First Self Publishing Book Expo planned in New York

Whether print on demand can truly be called self publishing is to some a contentious issue - but, love it or loathe it, where traditional presses are making cutbacks on both sides of the Atlantic, this aspect of the publishing industry is booming.

To this end, publishing veterans Diane Mancher and Karen Mender are launching what they term as Self-Publishing Book Expo, an event that will focus on self-published books and the companies that produce them. Unlike exhibitions such as the forthcoming London Book Fair, which are closed to the general public, SPBE will offer attending authors a place to exhibit and sell their books to the book buying public, as well as agents and publishers whom the organisers hope will attend. In this way, the expo will serve as a showcase for both authors and publishers to showcase their work.

Mancher is working with Mender, a former Vice President, Associate Publisher and Marketing Director at Atria Books, Dell/Delacorte and HarperCollins, to produce and develop the Expo. In addition to acting as a showcase for self published books, the SPBE will include panel discussions and lectures on the challenges of self publishing, and an “Open House” for would-be authors, which will be open to the public and hosted by representatives of various self-publishing companies.

The Expo is scheduled to take place in New York on Saturday, November 7 and if successful, will become an annual event. Authors may register at http://www.selfpubbookexpo.com/.

Some quotes about writing

In the same way that a woman becomes a prostitute. First I did it to please myself, then I did it to please my friends, and finally I did it for money.

Ferenc Molnar ... after asked about how he became a writer

Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind, which are delivered down from generation to generation as presents to those who are not yet born.
Joseph Addison, 1672-1719, English Essayist

Books are the quietest and most constant friends, they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors and the most patient of teachers.
Charles W Elliot, 1834-1926, American Educator

We read books to find out who we are. What other people, real or imaginary, do and think and feel is an essential guide to our understanding of what we ourselves are and may become.
Ursula LeGuin, b 1929, American sci fi writer

All that mankind has done, thought or been is lying in magic preserved in the pages of books.
Thomas Carlyle, 1785-1881, Scottish Essayist, Historian and Philosopher

Writing is not a profession but a vocation of unhappiness.
George Simenon, 1903-89, Belgian novelist

The shelf life of the modern hardback writer is somewhere between the milk and the yoghurt.
Calvin Yrillin.

Life, the universe and everything in between

The April edition of the village newsletter that I edit, contained an insert from the PCC (Parochial Church Council), in the form of a questionaire, to try to get to the bottom of why so few people in our village go to church. I cannot speak for others, but for my part, it is because there is nothing there that really interests me - the Christian concept of God as a being which is outside of oneself is totally at odds with my own more Gnostic beliefs.

There is evidence to suggest that Gnosticism, which along with modern spirituality teaches that God is within, and that we ourselves are aspects of God, was the original form of Christianity that Jesus (if he existed - that is a whole other subject) taught, and this is one of the main tenets of my own book, Genesis of Man, orginally published in 2006. Yesterday, when I was tidying up my work room, it occured to me that it has been well over a year since I picked up my own book and actually read it, but when I tried I could not bring myself to even open it. This led me to ponder on why this was.

The conclusion I reached was because I have changed so much as a person since I wrote those words (the book may have been published in 2006, but I began work on it back in 2001), that a large chunk of it no longer represents who I am. It is not the message behind the words, but the way in which they are presented - there is a lot of anger in there, and therefore ego.

On Wednesday, my partner and I went to the Inner Journey group that we attend each week, where we discussed the questionaire regarding church attendance in more detail. One of the ladies that was there commented that she felt the church was being under used and should be for everyone - not just Christians, and that it would be the perfect venue for our own little group were those who run it (the aforementioned PCC) not so closed minded. Whether or not this is the case, when I thought again about my own book and the words that it contains, and where I was at the time that I wrote those words, I detected a large amount of mirroring.

