Creating Your Personal and Business Road Map to Success as an Author! – Wrapping Up the Lessons Learned

By Pamela Ebel

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The time has come to talk of many things we’ve covered in the first three articles in this series and wrap them up with string and sealing-wax. 

In Article One, we determined that writing and publishing is a business. Because successful businesses have a concrete list of goals to be achieved, we outlined the skills needed to reach them. The list included 1) learning to avoid the ‘one right answer’ when outlining our career goals, 2) learning to create a structure to keep us on track to achieve those goals, 3) developing ‘situational awareness’ to respond to the impact that time and events have on those goals, and 4) Answering  Five Questions that will help us move forward on the path to writing success. 

Closing out our journey, we’re reminded that lives and career paths are not linear and therefore goals will run into head winds, be impacted by situations that slow us down or stop us completely for a time. Such is life, and if we’re confronted by the need to answer why the sea is boiling hot or whether pigs have wings, the answers to the following questions will help get us get back on the path.

The Five Questions to Answer

1. Who is our target readership?
   Is it large enough to provide a livable income for our personal and business needs? While this seems to go without saying, the impact of events in this day and age make asking and answering this question crucial. Traditional Publishing houses are consuming each other at voracious rates. Small and Independent Publishers are feeling the stresses of a reading public that seems to shift reading habits and preferences rapidly. Self-published authors who found ways to swiftly reach their intended readers are also beginning to feel the head winds as technologies change and readers see more ‘look-alikes’ available in their preferred genres.
   
   This means many readers no longer feel tied to ‘recognized author loyalties.’ It’s like reading tea leaves, yet failure to search the bottom of our cups may lead to a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and failure.

2. What value does our writing provide the readers?
   Once we decide on the genre(s) and publication platform(s) we plan to use to reach readers, it will be time to determine what our works offer the readers that is different from similar writings. Writers have created virtual worlds to communicate with the readers in ways that feel as though they are ‘personal friends.’ We need to assess the brand we create, study the market place to look for trends that are working, and search for inspiration to create new approaches to support our work. 

3. What is our business model?
   Are we writing in the traditional world with an agent that makes the contacts for us; an editor that is assessing our work and keeping us on ‘deadlines’ and a legal team assessing contracts, copyright issues and other artistic rights? Or are we working with a small press, independent press, university press, or a hybrid of some sort, that don’t always have access to those resources? Or are we creating a self-publishing career where we wear all of the above hats? These models will different revenue streams, pricing strategies, and time and work flow management supports. We need to decide what we can handle and what we need to seek help for.

4. How are we working to build a sustainable business?
   We need to go back to that list of goals we created when we decided to turn writing into a career and tweak them with solutions that answer these questions: What are our strategies for attracting new readers and keeping those who have invested in our writing so far?   Networking strategies? Communication mechanisms, online and in-person? Calendaring and committing to attendance at conferences? Author/reader gatherings? Appearances at Public Events in the communities we live in? We need to remember all of these impact our family and other work obligations.

5. How do we manage the skills sets needed to operate our business?
   There are numerous operational questions that will arise when we begin to write full time. Chief among the early questions are, which computer, printer, and writing programs will fit our needs?                   

It’s at this point we need to look into the various publishing platforms we hope to submit to and publish with. Many online and traditional publishers no longer accept PDF submissions. So, we need to decide if purchasing this program and the supporting program, Acrobat, are necessary. Everyone will have to decide if a Mac of PC is the best set up for them. Depending on whether we plan to work with an agent and traditional publisher, a small press, a hybrid or go the self-publishing route we’ll have to contend with contracts for editing services, formatting services, publication clauses. and the financial decisions that arise. We should consider the possible need for tax professionals and intellectual property attorneys who can assist in avoiding tax and legal pitfalls. Finally, we’ll need to decide whether we should acquire professionals to assist in publicity development.                                                                                                                                    

Looking at the issues above, we’re reminded WRITING IS A BUSINESS! And what we don’t know or choose not to consider can cost us. If we’re willing to take the time to consider the points raised in this series and frame answers that best suit our individual  needs, we can Create Personal and Business Road Maps to Success as Writers.

