Are eBooks Too Cheap?

I luv Twitter!


Not only can you network and share your thoughts but you can also pick up on some useful and interesting information, which is what I have done this weekend.


Looking at, 'The Trends' a few nights ago, I found an interesting article (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/20/ebooks-cheap-price_n_1160383.html?ref=books), arguing the pro's and con's of selling your eBooks at 99 cents or for free.

Reading through the article, the main points seemed to be:

• Traditional publishers are scared at independent authors selling their books so cheaply as most of the public (especially in the current climate) will obviously go for the cheaper options, leaving the traditional publishers struggling to gain custom,

• Some independent publishers are not happy to give away their work for free (or for 99 cents) as they feel that the time and effort they have put into creating the book has been in vain,

• Some publishers (both traditional and independent) have a problem with books priced at 99 cents, believing that they maybe of poor quality due to many of the books in this bracket been of substandard value, and;

• Before an eBook is published, "there are other associated costs to publishing a quality book, including cover artists ($125-3000), editors ($800-5000), marketing, etc. If you add up the average cover cost of $350, average editing job of $1400, then divide by 34 cents, the author would have to sell 5,134 books just to break even, and that’s nearly impossible without an additional amount for advertising".

After reading this article, I was left with more questions than I started with. However, after doing my own research into the self publishing world and using my experiences with traditional publishing houses, I realised the following:

• Looking at the top 10 successful self publishing stories, all of the authors used the same approach of setting their first books as 99 cents to get readers interested then increased the price, once they had a following,

• If you do the research of the other books in your genre and these are priced at 99 cents and you place yours at $9.99, you are already alienating your target audience as they would want to see why your book is priced so high and if you do not have reviews from readers to back up your book price, you will find it difficult to sell any copies, and;

• Although some traditional publishing houses claim that they do not rate books becoming successful in the 99 cents category, of the self publishing sector, this should make you wonder why they feel so strongly about this? As many traditional publishing houses do not take on new authors as they cannot foresee your success, however, if you already have success with your 99 cents books and have obtained a following, this should be the green light for all traditional publishing houses to snap at your heels with offers as many have done with Amanda Hocking and John Locke!

So, although everyone is different, my approach will be sell the first copies of my novels at 99 cents and then when I gain a following increase steadily, depending on the number of pages!

Writing Competition Scams

We would all love to enter a writing competition and win, especially if there is a great cash prize at the end or even better...a contract with a literary agent!


However, with so many wannabe writers out there, it was only a matter of time for people to start cashing in on other's desperation and exploit this.

There are ten rules I live by before I think about entering any writing contests and these rules have been devised by past experiences with these competitions and researching other writers experiences.

My top ten rules before entering a writing competition are:

1. Who is hosting the competition?
2. Do they charge a fee?
3. Does this fee include a subscription?
4. What is the prize? (is there more than one?)
5. Have you heard any complaints about the judging process?
6. What about residencies, Grants and Fellowships?
7. Does everyone get published?
8. Is the contest a ploy to get writers to use a service?
9. Are there any typos in their promotional material?
10. Final Thoughts?

Who is Hosting the Competition?
Many of these competitions charge a fee, however they are usually quite evasive about where the money is going?

Do they charge a fee?

We all love free contests, however there are not many of them around! Usually, all free contests gets a thumbs up for myself, unless something about the competition or the competition website is unsuitable for younger readers.

Does this fee include a subscription?

If I was entering a free contest I wouldn't expect a huge prize at the end as for a free competition, you should be using it for a little publicity as this will be ample award. But if you are paying to enter, some of that money should go to the winner in the form of an advance or monetary prize. 

With regard to book contests especially, authors will have spent years of their lives on their manuscripts: they deserve some monetary compensation.

What is the prize? (is there more than one?)

If I was entering a free contest I wouldn’t expect a huge prize at the end as for a free competition, you should be using it for a little publicity as this will be ample award. But if you are paying to enter, some of that money should go to the winner in the form of an advance or monetary prize. 

With regard to book contests especially, authors will have spent years of their lives on their manuscripts: they deserve some monetary compensation.

Have you heard any complaints about the judging process?

Do your own research of the contest providers to see if they have done any contests in the past and what the feedback is from those who have entered. Do not look at reviews on their website as they will obviously favour the provider. Look on independent websites to see the truth.

What about residencies, Grants and Fellowships?

It's easy to check to see whether or not the contest is affiliated with a non-profit organization. Again, check on there websites to see if they mention or have other organisations logo’s on their pages and if they do, take note and look into this association.

Does everyone get published?

This is a funny one as some people think if they read that, ‘everyone gets published’ they should enter as it’s a win – win situation, however this is just a marketing strategy to get you interested and to pay the fee. 

Also, if that was the case, what would be the point of entering a contest as you would not be published based on your talent as everyone would be getting published anyway. Also, what would the quality of contract be like? What would the quality of your books be like when there published?

Is the contest a ploy to get writers to use a service?

Some contests offer writers criticism and then when they have completely ripped your work apart they work on these negative points to pitch opportunities to receive more for a price. Also, never pay a literary agent to read your work, through a contest or otherwise.

Are there any typos in their promotional material?

When you are researching a good writing contest to enter, read all the materials, including the website, carefully. If they're in the business of publishing writers, they should have impeccable English. 

Misspelled words, grammatical mistakes, and sloppy design can signal scams, as it shows how quick they have set up the organisation for quick money. These sloppy mistakes are also a good indication of how your own work will be treated. Even if the organization is perfectly legitimate, you can still feel embarrassed, rather than proud, when you see your work in print. 

Do you trust this association to care for your work? Do you like how they've presented themselves? If not, then think twice about being represented by them!

