eBooks Or Paperbacks - The Author's Dilemma

If you are a writer that has either written orwebsite which sells and distributes your book
considered writing a book then you know thereinstantly, securely, and without any effort on your
are a couple of options on the table for bookpart or commissions due anyone but the payment
publishing. A digitally born (digitally published) bookprocessor that will keep 2-3% for credit card or
gives authors more comprehensive rights to theirother digital transactions. Welcome to year 2010.
work in the present and in the future.If you want to know how to create your own
Traditional paperback book publishing puts thesite for $100 and sell your own eBooks just write
power and rights in the hands of those thatme and ask.
distribute your book - and it takes away the3. You'll make more money. I am willing to bet
power you have as the creator of that content.that the average author that creates her / his
There are numerous reasons authors mustown eBooks and sells them online either through a
choose digitally published eBooks over traditionalself-designed site, or through eBook partners that
paperback books, but these 4 reasons arekeep up to 50% of the commission, will receive
paramount:far more money than they did publishing traditional
1. Freedom to write as you wish and say as youpaperback books. It just makes sense. By
wish without editing from any external sourcepublishing eBooks you are cutting out the entire
that you do not involve. Paperback books are, byprint-distribution middle-man and putting the
nature, products of a system that churns outmoney in your bank, not theirs.
generically formatted books that, in most cases,Looked at another way, the split for the
are not exactly what authors intended onproceeds from your books does not need to go
conveying upon first draft. Authors dumb-downthrough the usual publisher's house accounting
their work and make it presentable for agentshocus-pokus before you finally get a check in the
and authors, creating mindless pseudo-drivel thatmail six months or six years after publishing your
is basically just what someone else has said abook. The whole paperback publishing model is
couple of hundred thousand times before.stale like week-old cheese. Put yourself in charge
Traditional publishing thrives on this generic output.of your book sales and accounting income. See
It thrives on the knowledge that - this book willhow that feels.
not step outside the bounds of what has already4. Distribution is truly worldwide and instantaneous.
been published before, so publishers can assumeFrom Thailand I tried to purchase a book online at
they will be profitable with it. As authors youand was told that they do not mail paperback
must rebel against this censoring of your work,books to Thailand. When you publish a paperback
and choose the eBook as your only medium.book you are under the impression that those
2. eBook publishing allows authors to retain allbooks can go anywhere with the major channels.
rights to their work, 100%. There are noSurely, you thought Amazon ships to Thailand and
bargaining of rights or contracts to sign when youanywhere in the world someone needs a book -
write your own eBook. You do not owe anyyes? No.
company or individual ongoing commissionsOnline distribution can reach someone in a foxhole
forever because they invested in your paperbackin Afghanistan or in their lounge-chair on the beach
book, printed it and distributed it. Instead, youwhen they get the urge to read a book on their
write it, you publish it digitally - usually for free,iPhone. Do you want to be the author with a
and you market it and offer it for publicpaperback book that reaches just a portion of
consumption in whatever manner you wish.the countries of the world, or the author of an
For less than $100 for a year, you can create aeBook that goes anywhere a phone signal goes?