All posts by Aubree Morris

How to Price an eBook

The publishing industry can be a tough place, and some small presses are transitioning to digital-only releases. Fear not! Data show people are more likely to spend money on an eBook than on print. That might have to do with convenience (you can download it whenever you’d like!), but more likely, it has to do with the price point. On average, eBooks are a lot less expensive than printed books because they don’t have to account for printing costs. That said, you’ll still need to perform some careful calculus before settling on a number. Here’s what you should consider.

 As the author, you will make a royalty on each purchase of your eBook. These royalties are a percentage of the eBook’s retail price, but the percentage will change depending on the online retailer and the list price. Amazon takes some of the lowest royalty percentage payouts (35%), and the Apple iBookstore takes some of the highest (70%). However, these numbers change depending on your price.

Most online retailers will provide higher royalties for books priced between $2.99 and $9.99, so that’s a good price range to stay in. The most commonly purchased eBooks range from $2.99 to $3.99, with $3.99 being the most popular. However, you should understand that pricing your eBook higher could mean making more money selling fewer books. Which is more important – getting your books into more hands, or making more money off a few books? It’s not always that simple, but it’s something to consider.

When pricing, you should also consider length and the perceived quality of your book. Readers often expect shorter books to be priced cheaper. With fiction and some creative nonfiction (memoirs and essays, mostly), this means that eBooks shorter than 50,000 words are expected to be priced around or under $2.99. Longer books should almost always be priced higher. To that end, you’ll need to consider pricing psychology. Low-balling your work risks conveying the idea that it is of a lower quality. In almost all cases, we advise against pricing your book at or under $0.99.

As with pricing print books, the press you’re working with will likely weigh in on how much you should cost. As always, you should be prepared to argue for yourself and your work. If your publisher suggests something you dislike, let them know – and use this material to make your case.

 

Setting the Right Retail Price

When you publish a book through a press, large or small, they will make or advise you on a few key decisions. As scary as it may sound, book pricing is one of those decisions.

Pricing is rarely a consideration when you publish a book. Most likely, you haven’t even thought about this until just now, reading this article. That said, pricing is one of the most important decisions you can make about your book’s public life. It will determine whether people read it, where you can sell it, and how much you (and your publisher) can make from those sales.

So, how do you set a competitive retail price? You’ll need to consider a few key factors. Look around at comparable books and their prices. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is setting your price too high compared to your competitors. Put simply, this will reduce the likelihood that anyone will buy your book, no matter how special you may think it is. Once you’ve settled on your specs (e.g. trim size, paper weight, page count, &c.), you can start to do some research at your local bookstore or an online retailer.

Next, you’ll need to figure out your print cost. This is one of the most important factors to consider in this decision. You don’t want to price your book so low that the printing costs eat up your royalty payments.

Now, you need to consider genre. If you’ve written a nonfiction book, it makes sense to price the book slightly higher than you might for fiction. You’ve likely spent yours of researching and interviewing in addition to writing, so you want to factor in your labor costs. If you’re publishing fiction, the more important variable is page count. A good rule of thumb? If your book is a 375-page novel, it’s reasonable to price it at $16.95 — that’s what most new fiction costs, anyway.

If you’re working with a publisher, they will either recommend a number or make the decision for you. That said, you should arrive at that meeting knowing your stuff. Come prepared with as much information as you can get – you want to be fairly compensated, but you also want your book to sell!

Book Covers Should Rely on Genre, Not Trends

It’s no secret: An attractive, eye-catching cover is the secret to its initial success. Every day sees thousands of new books entering the marketplace, and an eye-catching cover makes it that much easier to market and sell. A cover is the face of a book, your best chance of drawing someone in to crack it open.

New technological advances have made book covers more critical than ever. Now, stores use visual merchandising software to train the eye to find the products they want – or, rather, the products the stores want them to buy. This is true of almost every retail environment, but it hits especially hard in bookstores. While nobody, especially small presses, wants to admit to judging a book by its cover, that’s exactly what we do.

This is why it is essential to choose a cover design that fits your book. Now, it’s not enough to just have a well-designed face. In the past few years, cover design trends have converged into a cohesive brand. If you’ve walked into an independent bookstore recently, you’ll see what we mean. Nearly every novel has bold typography, a minimalist design, utilizes hand-drawn letters, and includes some type of collage. Don’t trust us? Check out a few examples.

As a result, you should consider several variables when determining your book cover. You of course want it to look professional. It should convey all the information you want a reader to know, including the title and mood of the story. However, neither of these factors is the most important. This title belongs to the book’s genre.

