QUICKSAND AHEAD!

As an independent author/publisher I’m able to view the future of the publish industry with a certain objectivity.  I’m not contracted to the standard AGENT/PUBLISHER/PUBLICIST paradigm. 

At one time I was part of that program as I had no choice.  It was sad and unrewarding; traveling to all the bookstores; sitting in some corner signing my novels and then waiting six months to be paid by the publisher.  Paying the agent and publicist out of my meager revenue and then proving to the IRS that; Yes, I did sell four-thousand books but I lost eighteen thousand dollars because of the travel expenses involved. 

Also, many of the sales to bookstores were bogus.  The big box stores order the books but they have the right to return them if unsold.  The author gets slammed and has to return the royalty. Well, the big box stores are going under.  That is their quicksand.

That was then – this is now.  No one is taking my e-books off the shelf.  I can adjust the prices anytime I choose, and my royalties are paid monthly. My e-books are sold around the world and are not limited to store hours. E-books can be downloaded to almost any reading device; Kindles, Nooks, PC’s, Mac’s, tablets, and even some cell phones.  I use my kindle but also have several e-books downloaded on my android cell phone.

The near future for e-books looks grand.  However, our quicksand will come somewhere in the distant future.  Reading is already on a downward spiral due to video games and other forms of electronic entertainment.