Committing to 2013

I have a confession. I hate commitments. Personal or professional, it doesn't matter. I like knowing that I have an escape plan, a way out. It's not so bad in my personal life. If someone doesn't like it, they are free to walk away. But in the professional world, it's a career killer. Wondering why I haven't blogged in nearly two years? Curious as to why it's been nearly a year since I published anything under my own name, and over six months since I published anything at all? Lack of commitment. I'd love to blame my day job - and I often do - but that is something I could always leave, if I were willing to commit.

I always, ALWAYS, hedge my bets. And while it makes me feel safe, it also means I have very little to show for my efforts. Sales are slowing down now. And because I didn't commit to anything in 2012, I have no new material to help boost them. January will be the first month in over a year that I won't get paid any royalties. And that stings.

So it's time to change.

I'm miserable when I'm not producing fiction. But before I quit my job and dive into the lifestyle of a working writer, it's time to assess what I want to accomplish, and then <gasp!> commit to a plan that will help me succeed.

I'd like to see myself doing 5000 words a week. 50 weeks a year. 250,000 total new words of fiction in 2013. At the speed I write, that is only 5-10 hours a week.

Can I do it? Maybe. With 55 hours taken up by my day job and commute, I'm already facing a tall order. Add in time spent editing, maybe 15-20 hours a week, and it becomes even more daunting. Maybe the goal is too high. For sure I'm going to be tired more days than not, even before I try to write. When will I see my family? What about...

There. See how easy it was to almost talk myself out of it? Sneak Preview: I bet I fight the same battle, with the same arguments, every time I sit down to write in 2013. But I will try to persevere. Likely I will fail on all fronts. And fail big. I'll be lucky to get half the words down that I say I'll write. I hope I fail so hard. Because you know what? Even if I only make it halfway to my goal in 2013, that'll still be 125,000 new words that I write. At my average length, that's one novel and more than a half-dozen short stories. I'll take it.

So here's to committing, whether to success or failure, in 2013. Happy New Year.

March Price Experiment and Numbers

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. School is getting hectic. Anyway, I wanted to pop in real quick while the numbers are still fresh.

So in the month of March, I dropped the price of Days of Reckoning to $0.99. I did this originally so I could gift a copy. Amazingly, while it was at the new low price, I sold 8 copies. So I left it there for most of the month. Results? 31 copies sold on Kindle. This represents 6 times the number I'd sold in any given previous month. Which means I made just as much as I did when it was at $2.99.

I also released a short story, Charmer, in the middle of the month. It sold three copies. Shorts are a harder sell, and I'm guessing that being listed with a full novel at the same price also hurt its chances.

I still only managed one sale of Days on Nook, and it looks like I scored a sale through Sony as well. Still don't know if any of my downloads from Smashwords were paid or not. I really hope they go to a monthly reporting system soon.

So for the month of April, I'm leaving both at $0.99. I should be doing a guest blog later this month, so I'll link to that when it appears. And I'll be buried under a mountain of schoolwork, as usual. May 15 can't get here fast enough!

E-Publishing: Pay Dirt or Fool's Gold?

I was discussing e-publishing with some of my fellow MFA students this past week, and one of them posed the question: “How big is the e-pub gold mine? How comparable are sales for e-pub and traditional publishing?”

I’m pretty sure that attempts to answer this question have ignited small wars recently. Since I don’t want to clog up my class’s message boards addressing the issue, I figured that I would offer my two cents here. I’m going to try to limit things to my own personal experience; however, since I have only been selling my e-book since December, I don’t have a long track record to draw upon. So please forgive me if I have to name drop in this post.

To answer the question “how big is the e-pub gold mine?” we have to first draw a major distinction between “potential” and “probability.” Right now, the potential for e-pub sales is huge. There are millions of e-reader and e-reading capable devices on the market, and more are being sold every day. Self-pubbed e-books tend to be much cheaper than those offered by traditional publishers (usually $0.99 to $2.99 on the self-pubbed side, and $9.99 to $14.99 for a new traditionally published e-book). So that’s a big advantage in favor of writers self-publishing: cheaper books usually mean more sales (as long as the books are well-written and formatted). The market is there, and all indications are that it will be there for some time.

