Monday, February 12th, 2007
Open publishing - Writing in an age of pirates
John Scalzi wrote a fantastic post in May 05 about the changing nature of a writer’s business model in an age where everything is easily copyable. A snippet to whet your appetite:
I won’t get into how much of my writing income over the last four years comes directly and indirectly as a result of writing on this site, except to say it’s six figures and the leftmost number is not a “1,” and not nearly all of it comes from book sales. This is not bragging (or not only bragging, shall I say); the point to made here is that an ambitious writer can use a non-commercial presence to generate a non-trivial amount of income. In my case, the content here, like the content on Penny Arcade, is un-pirateable; I don’t charge anything for it, and I don’t care if you send it along to whomever you like. But it brings in thousands of people every day, some of whom would probably spend money on Scalzi merchandise. Like, say, a novel, however it is published.
Or not a novel, actually — why not a novella? The market for novellas is very small right about now, because most publishers don’t like them; they don’t fit into the mass-market publishing paradigm very well at all. But if I don’t have to worry about my publisher’s production albegra, maybe I could sell one. Or not sell it at all — maybe I’ll post it up on the site with its run subsidized by an advertiser. I have eight to ten thousand visitors on a daily basis; think there’s an advertiser out there who might be willing to shell out for 100,000 ad impressions over the run of the novella?
Point is, in a pirate age, I think I still stand a good chance of continuing to make a very good income from writing. Since I don’t think we’ll get to a pirate age, this is even better news for me, because I have the advantage of generating writer income the old-fashioned way as well as in this new way. Multiple revenue streams are a writer’s friend. Now, get this: I’m not particularly clever, and I’m awfully lazy. If I can do this, pretty much any writer can. Yes, it does take time and effort to generate a readership (seven years, in the case of the Whatever). Tell me how this is different from publishing today.
Scalzi makes an excellent point: Just because business models are changing doesn’t mean either that the publishing industry will die, or that the writer will find it harder to make a living (bearing in mind that it’s already hard).
According to a report from The Publishers Association, in 2005, there were approx. 60,000 book publishers in the UK and Ireland, and about 1.6 million titles were available for sale, including 206,000 new or revised titles. The total value of sales was £2,768 million, and 788 million units were sold (giving an average price of £3.50). Consumer sales were £2,396 million for 2005, up 8% on 2004 (compared to a 3% increase in 2004 over 2003). Book exports were also up 3.7% to £1.41 billion, with the US the biggest market. Decide for yourself if those numbers indicate an industry in rapid decline, or one that’s healthy.
It seems pretty difficult to find up-to-date statistics on how much authors earn in the UK, but an old post from 2000 on the Dark Echo site says:
You think you should be able to make a living as a writer? A survey by the Society of Authors (U.K.) shows that dream may be even further from reality than we thought. An article published last Thursday by The Guardian/The Observer Web site BooksUnlimited (reported the survey — first of its kind in nearly 20 years — “shows that the universal creative dream of self-sufficiency through writing is receding farther than ever. . . Almost half British authors earn less than the £5,000 yearly minimum wage and three quarters make less than the national average of £20,000.” Only one writer in seven actually lives on earnings from writing. In other words, “You live better with toilet cleaner on your fingers than with ink.”
I can’t find the original article on the Observer site, nor an update version of this survey, but it’s still true to say that it’s bloody hard to make a living out of writing, whatever type of writing you do. But it is dramatically easier now to access to your prospective audience, to nurture a community of fans, and to benefit from a variety of income streams, such as advertising on your site or merchandise. Which means that if you get as much of your stuff as possible in front of as many people as possible by giving it all away, you have an opportunity to make money both directly and indirectly from your writing. For those who understand this, it could be said that it’s now easier to make a living as a writer, not harder - although it’s important to note that ‘easier’ is a relative term.
Again, though, we’re left with a lack of real hard data here. Do authors with blogs earn more than authors with out-of-date/static websites or authors with no web presence? Does an online presence only favour authors of specific genres? Do authors who give their works away online earn more than those who don’t, for authors at the same stage in their career and working in the same genre? (Although, jeeze, you’d have a hell of a job getting a meaningful statistical comparison out of that one.)
The problem, of course, is that authors and publishers generally don’t like giving away this sort of data, so ultimately we are left with only anecdote and experience to inform us.
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March 1st, 2007 at 2:28 pm
I work with writers and readers, writers are very concerned about losing sales and copyright due to the web, but i agree there are many other ways of ‘monetising’ a writing life to be explored, and may be more lucrative than some current ones. Poets are notoriously povertystruck, but good poems online spread far and wide… but with all these convergency issues, the problem is that it’s so hard for those wedded to one old technology to plunge themselves into the world of brand and download… I ‘m hugely optimistic about new media writing, but frightened for writers who do not adapt. Should I worry??
