Going Hybrid

Status
Not open for further replies.

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
My agent says there's so many factors we're waiting for the dust to settle - see who purchases AR if Osprey lets them go, etc. So until then I'm hanging tight and working on my stories and a few other projects.
 

Prisoner24601

One Mouthy Broad
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 2, 2011
Messages
96
Reaction score
14
Location
Metro Detroit
Oh man, that really, really sucks especially since this is a series, right? Keeping my fingers crossed that you and your agent can sort this out and that you can get your rights back in a timely manner.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
Yup, it's a series. I'll finish it one way or another, but waiting to figure out the best option is annoying.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
I've posted the first month summary of my self-published journey here: http://staticsplit.wordpress.com/2014/07/04/tales-of-a-hybrid-author-month-1-the-snake-charm/

Relevant numbers:
Sales:
Paid: 88
Borrowed: 7 (as part of KDP, Prime members can borrow my story for free, but I still get paid. So, hey, if you have a Prime membership, please borrow even if you have no desire to read it :-D)
Total: 95

Total Gross Income: £106.05

So far my costs have been £132 for 10 ISBNs. So you can either say I’m still about £26 in the red, or, if you factor in I only used 2 ISBNs so far, I made about £80 in profit this month. That’s about equal to what you’d get paid for a short story in plenty of magazines and anthologies, and this is only one month.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
Second story is up! "The Fisherman's Net" is shorter, so I've made it 99cents, and also dropped "The Snake Charm" down to 1.99 to see if that results in an uptick of sales.

For this one I decided to do Smashwords and Amazon. I'm in the process of setting up B&N, which I'm uploading to directly, and then waiting for Smashwords to distribute elsewhere. How long does it usually take to be accepted into the Premium Catalog and be distributed to other retailers?

http://staticsplit.wordpress.com/20...estigial-tale-the-fishermans-net-is-now-live/
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
Day 1 sales across both stories : 21 sales, 1 borrow. Not as high as the first day of the first story, but still, none too shabby.
 

HistorySleuth

Researching History's Mysteries
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 1, 2008
Messages
3,791
Reaction score
855
Location
Western New York State
Website
www.gahwny.org
I think you are doing really well. I don't know about the waiting for the dust to settle thing. You don't want to be caught waiting for them to decide what is going on, if they fold altogether. I'd say ask for the rights back too. But that's me.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
Thanks!

There's a couple factors at play, so we'll see.

I'd quite like the rights back because I'd like to have control over the full trilogy and actually have sales figures. I think if I priced the first at 99cents and the subsequent books at 2.99 I'd make a decent supplemental income.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
Thanks! Still in shock.

Will still remain hybrid - 2 novellas and probably the third Micah book to go...!
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
2nd month roundup: http://staticsplit.wordpress.com/2014/08/01/tales-of-a-hybrid-author-month-2-the-fishermans-net/

Total Sales:
Paid (Amazon): 73
Borrowed (Amazon): 3
Paid (Smashwords): 5 (52 samples downloaded though – I like that you can see that)
Total for July: 81
Total Sales to Date: 176

Per Story:
“The Snake Charm” at $1.99: 11
“The Snake Charm” at $2.99: 11
“The Snake Charm” borrowed: 3
“The Fisherman’s Net”: 56

Total Gross Income for July: £32.49 ($54.72)
Total Gross Income to Date: £138.54 ($233.33)
Costs: £132 for 10 ISBNs
Total Net Profit: £6.54 ($11.01)
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
I've now passed the 200 mark in total sales, so I'm quite happy about that :)
 

AnnaPappenheim

"Quod me alit, me extinguit."
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 5, 2014
Messages
132
Reaction score
2
Location
Gatlinburg
Love the cover art for The Tarot Reader!

I just followed the link to your blog, and really love the cover art for The Tarot Reader. It's one of those things you can look at for a long time, and it gets the imagination going.

Did you design this one yourself?

My upcoming book is in a totally different field (history), but nonetheless, your cover is inspiring!
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
My friend Dianna Walla did it (along with The Snake Charm and The Fisherman's Net), and I can't recommend her enough. Her website is http://paper-tiger.net/.
 

AnnaPappenheim

"Quod me alit, me extinguit."
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 5, 2014
Messages
132
Reaction score
2
Location
Gatlinburg
She does beautiful work!

Just had a look at your friend Dianna Walla's website. Really beautiful things she produces!

Thanks for the link!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.