Collective and Co-op Publishers Find Strength in Numbers - Publishers Weekly

They're helping each other.

On his way home through the Catosphere Panzer stopped in at the Publishers Weekly site.There our traveling kitty boy found a post about indie publishers.

 

According to Nathalie op de Beeck's post, small and indie publishers are forming collectives and co-ops. It helps them work together and survive in the big publishing atmosphere.

 

 Panzer says, "This little kitty didn't know they're doing this."

 

Note: This is a very long post. You'll probably want to plan to take a rest after you finish reading.

 

To read the post tootle over to Publishers 

Independent Publishers Are Fed Up with Barnes & Noble - Publishers Daily

There's more stores than them.

Panzer stopped at the Publishers Weekly site today. There he discovered an interesting post about Barnes and Noble's buying practices.

 

Jim Milliot's post quotes extensively from Barnes and Noble CEO James Daunt about his book inventory buying practices. 

 

Panzer says, "It explains why this little kitty's Barnes and Noble sales went to zero."

 

Note: This is a long, long post. You'll need to decide what you want to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Independent Publishers 

Stable Book Group Teams with HBG to Launch Indie Distribution Service - Publishers Weekly

It looks like you need to publish others' books too.

Panzer stopped in at the Publishers Weekly site today. There he found a post about a new distribution service for indie publishers.

 

Ed Nawotka's post says the Stable Book Group will begin distribution next year for North American indie publishers.

 

Panzer says, "Be sure to read the entire post."

 

Note:This is a l-o-n-g post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to Distribution 

Lover's Big Leap - The Rap Sheet

 Today Panzer made a stop at The Rap Sheet site. There he found a post about the new Crime Fiction Lover awards.

 

According to J. Kingston Pierce's post, Crime Fiction Lover has six new international Crime Fiction Lover Awards. These are reader nominated and voted for awards. Nominations are open until noon November 10. All the information and rules are listed in the post at The Rap Sheet site. The post has a link to the Crime Fiction Lover site and also a link to the award nomination form.

 

Nominations are open now.

Panzer says, "Be sure to read the instructions for the nomination form, too."

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a chocolate chip cookie (biscuit) for today's reading.

 

To read the post tootle over to Lover's Big Leap

Free Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention for writers and fans

 We couldn't post yesterday as our internet service was down. Again.

But we're back online today.

Not knowing how long we'll have internet access today, Panzer made a quick trip into the Catosphere. While there our speedy little kitty boy heard clapping and cheering outside the Panzermobile. Following all the noise took him to The Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention site. He discovered all the hullabaloo was because the online convention attendance is free.

To see information about the programs and presenters, go to the Home site. Click the Programs button to see what will be offered. Click the Presenters button to the biography for each presenter. If you've decided you want to attend, hover your cursor over the About tab at the top. Click the SFFCon 2020 button for attendance instructions. You can view the programs on Facebook or YouTube. (If you continue down this page to the convention schedule, it appears you can click the links to watch from this page too.) The convention starts Friday and concludes Sunday.

A long weekend.

Panzer says, "Whether you're an SFF writer of a fan there is something for everyone. The convention is put together in different tracks. There is a Creative Track (writers and indie publishers), a Genre Fan Track and a Breakout Sessions Track."

 

To go to the convention Home page site, tootle over to SFF Con Site

To go to the convention on Facebook, tootle over to SFF Con on Facebook

To go to the convention on YouTube, tootle over to SFFCon on YouTube

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scandal Engulfs Independent Publisher ChiZine Publications - Writer Beware

Today as Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere, the Panzermobile was suddenly buffeted and shaken by yelling and screaming outside. Braving the chaos and following all the noise took our adventuresome kitty boy to the Writer Beware site. It took no digging at all to find the cause of all the hullabaloo was a post about Canadian indie publishing company ChiZine Publications. In case you didn't know, Writer Beware is a site which advises writers about scams and unscrupulous sites, agents, and publishers.

Watch where you step.

According to Victoria Strauss, ChiZine Publications has recently had numerous complaints filed against the company by writers. While it appeared the company had an excellent record working with authors, it has come to light according to the quoted authors, sites and blog posts this wasn't true. The post contains quotes from authors' blogs about not getting paid their royalties, statements from writers' organizations, and a statement from ChiZine. There are also links to several blog posts about the issues as well.

