Publishing with a Small Press--Pros and Cons

So, you wrote a book and now you want find a home for it. Let's assume you're not interested in self-publishing. Let's also assume you've tried the large publisher route, you're writing something big publishers won't take a chance on, don't have the patience to wait on a big publisher, or you believe ebooks are the wave of the future.
Should you consider a small press or e-publisher and why? Here are some of the pros and cons of small presses to help you make your decision. In this case, I'm referring to small presses that are primarily epubs, as opposed to small presses that do print runs.

Pros (What working with a small press can do for you):

• Provide a viable option for books that don’t fit into a New York slot. (Small pubs can afford to take risks). Many small presses concentrate on niches which aren't served by NY publishers. Equestrian fiction definitely fits into this.
• Gain valuable experience (which can look good to a large publisher).
• Learn to promote your book and yourself.
• Gain experience working with editors and publishers on professional duties such as cover art and edits.
• Prove you can meet deadlines.
• Provide encouragement to finish the book and write more books.
• Build name recognition the publishing business.
• Improve writing and editing skills by working with other authors and your editor.
• Reduce the number of discarded and destroyed paperbacks. GO GREEN!
• Make valuable contacts with other authors and the book publishing industry.
• Build confidence in your writing.
• Enjoy less pressure.
• Enjoy more creative freedom.
• Allowed more time to develop as an author even if your book sales are slow initially.
• Receive more personal attention from publisher and staff (depends on the publisher)
• Easier to find your books, longer “shelf” life, don’t go out of print.
• Have a quicker turnaround from submission to publication.
• Write shorter works so you can write more books. You're not expected to write a novel-length book every time.
• Provide another publication outlet for category novels.
• Build a reader base.

Cons (Disadvantages of a small press):

• Low pay and royalties, in many cases, considering the time investment by the author.
• Risky if the small press isn’t stable and established. Yet, in this economy, NY is risky as editors move around and lines close all the time. They may tie up your book for a few years and never publish it.
• Time-consuming, as you often perform the tasks large publishers would do for you, such as promotion, blurbs, cover art suggestions, etc.
• Lower quality of editing in some cases.
• Limited chance for the book to be in bookstore because they're usually print on demand and not all small presses send their books to print.
• Requires extensive research of different companies. (Not all small presses are created equal in royalties, editing, and business practices. Talk to authors, do a background check, search the Internet)
• Limited possibilities for booksignings.
• A smaller market of people to buy your book. Even though the Internet should be a large market, it's very hard to target your promotion to the right readers.
• Limited distribution for your book.
• Lack of respect in many circles, including professional writing organizations. You may not be taken seriously by fellow authors and considered more of a hobbiest than a professional author.
• Limited reviews—may be harder to get reviews
• Exclusion from many contests, as you may find yourself in a no-man's land between not published and published.
• Print-on-demand books costs 2 to 3 times more than regular pocket novels.
• Expectation that you will write more books than you would with a larger press.

The Missing Cents

Like many writers, I’m a little more sensitive than most to spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors out there in the real world. The one that caught my notice recently was the cent symbol. Has anyone noticed just how difficult it is to get a cent symbol on electronic devices? My phone, as far as I can tell, doesn’t have an option for it. It’s not on the keyboard. Even when ‘inserting a special character’ it’s a bit of a hunt. In fact, I had to look up the ASCII code just to insert the cent symbol in this post.

Why do I care? Well, for starters, the number of tweets I’ve seen advertising $0.99 books would undoubtedly benefit from being 99¢. However, I’m convinced the powers that be are actively guiding us away from the cent symbol because MOST PEOPLE DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW IT WORKS. Which amazes me, because I learned how currency worked, along with how to notate it, in Grade One. Maybe the curriculum is different now, but I started noticing these errors 20 years ago, long before my peers should have made it into anyone’s marketing department.

Around 20 years ago, I worked in a pharmacy. I can’t tell you the number of coupons -- provided by large corporations to be placed on the shelves -- had errors similar to this:

Get .75¢ off!

Dumb asses. That means ¾ of a cent. I always wanted to say to the customer, “I’m going to be nice, and round up your discount to a whole cent, how about that?”

Seriously, didn’t anyone proof that?

What’s even more amusing/aggravating is that despite the problems finding the cent symbol on most electronic devices, it must be readily available on the control panel of those LED signs, because my local strip mall is an egregious offender. I’ve seen eggs advertised for .12¢ (and honestly, 12¢ was impressive enough, never mind less than ¼ of a cent). I’ve seen bread and mugs advertised as .99¢. So tempted to wander in with a roll of pennies one day and try to buy 50 items with it.

But then, trying to explain to someone who doesn’t get it why it’s wrong would probably make my head explode. So, I’m saving my bitching for you. Aren’t you lucky?

KC Burn

Real Life Messes Up Plans

Have I whined enough about the pain of interruptions and switching hats?

Probably. But I'm still feelin' it so I'm gonna whine some more. I want to write, just write. While I recognize all these other things need to be done, like housework, laundry, shopping, and errands they aren't nearly as much fun as writing and I do them as little as possible.

