experience with ebook publishers?

[rae121452]

those of you who have ebooks......................did the publisher approach you first? how has it worked out? any wisdom to impart?

 

[Voboy]

Mine approached me. It’s been a lovely relationship.

No real wisdom. I’m sure lots of publishers ghost here; if your style strikes their fancy and you’ve enabled emails, that’s all it takes. I will say that mine values the speed with which I can get shit done; I’m pretty fast and I don’t need much editing.

 

[sr71plt]

Two publishers I've used started up with Literotica authors through an open invitation to submit. Two other publishers I've used contacted me. So did two Web sites trying to start up a stories collection and wanting me to provide stories for it.

You can sit and wait for requests or you can research (through online distributors) what publishers publish books like you write and check out their Web sites for submissions guidelines.

 

[rae121452]

Two publishers I've used started up with Literotica authors through an open invitation to submit. Two other publishers I've used contacted me. So did two Web sites trying to start up a stories collection and wanting me to provide stories for it.

You can sit and wait for requests or you can research (through online distributors) what publishers publish books like you write and check out their Web sites for submissions guidelines.

i was contacted. i am unsure what to do about it.

 

[KCWinter]

The first thing to do, in my opinion, is to research the publisher. Who are they? What do they publish? What other authors have worked with them? What are their sales rankings on sites like Amazon? What are their contract terms (if they refuse to share contract terms with you prior to you signing the contract, that might be a red flag).

Most importantly, in my opinion, do they ask you to pay them anything? While pay-to-play is a valid publication thing for some, the general wisdom amongst many authors I've seen discussing it is that money flows *to* the author. Expenses such as editing, cover art, etc. are the cost of doing business for a *publisher*, and in general ought not be passed on to the author.

Self-publishing is different, in which the author pays for editing, cover art, etc. but is also the publisher of record. And there are co-op companies like Excessica (which started here on Lit; I worked with them at the very, very beginning of my writing career) where they ask the author to provide cover art and editing--but they don't *charge* the author for those things, they ask the author to provide them. In other words, the author doesn't pay Excessica for anything (at least as far as I recall); the author pays a cover artist and an editor. As far as working with Excessica, the money flows *to* the author, in that Excessica collects and distributes royalties.

 

[sr71plt]

I never paid eXcessica for anything, including cover art and editing, and I once had more than sixty titles with them, now down to twenty some. The kicker was that I was trying to help them get established and let all of my royalties be plowed back into their revenues.

 

[KCWinter]

Yeah, I know they don't charge for cover art and editing. According to their submission guidelines, though, getting the manuscript edited and getting cover art is the author's responsibility, not the publisher's, meaning the author has to pay for it. They just aren't paying *Excessica* for it. At least that's what the guidelines appear to say.

Which is still a better deal than self-publishing for some of us; authors get the control over the cover art and the editing process, as they would if they self-published, but they have Excessica's marketing backing them, whereas in self-publishing they would have to do all the marketing themselves.

To the OP: Another thing to look into when you're doing your research on the publisher is how long they've been in business. That isn't necessarily a guarantee that they're reputable or that they'll last (a few e-publishers that had been around for years have gone out of business in the past year or two), but it makes it a bit more likely than if they're a brand-new company just starting out. New companies can definitely have staying power and can be a good springboard into being published, but there are also cases where someone says "Oh, cool, let me start a publishing company, it'll be fun," and within a year or two there are complaints about nonpayment of royalties, or other issues, or the company just plain goes out of business.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

I never paid eXcessica for anything, including cover art and editing, and I once had more than sixty titles with them, now down to twenty some. The kicker was that I was trying to help them get established and let all of my royalties be plowed back into their revenues.

Have you profited in any way? is that avenue still available for newbies?

 

[sr71plt]

Have you profited in any way? is that avenue still available for newbies?

Yes, I profited at the height to two junior suite Caribbean or Mediterranean cruises a year, now pretty much down to one because of the glut in the market. But then I put out two commercial titles a month for a decade (down to a little over one now) and have nearly 200 titles in the market still in various pen names. I still profit financially considering I'd be writing the material for my own pleasure anyway.

Now, for newbies who aren't going to keep them coming enough to build a fan base? Not so much. The crest of the profit wave was about three years ago. If you weren't established by then and aren't dropping books into the market continuously and/or haven't found an underserved category to populate, it's going to be hard going for you. The market is glutted.

 

[ThatsTheGuy]

Yes, I profited at the height to two junior suite Caribbean or Mediterranean cruises a year, now pretty much down to one because of the glut in the market. But then I put out two commercial titles a month for a decade (down to a little over one now) and have nearly 200 titles in the market still in various pen names. I still profit financially considering I'd be writing the material for my own pleasure anyway.

Now, for newbies who aren't going to keep them coming enough to build a fan base? Not so much. The crest of the profit wave was about three years ago. If you weren't established by then and aren't dropping books into the market continuously and/or haven't found an underserved category to populate, it's going to be hard going for you. The market is glutted.

Great. That's good to know. Thank you.

I've read some of your stuff here, I think. Not normally what I read, but I'll make an effort to read some more of your material. I see you have a following here and that's a bonus.

 

[redzinger]

The first thing to do, in my opinion, is to research the publisher. Who are they? What do they publish? What other authors have worked with them? What are their sales rankings on sites like Amazon? What are their contract terms (if they refuse to share contract terms with you prior to you signing the contract, that might be a red flag).

Most importantly, in my opinion, do they ask you to pay them anything? While pay-to-play is a valid publication thing for some, the general wisdom amongst many authors I've seen discussing it is that money flows *to* the author. Expenses such as editing, cover art, etc. are the cost of doing business for a *publisher*, and in general ought not be passed on to the author.

This is very important.

If you have a look at their other books and all you can think of is how cheap the books are and look, it's a really bad sign. Read some of the excerpts online and evaluate the editing and the quality of writing that they're publishing.

I ignored my instincts and regret accepting the first offer I had to become a 'published author'. Everything was done on the cheap, if at all, and has left me feeling very jaded.

Also, find out EXACTLY what promotional activities they are planning, how much they expect from you. What their editing procedures are, etc.

 

[lovecraft68]

I had someone reach out to me via Twitter. Free covers, free editing, decent royalty...but the exlusive for two years bothers me.

There's also the fact that they're used to dealing with people who don't know how to do much on their own and I'm already hooked up with an editor and cover person both of which don't charge me because I've helped them out in other ways including recruiting some authors for them.

Still debating it. I'm in no hurry to decide.