So what’s the probability that a self-pubbed author of an e-book will be able to take advantage of this marketplace? This is where things get a little dicey. Distribution is no longer an issue. Self-pubbed authors have access to the same stores as those pubbed by New York (there are some small presses who focus on the e-market, and some of them offer their books through their own websites. But when it comes to the major platforms, it’s a pretty even playing field). The challenge for self-pubbers is the same it’s always been for any new or independent writer: exposure. To make sales, people have to find your book. Ad campaigns tend to be expensive, and there is no guarantee that someone will buy your book just because they see a banner for it. Word of mouth still seems to be the most effective means of advertising. Showing up on Amazon’s and Barnes and Noble’s “top sellers” lists seems to help boost sales. Being involved in various forums and other facets of the online community is also probably useful. You’ll also read about a lot of success stories in those online communities, which can be very convincing that electronic self-publishing is the way to go.

So what’s the reality? There seem to be a ton of people making good money in this business. Is it really possible and even probable to join their ranks? Well, it depends, mostly on what your definition of “successful” is. And here’s where I share my personal and perhaps sobering experience.

You see, I’m not a successful self-published author by most standards. Currently, my novel ranks in the 100,000 range on Amazon, and 800,000 on Nook (disclaimer: this doesn’t include Smashwords sales, because they only release their figures and payments quarterly, so I haven’t received an accurate report from them yet. I’ve had 24 downloads of my book sample in just over a month through them, but I don’t think any of them turned into purchases). I’ll be blunt: those are shitty numbers. I’m averaging 5 sales a month. Again, shitty numbers. That means I’m earning (according to my royalty statements) a whopping $10.30 every thirty days or so. Definitely won’t be quitting my day job for that!

Here’s the rub: I’m pretty much an unknown author. I’ve also only been at this for three months now. Most authors I’ve read about who have been successful have taken several months to a year to find their audience. I only have one book for sale. Again, most successful authors have more (usually at least three). I also have done little promotion beyond Facebook announcements and a couple of guest blog posts. I’m still figuring out the finer points of e-formatting. So there is hope for me yet. And right now, I’m doing better than I was in the print market.

It would be eminently helpful if I had a novel published in print so that I could compare the two. Unfortunately, that dream never came to pass. And I don’t want to speculate on what I might or might not be earning if I kept trying for a print deal. Once you start dealing with pretend numbers, I think your whole argument falls apart. So I can only compare my online experience to the two short stories I had published in anthologies released by small presses. Again, this is an imperfect comparison, but it’s the only experience I have to go on.

So my first short story sold in 2005, and was printed in 2006. I received about $150 as an advance. It never sold enough to earn any royalties, but I did make about $250 profit off of copies I had purchased at my author’s discount, and then sold at list price during a book signing. So all told, in the five calendar years of 2006 - 2010, I earned $400 from that story. Five calendar years is 60 months, so doing the math, I’ve earned $6.67 a month off of that story. And that’s it. That number will only decline as the months go on, unless new income comes in. Now, I knew this was a likely scenario, so maybe it’s not quite fair to break it down this way. I was happy to get $150 for a short story, and even happier when people actually bought copies at the signing. So it’s a $400 story on the whole, and unless I ask for my rights back it will probably stay there.

My second story sold in 2006. I was supposed to earn almost $400 as an advance. But the publisher fell on some hard times, and I still haven’t seen a cent in payment. I haven’t gone to court over it, because the fees and time just aren’t worth the hassle. It remains to be seen whether or not I’ll demand my rights back. For now, I’ve chalked this up as an expensive learning experience, and it’s also been motivation for striking out on my own. I don’t want to be burned again, intentionally or unintentionally.

As for my novel that is currently online, it’s averaging around ten bucks a month. So right now it’s a $30 story (since it’s been selling for three months). I’m going to risk slipping a bit into “imaginary” mode, but if those numbers hold, in a five year period it will earn $600. Factoring in expenses for cover art and the ISBN I purchased, and it will take seven years to hit that number, roughly. Again, this is not major money, but it’s better than I’ve done before, and it certainly beats what it was earning sitting on my hard drive.

Now, the question begs to be asked: is it worth it? It is for me. It might not be for you. I’m not viewing this through rose-colored lenses, either. First, I do plan on releasing more material electronically, to see if the trend of “more books = more sales” holds true for me. Second, I will probably be playing with price points and incentives, which will throw off the math above, but might make it more interesting. Finally, at least I can say that - even if I fail - I’m giving it my best shot. I don’t like failing. I can’t imagine many people who do. But at least I can learn something from this process, whatever the outcome. And at least I’m not failing because someone else made bad decisions that turned into me not getting paid.

I’ll probably revisit this topic again at the end of the year, when “Days of Reckoning” has been on sale for a full year. At that point, I’ll have more of a track record to go on. I also should have more material available. I don’t know if I’ll have struck paydirt. But at least I can say that I tried.

Special thanks to Jen Brooks, a talented writer and colleague from Seton Hill University, for posing the original question.