I have observed that many on the spiritual path become quite irate when discussing mainstream religion, stating as my friend did, that if only they could see beyond their beliefs, they would find a whole new world that would expand their minds to take in so much more. This may be true, but it comes across as a critisicm, and criticism is nearly always borne from ego. The ego, in its fight for survival, has to have an identity, and for many that includes our belief systems - hence we label ourselves as Christian, Muslim or in my case, Gnostic. This is fine as long as recognise it for what it is, but most people do not; they become so completely identified with the mind and the labels that it attaches to the various things it identifies with, that we believe that we are those things, and so when those things (in this case, our beliefs) are attacked, we believe that we are being attacked. This is the reasoning behind nearly all the atrocities to have committed against humanity, since history began. Belief and identification with a particular set of beliefs, are seen as more important than life itself.

There may be different degrees, but when my friend made those comments, they were really no better (or worse) than Christians stating that it is their duty to "save souls" so that non believers will not spend eternity in hell. They do not see the inherant goodness that goes beyond belief, but only that which seperates, where in reality, it is comments such as these that cause (and maintain) the real seperation.

This is not meant to be a judgement, but is really more of an observation. There is a lot of ego in me, and in the words that I wrote back then - but those thoughts no longer reflect who I am. As I began to research and learn more and more about Church history (particularly after I attended an Alpha course - the anger is rising just thinking about this), this brought up a lot of anger, which comes across in the words. Where this comes from I do not know - possibly from past lives where I was persecuted and killed for my supposedly heretical beliefs (I am almost certain that I was one of the 200 plus burnt at the Cathar fortress at Montsegur, and may also have been an Inquisitor), but wherever it does come from, it is in the past, and needs to remain there.

Part of the process of letting go will involve re-reading that book, which contains a vast array of information on a myriad of fascinating subjects - Atlantis, Ancient Egypt, Mesoamerican civilisations, crystal skulls, and of course religion - as the subtitle says - life, the universe and everything in between ... It will be an interesting journey.

Author Solutions buys Trafford Publishing

I read yesterday in the regular Book2 Book newsletter that I receive that Author Solutions, the US based print on demand publisher had acquired Trafford Publishing for an undisclosed sum.

Trafford was a relatively small but well known operation, set up in 1995, with offices in both Canada and the UK, and accordingly to The Bookseller, the world's first print on demand provider. My own publisher, Authors OnLine Ltd was established not long after, since this is their 12th year of business. Trafford may have been the first POD provider in the world, but AOL were the first in the UK - the original, and in my opinion, still the best.

Author Solutions, who own several POD imprints including AuthorHouse and iUniverse, are rapidly becoming the MacDonalds of the print on demand world. This comes on the back of their acquisition, just a few months ago, of Xlibris.

During 2008, they claim to have published over 21,000 titles from over 90,000 authors. Look closely however and you will see that the average sales for one of their titles was hardly more than 200 copies. Although it is true that this is largely due to the efforts (or lack of) on the part of their authors, to me it is not exactly a glowing advertisement. I suppose it depends on what your motivations for publishing are in the first place.

The news of this acquisition is to me a very sad day for the POD world. When you look at the history of the traditional non POD sector, and see how the smaller independent presses have been gradually swallowed up by the big boys, you will see that the power is concentrated in the hands of four or five large companies, who effectively have control of close to 75 percent of the market. This means less choice all round, and provides no incentive for the companies to compete with each other by offering better or different products, leading to less choice and less innovation. This is where the smaller companies, like the aforementioned Authors OnLine come in, who offer a real alternative with different options to suit different budgets without the 'pile em high and sell em cheap mentality that seems to emanate from these larger, less personal companies.

US book sales down 2.8 percent

Spending on books in the UK may be down by an average of 6 percent in real terms, but the figure in the US seems even worse, for according to a report by the Association of American Publishers, some stateside are reporting a slump of up to 21 percent.

Publishers Weekly reports that total books sales in the US fell by 2.8 percent in 2008, with sales down in nine out of the 14 categories surveyed.

These totals are based on monthly reports supplied by 81 publishers, supplemented by Census Bureau data. The AAP applies the percentage change reported in each category by the reporting companies to the previous year's totals.

