All Amazon!
I finally did it. I pulled all my books from B&N and enrolled the rest of the Detective Jackson novels in Amazon’s Select program. My apologies to Nook owners! But the royalties from Kindle Owners Lending Library (KOLL) are too good to pass up.
In December, Amazon paid $1.70 per “borrow.” I made more money in one month from KOLL, with only half my books enrolled, than I’ve made from B&N in the last year. Sorry again to Nook owners, but I just can’t sell books there. Which has always been puzzle to me…because I sell so well on Amazon.
So it’s done. I’m exclusive. The move is not necessarily permanent, but I have a feeling my Amazon KOLL royalties will continue grow along with sales. And as I mentioned in a previous blog: Amazon already owns me. I might as well profit as much as I can from it.
The hardest part will be not giving away ebooks from my blog…or through LibraryThing or Goodreads. The exclusivity clause prevents it, and I’ll miss that interaction with readers. I love giving books away! But I can still give away my print books, and more important, I can give away ebooks through Amazon. And I have to remind everyone that Kindle apps are available on almost every device, and you can read Kindle books online, directly from Amazon now in the “cloud.”
So my ebooks are still available to nearly anyone with a computer, mobile phone, or tablet. And I’m sleeping better at night, knowing that as long as Amazon is doing well, so am I.
Good luck with the move. I just set up a schedule to have at least one book go free every week this year, and in some weeks, as many as five. My experience last week with Free in the Select program went very well, with over 25,000 downloads of Atlantis
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😐 OK, one less writer for me. But I understand that you’ve got to do what’s best for you. And since it works so well, it means that for one lost reader, you’ll gain tens. Not bad arithmetic.
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As a nook owner, sorry to say good-bye. But good luck. I know you’re in it to make the money you need, but I’m fortunate to have most of your books already. I just can’t get on board with the program of exclusivity. As I recall someone saying, the fine print also forbids posting excerpts elsewhere, but since I didn’t read the fine print myself, I can’t be sure of that clause.
Good luck.
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Good luck, LJ. I had a little hesitation, but I’ve been so frustrated over the last 18 months of trying to break into the Nook market, that I looked at this as a needed break. I’ve already had more borrows using Select, than I had sales at B&N, Smashwords, Apple etc, combined, over 18 months.
I do feel bad for the Nook users. In fact, my whole family owns Nooks and I’m not sure how my dad will read my next book, but maybe B&N will do something to their algorithms that will promote better browsing so books can be found even if they aren’t NY Times Bestsellers or erotic romance.
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Thanks, everyone, for reading and commenting.
Mary, for me, this was a sound business decision. I’ve contacted B&N a couple of times and said, “I’m selling around 400 books a day on Kindle, and I think I can sell books on Nook too. But I need a little visibility, a mention on your blog or newsletter.” And they weren’t interested. So most Nook owners have never heard of me.
My books are DRM free, so people can buy them from Amazon (or download for free) and convert to epub, using free software.
I never wanted to be exclusive, but I do want to make a living. And if I hope to have a comfortable old age, I need to make more than minimum wage. 🙂
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Congratulations on a very sound business decision. Of course I’m a Kindle owner so it’s right up my alley! I love your books and always look forward to the next one! I am so glad to hear of the success you keep racking up…great job!! God bless you and your talents!
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I understand your position, but I want to ask you one question. After Amazon corners the market on independent authors and publishers, and runs the competition out of business, do you think they will continue to offer you such a good deal?
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Joe, that’s a valid question, and I’ve given it a lot of thought. But even if Amazon drops its royalty rates, my readership will continue to grow, and I’ll still make a living. And I’ve never sold enough books on any other platform to even come close.
I tried the traditional publishing route, but never broke in. I went with a small publisher and never made any money. Amazon is the only platform that helped readers discover me, as well as pay me a decent royalty. Without Amazon, I wouldn’t have much of a novelist career. I have stay with what works. If it quits working for me, I’ll move on.
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Kindle can download not just books, but also journals, newspapers, magazines and blogs. Once books are downloaded in the Kindle, the user can read as he pleases, continuously or intermittently, without having to recharge the device often. The battery lasts for about two weeks when the wireless mode is turned off, and for about five days when this feature is on. Even with continuous reading, the Kindle does not heat up as other devices tend to, thus never distracting the reader in any way.,:^:
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The Amazon Kindle is a series of e-book readers produced by Amazon.com. Amazon Kindle devices enable users to shop for, download, browse, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and other digital media via wireless networking. The hardware platform, developed by Amazon.com subsidiary Lab126, began as a single device and now comprises a range of devices – most using an E Ink electronic paper display capable of rendering 16 tones to simulate reading on paper while minimizing power consumption.;’,;
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