Can I Call Myself a Writer Yet?
Part Two
Some time back I wrote this post on calling myself a writer. Getting up the courage to do that? It isn't
easy. But calling myself a writer is not the only pitfall or stumbling block in
this career. (Because once I put that on my income taxes…that's what it became.
A Career. Not a hobby or a pastime… Pardon me I have to pause to let that sink
in. I am a self-employed writer.)
*gulps coffee* Some time ago, I began to
self-publish some of my work. There were many deciding factors in this, and I
don't mind admitting that some of them were financial. You see, along with
calling myself a writer came the necessity of making writing pay for my living
expenses. So I had to make money not
just create art.
*sighs* I know. I'm crass. I've desecrated
sacred art. I should starve for my stories… But I like food too much for that.
Art
for art's sake. It's an interesting concept. I've no
doubt that if people suddenly stopped buying, and I had to get an "evil
day job" like so many other authors, I'd still write. But that doesn't
mean I wouldn't rather be able to pay my way doing something I love. Putting a
price on my work has always been one of the most difficult aspects of writing. I
do believe that I deserve to be paid for my efforts. But how much? Should I
compare the price of an hour or two of entertainment to the cost of a cup of
fancy coffee? Or to an hour of television or a movie that you rent? Should it
all be free so that as many people as possible might enjoy?
Right.
Tell that to the dentist who fixes my teeth, the doctors who cure my illnesses and
the grocers who supply my food.
They should do that out of the goodness of
their hearts? The farmers throw their hearts and souls into producing a crop,
and getting it to market. They don't let beautiful produce languish and rot on the
vine.
Dentists, lawyers, doctors, farmers, all
create a product or provide a service. And they are recompensed for that at
rates they set. You have the option of saying, yeah that's too costly for a
root canal. Or I'm not paying four dollars a pound for hamburger, and taking
your business elsewhere.
The same is true with writers.
We write. We put our whole selves into a
piece of work that consumes hours, days or even months of our time. And from
all this effort emerges a thing. A story. A bit of entertainment for our
readers.
But it's not free. It comes at a cost.
So, recouping that cost has to be a part
of our writing paradigm. NOT ALWAYS.
Sometimes, we write things as gifts, for our readers and fans. Free stories
that we give willingly as rewards for loyal readers, or to entice new readers
into sampling our wares. I have plenty of free stories, some perma-free, some
free only at certain venues, and some free in regularly scheduled promotional
events.
In order to call myself a writer, I have
to make sufficient money writing that I don't need a second job. So, I
self-publish some works because of the math.
A publisher- and e-book publishers are
much more generous than traditional paperback publishers- will generally give
an author 30-45% in royalties on books sold. That's after the vendors take
their cuts. Amazon only pays 70% royalties on books priced at 2.99 and over.
Below that price point, you get 35%. Pardon me, the publisher gets 35%. All Romance pays 60%. Smashwords pays more.
So follow the money.
Let's talk Amazon because they're the
biggest e-book market. That 2.99 book with a publishing house will pay the
publisher 2.09 per copy sold. Of that, the author receives 0.84. 84¢ per copy
sold. Now, if the publisher prices your work at… say 1.99, putting you below
that 70% rate right out of the gate?
At $1.99, the publisher makes 0.70 cents a
copy. The author makes 0.28.
TWENTY-EIGHT CENTS A COPY.
At $0.99, the publisher makes 0.35 per
copy. The author makes 0.14.
FOURTEEN CENTS.
Self-publishing buys more bread on the
table, electricity to run the computers, gas in the car and health care than working
with a publishing house.
You'll notice in the coming days that I
have added a new option when purchasing my work. It's a Direct From Author
Link.
Don't be afraid of this link. It's a
Payhip link that takes you to a book page. I admit, it's not the sleek and
pretty page that Amazon and ARe offer. It's succinct and to the point.
Payhip is a service offered by PayPal that
allows authors to sell e-books online without going through a third party
vendor like Amazon, All Romance, and Smashwords. What you're purchasing is the
exact same product that is available at All Romance, Amazon and Smashwords. It
was edited by the same fabulous editor, the cover was designed by the same
talented artist, the story is identical.
The difference is, Payhip takes 5% of the
sales and gives the author 95%.
And it’s the same secure, trusted Paypal
system of payment that many of us use every day.
Currently, I have two books with Payhip
links, but I do plan to eventually get all of my work up there.
With a name like Valentine Michaels, he could have been
anything. A rockstar, a super spy...
a hairdresser.
Pulp Friction 2015
Jack of Spades #1
Drawing Dead
In a world where mythical beings are real, love is still the most elusive… and treacherous myth of them all.
I'm not going to tell my readers where to buy my books- I'm still thrilled as heck that you all seem to enjoy my work at all, but if you want to try the Payhip service, I'd be interested in hearing how the experience was from your perspective.
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