Author, entrepreneur and “ruckus maker” Seth Godin has unveiled his latest experiment in a long line of efforts to publish directly: His new forthcoming book WHAT TO DO WHEN IT’S YOUR TURN [And it’s always your turn] is available online for discounted direct, pre-order through October 8, while Godin closes his first printing. The trade paperback “full-color book in magazine format” is positioned as “focusing on our invented battle with fear and our obligation to do work that matters.” Put a different way, he is “taking the most powerful, personal messages of [his] blog and recent books, mixing them with evocative photos and […]
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Separating Write On from Amazon’s “Reader-Powered Publishing”
Subsequent to our report based on accounts from others, Amazon spokesperson Susan Stockman has clarified that the WriteOn by Kindle beta program is a separate initiative from the still-unnamed –and still-unlaunched — reader-powered publishing program that was explained a little further in a recent company email. “Write On is a new community where writers and readers share in the creative process,” Stockman writes. “It’s been rolling out slowly and will continue to ramp up over the coming months.” According to Write On forum posts, the site has been quietly live at least since some time in April. Community manager Jon Wahlgren posted […]
Harper Offers Authors Additional Net Royalty For Online Direct Sales Referrals
As promised in July when HarperCollins relaunched their web site to focus on making their full catalog of books, ebooks and audiobooks available for sale to consumers, the company is now ready to provide additional compensation to “our authors who want to sell directly” via Harper’s shopping cart. Authors who add a linked HarperCollins “buy” button on their sites or directly integrate the Harper shopping cart will receive an additional 10 percent of net on those sales, to be credited through their regular twice-annual royalty statements. Authors interested in implementing the new offer should start by contacting their editors, though […]
Harlequin Makes 15,000 Backlist Titles Available on Scribd In Exclusive
Harlequin has joined its new corporate parent HarperCollins in signing on with ebook subscription service Scribd, entering into a one-year agreement to provide 15,000 backlist titles. Unlike many previously announced deals, however, Harlequin has made Scribd their “exclusive subscription partner.” Featured bestselling authors include Debbie Macomber, Robyn Carr, Susan Wiggs, Heather Graham and Shannon Stacey. Scribd will also be making the full Harlequin catalog available for individual purchase in the Scribd retail store. “Harlequin prides itself on being an innovator in the digital space, so I am thrilled that this partnership with Scribd will help us to meet our readers where they […]
Amazon Publishing Is Firm No. 2 At Kindle Store
Amazon Publishing vice president Jeff Belle reported in his September 2014 update letter that in the US, In the US, “Amazon Publishing now ranks as the #2 publisher on the Kindle platform, based on paid copies (this means royalty-generating copies, and includes books sold a la carte, or through programs such as Kindle Unlimited or the Kindle Owner’s Lending Library).” Presumably that means only Penguin Random House sells more ebooks through the Kindle store. (Note carefully this applies to ebooks only.) Kindle Unlimited likely plays a strong role in those counts. As we have shown through multiple analyses of the Kindle […]
Amazon Rolls Out Kindle Unlimited In UK, At £7.99 A Month
On Wednesday Amazon launched their Kindle Unlimited subscription program in the UK, charging more on a relative basis, priced at £7.99 a month (or a little over $13, or 30 percent more than the US version). The offering is otherwise very similar to the US version, featuring a licensed deal for Harry Potter and a pay-by-the-book deal for Hunger Games, but no Lord of the Rings (which is controlled by Harper in the UK, rather than Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). Most of the books are KDP self-published titles and Amazon Publishing books, with some titles from independent, non-agency UK publishers. We […]