R.'s strategy as outlined in his blog that kicked off this discussion.
I think it a good marketing strategy to sell a short story collection or a prequel to a series or even the first novel of a series, at a reduced price in order to generate interest and a following for the series.
Karl wrote: "I've got a few short stories out that do just about nothing, and I have a few novels at 99c (I like to price the first novel in any new genre or series I write at 99c as a taster to get people inte..."I agree. With so many free and cheap ebooks, cost is an important factor to readers. A cheaper taster is essential.
Turhan wrote: "The difference 'I' see behind your math is that the guy asking "Would you like fries with that?" isn't doing the job because he has another job that pays the bills and that he finds working at McDs..."As I understand it, successful indie authors such as Hugh Howey and Charlotte E. English either give away or .99 their earlier books to create interest. It definitely works if your books are something people want to read. For those of us in small niches it's harder, but still possible. When I get my third book out, I may well decide to make book one free. The problem being it's hard to have a 'sale' if the book is always free. I'll have to think through that, first, but the point is still valid. A cheaper first book does sell more second and third books.
Just a side note to my original post--I can produce a short story collection much faster than a novel. Not that they're any less quality, it just takes less time to write/edit a dozen 4,000 word stories than a 90,000 word novel. I will occasionally run a $0.99 special on my novels, but they are regularly priced at $2.99 e-book and $11.99 paperback. If they sell, fine. If not, I still hesitate to give them away after spending a year producing them.I'm hoping my first collection of short stories will provide a way for readers to find me, buy my e-book or paperback at a lower price, and maybe seek out one of my novels.
Good question. I have several books for 99 cents. Some are novellas, and one is a collection of short stories. The novellas are a series, so I plan to write one or two more, combine them all into a single book, and publish it at a much higher cost.
I think the "free and cheap" is a strategy that can work for competent genre authors, where the audience is large and readers consume the things like popcorn. Obviously it works for some erotica writers.I think it doesn't work for works with a more limited audience, like literary fiction, and I think it could be the kiss of death for some kinds of non-fiction, where reputable books are expensive.
Also, I hate to say this, but I think quality plays into it. If you read something for .99, and you enjoy it and think it was a bargain, you are far more likely to check out the author's other work. At least some of those readers will hold out for more bargains, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, since it will give you a nice "bump" when you have a sale, and that increases exposure.
On the other hand, if it was just okay, you may not be mad since it was so cheap, but you're probably not that inclined to look up other books by that writer or purchase them at any price point.
We're not discussing what happens when authors whose books might be fairly widely perceived as "not well-written" put their books on promo.
D.C. wrote: "I think the "free and cheap" is a strategy that can work for competent genre authors, where the audience is large and readers consume the things like popcorn. Obviously it works for some erotica w..."I agree, I wouldn't recommend it for non-fiction how-to type books. I think it works best for series fiction.
S. wrote: "J.S. wrote: "I've self-published two short stories and listed them on Amazon for 99 cents each. Two years later and I've made about $25 off of them, which is great considering that I designed the c..."Vapors is about 7,500 words long and Weary Traveler is 4,000-ish.
http://drshoultz.blogspot.com/2014/05...