We all know about the main distribution channels for indie authors: Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Google. But there are alternative, and potentially lucrative ways, to sell your work. One such alternative is Gumroad, which allows writers, artists, and others to sell their work. It doesn't have to be limited to ebooks either. If you're a non-fiction author, you … [Read more...] about Gumroad: An Alternate Distributor for Ebooks (And Other Products)
distribution
Indie Authors: An Overview of Book Distribution Options
When it comes to selling books, most people think of Amazon and Kindle. Although Amazon may be the biggest ebook distributo r, it's not the only option for indie authors. Ebook Retailers Ebay. An unconventional way to sell ebooks. Feedbooks. An ebook retailer designed for mobile reading. Google Play Books. Though the platform is currently not allowing new people … [Read more...] about Indie Authors: An Overview of Book Distribution Options
Two Indie Author Choices: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Although Amazon works with a wide variety of industries now, it originated in books. And it still dominates the book industry. The Wall Street Journal recently wrote about how Amazon "commands an unrivaled customer base for the books, e-books and audiobooks it publishes." Part of what helped Amazon with ebooks is KDP, the platform where indie authors can upload and sell … [Read more...] about Two Indie Author Choices: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Ebook Distribution: Google Play
There's a lot going on with Google Play lately, at least when it comes to ebooks. About a month ago, Google Play shut down its book publisher program, at least temporarily, to new users while they sort out all the accusations about pirated ebooks on the platform, according to GoodeReader. It's a shame, and hopefully Google will reopen again to new authors soon. For … [Read more...] about Ebook Distribution: Google Play
Smashwords: An Indie Author Guide
Smashwords is a retailer and an ebook distributor, and a great choice for indie authors. Why? Because the platform lets you upload once and sell on multiple outlets, saving authors a lot of time, and it offers a number of marketing options. If you want a step by step on how to upload and distribute ebooks via Smashwords, read my EPUBZone article, "Ebook Distribution for the … [Read more...] about Smashwords: An Indie Author Guide
Comparing the Ebook Submission Process: Self-Publishers v. Publishers
I recently wrapped up a freelance project with a small publisher, where I uploaded/submitted ebook files and metadata to Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Google. In the process, I thought about the similarities and differences between how a self-publisher would go about distributing an ebook versus a publishing company that is submitting files themselves instead of … [Read more...] about Comparing the Ebook Submission Process: Self-Publishers v. Publishers
POD – What does it really mean?
By Bethany Brown – The Cadence Group Print on demand is becoming more and more common, especially for indie authors. Bethany Brown, from The Cadence Group, a dedicated team of publishing professionals, has written a great, in-depth article explaining the ins and outs of POD. Read on. If you are self-publishing your book or thinking about self-publishing your book, the term … [Read more...] about POD – What does it really mean?
Digital and Social Book Discovery
Digital Book World hosted an interesting webcast today, called Finding Books Without Borders: Discoverability in a Digital and Social World. Two fairly new companies, Jellybooks and Readmill, talked about how they tackle the issue in their own ways. … [Read more...] about Digital and Social Book Discovery
Smashwords: An upgrade to help indie authors sell better ebooks
On the last day of 2012, Smashwords made an exciting announcement: authors can now directly upload epubs to the site. This might not sound like a big deal, but it kind of is. According to the Smashwords blog, as of December 31, 2012, Smashwords became "the world’s largest distributor of ebooks from self-published authors and small independent presses." And now that authors … [Read more...] about Smashwords: An upgrade to help indie authors sell better ebooks
Self-publishing ebooks: Why maximizing distribution matters
New technologies and startups have made it easier than ever to self-publish ebooks. But they don't make it any easier to make a living writing. The most important thing you can do as a self-published author, however, is to make sure your ebook is available through as many retail channels as possible. (FYI, ebook sales accounted for 20% of book sales in 2011, up from 10% in … [Read more...] about Self-publishing ebooks: Why maximizing distribution matters
Self-publishing ebooks: An Overview
Fact: Self-publishing is growing. In 2011, according to BISG, over 200,000 books were self-published. Ebooks are also growing. By 2016, ebooks will account for 50% of book sales, and the book market will be worth $21 billion. … [Read more...] about Self-publishing ebooks: An Overview
An Interview with Mark Coker, CEO of Smashwords
I was very fortunate to be able to sit down and talk with Mark Coker, CEO of Smashwords. Smashwords is a site where you can convert ebooks and distribute them through at least seven outlets, including the Smashwords ebookstore. We spent the last hour of BEA discussing self-publishing, the beginnings of Smashwords and where it's going, metadata, ebook distribution, and even the … [Read more...] about An Interview with Mark Coker, CEO of Smashwords
DBW12 – eBooks for Everyone Else
The second day of DBW12 had a few interesting on-going series. The one I chose to listen to was eBooks for Everyone Else, which had panels for design, marketing, and distribution. … [Read more...] about DBW12 – eBooks for Everyone Else