# Author Earnings



## InstituteMan (Jul 21, 2014)

I am sure that others have read, and maybe even discussed without me noticing, the analysis and work done at Author Earnings. I cannot personally vouch for their accuracy, but while being your typical unwilling insomniac I have read a couple of their reports. The upshot seems to be that self-publishing, or at least going with an indie publisher, may be a vastly more profitable outcome for a new author than signing the coveted deal with one of the Big 5 publishing houses.

I have little commentary to add, but I did want to share and see if anyone else knew of or had thoughts regarding these reports and their source.


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## Morkonan (Jul 21, 2014)

InstituteMan said:


> ...
> I have little commentary to add, but I did want to share and see if anyone else knew of or had thoughts regarding these reports and their source.



I glanced over this, very briefly. But, there's something obvious going on: This report concerns only e-book sales, yes? (Correct me if I'm wrong.) E-book publishing is a very low-cost entry point. As a consequence, there are going to be a great many e-book indies. That, collectively, they are earning more than Big 5 in the e-book market should not be any surprise.

According to this report, of a report , in 2012, four out of five books sold were traditionally published: http://www.keithmartinsmith.com/articles/self-publication-vs-traditional-publishing-an-author-guide/

But, there's a margins game that has to be played, as this author points out when he drops his pants and shows us his royalty returns: http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2009/10/kindle-numbers-traditional-publishing.html

Traditional publishing is far from dead. There's also the fact that, at least today, a breakout traditionally published book likely has a higher ceiling on potential returns. But, of course, that is for a limited number of A Listers, isn't it?

On a book-for-book basis, epub has higher returns. However, when we're talking about "The Big Picture", traditional publishing still has higher ceilings and opens up more opportunities. Epub is just not mature enough of a market, yet, to be able to break into certain marketable domains. As it stands, the Breakout Authors in epublishing move out of epub and into traditional publishing, where their earning ceilings become radically higher.

All of that being said, epub offers more of authors more of a chance to actually make a living selling books than traditional publishing. Today, it's possible to say that writing fiction is more of aviable way to make a living than it has ever been, solely due to epublshing markets. But, epub is not mature, there's no vetting other than the cash-register (and that doesn't really count as "vetting") and the market is flooded with crap. Rising to the top of the bowl may have a lot more to do with chance than talent, at least in regards to epublishing. Still, it's not a market to overlook, simply due to its potential for individual authors.

I have no particular thoughts regarding the source. I would hope it was independent of any publishing connections. Taking what I read of the report and comparing it with other discussions, I think the report has some merits, but I think there's a broader scope that needs to be applied.

EditAdd - Interesting links regarding Hugh Howley's "AuthorEarnings" site: 

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/...6-hugh-howey-and-the-indie-author-revolt.html

http://blog.smashwords.com/2014/03/indie-ebook-author-community-to-earn.html

There are other sorts of links and criticisms. After looking through them, what I would say as my "opinion" of AuthorEarnings is this: Howley is an "activist." While that does not mean that his numbers are bad or his conclusions are flawed, it does mean that bias is present and one must take that into account and seek out competing opinions on the topic in order to decide the issue for themselves.

PS - By the way, I loved Howley's "Wool" and his success story.


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## InstituteMan (Jul 21, 2014)

Morkonan said:


> I glanced over this, very briefly. But, there's something obvious going on: This report concerns only e-book sales, yes? (Correct me if I'm wrong.) E-book publishing is a very low-cost entry point. As a consequence, there are going to be a great many e-book indies. That, collectively, they are earning more than Big 5 in the e-book market should not be any surprise.



Point well taken, Morkonan. The first linked article does make the case that hard copy sales amount to little money for authors.

The second linked article makes the point that established authors do real well with the Big 5, but newbies do better on their own, at least in the short run (and we only have a short run of information for this).

I am not at the point where I would turn down a publishing contract, but I am more and more convinced they aren't a necessary prerequisite for success.


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## Greimour (Jul 22, 2014)

Perhaps not a prerequisite... but...

When I was young (very young) and my teacher asked me what I wanted to be when I was older, I answered that I didn't know. Unlike boys that wanted to be astronauts, policemen, firemen, etc. I didn't know what I wanted to be. I had a very realistic outlook on life.

Afterward he said that in the class there were four types of people. 
1. Those that plan to stay where they are, both two feet squarely on the ground. (Me at the time) 
2. Those who aim for the top of the mountain. (Achieve something worthy of note)
3. Those who aim for the moon. (Ambition for success)
4. Those who aim for the stars. (Dreamers who will settle for nothing less than everything life has to offer)

...

I bring that up because of the prerequisite comment. Seems to me, at this moment in time, those who don't aim for traditional publishing are only aiming for the top of the mountain. 

With traditional publishers, you might only meet the same level of success, but the chance to reach the stars is far higher. Perhaps in the future that will change, but as things _currently_ stand - that's what I see as being the truth. 


~Kev.


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## shadowwalker (Jul 22, 2014)

Agree with Morkonan - Howey is definitely an activist, and as such, I would say don't read his views on reports and articles - read the reports and articles themselves. Not saying he distorts things deliberately, but sometimes people see only what they want to see.


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## InstituteMan (Jul 22, 2014)

shadowwalker said:


> Agree with Morkonan - Howey is definitely an activist, and as such, I would say don't read his views on reports and articles - read the reports and articles themselves. Not saying he distorts things deliberately, but sometimes people see only what they want to see.



Thanks, Shadow. I appreciate some background on the source, as this is really just something interesting that I came across while reading tech news. 

Greimour, I think that you make a good point about the top of the mountain vs. the stars. Different people want different things, and certainly different writers can have different aspirations. Heck, I am only one person and a single writer, yet I want different and often mutually exclusive things. I am glad that there is now another avenue for people who want different things.

As for me, I am early enough in the process that I can punt on most of these questions for the moment, and the next many moments as well. Perhaps the best path for me will be clearer by the time I need clarity.

PS: Shadow, I noticed a Zelazny quote in your signature. Zelazny is easily my favorite writer ever. I was an avid reader before I picked up his books, but once I started reading his books and short stories, my entire world changed.


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## movieman (Jul 22, 2014)

InstituteMan said:


> The second linked article makes the point that established authors do real well with the Big 5, but newbies do better on their own, at least in the short run (and we only have a short run of information for this).



I think the current situation is: If a publisher offers you a $1,000,000 advance, you're probably better off going with them than self-publishing. If a publisher offers you a $1,000 advance, you're better off saying 'screw that' and self-publishing. The crossover point is somewhere in between.


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## Belinda (Jul 24, 2014)

Publishing contracts can give the author very little in % terms. However my experience is that the buyers in the major bookstores are the real target. Distribution with a publisher only gets you to "their" door. If they don't stock your book you get very few sales.


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