Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Guest Post: Print is Killing Publishing

by Joseph L. Selby

Whether you love the smell of paper books or not, digital distribution will be the primary means of accessing text-based media within your lifetime (unless you die in the next couple years; if so, my condolences). Three years ago I was in a meeting of department heads and vice presidents and all the people that make decisions on things. We were discussing the company's ebook strategy. Three years ago, Flashpaper was relatively new and xml-ebooks were in their first iteration. We were on the precipice of massive change, not that such changes were noticeable in the market.

We're now over the precipice, in case you're wondering. We're falling. Argue all you want that you prefer paper. We'll hit the bottom soon enough and paper will become the minority distribution method for published media.

Flashpaper seems like old hat now. XML is realized (not fully, as we continue to experiment with enhanced ebooks). HTML5 and CSS3 are the vanguard of the mobile revolution, where computers play second hat to smart phones and tablets. The entire publishing paradigm is shifting and those companies that deal with text-based media are trying to figure out how to handle such a rapidly changing market.

At this meeting of mine, standing at the precipice, we discussed the marketplace, the challenges of digital sales, and most importantly, the challenge of pricing. I asked what I thought was a simple enough question: Why don't we just sell content directly to the consumer?

Now at the time, ebooks represented less than 1% of total sales. MUCH less. The industry moneymaker at the time (and currently, though not for much longer) was paper books. Paper books sold in stores and online at Amazon. A book's marketing budget was much smaller than what was needed to force any one particular title to the forefront of the consumer consciousness. So much of the business depended on customers finding the books while looking for other items. (You know the "people who browsed this item also looked at X, Y, Z" suggestions on Amazon? Those are a big deal.)

The answer was as simple as the question: We can't sell directly to customers because it will upset the market. Cutting out the middleman would rock the boat for the much larger revenue generator.

In truth, the answer isn't so simple. The excuse was simple. There are too many challenges to selling directly that publishing isn't willing to tackle. How do you set up a marketplace? Which department owns it and maintains it? Will this require new staff and the costs that go along with them? How does a marketplace work? (I cannot express to you the number of meetings I had to have with directors and VPs explaining what meta-text and catalog searching is.) How do you handle international sales? How do you draw users to your market without the goods of other publishers that are offered in the collective of a place like Amazon? How do you establish industry market standards without provoking (more) anti-trust accusations? How do you sell books?

Did you catch that last one? How do you sell books? Publishers are really good at selling books to the market. Publishers are not very good at selling books to the consumer. The industry grew up in cooperation with the marketplace, not in opposition to it. Publishers do not have the staff, the institutional knowledge, or the will to bring anything but a marginal effort to bear when it comes to direct selling.

How does that affect you and me? You get the agency model of ebook selling. Ebooks cost as much as their hard-back brethren because the cost still accommodates the middle man. Rather than a 50/50 split between author and publisher, the whole thing is muddled by including a third party to act as a literary fence.

With the inclusion of self-publishing arms like CreateSpace and fourth-party catalogs like Smashwords, marketplace e-bookshelves are less accommodating than ever for browsing. There aren't enough ways to hone searches aside from direct keyword searches. If you want to see fantasy, you get sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. And a LOT of it. And a lot of that, self-published. Sure Tor might not represent 100% of the fantasy market, but when you trace so many of the imprints up to their parent corporations, you'd be surprised how many of them are owned by the same people (Penguin owns at least four different fantasy imprints. Macmillan at least three, and so on). Bundle all these titles into a top-notch database driven search engine, slap a nice marketplace on the front of it, and all of a sudden you don't need to charge $17.50 for an ebook. You can charge $10 and make more money than you ever did before.

With the rapidly changing distribution paradigm, the obligations of playing nice with the market because of print will soon be meaningless. The problem is, by the time that happens, the publishing industry will have given up any opportunity it had to establish itself as a market option for readers of its work, will have allowed Amazon to muscle its way to control the industry despite spats with Macmillan (which I still contend Amazon won despite [or because of] the application of the agency model to ebook pricing [something that will bite publishers in the ass]).

