Talking with author Allison Knight

Some fact about the publishing world, or e-Publishing versus Print Publishing

With the advance of the internet, a lot of people wonder, ‘What is e-publishing about?’

And it’s a legitimate question. Here are some answers from an e-Published author.

Before an author can submit to an e- publisher, the book must be finished. That makes sense because an e-publisher needs to know how many words are in the manuscript. And there is also the little known fact that some people write a great beginning, but can’t finish a book. Then there is the time factor to consider. No matter the stories out there, most of the big print publishers look at a proposal and have many steps to go through before the decision is made to buy the book. It takes time, as much as two years. So there's time to finish the book.

I’ve mentioned time. With most e-publishers we’re talking weeks, perhaps two or three months before a decision to buy is made. That’s quite a difference from the one to two years I’ve mentioned with big print publishers.

I have to mention postage costs for the author. Many of the major print publishers want a hard copy of the work. Only a few editors insist on e-mail, so there's the cost of postage. And mailing a full 90,000 word manuscript costs money. With e-publishers everything is handled over the internet.

I’ll pause here and mention something called vanity publishing and POD. Vanity publishing is when an author agrees to pay to have the work published. It’s given the name because, let’s face it, the reason the author wants the book published is a boon to his or her personal feelings. They want their name in print, or want the information they've researched available with their name attached. The new electronic machines available to print books at once, POD (Print On Demand) make it all possible. But I contend you don’t want to have to pay to have someone to buy your hard work. 

Everyone wants to talk about “Money”.  I hate to say this, but very few authors get wealthy writing a novel. Oh there are exceptions, but by and large most authors have to have one or two other jobs to support their talent. And here's why.

With a print publisher, the author is offered an advance against royalties, if they decide after a year or two that they want the book. However, if the book doesn't get finished, they want the money back. Let’s say they decide to buy the book, you have your advance in two, three or four installments, then the book is released. You wait for the first royalty check. And surprise, surprise. After they subtract the amount paid in the advance, they withhold anywhere from a fourth to half for something called reserves.

This is what the most people don’t know about print publishers. Their business model, especially with paperbacks, says they can print so many copies, but if the copies don’t sell in a month or two, the bookstore can rip the cover from the book, throw away the rest, return the cover to the publisher and get what they paid for the book returned to them. The story is a bit different with trade paperbacks or hard copies, but they don’t print many of  them. So after the advance, you wait a while, sometimes a long while for whatever money the book nets. Also there is the percentage of royalties on each copy. Most digital publishers pay three to four times the amount of percentage when compared to a major print publishers.

I have to mention the cost of buying an e-book compared to a print book. E-books are much cheaper. They don’t involve print expenses, paper and distribution costs. You don’t have

to spend money on gas to go to the store to buy the book or pay the shipping costs if you order the book from an online store. If you have a cell phone with internet connection, you probably can read the book on you phone, or on your computer unless you splurge and buy a reader.

Which brings up distribution. No one can deny the major publishers have a lock on bookstore and chain store distribution. But with the internet and more and more place available to purchase digital reading material the means of distribution are slowly changing. No matter the method of publication, an author must promote his or her work. Again the internet seems to be the most effective means of communication.

One last point. With e-publishing,  the book is available for a long, long time. If you here about an author who is recommended, if the book is in print, and several months, or years old, you may not be able to get a copy. Not true with e-books. Several of my original e-published books are still available on the internet. As long as the publisher and I agree the books can be bought they can be purchased. If you like one of my books, others are available for sampling. But not least is the fact that with e-publishing  that book can be sold worldwide, so if you travel and want a specific author, if they write for the e-market, their books will be available.   

So there you have it. The reasons I like being an e-published author. And yes, I do have the credentials to compare. My first six books were purchased and printed by a major print publisher.

My next ten books are e-published book. I plan to have all the rest of my literary endeavors also available in digital format.

You can find Allison on the web at www.AllisonKnight.com where you can find out her latest news, books and more.