Big Pulpy Shoes to Fill

I wrote earlier how exciting I think the “e-book Revolution” is for readers. If you have an e-reader or don’t mind consuming your books on a computer, there is a whole new world of inexpensive fiction out there now. And for writers, e-books represent an amazing way to connect to readers, and maybe even earn a few dollars along the way.

But before you can start counting the money, you have to write the books. A lot of them. The more material you have available, the more likely readers are to find you. If you scroll through the comments sections of blogs like JA Konrath’s “Newbie’s Guide to Publishing,” you’ll see many readers who are much more inclined to buy from authors with multiple titles available than they are to buy a single lonely book. Readers like to read. A lot. And they love it when a new book comes out by their favorite author. Before, a reader might have to wait a year or more for a new title. Now, the author might release two or three or more a year. That means there’s opportunity for both readers and writers to benefit from the world of e-books.

Back in the heyday of pulp fiction, titles would be released on a monthly or even bi-weekly basis. Walter Brown Gibson, the original author of “The Shadow” mystery series, cranked out two 60,000 words novels a month (Hutchinson, 18). That’s a tremendous amount of output. I don’t know many people who can match it. An author named Lester Dent wrote at perhaps a more reasonable rate: he created one “Doc Savage” novel a month during his career, although he also branched out and wrote for other pulps as well (Hutchinson, 42). And this was all in a time before laptop and tablet computers, and e-mail submissions or electronic uploads.

Those are some serious shoes to fill. I don’t know if I could do it. I’m fast, but am I 12-24 novels a year fast? Probably not. But it’s possible. Gibson and Dent did it. And anyone who has ever completed “National Novel Writing Month” can do it. I’ve had three successful NaNoWriMo’s. So maybe it isn’t so farfetched.

Of course, production is only half of the battle, especially today. Novels and stories also need to be edited. That’s a topic we’ll look at next time, so stay tuned!

Work Cited:

Hutchinson, Don: The Great Pulp Heroes. Niagara Falls, NY: Mosaic Press. 1996. Print.

A Pulp Renaissance?

There are plenty of blogs that talk about the game-changing effects of selling directly through the Kindle and Nook stores, as well as other distributors like Smashwords. So I’m not going to rehash all of that. My stance as an author should be pretty clear by now.

Instead, I’m going to talk a bit about the e-book revolution from the standpoint of a reader.

About ten years ago, I was reading Dashiell Hammett’s “Continental Op” stories. And I thought how cool it would be to have stories and books like that again. But pulp fiction seemed to have sailed. Vestiges still remained, in the form of men’s adventure books like “The Executioner” and the monthly releases from Harlequin. What appealed to me about books like that (and still does) is how easy and, well, fun they were to read. And it also helped that they were cheaper than the other paperbacks in the bookstore. Yeah, the quality was hit or miss, but if you only dropped a few bucks on them, as opposed to six or seven on a stand-alone title, what did it matter?

Prices in the bookstores have gone up now, even on the monthly release titles. And on Amazon, most paperbacks can be had secondhand for as little as a penny, plus about four dollars shipping. So there hasn’t been as much of an advantage to buying current pulps. But now we have programs like Kindle, Nook and Smashwords. And prices are good - often as low as $0.99 to $2.99. So I think we’re seeing a renaissance of pulp fiction.

Some will argue that the price of e-reading devices negates this theory. But here’s the thing: you don’t have to have a dedicated e-reader to read e-books. Millions upon millions of people now use smartphones, iPads and iPods, and other tablets and laptops. I think it’s fair to say that most households in the US at least have a desktop computer. And reading applications are available for all of these devices. Granted, most people aren’t going to lug around a Dell for the purpose of reading a $0.99 novel. But someone with an iPhone, waiting at the subway stop? A student sitting in class, bored with the lecture, taking notes on their iPad (Not that I would ever advocate classroom distractions…)? My own mom, who used to have a travel bag dedicated to the books she wanted to read on vacation, and now has an iPad as well?

The devices are already here, and people are already using them. Now, the product is here too. Some of it good, some of it not so much. Kinda like the Executioner books, or the monthly romances, or the old pulps of old. And the best part is, you can try samples for free of most of these books (as long as the author has made it available). A whole world of inexpensive, fun books is becoming available again.

Welcome back pulps! We’ve missed you.