Good luck to us all!

Audiobooks

By Dale T. Phillips

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Since audiobooks are currently in the fastest growing book format right now, getting your novel out for sale as an audiobook is vital for success. If your book isn’t, you’re losing a lot, and leaving money on the table, as the expression goes. My audiobooks have sold hundreds and hundreds, and I love the continual income stream. Sadly, many writers from traditional publishers don’t have their backlists up as audios, so they’re missing out.

Reasons why you should have audio as part of your overall writing business strategy:

• Discoverability: Get a bigger audience and make it easier to find your work. Many potential fans like audio for a number of reasons. Some just enjoying a good listen while walking, driving, running, or biking. You want all the fans you can get! These days, people have less time for reading print books, so audiobooks can be a saving grace. While To Be Read (TBR) piles are so big, chances are many readers won’t get to your print book for a long, long time, if ever, but if you’re on audio, they have a better chance of finding your work. If they like that one, they’ll come back for more. Having your book listed in audio format also gets more hits in Internet searches, and is listed in more places, increasing your Internet presence, and the chances of someone finding your work. With over 10 million books in print and electronic format, your book is a drop in the ocean. There are far fewer audiobooks: smaller ocean, bigger chance to make a splash! And it’ll get you into some extra markets. I was speaking with a person from a State Library about my books, and the first question was “Any of your books out on audio? Because we’re investing in those right now.” 

• Sales: As well as finding new fans and watching your sales numbers increase, you can make money. Once the book is produced, all you have to do is promote it whenever you want. But each title is another product in your writer store, and even little trickles of money add up to an income stream. It’s nice to have hundreds of sales in another venue.

• Reviews: While many print book reviewers are overwhelmed, there are many sites doing audio that can still accommodate a review. So you have more chances of getting good notice for your work. It all adds up. And listeners can also post reviews and ratings, which help.

• It’ll make you a better writer: When someone else reads your words, it makes the clunky ones stand out, and the good ones sound better. Your ear will develop, especially for dialog.

• Freebies: With some audiobook production, you get free giveaway codes. You can gift these to reviewers, as contest prizes, or simply as rewards to readers. When someone buys a print book in person from me, I’ll offer them the free audiobook as a nice extra.

Audiobook Options

Historically, audiobooks were done by professional companies and were expensive to produce, costing thousands of dollars. So only better-selling books made it. Now there are options.

• Someone ELSE does all the work- (and takes most of the money). While it’s nice to have someone do all the work for you, as with traditional publishing, there’s a danger. They might stick you with a hideous cover, a bad version, or a product priced wrong for the market, or take a long time to get it out- or never, while they hold the rights captive. In any case, it may not sell, and you’re stuck. And when someone does the work, they also take most of the profit. 

While you assume that a big publisher would do a professional version, there may be other factors. I got one from a BIG audiobook producer, but the narrator couldn’t pronounce ANY place name in Maine correctly- even easy ones like Bangor and Augusta! So letting someone else do it all means the quality control may not be there, and there’s little you can do about it. And you might tick off some fans. (I know I was!)

And that’s assuming you can get a publisher to produce it. Professional narrators run upwards of $100 an hour, and it takes hours to produce a book. Plus other production costs, and packaging, and distributing, they’re investing a few thousand dollars, at least. Since they expect a good return, they have to estimate the sales will exceed the output. So if you’re a typical mid-lister, with less than ten thousand print/ebook sales per book, they may not even do your book for audio. But they’ll likely still retain the rights, in case you hit it big. Then they can always do one later. But what happens is that you can go for years (or forever) without an audio version. 

So- check your contract to see what provisions there are for audio. Even if you signed them away, and they’re not doing anything with them, maybe you can re-negotiate. They may not give the rights back for free, but maybe you can offer them something for it that will make it worthwhile. 

