Today I want to talk about an area of books that doesn't get a lot of press in today's environment dominated by e-book strategies and marketing.
How and where is an indie author/small publisher to sell paperback fiction in today's business environment?
Most every blog post and article I read focuses on how to market e-books and how to distribute fiction online. However, what about the old fashioned physical book - the paperback novel? What does an author do to sell paperbacks?
In my publishing journey, I focused my attention, like many I know, on online efforts. So very many authors told me I wouldn't sell many paperbacks and therefore nobody had much in the way of a strategy for an indie to sell physical books. Other than getting a book into a store of some type, which can be a difficult proposition, what is an indie to do?
I didn't have a paperback strategy and when I created the paperback version of the Ella novel, I intended it to be a collector's edition of sorts - just for hardcore fans that would want a high-quality, art-house type version of the book. This version of the book has been wildly more popular than the e-book. The biggest problem for me - how to get this book into the hands of more readers?
Where does an indie author go to sell a paperback? It's almost impossible to get the book into a bookstore and even then, it's only a sell a few copies at a time. I believe there is a market for readers left out in the cold by the disappearance of chain bookstores, but how to capitalize?
I'd love to hear the ideas of the community. I know a new way forward must be out there, ready to be uncovered. Tell me what you think in the comments or message me at [email protected]
Thanks for your time and attention. Have a great afternoon.
Stephen John Moran