The largest increase for 2008 was perhaps not surprisingly, in the e-book sector, where sales rose a staggering 68.4 percent to $113.2 million. In comparison, the printed sector, particualarly hardbacks, had a very difficult year, with sales siginficantly down in for both children and adults.

Despite these apparently dismal findings, the AAP estimates that industry sales grew at a 1.6 percent compound annual growth rate during the period 2002–2008 period. During this time span, when averaged overall, the mass market paperback and the book club/mail order segments were the only ones to have a drop in sales. Excluding e-books, the religious book segment (good news for me, as my own work falls into this category) showed the strongest growth, at 4.5 percent.

The full report can be read here

Google's plan for "orphan" books is challenged

The Book 2 Book newsletter that I subscribe to today had an interesting link to an article regarding Google Books taken from the New York Times. It seems that Google are not content with scanning books that are still in print, but have now turned their attention to those out of print, whose copyright owners are either unknown, or for for various reasons, cannot be traced. Such books are known as "orphans" within the trade, and there are literally (no pun) thousands languishing in archives throughout the country - mostly in university and library archives.

These books may from the sound of it, have found a new guardian, since it seems that Google have begun scanning these books to form part of a huge and free digital library available to all. There is however a growing chorus of complaint within the industry at Google's plans and in my opinion, quite rightly so. This move to me seems foolish in the extreme, coming as it does, on the back of the settlement which was recently announced (subject to court approval) with regard to books whose copyright owners can be traced.

Critics say that while such "orphan" books are a valuable part of 20th century literature that should be preserved, no competitor will be able compile anywhere near as comprehensive a library as Google, giving the company a virtual monopoly on the realm of digital information. With no competition, Google will be able to charge universities and those requiring access to these works, whatever they like.

I cannot help but feel that these critics are missing the entire point. These books are still in copyright, and whether or not the copyright owners can be traced, makes not one iota of difference. The fact that the copyright owner cannot be traced cannot and should not be used as carte blance to make money from what is essentially someone else's work. Copyright doesn't end when the author dies; the right to publish remains with the author's estate (e.g., his/her family.) The time frame for this varies from country to country, but in most cases is at least 70 years after the authors death.

Copyright laws exist in order to protect the rights of the copyright holder - whether that be author or publisher. The fact that that person cannot be traced should not be used as a license to infringe those rights -which if Google goes ahead with this plan, and according to the New York Times, they have already begun work on this project, they will be guilty of. They appear to have learnt nothing from the proposed settlement and I cannot help but feel they are leaving themselves wide open to further court cases if and when some of these copyright owners (as they surely will be) are found.

The project will undoubtedly bring great benefits to the reading public, but what about the rights of the copyright holders, surely they should take precedence? Who was it after all that wrote these things and who was it that bore the cost of publication. Not Google, but the authors and publishers of these works. They should be the ones to benefit financially from these work while they remain in copyright and no one else.

The full article can be read here.

BML survey shows a sharp decline in book sales for 2008

According to a survey by Book Marketing Ltd (BML) presented at the Books and Consumer Annual Conference at the end of March, in terms of volume and value, sales of books for 2008, even allowing for Harry Potter, are down. Average price, average "real" spend, and the actual percentage of people buying were all down, as was the percentage of males who buy books and the average spend for those in consumer group ABC1. Adult hardback fiction sales fell by 20 percent in terms of both volume and value, and even paperback fiction, traditionally the best selling sector, fell by 5 percent.

A total of 330 million books were purchased in 2008, down from 342 million in 2007, but up from 322 million in 2006. This showed an average increase of 10 percent over the past five years, mostly due to 2007. Despite this, given that inflation increased by 11 percent between 2004 and 2008, the 4 percent increase in book spending over this same period, translates to a 6 percent decrease in real terms.