 



 

No doubt you noticed that gardening, walking the dog, and reading are not on my avoidance list. The reason is simple those are things I like to do, sometimes even more than I like to write, especially when the writing is not flowing smoothly.

Ah but when the words are flowing smoothly, writing is the world's best job.

What's interfering with your plans?

Investing in Your Future: 5 Steps to Take Now

Not many people make a living, let alone a comfortable living, writing fiction. Those who do succeed usually put together a financial game plan early on.

Depending on how we want to define "success," a successful writing career is not just about lots of contracts or great reviews. (Although those things certainly help.) A successful writing career is about making a living at doing something you love. That requires making the right financial choices every step of the way. Certainly from the point you receive that first 4 digit royalty check.

Here are 5 very simple things you can do now that will make a big difference down the line.

1 - Clear your credit cards. We all go through that little cushion we put together before we jumped ship very fast, and inevitably we start to live on our credit cards. At one point my cards were up to slightly over 20K with (in some cases) nearly 30% interest. I stopped sleeping nights, as you can well imagine. My cards are now clear. It was not easy. It was brutal, in fact, but I made clearing them a priority before everything else. Clear your cards and pay off your cars. Do that before you even think about investing.

2 - Open a Roth IRA. Or, if you're still working a day job, up your 401K contributions to the maximum you can afford. This solves two birds with one stone: you plan for your retirement (even writers have to slow down eventually) and you give yourself tax deductions. The tax deductions can be vital once you're earning real money -- especially if you've got a spouse working a day job. Ironically once writers start to earn income, they fall into the worst possible tax bracket -- not rich enough for a lot of loopholes (the deductions for Netflix, etc. only take you so far), but not poor enough to avoid taxes altogether.

3  -  Open a savings account for emergencies. And then don't touch it unless the emergency is really and truly an emergency. The best way is set it up for automatic deposit so you don't even think about it, you just do it. Just put something in, even if it's a minimum of $20. a month. Get in the habit of saving.

4 - Get health insurance coverage. If you're lucky, you'll have a SO working a day job that provides health insurance. But either way, get yourself some coverage because nothing will wipe your savings out faster than a serious illness. Or even a semi-serious illness.

5 - Take 10% of everything you earn and invest it back into your writing business. You're self-employed. Invest in your own business. Take that money and use it on whatever it is you need -- research materials, a writing course, a new laptop, even advertising. Whatever it is you need to "grow your business." Invest in your career

And, finally -- though this is an option because our industry is changing so rapidly -- contract for work 1 - 2 years into the future. (No more than that.) Having contracts gives you a rough idea of how to pace yourself and how much income you'll be bringing in. Ideally, you'll do better each year, but it's good to have an estimate of what the minimum you might bring in is.

Anyone else feel like sharing their financial tips?

Give her a little bondage

I

I don't need no shrink. No time on the psychiatrist's couch needed for me. Just fine and dandy, nothing 'off' about me.

To be honest, the above pretty well describes the mental arguments I had with myself when I first dove into capture/bondage erotic romance. I didn't want to know why images of restraint turned me on, probably because I was afraid something dark would come out of the corner.

Writing erotica, particularly the Let All Out kind that Loose-Id is known for has relaxed this once uptight gal. Now I give my imagination free rein. Let it rip. Mentally become the naked and roped captive in the hands of a complex and compelling man.

Hunter's Captive is IMO a prime example of what turns me on. I loved pitting a seemingly helpless Migis against the apparently savage warrior Songaa. It's a classic example of victor and vanquished--but not as easy to write as one might expect. Number one complication, not only wouldn't Loose-Id accept a story with rape in it, I couldn't write those scenes. Not in my dna.

Thus within the framework of domination and submission without the BDSM component, I knew I had to create characters and a world that made slow seduction and surrender believable. As a proud warrior, rape is incomprehendable to Songaa. His self respect within his tribe is dependent on how honorably he conducts himself. He'll turn Migis into HIS by exploiting her body's needs. It never occurs to him that she'll become more than a captive to him, but Migis is equally complex, blessed by Eagle Spirit.

I wanted to include a scene but my computer or something refuses to co-operate. Guess I'll just have to direct you to http://www.loose-id.com/Hunters-Captive.aspx

From Friends to Lovers: A Collection of Love Songs

I’m finishing up my latest m/m romance, TAKE ME HOME, this week. It's tentatively due out in December. Here’s the brief premise: Best friends. Years spent denying their attraction. A 2000-mile train trip home for the holidays in a cramped bedroom compartment. A blizzard that leaves them trapped. After waiting 10 years for their second kiss, they finally give in to passion.

Since it’s a romantic, sexy, all-out love story, I thought I’d share some of my favorite love songs, most of which remind me of Kyle and Evan’s story.

Have a Little Faith In Me, John Hiatt



Maybe I'm Amazed, Paul McCartney



The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Roberta Flack



Unchained Melody, Righteous Brothers



You Are So Beautiful, Joe Cocker



(Everything I Do) I Do It For You, Bryan Adams
I can’t embed this one so here’s the link to the video on YouTube



What are your favorite love songs?

Sloan Parker
www.sloanparker.com