“Now, more than ever, authors have to play a stronger role in promoting their books,” says Goldminds consulting editor Steven Anderson. “Those days, when all published books went to the big box retailers, are over. Online retailing is the growing trend, and publishers as well as authors have to find ways to get readers to their page on amazon.com or bn.com (Barnes and Noble).”
In the past 10 years, the number of books in print has grown from an average of 250,000 titles per year, to over 1 million.
How does any publisher compete with that?
According to Goldminds, the answer lies in limited risk and not playing in the returned book model.
“That’s the big gamble for small publishers,” Anderson says. “We can put books in Barnes and Noble and other retailers, but unsold books have to be returnable. The big houses in New York have clearing house procedures for returned books, but the little house doesn’t. We simply have to eat the cost, and that kills the potential for profit. So we can’t do it. We have to rely solely on the online retail market.”
CHANGING MODELS
The model Goldminds has adopted is one that not only seeks quality writing, but also seeks a bit of marketing savvy.
“Anyone can publish a book now,” Anderson says. “In just a few hours any John Doe can have an eBook up on Amazon regardless of the traditional parameters, such as professional critique, editing, and cover design. If that author has some marketing skills, they can sell a few copies. But wouldn’t it be better if they allowed a
Giving Authors A Boost
In today’s hypercompetitive book business, Goldminds Publishing, a Nashville, Tennessee based publisher, keeps its focus on the ever-changing trends in distribution and marketing.
PUBLISHING