Posted by:
Diane
| Comments
Michael Hyatt, CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, said too many books are being published (300,000 last year, around 700 by his company) and that we don’t need more books, we need better books. He says that they are able to predict fairly accurately which books will make it and which will not. In fact, they’ve been 95% accurate about which titles will do well.
So what makes an author successful? “[Successful books] are typically written by Read More→
Posted by:
Diane
| Comments
I find it very interesting that a traditional publisher, Thomas Nelson, just announced a new division–one that is basically providing self-publishing services.
I hinted that this might happen months ago on this blog, because I had heard of another publisher considering this very option. More than a year ago I predicted that publishers would eventually move toward more of a self-publishing model.
It’s really inevitable. The other day someone revealed to me something a traditional publisher told a prospective author: the author needed to guarantee they could sell 10,000 books from speaking in order to be published by them. That author would have to buy 10,000 of his own book (usually at a 50-60% discount only), in order to get published!
(I couldn’t help but wonder how the author advance, if any, would stack up against the investment the author would have to make.)
Increasingly, author platform (i.e. a large, loyal following) is a necessary prerequisite for being published by a traditional publisher.
So what’s an author to do who doesn’t yet have that following? Read More→
Posted by:
Diane
| Comments
One of the key aspects of what I call “New Era Publishing” is to provide content in more than one format, so that the author’s message can be consumed in the ways the consumer chooses. “Your content on their terms” is how Paul Colligan puts it.
Publisher Thomas Nelson just announced a new program called NelsonFree, which “allows readers to receive content in multiple formats—physical book, audiobook and e-book—without making multiple purchases.” With NelsonFree, the price of the hardcover book includes both the audio download and the e-book, available in several formats, including EPub, MobiPocket and PDF.
Once readers purchase a book with the NelsonFree logo, they are directed to a Web site where they register and answer a security question. They then can download an audio MP3 file and choose the format of e-book.
Interestingly, Joel Miller, v-p and publisher, business and culture, said Nelson will not raise the price of hardcovers in the NelsonFree program. “I only see the price going up if a particular project has unique added expenses in producing the audio and digital books,” Miller said.
Nelson president and CEO Michael S. Hyatt said, “I believe that the industry is shifting and we, as publishers, need to explore new methods of getting our content into the hands of customers. NelsonFree will give readers a new level of value and flexibility. It will enhance their literary experience and allow greater employment of the content without breaking the bank.”
I applaud Nelson for being proactive here and leading the way. As an author’s advocate, I can’t help but wonder, do authors get any added royalties for the digital content? My guess is not, if the publisher is not charging extra.
On the other hand, making the content available in many formats should only boost sales and gain an author more exposure and reach. And isn’t that what we want as authors?
