Hello, All. This is my first post to a Stage 32 forum. I am primarily a filmmaker, but I have had several books published in the past (paperbacks via traditional publishers back in the day, and more recently I self-published those same books after my right reverted back to me). I'd like some opinions, especially from authors of fiction, since I have been out of that game for a long time. In a fit of inspiration, I wrote a novelette - it's just over 14,000 words. That's a nearly impossible length to find an outlet for; also, it takes eons to get anything published these days. The returns are usually paltry at best, and even if I could find a publisher who is partial to novelettes, they probably don't pay an advance. Therefore, I am thinking about putting it on Kindle for free. I would write an afterword 'Note from the author' about my non-fiction books and my audio book that are available for purchase. There are TONS of outlets that list free Kindle books, so it might be the best way for me to get the word out and generate some interest in my other properties (screenplays, books, blogs). Thoughts?
Read a Good Book Lately? : Should I Give My Book Away for Free? by Staci Layne Wilson
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Go for it. Any type of marketing to generate interest never hurts.
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I agree with Robin. People won't know about your particular niche, unless its out there!
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Hi Staci, I'm an editor/proof reader and I act as literary agent for a few of my clients. I think I would be inclined to publish it with Amazon in a non exclusive contract. That way the book can be distributed, you can earn something from it, even though it's not a great deal and at the same time, do your own thing and publish it elsewhere as well, a small percentage of something is always better that 0% of nothing and any publishing deal you get won't harvest you a great return, it's the nature of the business. You can't lose anything that way, you could have it turned into an audio book as well and put on kindle at the same time, you'd have to do your own marketing mostly, but why not give it a go?
I think it would be a good move I know a few authors that have theirs on Kindle both free and paid.
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Hi Staci, I have my first horror fiction novel, The Roots of Evil, available exclusively via Amazon. As a result of this exclusivity, I was able to offer it free for five days to generate interest. I also gave away five free paperback copies via Goodreads.com to generate interest - I figured that people would add it to their "To be read" pile and it may generate additional sales in the future. However, it also directs people to see my other work. Though mine is a novel(la) more than a short story, any publicity is good I'd say. I did previously release my first non-fiction book via multiple channels (iBooks, Nook, etc) but I've not achieved any sales through there - maybe because Amazon/Kindle has the market share, I don't know, but suffice to say that people can read Kindle books on any platform with a Kindle app (which is free to download) so I'd say it doesn't matter to have that exclusivity via Amazon. I actually found, to my astonishment, that coverage in local, free magazines here in the UK, generated more interest and sales than any other marketing. Weird, but I'm not complaining. David E. Gates
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I'd say go for what Rosalind said, don't put it out completely for free, I've bought kindle books really cheap, you should also offer a sample of the first pages, this way they'll read the sample first and if they like it they'll also see it's pretty affordable and buy it.
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Check out Martin Crosbie's book on Amazon. How I Sold 30,000 E-books. (Sometimes he did free promotions--eventually he hit 130,000 and made enough $ to take a year off to write. Martin's super friendly and happy to help if you have questions. His book is well worth reading . www.martincrosbie.com
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That's an interesting avenue I haven't yet explored, David - thanks for the headsup ... and for your connection, too! :-)
You're most welcome Elaine.
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If you or anyone would be interested, I have quite a bit of information on my website www.rookiewriterssolutions.com, which stemmed from my nonfiction book "A Complete How To Guide for Rookie Writers". It gives you step by step instructions through screen shots on self-publishing, author platforms, marketing, blogging, creating and understanding websites, queries, book trailers and more. Here's the link to a 5 star review from Readers Favorite https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/a-complete-how-to-guide-for-rook...
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Free books would be good if you could ask for reviews in return, otherwise I've found they don't result in sale so are a waste of time. Some people have said they get your name out there but I have yet to be convinced.