Traditional vs Independent Book Publishing: What’s Best for the Success of Your Book(s)?

Traditional vs Independent Book Publishing: What’s Best for the Success of Your Book(s)? By Lee Foster (27 screens)

Why This Matters • Successful “independent publishing” or “indie” authors may get “traditional” offers • You may have several books in you, and possibly some should be done indie, some traditional • A better understanding of traditional may confirm the wisdom of your indie path

Three Paths to Publishing: Defined • Traditional “work for hire” • Traditional “royalty” • Independent self-publishing

Example of a Work for Hire Book • Lee’s Back Roads California (Dorling Kindersley) and all his Lonely Planet Travel Books

Pro and Con: Pro: Traditional Work for Hire • Cash in the bank. Try to save a little • Your work is done, no promo required • Prestige, your book with a major player

Con: Work for Hire • Serial financial life. You move from project to project • Your Identity may not be advanced (but also may, as DK listed Lee as the “author”) • You can’t use the exact material elsewhere

Example of a Royalty Book • Lee’s The Photographer’s Guide to San Francisco (Countryman Press)

Pro: Traditional Royalty • You are part of the action, as an owner of the book. You get an advance against royalties. • Royalty books tended to be more personal books, less formulaic • In the past, publishers had exclusive access to the market (mainly bookstores) and had the needed capital for publishing and promotion

Con: Traditional Royalty • Royalty publishers are not selling enough books today, and may not favor an ebook version, and may do no promotion • Royalty publishers do not offer better market access than an author can get direct, such as with print-on-demand Amazon and Ingram (bookstores, libraries) • Royalty publishers have conflicts with authors over web and app use of similar material

Example of a (Recent) Indie Book • Lee’s Northern California Travel: The Best Options

Pro: Independent Self-Publishing • Earn more per $14.95 list price print book sold, perhaps $4.25 vs $1 from a royalty book • Author controls design, distribution, and book form (print, ebook, app, website etc) • Author can license and sell material elsewhere, and book may be an ebook, website, and app

Con: Independent Self-Publishing • Author needs to promote book • Author needs to think like a publisher, not like an author who wants to be published • Author needs to invest in good design

Independent Self-Publishing Arenas • The print-on-demand book • The ebook, and possibly the app • The website presentation of the book

Example of a Print-on-Demand Book

The Print-On-Demand Path Both these options are needed, in my opinion, to get sales in all markets: • Amazon/CreateSpace so the book can be immediately available on Amazon • Ingram/Lightning Source so the book will be saleable to bookstores and libraries

Example of an Ebook

The Ebook/App Path • BookBaby (Brian Felsen) can distribute the ebook to all viable markets, returning you 100% of the net sale. This is Lee’s choice • Smashwords (Mark Coker) is another viable alternative, but requires you distribute to Amazon yourself • Some of my books are apps. Apps are “software enhancements” of book content

Example of a “Book” as a Website

The Look of the Book Website at http://www.fostertravel.com/category/norcal/30 chapters

The Website “Book” Path • Your website may be your most versatile “book” venue of all. Present the book in chapter or chunks. Sell more books/ebooks. • Your book as a website will show your expertise and can lead to other revenue, such as Lee’s licensing GreatWorldGetawaysand his contract with Answers.com as their San Francisco Expert

Example of Lee Licensing a Book Chapter San Francisco chapter licensed to GreatWorld Getaways, formerly the Uniglobe site

Example of Book as Website Getting New Contract: Answers.com Hires Lee Lee contracted as the San Francisco Travel Expert. Answers.com said they “liked my presentation of San Francisco on my website.”

Conclusion: What is a Wise Future for Your “Book(s)”? For Lee, the future will likely mean: • More independent self-published books • Some traditional work-for-hire cash-outs, such as the DK book • Fewer traditional royalty books • More focus on electronic products (ebooks, apps) and Internet outlets, his own and other Internet sites

Links to Presentation • Lee’s website, showing his articles, books, ebooks, apps, and photos, is at www.fostertravel.com • His article on this traditional vs independent publishing subject on his website is at http://www.fostertravel.com/traditional-vs-independent-book-publishing-whats-best-for-your-book/

More Links to Presentation • His “website book,” with its 30 chapters, is at http://www.fostertravel.com/category/norcal/ • His books/ebooks on his website are at http://www.fostertravel.com/shop/?category=1&product_id=2 • His Amazon Author Page for his books is at http://www.amazon.com/Lee-Foster/e/B001HNI5S8/?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&qid=1353686444&sr=1-2-ent&tag=fostertravelp-20

Final Links to Presentation • His recent licensing of a book article on San Francisco from his website to Uniglobe can be seen at http://www.uniglobethetraveltimes.com/2011/north-america/san-francisco-%E2%80%93-a-one-and-only-experience • His newly contracted position with Answers.com as their San Francisco Expert, showing his first 10 articles from May 2013, can be seen at http://local.answers.com/g/sanfrancisco

Nuances: Why Electronic Products? Electronic products can reach a worldwide audience. Lee’s app on San Francisco was chosen by Apple as a staff favorite and quickly sold 1000 units

Traditional vs Independent Book Publishing: What’s Best for the Success of Your Book(s)?