Another Bookstore Goes Away

 

Once again, it is time to say goodbye to a bookstore, and if one of the "big guys" had to go away, I am sorry that it is Borders. Their store in Athens, Georgia, was one of my favorites. The customer service was always good, and the store was in a great location.

As I have noted in previous posts, the new way to read is the ebook. I am actually surprised that it took this long for the ebook to finally fulfill its destiny. Previous readers, including the Rocket eReader, the similar EBookman, and the Palm, were all were capable of displaying a variety of books, but the new generation of reading devices, including the Nook, the Kindle, and the multipurpose iPad have made reading ebooks so convenient that even beautiful stores with good coffee, friendly faces, and ample parking are not going to be enough to keep them in business.

A decade ago, I first learned about the problems with print publishing from long-time literary agent Richard Curtis. As a first-time attendee at the Harriet Austin Writer's Conference in Athens, I was in a bit of awe as Curtis described the vast number of books which are printed but never sold. Some of these are recycled into pulp after sitting in a warehouse, but many of them go out to stores then come back in as "remainders." There are other models for selling books, including print-on-demand, but the larger houses do waste a lot of paper and ink.

Bookstores, by and large, do not pay for the books on their shelves, but those volumes are on "loan" from large publishers. When customers buy the books, a part of the money goes to the store, part goes to the publisher, and a wee bit goes to the author. If a customer browses in the store, then buys the book for his eReading device (whichever one) then the publisher gets more money than with print, unless the book price is substantially less. And, depending on the price paid, the author gets a wee bit or a wee bit more. Either way, the physical store gets zip. While I am sure some customers were still buying printed books, and maybe a coffee or a gift, there just were not enough of them to keep the Borders chain afloat. Business people who are writing about the situation mention that Borders, which was selling CDs and DVDs just a few years ago, was slow to realize that video and music were moving to online delivery. Now, books take their place alongside film and music. There will still be some good independent bookstores, I hope, and Barnes and Noble has its Nook and Fictionwise eBookstore, so it may survive the downward trend in print sales. I suspect the next casualty will be Books a Million.

While I will certainly miss Borders, I did not buy much there. I guess that makes me one of the many reasons that it went bankrupt. So, I will be buying the next novel I read for the iPad. Just like the last few that I read.

Coming soon— a review of a SF series by Thomas DePrima.

A Time to Stop the Series

Readers love series fiction. Writer's love it even more— because when writing a series, an author doesn't have to create a new world or many new characters. Instead, the author can pick up a minor character from a previous tale and follow him or her for a bit. Or the author continues the story of a beloved hero or heroine, and some of the story is already written and is retold via the "backstory."

Recently, I purchased some eBooks, and the first download I read was Beloved Traveler, by Janet Miller. Previous titles in this series include Beloved Enemy (a wonderful read), Promises to Keep (also a good yarn, if not quite as suspenseful and exciting as Beloved Enemy), A Promise Made (a novella that serves merely as a bridge between the other tales) and now Beloved Traveler. This one just did not work for me. As I slogged through it, I realized that Ms. Miller needs to stop the series. When there is nothing novel about a novel, it is time to write about something else. Modern readers of romance undoubtedly dream of a society where people find the right mate on the first try and stay together until death, but even that dream can't support a lengthy series without some novelty for each story.

Some authors can seem to keep a series going indefinitely— Lois McMaster Bujold's stories about Miles Vorkosigan are an example of that. However, that is really an achievement. Even the Star Wars trilogy, with many characters and worlds to explore, lost some of its shine when it became six episodes long. David Weber's Honor Harrington yarns, which are among the best space operas I have read, have gotten longer and more boring with each book, and I gave up somewhere around book eleven.

Like many readers, I do enjoy a good series, so in that same set of ebooks, I have the sequel to Tigra, and a new entry in a long running series by Angela Verdenius, so I will be talking about those in an upcoming post.

Summer is a great time to read, so let me be about it.

Free Ebook Reads

I have bought quite a number of eBooks, roughly a couple of hundred. My favorite vendor for those is Fictionwise, which has a website that is easy to use, offers many books in various genres, and has many different formats, such as pdf, mobipocket, and html. Thus far, the “bookshelf” has kept every book I have purchased available, so if I lose one due to a technology breakdown, I can download it again. That has happened to me a couple of times, so I like that feature best of all. Fictionwise isn’t a good deal for authors, so I shouldn’t plug it, but I can’t help but like the service to readers.