In some cases, it is critical to have a book stand out from others – perhaps in relatively streamlined genres, like memoir and literary fiction. In these cases, the design needs to immediately convey what the story is about and something about the reading experience – whether it will be fun, thrilling, or emotionally heavy. You’ll need to set the tone before the design process, figuring out what aspects of the story you want to put front and center. The goal, here, is to be as unique as possible.

In other cases, you’ll want the cover to rely on genre themes. This is especially true for mystery, horror, and romance stories. This indicates to the customer that they have found exactly what they want before even needing to crack open the book. In these cases, draw on genre themes and incorporate elements of the story to create an individual but instantly recognizable cover.

Regardless of genre, we can’t overstress the importance of a well-designed cover. It should look professional and say something about the book. Only then will a customer pick it up off the shelf.

What Does a Literary Agent Do?

As a writer, the publishing world can feel large and overwhelming. The process of writing, querying, and submitting work is time-consuming and daunting. However, there is a group of professionals whose sole job is to help you through the process. These people are called literary agents, and they might be the best investment you make in your book.

A literary agent’s primary responsibility is to find an editor who likes your work enough to buy or publish it. They can’t promise to sell your book, neither can they purchase the rights to the writing and try to sell it without you. Instead, literary agents use their wide network of contacts and relationships to find a perfectly suited editor. They often have relationships with acquisition editors at publishing houses, allowing them to get your writing to the top of the pile—rather than allowing a query letter to wilt and fade for months. These professionals know what editors are looking for, and they’re experts at sending submissions to the right people. Additionally, editors understand that submissions by literary agents have already undergone a screening process—the process necessary for you to be picked up by an agent. Therefore, regardless of the connection, agented submissions will nearly always land at the top of the pile.

A good literary agent will also provide essential manuscript feedback. They will often edit or critique your work, offering valuable suggestions to increase marketability. This service is often more helpful than a standard workshop, as an agent will know exactly which tweaks will make your book succeed. However, keep in mind that literary agents do not offer line edits or make rewrites. It is the writer’s job to incorporate suggested changes.

If you hire and are accepted by a literary agent, this professional will be your biggest advocate. They will pitch your book to publishers and try to get the best deal possible. It is their responsibility to negotiate contracts with publishers, and they will often manage your affairs with the publisher once the deal goes through. If you don’t make money, the literary agent won’t make money, meaning it is in their interest to get you the best deal possible.

However, those seeking literary agent help should remember: though these professionals are industry insiders, they are not tax consultants, publicists, writing coachers, or lawyers. Though their duties may include aspects of those roles, they are not experts in contract law or public relations. If you are picked up by an agent, don’t over-rely on their assistance; simply allow them the space and resources to do their job.

 

How to Approach a Publisher

So: You’ve written a book, and you want to publish it. Writers can take several avenues when it comes to publishing their books. We’ve discussed the benefits and drawbacks of both traditional and self-publishing; if you want your book to be widely circulated, you should go through a traditional publishing house. But how does one approach a publisher? This is an essential task all writers face, but it is rarely covered in writing programs. Here is an essential, step-by-step guide to getting you book into the hands of a publisher.

Do your research. Don’t just send your book off to the biggest publishing houses you can think of. Research the types of houses that are most likely to accept your book for publication. If you’re a Science Fiction writer, look for presses that specialize in SciFi and Fantasy publication. If you write about an area or region, or perhaps about life in a particular area of the country, look for local small presses to publish your work. Think of this research as a matchmaking process, then distill your list down to a couple dozen of the best-fitting options.

Send query letters. These letters might be the most important documents you ever produce. Query letters are what stand between you and your traditional publishing dreams. This is often a one-page letter sent to literary agents in an effort to spark interest in your book. You have one page and around three hundred words to convince a literary agent that your book is worth reading—at least, it’s worth reviewing the manuscript. The letter must be short, sweet, and to the point, squeezing the essence of your book onto a single sheet of paper. Think of this as a cover letter; instead of advocating for your ability take a job, advocate for your books success. Talk it up, but don’t oversell it.

Sending the manuscript. You’ve sent your query letter, and a publisher took the bait! Now, it’s time to organize and send the manuscript. The book should be presented in a certain way: use good quality, white A4 paper, use double spacing and print only on one side, and leave a good margin—around three centimeters—on both sides. Always begin new chapters on a new page, and don’t use blank lines between paragraphs. Put the typescript into a wallet-type folder (use more than one if necessary). Finally, never send a hand-written submission. You want to maximize the publisher’s ability to read and notate your book.

Waiting for the decision. In most cases, publishers seem to take an unconscionable amount of time to deliver a verdict on submitted manuscripts. Waiting can feel almost painful, but remember that this is a time-consuming process. There will likely be several readings and consultations with other departments. If you have not heard anything for two months, send a polite letter of inquiry. If you are rejected, don’t expect to receive any reasons or explanation.