Heartiest congrats on becoming a finalist in the Passionate Ink contest. Best of fortune on the 29th!
Sadly, I have reached the point at which I am almost unwilling to write another book, knowing that I may not even be able to earn the copyright expenses in royalties unless I promote it extensively. I have no desire to market; I wish merely to create.
You are also quite correct about the inherent unfairness of contracts with most (not all) small publishers. I was ecstatic when the now-defunct White Bird Publications agreed to release my series (*The Passion of Elena Bianchi*). However, the publisher expected ME to do all the marketing -- i.e., to run up the expenses and then wait for a piece of the royalties they collected. As things developed, the publisher succumbed to a heart attack, died intestate, and never sent royalties, even though she acknowledged that I had money coming in (although it was less than 25% of what I had spent marketing!). I'll never see a dime from the shell of that zombie corporation.
I am quite convinced I'll self-publish exclusively hereafter, unless I have the opportunity to write for a publisher who can actually "deliver" on my behalf. Onward!
We're actually lucky. I've heard terrible stories from other authors with small publishers that have been taken to the cleaners. I needed more confidence, so I went with the small publisher; I didn't feel I knew enough to take on everything myself. After I dealt with this publisher and saw how little control I had over most aspects of my book, I knew I would handle my next book myself and try it. After that, I never looked back. I made mistakes, and I learned from each book I published. You're right. It costs money to publish a book. Some of my covers cost $300.00, but my Flower Queen Cover was $80.00. I have also earned more money with each release, but my top earning book is still The Devil You Know. Changing the book cover did help me make more sales. Will I ever earn back the money I've spent on these books? Adding more books is increasing my earnings. Will I need a more extensive backlist or a breakout book? I don't have an answer to this. I always ask myself, what would I do if I wasn't writing books?
Heartiest congrats on becoming a finalist in the Passionate Ink contest. Best of fortune on the 29th!
Sadly, I have reached the point at which I am almost unwilling to write another book, knowing that I may not even be able to earn the copyright expenses in royalties unless I promote it extensively. I have no desire to market; I wish merely to create.
You are also quite correct about the inherent unfairness of contracts with most (not all) small publishers. I was ecstatic when the now-defunct White Bird Publications agreed to release my series (*The Passion of Elena Bianchi*). However, the publisher expected ME to do all the marketing -- i.e., to run up the expenses and then wait for a piece of the royalties they collected. As things developed, the publisher succumbed to a heart attack, died intestate, and never sent royalties, even though she acknowledged that I had money coming in (although it was less than 25% of what I had spent marketing!). I'll never see a dime from the shell of that zombie corporation.
I am quite convinced I'll self-publish exclusively hereafter, unless I have the opportunity to write for a publisher who can actually "deliver" on my behalf. Onward!
Or when we don't care. Thank you Kim!
Thank you for the congrats!
We're actually lucky. I've heard terrible stories from other authors with small publishers that have been taken to the cleaners. I needed more confidence, so I went with the small publisher; I didn't feel I knew enough to take on everything myself. After I dealt with this publisher and saw how little control I had over most aspects of my book, I knew I would handle my next book myself and try it. After that, I never looked back. I made mistakes, and I learned from each book I published. You're right. It costs money to publish a book. Some of my covers cost $300.00, but my Flower Queen Cover was $80.00. I have also earned more money with each release, but my top earning book is still The Devil You Know. Changing the book cover did help me make more sales. Will I ever earn back the money I've spent on these books? Adding more books is increasing my earnings. Will I need a more extensive backlist or a breakout book? I don't have an answer to this. I always ask myself, what would I do if I wasn't writing books?
Congrats on the finalist status. Sometimes I think we do our best work when we don't know enough to fear we will fail!