However, some people don’t want to buy books or can’t afford to pay full price, even when that price is relatively low. Also, those who have never read an eBook might not want to risk much cash on this new technology. With the novice eBook reader in mind, I am going to list some links for free eBooks. I haven’t tried all of these, but I have visited the websites. Most of the sites offer downloads, which I prefer, and but one only allows readers to view the books online.

Manybooks.net [This may be the best deal for those who want to download books. The home page touts having over 20,000 books in a variety of formats. A cursory tour through the collection revealed a combination of classics which are public domain, plus freebies from new authors hoping to build an audience. I especially like the way this site is organized, with many genres and sub-genres.]

Arthur's Classic Novels [This site has about 4000 classics, in a format which works with a web browser, so you’ll need to read these online.]

Ebook Giant [Over 17,000 eBooks, in a compressed zip format for readers to download, make this a site worth visiting. Again, classics reside with modern titles, all categorized by author.]

Publishers are beginning to use the eBook format to entice readers to purchase print books. One of the best freebies around is at Tor. Just send them your email addy, and they’ll send a weekly newsletter with a link for a new release in eBook form.

Finally, if you are still wondering about the whole eBook concept, here’s a link to a column in the New York Times about eBook readers and why you might want to try this new way to read.

Where have all the proofreaders gone?

I’ve occasionally mentioned my interest in eBooks, my own novels are available in eBook form, and I have purchased many eBooks in the past few years. However, eBooks share the problem that some websites seem to have— a lack of proofreaders who know English well enough to eradicate problems. I’m not saying authors should be perfect, because I certainly am not. What I am saying is that there should be a few eyeballs trained on these works before they are put before the eyes of the public.

Here are just a few examples from my eBook library, sold by Fictionwise. I could have listed many, many, more, but these should give readers of Pam’s Pages some idea of the problem.

“But now she saw the affect it had on the women-- and men-- of the settlement....”
“...these feelings, but I swear, I’ll try to reign them in and--”
“Sighting down the laser, Riadaon focussed on Liane, who was arguing with the trader.”
“And what of I and Tenia?”
“... and here she was, forced to sit and watch people sing, juggle, dance, and do acrobats.”
“Maybe whoever is was didn’t mean her harm.” (Soul of the Forgotten, Angela Verdenius, Wings ePress)

“A few of the local’s watched her with avid interest.”
“And I do wish things could have been different between my father and I...” (Mountains’ Captive, Michelle Pillow, New Concepts Publishing)

“The com-link in the kitchen trilled and Sarah answered it. ff”
“Sarah thought she saw Bethan’s mouth twitch as if she was trying to keep from smiling.” (Promises to Keep, Janet Miller, New Concepts Publishing)

“He barely even registered the fact that their were two women.”
“A flicker of disappoint pierced the haze of contentment that had enveloped her....”
“She’d never suffered unduly during long, frequent draughts, however, hardly given it a thought.”
“She sensed that it was his way of protecting her from what she hadn’t wanted to see, making it appear that he was merely fondling her when.”
(The Portal, Kaitlyn O’Connor, New Concepts Publishing)

“Managing to sew dissension gave Venice no pleasure but it was obvious that she had done so.”
“One of the first buildings built, after afa the living quarters, was a gym....”
“Dylenski rose and reluctantly dropped hi wife’s hand to the covers.”
“...and took his hand again, which as close to a gesture of affection as she ever initiated with him.” (Trinity on Tylos, Pamela J. Dodd, Whiskey Creek Press)

Web content is worse, if anything. Since it tends to be around for only a short time, sites often have similar issues. I found these items today, and I didn’t spend long hunting. These entries are excerpts from news articles on the Access North Georgia website—
“In her position as student body president, was a member of the university's board of trustees.”
"The wreck is blocking all lanes of I-85, it is suggested to stay out of the area if at all necessary."

I also found this today on a post-secondary school’s website: “You should recieve a certificate indicating you have completed the survey.”

