Just a thread on epub price setting.

[JCFarnham]

I see no reason why we can't use Mythic Scribes as an "imprint". We'd have to work on it of course, so it's not just an idea, but why not? There wouldn't be the problem of only one name associated with it.

 

[gerald.parson]

I would agree with Michael, positioning is key. And don't sell your self short with pricing. 4.95 is still a bargain but it doesn't cheapen yourself either. 99 cents for a short story is a fair deal in my opinion, and 4.95 for a book is a great deal.

Marketing ones self and product are very important. And likely would take some time and investment on the part of the author, part in the free market society with free-lancers in every corner of every industry its perfectly obtainable. ConceptArt.org Version 3.0 has hundreds if not thousands of artists looking for free lance work, any number of them could put together a very professional cover for a moderate cost. There are free lance web designers abound that could put together a really professional looking site for the author, the list goes on and on.

 

[gerald.parson]

Im not sure what purpose that would serve. Or what role Mythic Scribes would serve in the process.

I see no reason why we can't use Mythic Scribes as an "imprint". We'd have to work on it of course, so it's not just an idea, but why not? There wouldn't be the problem of only one name associated with it.

 

[JCFarnham]

Im not sure what purpose that would serve. Or what role Mythic Scribes would serve in the process.

Well, quite. But that's why the idea would need to be worked on.

 

[gerald.parson]

Well, quite. But that's why the idea would need to be worked on.

I wasn't putting down the idea, just curious if you had a model of how it would work. Sorry if it came off like that.

 

[Codey Amprim]

Im not sure what purpose that would serve. Or what role Mythic Scribes would serve in the process.

Well as I said before, it would primarily get MS's name out there. Of course we would have to figure out a system that describes how one would be allowed to put that in their work. (we don't want everything going out there having our name on it before going through some scrutiny and careful selection)

Eventually and hopefully this would bring some prestige to MS, and in doing so, it also would help the authors out. It's difficult to explain. Kind of like a "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" system. The authors would get MS's name out there, and, eventually, the MS logo would earn reputation enough to boost author sales.

That's about as best as I can put it right now.

 

[gerald.parson]

Well, offhand from what you said. I see no benefit of it to the author, except for maybe just a shout out or props being given to the site.
Unless MS's offered a service or services such as ebook formatting, cover design, something. But then you are doing a form of quasi publishing. One of the whole points of self publishing is to avoid scrutiny and just getting your work out there.
Just playing devils advocate because that's often how some ideas pull together.

 

[JCFarnham]

Well, Michael Sullivan's posts in this thread - detailing his experiences with self-publishing and getting a professional look - should go some way towards understanding the benefits of such a proposed arrangement.

 

[gerald.parson]

Well, Michael Sullivan's posts in this thread - detailing his experiences with self-publishing and getting a professional look - should go some way towards understanding the benefits of such a proposed arrangement.

Not arguing self publishing, just wondering where or how you think a community forums would or could factor into it.
I agree it would be a decent marketing tool for the forums and maybe that all it would be a simple marketing tool. But as you or someone else stated is you wouldn't want ( or likely not want) to put it on anything. My argument to that is now you have the condition that material has to meet a certain criteria in order to be "branded" or "market" the forums, in which case kind of counter balances the point of self publishing, well, in a lot of cases.

 

[Graham Irwin]

I am having just as many sales at 2.99 as I was at .99 for the electronic version of my book.

I have the paperback at 14.99 if people want the physical copy.

This arrangement has been most effective for me.

 

[Benjamin Clayborne]

I've been using "Foyle Press" on my short stories so far. It's an reference to one of my favorite SF novels, The Stars my Destination.

There's nothing illegal about it so far as I know.

 

[Devor]

I see no reason why we can't use Mythic Scribes as an "imprint". We'd have to work on it of course, so it's not just an idea, but why not? There wouldn't be the problem of only one name associated with it.

The only concern that I'm aware of with using a fake name is the chance that your chosen name is already in use for something similar to the use you're claiming. Otherwise it's my understanding you can use the name, and just your own usage over time will give you some protection and control over that name.