The Thrill of Success

Well, I did it. I'm sitting in Barnes and Noble, waiting for my car to be repaired. I've played with one of the Nook devices, and there it is: "Days of Reckoning," by Chris Stout (that's Deacon's alter-ego!). Curious to see if Amazon has caught up, I've used my laptop to go to the Kindle store. Holy crap, there it is: "Days of Reckoning: Kindle Edition." At $2.99, what a deal! The iBooks version should also be available shortly. I will post the link as soon as it is live.Suddenly the new starter I need for my car doesn't hurt so much (that will come when the credit card bill comes due). My book is published. Yup, it's self-published. But it's out there, nonetheless, which is more that can be said for it during the last five-going-on-six years since it was submitted as my thesis at Seton Hill University.

Right now I'm going to bask in the glow of having succeeded in bringing this novel online. It's a pretty righteous feeling. When I make my first sale, I'm pretty sure that will be righteous too.

Later, I will post some lessons I learned as I went through the process of uploading to each of the three outlets. I will probably do a post for each one (Kindle, PubIt and iBooks) so that the posts are manageable and unified. If I branch out into any other retailers, I will keep you updated. In the meantime, thank you to everyone who helped this novel along: critique partners, mentors and especially my sister, who was my first and coolest reader. Also, thank you to Michelle Hess for the awesome cover art.

Oh yeah, and PLEASE go buy my book! It's a fun ride.

Lessons From the Thickets of NaNoWriMo

I know it's a bit a a departure from what I've been posting about. So sorry if I'm disappointing anyone. For those who are interested, the book cover for "Days of Reckoning" is done and looks awesome. I have about 10,000 words left to edit, and then it will be ready for launch. So stay tuned. In the meantime, I figured I'd throw down some thoughts on my NaNoWriMo experience this year.

So we're entering the last 10 days of National Novel Writing Month. It was probably a huge mistake for me to try and take it on. I have my full-time job, the school semester is wrapping up in 20 days and I have a paper to write by the end of the term, and - you know - there's that whole book thingie that I want to finish editing so I can get it to market. But I had this story idea that I just HAD to write, because it's been gnawing at me since September. And what can I say? Apparently I'm a glutton for punishment. I'm almost a thousand words behind according to the word-count tracker (not counting the total due for today, since my day is just starting), and "Days of Reckoning" isn't finished yet (but it's close). So yeah, maybe starting a new novel wasn't the best way to allocate my time resources. But I'm pretty sure I'm learning some important lessons here. So I figured I'd share them with you, in no particular order.

1) There are some haters out there who think NaNoWriMo is a huge waste of everyone's time (if I can find some of the links I'll post them). Obviously I'm going to disagree. I will agree that it is a waste of time if you are expecting a perfect novel have developed at the end of 30 days. If you follow the NaNo guidelines, at the end of the month you will have a draft of what could be a novel. 50,000 words is about 15-20,000 words shy of what most publishers want for word counts. If e-books continue to become popular, that may change. We may start seeing more novella-length material on the market, the idea being that it is easier to digest on a computer screen than something that would be 300-400 pages in print. We'll see. Bottom line: have reasonable expectations, and if you are serious about writing, know that you will have a lot of editing to do after November.

2) NaNoWriMo is a perfect time to see just how efficient you can be. To illustrate: I have an hour commute to my job each way, give or take. So five days a week, I lose 10 1/2 hours a day that could be spent writing. Now, I was smart enough to read ahead for one of my classes, so I didn't have to worry about that this month. But I still had a 30-page story to critique, 2 critical analyses to post, and responses to other analyses to come up with and post. And don't forget "Reckoning." 72,000 words to be edited. I'm through about 60,000. And of course life continues to happen. But with all that, I've still written just shy of 31,000 words of a completely new novel. Granted, I'm tired every day, and I doubt I could keep this pace up for more than a month, but when push comes to shove, writing is important to me. And it's amazing how we can find time for the things that really matter.

3) Given the above, I have spent a lot of time wondering how much I'd be able to write if I didn't have that pesky job. If my book starts making money, I suppose I could find out. But would I really be able to write full-time, or is it the fact that I have so little time to write that makes it that much more appealing? I don't really know.

4) It's fun to write without worrying about something being good. When I first started working on "Reckoning" the only thing I cared about was it being "good." From word one page one, it had to be "good." That is a very self-defeating way to write, at least in my experience. There is always the possibility of making something better. But you can't improve something that hasn't been finished. So I would suggest that you let yourself play. Explore tangents, make your characters do outlandish things. Anything that keeps the words flowing, put it in there. You can always fix it later.

5) And you will have to fix it later. Whether you play and enjoy yourself during your first draft, or you torture yourself with every word, I can almost 100% guarantee you that you will have to fix things later. So you may as well have the most fun possible while you can.

And hey, if you're one of those folks who loves to edit, just imagine how much fun you're going to have come December.