From time to time, I’ve been asked to serve as an editor or proofreader. I will edit, but I don’t like to proofread. Maybe no one else does, either. It sure looks that way, doesn’t it?

March 28 update:

Ironically, since I posted this, I have followed a some online discussions of a similar topic, limited to New Concepts Publishing. Here's a link to a "Dear Author"blog which is covering the "lack of editing" discussion, which goes beyond proofreading, of course, but in publishing, editors do both, of course.

Kindle— eBook reader or Web 2.0?

For roughly a decade, eBooks have been available. The number formats has grown as has the number of devices upon which to read them. Unlike video games, which went from Pong on the Atari to Halo on the X-box 360, neither the media nor the device(s) has fulfilled the expectations of buyers. The most common technologies, which include the still available eBookwise and Sony Reader, have a new competitor, Amazon.com’s Kindle.

The new gadget is about the size of a trade paperback; it has the same readable, almost magical screen as the Sony Reader; also, it has a wireless access which is used by cellphones to a huge selection of titles, some 90,000, via Amazon (no computer needed.) Amazon has managed to secure agreements with most of the major publishers for content, stating that 90% of the NYT bestseller list is available for the Kindle. Many periodicals are also available for low, monthly prices. Could this be what the iPod and iTunes has been for the music world? Perhaps, but I see three downsides to this new effort: it is rather expensive to buy the machine and its content, the screen isn’t backlit for reading in the dark, and it is ugly— really ugly.

That said, I still think this is an interesting development. Right on Amazon’s website, authors are encouraged to make their stories available for the Kindle. No publisher needed. That, by gosh, does intrigue me. Amazon’s new gadget might do away with conventional publishing— no printers, paper, ink, wholesalers, salesmen, managers, truck drivers, or bookstores. Even editors would be optional for some writers, which should mean less cost for readers and more income for writers. With all that in mind, I mentioned the Kindle in a message posted to my publisher’s Yahoo group. Please remember that this is an eBook publisher, so you’d think these folks would be interested in this new gadget. Only one author responded, and that one was concerned about the price. None of the other list members (230 or so) responded to my query, which may mean that a Yahoo group is dead as means of online communication, or it may mean that this is not the device which will bring out the benefits eBooks to the book-buying public.

I remain positive about present and the future of eBooks. Currently, I use a Palm as an eBook reader, and mine has some 80 books and short stories on it, but I recognize that this device is the VCR of pocket sized computing. Some are still around, but it’s on the way into oblivion. Apple’s iPhone, the various iterations of Blackberry, and other gadgets have been infused with that hard to define but easy to recognize characteristic— cool. The Kindle is not yet cool, but it is a step toward the future. Indeed, the word kindle means to start (a fire) burning, to stir up, to bring into being and to catch fire. Interesting name, now isn’t it?

When I was a kid, there were record stores in just about every town. Now there are virtually none, and the ones which do exist sell accessories for the iPod. Watch out, Barnes and Noble, something has begun which just might burn you guys.

Goin’ on a Book Safari

There are many topics I could have written about this week, except I have pledged to keep most of my personal life, good and bad, out of this blog. So I am not going to write about my frustration with a student who seems to blame me for her academic woes; I am not going to write about how much my son is loving JROTC, and I am not going to write about how hot it is in northeastern Georgia, but the triple digits keep appearing on the outside thermometer.

Instead, I’ll point internet readers to a fun resource: Shelfari, which is a word coined from "shelf" and "safari." There are other book info sharing sites, such as LibraryThing, which I did join, but I have spent little time there. That site is more like the law library at UGA; it has a lot of stuff, but it is boring. On the other hand, Shelfari has a visually appealing interface, easy to use tools for rating, reviewing, or just commenting on books. Like "my space," it has a friend feature, wherein you can invite like minded readers to be listed on your site. You can leave notes on other members’ shelves, and you can browse their shelves to find new reads on the shelves of folks whose taste is somewhat similar to yours.

I shared this site with my teen-aged daughter, who just loved it. She is now my friend, and she invited one of her book loving friends to join. If you want to see my shelf and read the comments I’ve posted, here is the link to my shelf at Shelfari.

