I love the internet. It gives people opportunities that just a few years ago didn’t exist. I think one of the key things the internet has done is to squeeze out the so-called ‘middle-man’ – and publishers are definitely in that category.
Publishers were intermediaries – they stood between authors and readers and their power could affect both parties. Now that the internet is here, there is less and less need for an intermediary. Instead, authors can go straight to readers.
Take my book for example, Anxious but Happy. Rather than first needing an agent, and then a publisher – all I needed was my computer and some internet marketing skills. Where is the publisher in this picture?
Well – no doubt publishers may still be able play a role – especially when it comes to mass distribution. However, that’s the other thing the internet has changed. It is no longer about ‘the masses’; instead it is about the mass of ‘niches’ – or markets within markets.
Self-publishing is a very attractive option – but there is one thing that keeps coming up when I speak to people – and it’s this. They want something they can hold. So, the eBook isn’t as appealing to some readers as a physical book – a hard copy. How do self-publishers like me get around that obstacle? Do we take on the financial risk of printing a large number of books to get a printing discount on the hope that we will be able to sell them all?
Well – the answer to that is “no”. You don’t need to do this. There are services out there that provide what’s called, Print on Demand. They just print a copy of the book every time someone orders one. Yes, one. Think about what a phenomenal change has taken place in the publishing industry.
Where publishers used to hold the power, now the power has been redistributed to authors – where authors can provide their readers with a hard copy of their book because the printers can print a single copy in a flash. The other factor that makes all this possible is that printing costs have come down.
I was speaking to a friend of mine the other day who is an author and who chose the traditional publishing route. Interestingly, he found that the marketing department of the publishing company really didn’t have a clear strategy for how to market the book and that he found his book was lost among the sea of other titles the marketing department was trying to promote.
Has advice? If you go through a traditional publisher, retain the right to sell and promote your book online yourself – that is, enjoy the best of both worlds.
There’s no doubt that a publishing company could catapult an author to international acclaim – but there’s also no doubt that a publisher could add no value at all. So, my approach is why give away your ‘power’ to someone else. Instead, retain control of your book, publish it online electronically, find a suitable ‘print on demand’ service for hard copies of your book, and go with a traditional publisher so long as they fit in with your plans and not the other way ’round.
Tags: nic lucas, self publishing, internet marketing