The survey showed that Britons aged between 12 and 79 spent 6 percent less on books in 2008 than in 2007. The average price paid for a book was £7.02 in 2008, 20p less than in 2007. Compared to other markets, the book trade has got off lightly, particularly DVD's and music, where average prices have declined by 23 percent and 34 percent respectively (with music, some of this may be attributed to an increase in downloads). The average spend on books per buyer was £83 in 2008 (up from £80 in 2004) but fewer people bought; just 57 percent of the population in 2008, compared to 61 percent in 2004.

This decline in the actual number of people buying books is the most sobering figure of all - the abolition of the Net Book Agreement was supposed to expand the market, but despite prices being lower than ever before, the opposite appears to be true. It worked for a few years, heightened no doubt by the Richard and Judy effect and the Internet revolution, but all it has really done in the eyes of the public has devalued the books that we write. Even before these figures were announced, the percentage of buyers was down; for women between 2004 and 2008, from 65 percent to 63 percent, and for men during the same period, from 57 percent to 51 percent.

In an effort to turn things around, and stop this slump (a bit like shutting the door after the horse has bolted), the industry has been hard at work devising a slogan that will encapsulate what book buying is about, to act as a generic marketing slogan that will pull people in. Tim Godfray, Booksellers Association CEO, said a number of options had been rejected but that the aim was to unveil a slogan at the Book Industry Conference in June. Jo Henry, BML MD, and Charlie King, Head of Creative Marketing at Little, Brown, suggested a wider consultation, involving the Book Marketing Society. In my opinion, the discussion should be broadened to include authors, those who actually write the books, and should after all, understand their market better than anyone.

Circumstances have forced the industry once again to come together to try and save its own skin, for the decline in book sales (and yes, I have been affected too) has not discriminated; it affects all genres and all groups of buyers.

ABC1 females were down from 73 percent to 70 percent, ABC1 males 65 percent to 59 percent; C2DE females down 58 percent to 57 percent, C2DE males 48 percent to 43 percent. In 2008, men and women aged between 35 and 54 bought fewer books, while younger women aged 12-34, and older men aged 55-59 bought more. Women aged 25-34 and both genders over 55 drove growth in volume and value purchases, both spending and buying more. These figures reflect a decline in self purchasing (buying books for your own use) - down from 52 percent of 12-79 year olds in 2004 to 46 percent in 2008, while the number of people buying books for others has increased by 4 percent to 40 percent of the population (I must be the exception, since I never buy books for others).

Taken over a five year period, there has been a 26 percent increase in the purchase of books as gifts, with spending up 17 percent. Overall, spending was down on both adults and children’s titles (5 percent and 11 percent respectively). Somewhat reassuringly given my own genre, hardback non fiction was the best performing category, up 25 percent in volume and 8 percent in value between 2004 and 2008. With regard to children's books, growth has been limited to books for the under 5's.

As expected, sales from traditional bricks and mortar stores declined during 2008, with the Internet and supermarkets reporting a significant increase, in volume if not value (I wonder why that could be - is it something to do with aforementioned NBA and what can the industry learn from this?). Between 2004 and 2008, sales of books from these two types of outlets has more than doubled, leaving many of the smaller independents (and even some chains) struggling to compete.

More than half the books that we are buy are now bought as some kind some of special offer (i.e. heavily discounted). The industry is predicting a trend away from specialist retailers, towards the second hand trade. This may be good for Amazon (not to mention the environment), but it will be disastrous for authors and publishers, who will see their revenue drop accordingly. Most worrying of all, one quarter of consumers indicated that discounting meant that books were over priced to begin with. The majority of buyers (and why wouldn't they be) are very positive about two for three and other similar offers, although a significant number (47 percent) said they had trouble finding the extra books that made these offers worth their while.

The conference concluded with what I have been saying for years; that publishers and booksellers need to emphasise the true value of books, and the work that goes into them, and move away from this pile 'em high, sell 'em cheap mentality, which is costing jobs in the industry that we love. At long last, someone has actually shown some common sense. I just hope that it is not a case of too little, too late.