Rather than list all of the books I’ve read and enjoyed (a Herculean task!) I have listed two or three titles by favorite authors. I’ve been making an effort to share my love of eBooks as well, so I have a higher percentage of those on my shelf than I might otherwise.

Of course, I listed my own books, with brief comments, but I didn’t copy reviews to expand the listings. Admittedly I joined after being prompted by a fellow WCP author, but I have enjoyed my visits to this site.

Some time when you’d like to browse for new books or old favorites, go on a Shelfari from the comfort of your home, and you’ll no doubt find it entertaining. I certainly have enjoyed it, and I have put some more titles in my shopping cart at Fictionwise based on the comments and reviews I’ve read via Shelfari. Now, if I could just get FW to have another store-wide 20% off sale!

Where are they now?

Recently, I looked back a couple of years to the Yahoo Group messages of the publisher of my science fiction story, Trinity on Tylos. My contract has seven more months, but I’ve been considering the feasibility of trying to resell it to another publisher. One of my author friends recently pulled two titles which she had with WCP and placed them with other publishers very quickly, so I decided to see where the WCP authors of 2005 have gone. I chose that year, because the standard contract with this publisher is two years, which means that all of those folks now have the option of going elsewhere. Some of them are still at WCP, of course, but many have moved on. I listed the first 20 authors who posted information about their books or publishing activities during the early months of 2005. Three of the twenty have several current titles with WCP, and one author has a single title plus an anthology title. Six of the twenty no longer have any titles with WCP. Many of these authors seem to be in transition. Three writers who had only one title with WCP have moved that title to other publishers. Mardi Gras Press, Black Velvet Seductions, and Vintage Press picked up these former WCP titles.

Writer “A” had several titles with WCP, but she recently pulled all her titles with the publisher; however, this prolific author has 2 older self-published books still available, and has a recent title with Liquid Silver Books as well as two with newcomer Mardi Gras Press.

Writer “B” has two eBooks with WCP, but her newer print title is with LBF books. Writer “C” had multiple titles at WCP, but only one is still for sale; she does have 14 titles with Midnight Showcase. Writer “D” has no current titles with WCP but now has two with Samhain. Writer “E” still has three titles with WCP, but her newer works are one title each with Liquid Silver Books, Phaze, Loose ID, and two with Samhain. Writers “F” and “G” each have a single title with WCP, but other books which are self-published. Author “H” has three current titles with Amber Quill Publishing and a couple with 5-Star, but no current WCP titles.

Author “I” is really prolific, having a “debut” novel with Zebra this year, a novel with Medallion this year, and five eBooks with Double Dragon. That ePub lets authors get a paperback version at Lulu.com, which seems to be a far better plan than the Pawprints option that we have with WCP.

Writer “J” has one title with WCP, but her new title is with Wings, which is a very similar company, using the same printer. Author “K” rounds out the survey of twenty authors. She has a one current title with WCP, one forthcoming from WCP, and another forthcoming at Wings and four others which seem to be self-published.

Some of you are saying, Pam should have created a chart. If I knew how to do that for a blog, I would have. I did notice that Samhain and Mardi Gras either picked up old titles or got newer titles by former WCP writers. Also, as I checked publishers and availability, I noted that Samhain and Mardi Gras titles are around ten dollars, which is more in line with real world pricing, and the authors didn’t have to pony up a fee to get into print either. Perhaps the authors who moved in their direction are seeking a more author friendly contract. Unfortunately, both of these publishers are closed to submissions except by invitation, which basically means you need an “in” to get consideration.

One reason to consider WCP may be that they are open to a variety of genres and they have not closed submissions, even briefly, as yet. Having to pay a fee for very limited paperback distribution and ultra high pricing continues to be a thorn in the side for WCP authors. If you can get a referral, the best bets seem to be Amber Quill, Samhain, or Mardi Gras [Update: Mardi Gras Publishing closed this week, reportedly filing for bankruptcy protection]. Science Fiction and Fantasy authors who are willing to do ePublishing might also consider Double Dragon, which is apparently taking submissions for 2009.

In case you are wondering, I haven’t decided what to do!

So, you want to be published. What now?