March 1st, 2007 at 5:50 pm
Chris, I think your writers should be excited by the additional exposure and new sales they can get from the web! They can reach more people, communicate with their fans and drive sales via affiliate programmes such as the one Amazon runs.
That said, yes, there are more ways than writing for writers to earn money. Even thinking old-school, you can easily do merchandise via sites like Cafe Press or Spreadshirt. Then there are readings, signings, all sorts of promotional events that writers can organise for themselves using sites like Upcoming or Eventbrite.
Of course, this is scary to people who really just want to sit quietly by themselves and write, but that has never been a good way to be successful as a writer. So really, nothing much has changed from that point of view.
What has changed is that authors who are willing to get out there and work hard at promoting themselves now have a lot more opportunities to do that, and don’t have to rely so much on agents and publishers.
So should you worry about authors who don’t adapt? Well… they have a bit of leeway, I guess. I don’ think the publishing industry is going to become a hostile environment for them for a while, but they aren’t going to do as well as people who are more savvy. Same, really, as in pretty much every other walk of life. Whether they can be helped to understand this new environment depends very much on whether they are willing to open up their minds, cast away some of their assumptions, and go back to doing some good, old fashioned learning.
January 23rd, 2008 at 10:59 pm
Please, help me shift this planet— I want to sell my copyrights to a NEW AGE Publishing Company !!! I have 3 books, 3 ebooks and 6 Healing and Recovery cds!
My New Age Healing and Peace project is Beyond any old mental health types of healing AND it is a Homeland Security Project.
May we work together to bring in the light where the darkness dwells on our little home– planet earth! I have channeled the ultimate world peace project that will unite all races and religions—- asap!
It s time for my SET (Spiritual Emergency Training) that is a 5 step Soul Activation Process from my 3rd book—Spiritual 911 Healing Handbook ————-
All human beings have an intergalactic Soul energy that is all love and light that has spirit guides and deceased relatives with messages, or you use the Soul energy for healing or for astral traveling to past lives or future times. Each person has all their own psychic answers to help them inside their own breath and chakra openings. SET will unite and transform this planet’s DARK, NEGATIVE, limited, reactive, sick, destructive ego mind- madness ( stop WARRING on this little planet) and get back to love, joy, sharing, positive thoughts , creative healing arts, white magic and more heaven on this earth. SET will bring new thoughts, feelings and actions from the SOUL INTERNET ACTIVATION PROCESS WHICH HEALS INDIVIDUALS LIVES AND WILL SAVE THIS PLANET! SET will bring spiritual oneness with the entire universe.
I have my own copyrights I want to sell and have managed monthly for me.
I have 3 ebooks done, 3 paperbacks done, I have 6 fabulous Healing and Recovery CDS ( with my friends 1,000 year old healing MBIRA music to help people channel information from the ancient ancestors). My Healing and Recovery CDs will be sold INSTEAD OF LONG TERM DRUG THERAPIES— SOON– MY How to Pray, Breathe and Hear God (inner voice and see Angels) will be used and known by most Spiritual Centers on this planet.
I have developed workshops that I want to teach world wide ( the monks will tell you I am a Healing Teacher). I want financial and new age business people that have the intention of World Oneness to help me start a SET Corp. and teach SET world wide for all social service workers, after school programs, AND unity spiritual centers. SET is a homeland security training also!
Like CPR training, or massage training— The SET (Spiritual Emergency Training) Corporation will help to get jobs that start out paying the new SET trainers at $45,000.00 / year to go to work in all the social services- world wide– ie jails, hospice, homeless, domestic, violence, Indian Reservations, and help the at risk kids (we are all at risk)– !
Call me— It is time to gather and shift the old paradigms of thoughts , feelings and actions and MONIES BEING SPENT ON wars, drug wars, AND LONG TERM DRUG THERAPIES that only create more ego madness, separation, fear, sickness, abuse and —negative, hurtful lives—- WE ARE ALL CONNECTED- What we focus on grows, and there is Karma!
Peace- filled warriors— unite— let’s go————–help create the new jobs with good pay in money and benefits to the NEW AGE alternative healers and teachers— asap!
My website is http://www.angelencounters.net– I have a donation button on it on my workshop page—
I am also looking for my spiritual publishing company that I can work with and sell all my products, services and workshops through. I want more help with advertising, sales and marketing and OUR NEW AGE SET Corporation development–ASAP!
Please, connect me to those lightworkers and peacemakers with power and money to do this WORLD UNITY PEACE PROJECT To help me save this planet!
Thanks for all your help with SET development–THIS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN GLOBAL WARMING— WE WILL NOT HAVE OUR EARTH HOME WITHOUT TEACHING SET WORLD WIDE!—
See my website to understand more about SET and how it works, and why it is so important—urgent–URGENT–ASAP!!!!!! TO GET THIS TO THE YOUTH AND SP RITUAL CENTERS AND SOCIAL SERVICES— ASAP!
Lynn Mystic-Healer
http://www.angelencounters.net
406-675-0317