Panzer says, "This is definitely one big pile of pooh you don't want to step in."

Note: This is a humongous post. Bring a gallon of tea and a dozen muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links, also bring a gallon of cocoa, a dozen muffins and a dozen chocolate chip cookies.

To read the post tootle over to scandal

Top Ten Publishing Industry Trends Every Author Needs To Know in 2019 - Written Word Media

Panzer's trip into the Catosphere today took him to the Written Word Media site. With just a little digging around in the posts our inquisitive kitty boy found one about publishing trends for 2019.

I'll one busy kitty this year.

Written Word Media founder Ricci Wolman has posted about 2019's publishing industry trends.  With information gained from surveying readers, writers and publishers she has put together a list of trends indie authors/publishers need to take advantage of in the coming year. The list begins with an examination of the Amazon Marketing Service (AMS). The need for good editing and audio books are also examined as well as seven other trends.

Panzer says, "Yesterday we looked at Mark Coker's predictions for 2019 and today we look at Ricci Wolman's trends for 2019. Put the two together and you've got a head on your plan for the year."

Note: This is a long medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and two muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to publishing industry trends

Google Reopens their Play Books Publisher Program - GoodEReader

Today, Panzer had hardly gotten into the Catosphere when the Panzermobile was buffeted and shaken by all the clapping and cheering outside. Our traveling kitty boy had no trouble following all the noise to the GoodEReader site. There he found a post about Google.

According to the post by Michael Kozlowski, Google has reopened the Play Books Publisher Program. The program was closed in 2015 due to ebook piracy and quality issues. The resurrection of the program includes restrictions aimed at cleaning up these issues. Indie authors and publishers and their books must be vetted before being placed in Google Books and Google Play. The post includes links to past informational posts about the previous issues and a link to the online interest form for submission and admission.

I don't cheat, so I bet I can get accepted.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... It sounds like now is the time to get into the program. If an indie author and publisher can get accepted into the program, there won't be much competition in the beginning."

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links and read the posts, bring another cup of tea and two muffins.

To read the post tootle over to Google Play Books Publisher Program

CreateSpace Is Closing Its Online Bookstore - GoodEreader

Today, Panzer's trip in the Catosphere was interrupted by the Panzermobile being buffeted by crying and moaning coming from outside. Following all the noise took our kitty boy to the GoodEreader site. It only took a little digging to find the post causing all the angst was about the CreateSpace online bookstore.

I am not a happy kitty.

According to the post by Mercy Pilkington, Amazon's CreateSpace has announced the closure of their popular online bookstore on October 31. Indie authors and publishers who used the CreateSpace platform to publish their paperback books had the option to sell through the CreateSpace online bookstore. The main reason for authors and publishers to use the bookstore was the royalties. CreateSpace bookstore paid 80 percent royalty on sales compared to the Amazon bookstore's 60 percent. There's a link at the end of the post to the CreateSpace announcement about the closure.

Panzer says, "It's enough to make a grown kitty yowl. Cat Wisdom for Humans is available at the CreateSpace bookstore with the 80 percent royalty and, now, it's not even worth the time to put up the buy link here."

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the link to the CreateSpace announcement bring another cup of tea and a muffin.

To read the post, tootle over to Createspace

Smashwords: The Ebook as Annuity

The kitty treats just keep coming in.

Panzer stopped in to read Mark Coker's new post at the Smashwords site. Mark always has insightful posts about the indie publishing world for indie authors.

In his newest post, Mark explains why an indie ebook is like an annuity. Unlike, traditionally published books which can go out of print in a short time, your ebook lives for as long as you (the publisher) keep it published/uploaded at the e-stores.  Also, traditionally published books have an upfront advance and then no further payments (usually), but like an annuity your ebook provides an income for the entire life of the ebook. Now, as Mark points out there is no guarantee of how much the income from the ebook will be, but, if you write more books and market them all, the income will continue.

Panzer says, "So how many annuities do you have? More than one I hope."

To read the post, tootle over to Smashwords: The Ebook as Annuity: