One of the most important things about self-publishing has always been that authors were finally in control. Without gatekeepers blocking the way, authors could sell where they wanted to, price their books how they wanted, write whatever genre and crossovers they wanted. Choice is a glorious thing when it comes to buying and selling, but that choice diminished somewhat with the … [Read more...] about B&N Press Just Sweetened Its Deal for Indie Authors
KDP Select
Amazon Accidentally Drops a 50% Royalty Bombshell
Indie authors who took a browse through their KDP dashboards this week might have noticed a tiny new "unclickable" feature: a 50% royalty. As reported by the Alliance of Independent Authors, there are a ton of reasons why Amazon might be prepping to make 50% an option instead of the two current choices, 70% and 35%, but those reasons are all speculation at this point. First, … [Read more...] about Amazon Accidentally Drops a 50% Royalty Bombshell
Smashwords Unveils Publishing Predictions for 2018
Smashwords' CEO and founder Mark Coker has once again unveiled his annual predictions for the publishing industry, and to say this year's edition is dark would be an understatement. Coker continues his longtime tradition of decrying all things Amazon, but this year...things are different. For too long, it was easy to dismiss Coker's predictions as a sour-grapes approach to … [Read more...] about Smashwords Unveils Publishing Predictions for 2018
Smashwords Announces New eBook Promotion Tool
In the ongoing debate about whether or not to list your indie book exclusively with one retailer, there are a few things that authors have to consider. Chief among the concerns usually falls back on sales: where are your books selling? If readers only come to your book via Amazon, for example, and you literally post zero sales on other platforms, it would make sense to then go … [Read more...] about Smashwords Announces New eBook Promotion Tool
KDP Offers Authors a New Sales Dashboard
There's little doubt that Amazon has been the driving force behind the digital publishing revolution, including its impact on self-publishing. The once-daunting process of being an author meant navigating some treacherous waters on both the creative side and the business side of things. But with the Kindle Direct Publishing platform, authors have enjoyed a fairly … [Read more...] about KDP Offers Authors a New Sales Dashboard
Should Authors Go Exclusive with Amazon?
The Author Earnings report has come out once again, and if there's any criticism to be lobbed its way, it's that the data is thorough enough to make even the most fanatical number cruncher see spots. The breakdown in last month's report is once again by sales channel, English speaking sales market, publication route, and more. But one thing hasn't changed about the report, … [Read more...] about Should Authors Go Exclusive with Amazon?
Does Publishing Have a Future without Amazon?
With the end of a pretty rough year behind us and the first few weeks of 2017 under our belts, it's a good time to take a deep breathe and take stock of the state of publishing. There's perhaps no more comprehensive analysis of the current trends than the annual Smashwords Book Industry Predictions, written each year by founder and CEO Mark Coker. Before looking at Coker's … [Read more...] about Does Publishing Have a Future without Amazon?
The KDP Select Global Fund for February is $14 million
Amazon has just announced that the Kindle Direct Publishing Select Global fund for February is $14 million dollars. Â This allows authors who publish exclusively with Amazon to earn money whenever people read their book, after a certain number of pages. Right now the KDP Select fund is under fire with scammers who are encouraging users to jump from the front of the book, … [Read more...] about The KDP Select Global Fund for February is $14 million
The KDP Select Global Fund for January is $15 million
Amazon has just announced that their KDP Select Global Fund for January 2016 was $15 million dollars.  Authors who have enrolled their e-books and gone exclusive with Amazon will get a share of these funds for each page read by a reader. There are also some upcoming changes occurring for February that authors need to be aware of. Amazon is capping the per page read system at … [Read more...] about The KDP Select Global Fund for January is $15 million
Self-Published Authors Have Fewer e-Book Distribution Options
Self-published authors are facing major difficulties in selling their e-books online. Many bookstores are closing or scaling back and Amazon changed the rules for their Kindle Unlimited program, paying authors by pages read instead of when a book is opened. Â What is an author to do? Oyster announced last week that they were closing their company in early 2016 and most of the … [Read more...] about Self-Published Authors Have Fewer e-Book Distribution Options
Amazon Changes the Structure of KDP Select
Amazon has just announced sweeping changes to their Kindle Direct Publishing Select program. Under this new model, the amount an author earns will be determined by their share of total pages read rather than their share of total qualified borrows. Here are a few examples illustrating how the fund will be paid out. For simplicity, assume the fund is $10M and that 100,000,000 … [Read more...] about Amazon Changes the Structure of KDP Select
New Kindle Direct Publishing Dashboard to Help Indie Authors
Amazon is famous for surprising its authors with new features, new offers, and newly revamped designs, all while keeping quiet about it. Past moves have included adding whole new sales territories in foreign countries, and only revealing to authors that their books were available in Mexico, for example, when they found the country listed on their sales dashboards. It's akin to … [Read more...] about New Kindle Direct Publishing Dashboard to Help Indie Authors
Amazon Announces a New KDP Select Perk: Amazon Marketing Services
Authors who've enrolled their books in Amazon's exclusive program KDP Select might have noticed a new feature in their dashboards, tucked in among the various clickable topics. Amazon Marketing Services allows authors to setup an ad campaign for their exclusive titles, one that is designed to put their books in little "ahem" boxes next to customers' selections based on either … [Read more...] about Amazon Announces a New KDP Select Perk: Amazon Marketing Services
Kindle Unlimited Goes Live with eBook, Audiobook Titles
Amazon's Kindle Unlimited, the ebook and audiobook subscription service that lets members pay a flat monthly fee for unlimited access to its catalog, went live today, offering users a thirty day free trial and the option to pay $9.99 a month for the service. According to a press release issued by Amazon, the service is compatible with both Kindle reading devices and tablets, as … [Read more...] about Kindle Unlimited Goes Live with eBook, Audiobook Titles