• Do it all yourself, keep all the money. 

Two factors- Production and Distribution

It’s true you don’t need a studio anymore, so it’s become cost-effective. You can produce high-quality audio files in different formats with free software and inexpensive equipment. I recommend Audacity software for recording, because it’s free and simple to learn and use. 

Are you a professional narrator? If you’re charging money for the book, you want quality. Unless you’re famous, the listeners may not be forgiving of less-than-awesome narrating. Before you start this path, do some voice work (maybe some podcasts), and get comfortable with a microphone and sound editing.

Drawbacks- while this can be done, the main cost is time to record and edit. Most of us don’t have enough hours in a day now. And it may take hours of editing to get the sound to a professional level.

Distribution. Even if you do it yourself, how are you going to package, list, and sell the finished product? Tough to arrange this on your own. 

• Work with a Service, and split the money

While there are other services, my current favorite production option right now is ACX.com, which feeds into Audible.com, an Amazon company. They make it easy and profitable for independents to get their books produced, listed, and sold. Better yet, the finished product is on the Audible site, AND on your Amazon book listing, right beside the print and kindle versions. Huge showcase! And they can tie it into Whispersync, which lets you switch between devices and formats.

How to Produce Audiobooks

For ACX, you’ll need an account on the site (includes telling them where to send the money!). 

1. Check your publishing contract first, and beware of issues with anthologies, or other writers listed on your book as authors. 

2. READ YOUR CONTRACT TERMS! Audible gets an exclusive right for years, so make sure you’re comfortable with the terms.

3. Log in to ACX and search for your book, then claim it as yours, with the right to produce an audio.

Various ways to produce your book:

• Do all the narration yourself. ACX distributes the book for you, and you make 40% of the list price. 

• Pay a narrator up front for doing your book. Narrators are expensive. While you can still retain your 40%, consider the cost, and how long it might take to recoup that. You post your project with the offer to pay, and get bids. Decide on who you want. 

• Offer a royalty split, for no up-front money- This is my favorite way. You are hoping that narrators will do all the work on spec, in hopes of making money when the audio sells. You each get 20% of the sale price in this part. They’re putting in time, which to them equals hundreds, or even thousands of dollars, and you have no risk! But of course, you wrote the book, so your time is already invested. 

When you’ve claimed your book, and decided if you want a narrator, you post it up as a project, with a description and notes on what the ideal narrator should sound like- male or female, age, accents, humorous, serious, scary, etc. You post an audition piece, a short segment that will give a good indication if the narrator is right for the work (dialogue with different voices is a good indicator). Add any helpful hints on what the passage should sound like.

This posts the project up for people to audition for, and you wait for replies. You can also search on available narrators, and sample their voices to see if any fit, then send them a message to see if they’re interested in your project.

When auditions come in, listen if they’re right for your work. When you’ve found someone who has the right voice for the job, you then set a schedule and make an official Offer. There’s a date for a 15-minute milestone, which is a guide to see if they’re on the right track, and a date for the project completion. You may need some back-and-forth on pronunciation and tone, and you send messages via ACX. When they’re ready, they send ACX the files, and you give a listen. You can request changes if there’s something amiss, so you have complete quality control. 

When it’s done properly, you Approve the work, which then goes through ACX for their approval, and then gets posted to Audible for sale. You’ll need a cover image modified to their specs, a squared-off version of your book cover. Then it goes up on Amazon as well, linked with your print and Kindle versions. They will set the price of the finished book, based on length.

But there’s more! ACX sends you codes for free downloads of the work. You can use these for reviewers, friends, giveaways, and rewards for your fans- it’s an awesome way of promoting your work- for free! You send instructions and a download code, and someone gets the audio for free.

And the bonus program- if your work is the first someone selects when signing up for Audible, you get a bonus payment- it’s split with your narrator, but is a nice addition.