If you were to use Mythic Scribes as your publisher, you would need Black Dragon's consent (which I'm sure was implied). I'm pretty sure that without his consent, because Mythic Scribes is in some way connected to fantasy literature, you could get in trouble, regardless of whether Black Dragon has registered his own usage of the name or not. A reasonable person can be expected to presume that it was the same Mythic Scribes. I believe that's the standard that would be applied for other names you choose to use.

Well, offhand from what you said. I see no benefit of it to the author, except for maybe just a shout out or props being given to the site.
Unless MS's offered a service or services such as ebook formatting, cover design, something. But then you are doing a form of quasi publishing. One of the whole points of self publishing is to avoid scrutiny and just getting your work out there.
Just playing devils advocate because that's often how some ideas pull together.

There's also no reason Mythic Scribes couldn't provide some of those services, at least down the line. But even if the role were simply to certify "Hey, this story is a quality-enough story, you can use our name," even that is a valuable service to the author. By linking to an established company with your book, even just a webforum, you would gain a small level of legitimacy that you lacked before. You make the reader more comfortable in buying your book because you're part of a community, or organization, or company which certifies, "Hey, this guy's okay." That's what it's about.

 

[gerald.parson]

That sounds more like a book review stamp than anything. Not saying thats bad, but I don't know. I guess my question would be what is the overall goal by venturing into something like this?

 

[Codey Amprim]

By linking to an established company with your book, even just a webforum, you would gain a small level of legitimacy that you lacked before. You make the reader more comfortable in buying your book because you're part of a community, or organization, or company which certifies, "Hey, this guy's okay." That's what it's about.

Exactly what I meant.

 

[gerald.parson]

Just as many people stay away from certain brands as they do flock to them, so its kind of a double edge sword in that regards.

 

[boboratory]

If you are an unknown author, I would not price my novel at .99.. I would write some shorter pieces, maybe set in the same universe, even with some of the same characters, and sell those at .99, and let people become introduced to your writing style. Price your novel at an appropriate price for your novel.

Not only do you respect the amount of work you put into your novel, you expand the income stream that your creativity can generate.

 

[Ciara Ballintyne]

I won't buy a $0.99 priced book. On the subconscious premie that you get what you pay for probably, combined with a few buying experiences that didn't contradict the theory.

Tobias Buckell did an informal experiment with his book of shorts and found best sales at $4.99. Looks like Michael Sullivan above had a similar experience.

I think there is such a thing as too cheap to be worth your time.

 

[Devor]

It's pretty common to attract the "cheaper" audience by creating a second product designed for that price point, instead of simply marking your product down. So I'm with the people who talk about selling short stories at the 0.99 mark and books at a higher price.

As others have mentioned, when there's some uncertainty about the product, people associate price with quality. The more they understand about what the product is and does and what to expect, the more that goes away. So it doesn't surprise me at all to hear if Michael Sullivan sold fewer books at the cheaper price points.

 

[MichaelSullivan]

Positioning! That's what I was trying to talk about. Good cover, well researched price, a professional "air"... Good advice.

Precisely - I "positioned" the books as "professional" works and sold them at "professional prices." When I tried to move to a lower price - I lost my audience that I had targeted and was in a whole different group who had already "positioned" themselves primarily on price.

I'll have to look into the legality of the idea of a stand-in publisher name for a self-published author, before I try it. But in theory you can legally call yourself what you want I suppose. Small, person to person, at home businesses do it all the time with out at first registering.

Did you run into any issues at all Michael? I'm just trying to gather experiencial advice here from people in the business.

The "registering" varies from place to place - usually you'll want to get a business license for the city/county you live in - sometimes at the state level but usually much more local than that. I'm a "full" business - a registered LLC with my own Tax ID etc but when I started off I just made up a name. Bottom line...it's only once you start making money that it is considered a business - and then the "government" wants your taxes from it. But when you make no money it's just a hobby.

 

[SeverinR]

I haven't checked back on this one lately.
I will probably write some SS to sell for .99 and hold the full books at $3.99-4.99.

Michael- how much does it cost to register an LLC? Whats the benefit? (if indepth, maybe this could be another thread?)