Sometimes folks ask me about my publishing experience. Generally, I say that it is fun, but there is no money in it, which really does reflect my experience. There is much more to tell, but Voltaire once said that the secret for being a bore is “to tell everything” so I usually keep it brief. However, some people want more information and ask. In that case, I’ll gladly tell all, and after six years I have a good bit to tell. Recently, erotic romance writer December Quinn, who has published more books than I have, and who has many “coming soon” titles, has done an exemplary job of explaining what to look for when seeking a publisher on her blog. This is multi part series which will run this summer, and I am linking to the first post. Once you are on her blog, you’ll no doubt find the other posts in the series, which I can’t recommend enough. She has covered almost all the bases and promises more to come.

If you are in the early stages of writing or are just beginning to explore publishing what you’ve already written, a writer’s conference can be a great help. Some of these offer agent evaluations of your work. If there isn’t a conference near you, or you don’t have the money, an online writer’s conference such as Muse It Up might help. I’ve heard some good things about this one.

I’ve mentioned some other resources for writers in previous blogs or on my website, including the Writer’s Beware blog and HiPiers.com, science fiction author Piers Anthony’s site, which has an informative section on internet publishing. When looking at internet sources such as forums and blogs, do be aware that some writers, for reasons I can’t fathom, are “cheerleaders” who will refute any negative information which is posted about their publisher, even if the negatives are accurate and should be considered by authors prior to signing a contract.

Anyone who asks me about my publishers will get straight answers, since honesty was drilled into me at Papa Dodd’s knee. For POD, Booklocker tells you up front how much it is going to cost. They charge out the ying-yang for corrections, but they never lie about it. The biggest downside is few reviewers will accept a POD, so it is hard to publicize these books outside the writer's circle of acquaintances. WCP is a mixed bag, wherein some authors are happy and others have paid or begged out of their contracts to seek better distribution and higher royalties. Gardenia Press, which once had a contract on The Gift Horse, was a publishing nightmare, but even they had some cheerleaders.

There are many opportunities for those who want to be published, via print on demand, ePublishing, and small presses, but be careful out there. As the old saying goes, it’s a jungle.

Laptop in limbo

My beloved G4 iBook was DOA last evening. Hubby and I made an early morning trek to the Apple Store at Lenox Square in Atlanta this morning, where I made an appointment with an Apple Genius, who did what I did at home, plus trying to run it via a remote server and came up with the same conclusion that I did: hardware problem. That means a trip to a service center, and I have applecare on it, so the repair won't cost me, but my hard drive may or may not be salvageable. I do write some of my Pam's Pages posts a bit ahead of time, and I have one on getting published ready, but it is on that computer and not on this one. If Lazarus makes it back, I'll have that post in a week or two.

In the mean time, I'll mention some of the things going on in the publishing world—
•A romance ebook publisher, Triskelion, just folded. Some of their authors are scrambling to find new homes for their books, so that will make publishing that genre and method a bit more difficult for a time.
•Whiskey Creek Press continues to have issues with distribution. Right now, the authors on their Yahoo group are bemoaning the fact that Barnes and Noble stores won't even order a trade paperback book from WCP, saying they are non-returnable. Actually, WCP does take returns, but B&N is quite arbitrary in their policies, so good luck changing that, folks. Unless WCP will bow to publishing conventions and use a distributor such as Ingrams, the books will experience very slow sales indeed.
•Some of my author friends are saying that My Space is the way to promote authors and books. One of them told me that his My Space profile gets more hits than his website and his blog, combined. I don't yet have a My Space. I have looked at it, but it seemed so busy and confusing that I just went back to blogging. I have looked at some profiles of my teenager's acquaintances, and all I can say is that the entire site should be rated "R"or "X" and I prefer to have my promotions be family friendly.
•POD pricing, which was high to begin with, is getting higher. Booklocker went up on set-up fees and cover prices in June, and they are among the cheaper such publishers. It will cost approximately $500 to get into print there, and you'll pay a bit more for Lulu or iUniverse. Xlibris, once a viable printer, is up to a couple of thousand, so I wouldn't recommend that to anyone, although I have done so in the past.

That's it for this week folks. Let's hope the repair facility can resurrect my computer without sacrificing my hard drives' contents. BTW, all of my current manuscripts are on it, and they haven't been backed up lately. If it goes, so does a few months of work...