Final Thoughts?

Remember it is not just your money you are parting with, but also your work so think carefully before parting with your money. Consider how the organization might be manipulating your desire to see your work recognized. 

Do some research and post queries in forums to see if others have experience with a contest. A little time spent with questions like these will save you disappointment later.

How many pages for an average book?

Many writers pretend that it is the quantity not the quality that count's but nobody wants to write a book and it works out to be a 50 page book!

How could you defend your £4.99 sales price for a book of that size?


No matter how fantastic the book is, the quantity still needs to be there.


Researching this topic, for my own curiosity, I found that many agents judge by how many words your manuscript has and not the amount of pages.


The approximate calculation to working out how many pages your final published book would be is:

Word Count / 250 (words per page) = The amount of pages in your published book

The calculation above is working on the assumption that:

• You have not double spaced your document yet, 

• Your text size is no larger than 12 and;

• You have a maximum of 1" margins all around.

Remember the average novel is between a 90 - 140k word count and ALL agents (even if you are not using an agent, as this site is about self publishing writers, it is still good to know how theses things are done in the industry) do not look at how many pages your book is, they work on the WORD COUNT. 

Why Pay for Advice?

Unless you have a 60% + guarantee that the advice you are paying for is going to be worth it then why would you part with your cash?

When I first looked into, 'Self Publishing Help', many of the search results came back with website's that gave an encouraging introduction and then when you find the section you really need, you are hit with the price.


However, as I have done my research I have realised, 'self publishing' is mainly to do with common sense and doing your research.


Firstly, I asked myself, 'why should I publish my book myself instead of waiting for an agent' and came back with the following answers:

• Sending my work off to agents was getting expense and soul destroying so instead of wasting that time, I could do it myself and see what happens,

• Publishing contracts can take years to sign and then once you've signed, new books are usually put on the waiting list and aren't published for one to three years,

• I didn't want to give large percentage of my profits to a literary agent as it was all my hard work and although, they would publicize it more than I could, due to me being a new writer, with hardly any experience, I don't think they would put in as much effort as they would with an already established writer as they would be risking too much time and money, which is probably why they rarely take on new, unknown writers,

• When you sign with a publisher they pay you an advance on sales. This means if your sales aren't high enough, that money is NOT yours to keep. Then, you receive royalties on book sales, once sales levels pass your advance payment. Royalties are, at the very MOST, 10% of the price of the book. Ten percent?? For all your hard work, can you imagine only earning ten percent? Now even though many self publishing website's take a percentage of the sale, none I have researched take more than 60% (and over 20% would make me think twice about allowing my book to be sold through a website that could take that much profit!), and;

• When I finished my book and designed the front and back cover, I was elated. It was a personal achievement for me to actually finish the book, and to create the front and back cover myself (getting glowing reviews from friends and family who saw my accomplishments) gave me even more pride. Now, although it would be great to get a literary agent to take on my book, along with the contract taking a long time to sort out and them taking a large chunk of the profits, I also didn't want them to change anything about the book, which they would. They can change it all if they are not happy or they do not understand the concept of your book and you cannot do anything about it as you have signed the contract.

Secondly, I looked at my marketing options and then lastly, I looked at the reviews from the 'self publishing' websites to check what the users and writers who have had actual experience with them said about their services.

In my next post, I will list all the things you should start thinking about when you are ready and have decided to publish your book...this will be FREE advice and help which I have learnt from my own research.

Advertising Techniques for your Book

Researching different ways of a new writer trying to get attention to their first book has been interesting!

I have read writers giving advice from making use of YouTube to leaving a copy of your book in popular coffee shops in the hope that someone would read it and not throw it in the bin!


The methods I have used are:

• Facebook
• YouTube
• Blogs
• Forums

And will be meeting with the local newspaper at the end of this month for some free publicity.

Networking and going to new writer events in your city, would be a great way to get yourself (and your work) out there and to mingle with those who could help your work go from selling 100s to selling 1000s.

I always have a set of business cards in my bag as you never know who you will meet and I would suggest that if you do get a chance to meet someone who could help your book go further, always have the following to tell them:

• The synopsis
• Will there any sequels?
• Where are the books currently being sold?
• How many have you sold?
• What is your marketing plan?
• Have you had anyone interested in helping you take the book further? And if so, what are there plans to do this?

But, even if you meet a literary agent and they ask you all these questions, don't forget this is YOUR masterpiece and even if you are desperate to say yes to their offer straight away, weigh up the pro's and con's and always think about their offer and don't accept it straight away!

Exchange business cards with them and let them know you are very interested in their offer but will need to think about it over night (to give you time to think clearly and not just seeing the advantages of the offer which is all they will tell you, until you get to the paperwork part).

Literary Agent's Contradiction!

As a new writer, I find it unbelievable that every literary agency only advertises for experienced writers!


Like I was 15 yrs old looking for my first Saturday job, I got more and more frustrated being knocked back from each retailer due to having no experience.
However, when and how do you get the break? 

After many knock backs, I realised I needed a new approach and was advised to go down the 'Self Publishing' route.


Obviously, I would be much happier having an agent as I would receive a lot more publicity, the marketing would be taken away from me and I would be free, in general, to just concentrate on what I love...writing!


Researching a few 'Self Publishing Website's' I agree, these are great options for new writers to get their work published and out to the world, however, the free services compared to the 'small fee' services differ greatly.


I have realised that unless you have your own proof reader, a decent cover designer and have created a basics, marketing plan yourself (a website, blog, advertising in forums for your genre of book, on social networking site, etc.), these 'small fees' will add up to be huge fees and you need to think objectively to judge whether you think your work will make this money back in the time frame you want.