The game is being played while we fall. When we hit the bottom, the game ends, the new era of publishing begins. The question is, who will get up and walk away? If things remain as they are now, Amazon WILL be the victor. If decisive action is not taken, publishers, authors, and customers alike will lie broken and bloodied at the foot of the Cliffs of E-sanity.

But do not despair. Others have seen the chess match being played and have begun to work toward an endgame. Do you remember that huff on Black Friday/Cyber Monday when a major publisher offered 50% off direct online purchases? It undercut any sales independents might have made on the same day. While the uproar was in defense of the independents, this sale was a critical step in the outcome of the ePocalypse. Publishers need to not only attempt but succeed at selling their product directly to consumers. While there are plenty of horror scenarios of publishers maintaining their own marketplace (same pricing, same piddly author e-royalties, and no middle man?), the risk is necessary for the fruitful transition of the industry from paper to electrons. It is necessary for publishers to treat authors fairly by offering a reasonable royalty rate. It is necessary for publishers to treat customers fairly by not charging $17 for an ebook or by attempting to explain why an ebook is worth $17 when they already lost that battle (twice in fact, but that's a separate blog post). It is necessary for publishers to maintain themselves in a world of reduced revenue and growing publishing alternatives.

Joseph L. Selby is a fantasist seeking representation. From 9:30 to 5:00 he works as a media project manager for one of the big 6's education division (translation: he makes the ebooks). He blogs at http://jlselby.blogspot.com.

14 comments:

  1. Good post, and I think you're on the money. I do think publishers will figure some things out, but there will be a lot of pain in the process. As a recently self-published eauthor (on the advice of then-agent and editor), sales are extremely good, but it was a LOT of work to get everything started and promote. Not too much work that I would give up 70% royalty rate (unless the deal was amazing), but enough that I would love to work with a publisher towards a happier medium. I do want a publisher behind me, for the right reasons -- i.e., they truly believe in my work, and actively promote me. But the small advance/midlist deal simply no longer makes economic sense. In short, as a person devoted to paper books and world-class editing, I really hope publishing works out for the best, for everyone involved.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great piece! As an author/reader, I'm very excited about the future of literature. People may stop buying paper books, and folks may no longer be able to sell/create them, but writing and reading will continue (and probably grow in demand). The relationship will finally be between the two groups it should have always been between: (you guessed it) writers and readers.

    Not hating on publishing industry types, and there'll be plenty of need for editors, marketing, etc. However, I think the days of relying on massive business enterprises to facilitate a career in writing are over.

    Long live creativity and artistic freedom!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very informative. Thank you and I agree with E.J. that, "..writing and reading will continue.." and I'm also glad that I have my library of paper books to enjoy in the years to come.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Informative and wise. Thanks for this.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love eBooks, in fact I make a living as an author because of eBooks. Keep up the great work.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Interesting post. I recently got an e-reader, so where previously I had always thought about this issue as an aspiring author, this has given me a lot to think about as a consumer as well.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ditto what Layton and Kristin said (even though the things they said were not related -- oh, and minus being a successful e-author).

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hmmm. As a devotee of paper books, I cringe a bit at the idea that my future includes eBooks only.

    And after working in print production, I began to question my decision to study graphic design rather than creative writing (because design was more "practical"), especially as design went more web-based (as did I; unfortunately, my employer didn't--we parted ways) and I lost interest in print work and print publishing.

    Maybe it wasn't such a bad move after all. With the advent of eBooks and my background, maybe my subconscious knew something I didn't, and prepared me to be able to format books for Kindle and e-readers. I'll certainly have a step up on the competition.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Interesting post. I know I purchase more books since I got an ereader so it will be interesting to see how the venues where we buy changes/evolves

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good thing I'm stocking up on paper books now; I'll have enough to carry me unto death. I have an e-reader and hate the thing. It's no substitute for a book.

    Long live paper!

    ReplyDelete
  11. "If things remain as they are now, Amazon WILL be the victor."

    Too late. The battle is over. Amazon won.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yay Nina Paley:

    http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20110105/06475912529/mimi-eunice-ye-olde-technologie-killing-culture-scribes.shtml

    ReplyDelete