So now to explain why going with a POD isn't a route an author should choose if they want to actually hmm . . . make money or just simply "get their work out there."
Believe it or not there's a very brief explanation and it only has a little to do with POD's except that no POD will tell you the facts UNTIL you're buried and on your way to your final resting place as an author.
Here's the skinny. Bookstores won't order books unless they're returnable. Now in case you didn't read that properly I'll say it again, Bookstores won't order books unless it's returnable. Okay. POD's will tell you this so there's no hidden agenda here. But I'm going to rephrase this to a bit so you can see how it applies. Bookstores want a gun to shoot you with. There. That should clear things up.
POD's encourage an author to discount their books heavily so bookstores will be encouraged to "buy their books." Does anyone get the picture yet? How many of you would do business with someone who says they'll buy your goods but only if they're heavily discounted and only if when they return it they get all of their money back which means you lose any profit and then some.
I suspect that none of you would but that's what you do when you deal with a bookstore (without a POD or with a POD.) If a bookstore takes a chance and order books from an author POD or otherwise, the bookstore doesn't pay the price if the book doesn't sell, the author does. There's absolutely no protection for the author. NONE.
Grocery stores don't operate this way. If they order a product that doesn't sell, they simply put it on clearance or return it in tact, the way it was for an even result. Provider doesn't lose money and neither does the store. Amazing how much that makes sense isn't it?
So when my POD told me I should discount my book and make it returnable I told them to forget about it. I don't normally give people the ammo and the gun to shoot me with.
On a brighter note, I believe I've found a way to get a clean line of distribution through Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Amazon and B&N that will make my books available to all larger stores hassle free, (well except for the stupid discount and return policy racket) so that I can do book signings and only order what I think will sale thus cutting down on what bookstores can steal from me.
It will still be like handing the bookstores a gun but at least they only have a few bullets and maybe, just maybe the chamber will be empty when they fire. ;)
With the way things work you can never say a distributor has turned a profit for you because as you said, there's no time limit on returns. ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd if all that information isn't enough to make you go, WT-? Then consider that most of the returns that come back aren't in a condition to resell and SOMETIMES the book itself never comes back. How's them apples?
And this happens EVERY day all day long!!!!
Bookstore? What's a bookstore?
ReplyDeleteWhat they also don't tell you that 80% of authors fail. "Success" is if you sell 100 copies of your book. Sad.
So the POD world is actually BETTER because you can also sell it yourself or even have it on PDF format.
With things getting more and more into download fashion, that's the future.
Also, more and more books are ordered online. Bookstores will become like an antique store. You want a book you'll go to the lirbrary.
And working with places like Amazon, they have their own printing. You get the same amount of money you would if you were going the traditional route.
So hate to disagree, but as an major reader (you should see my place; between the PDF's and the actual books you'd think I was living in a library) when I want a book I want it now. I normally look to see if I can download it. If I can't, to Amazon I go. I know I'll get it fast, free shipping, and no tax. Sweet!
Hey guys...I can see both your points. Being an author associated with a POD is a double-edged sword except we are having to fight bare-handed holding the sharp blade as the handle. It is unfortunate that people who sincerely try to write something of merit seldom see the light of day. I see so many traditionally published books that are pure rubbish. Most POD's are this way and we keep looking for the edge of the rainbow that is so elusive to us. We do a great deal of work and we spend every nickel we can scrape together to try to make it happen. It should not be that way, but this is the way it is...I keep hoping to find an audience and so far it has reached a few people. Still it is not quite enough.
ReplyDeleteYes, Joe. We just keep trying. Just good to let others know what being an author truly means and that there are no options for a different scenario unless one gets the attention of a larger house which is impossible because they pretty much just pick and choose depending on their hmmm . . . mood?
ReplyDeleteThe "system" has always been exclusive. Like any business, publishing is filled with greed, avarice and ambition. Some of it is good, some is not. As both a traditionally published and self-published (POD) author, I've been on both sides of the fence. I see advantages and disadvantages to both; I also have recently enjoyed the creative freedom of self-publishing and the majority portion of proceeds. And despite one what agent told me, I do not sense I've "ruined my career" in the endeavor. It's encouraging to me that I just read over 740,000 of the 1.052 million books published in 2009 were micropress, self-published or independently published. That's a 3:1 ratio and it signals an exciting change in the industry.
ReplyDeleteAw. Don't rain on my parade Jon. LOL Okay. So POD's don't mean death exactly, it was just a bad day. ;)
ReplyDeleteNow let me know where to send my mula to get an autographed copy of Chaser please.