Back in 2010-2012 indie publishing was in its infancy.
Kindles were the hot new thing and traditional publishing was still trying to
get a handle on the rapid changes occurring in the industry. But indie authors:
we could adapt quickly. With lower production costs we could charge less, and
through KDP retain a large portion of our royalties.
Many old school readers simply did not like the new
wave of technology. They preferred the feel of a book in their hands as they
enjoyed their favorite authors. But over time many of them succumbed to the
allure of the kindle. With it, they could pack away hundreds of their favorite
books and take them anywhere they wanted.
As its popularity increased, so did the resistance of
traditional publishing. Indies were stealing away more and more market share
and calling into question why they were charging so much for digital copies?
This sparked outright war between traditional and indie publishing. You should
have seen the scathing articles denouncing indies as hacks who were destroying
literature. But we fought back…with sales and fans. Digital was where the indie
lived. This was the one thing the Big Five never understood. We knew we
couldn’t get into book stores. We didn’t have the distribution. But so what? We
understood the new technology and could see its potential. The enemy was trying
to beat us up in our own yard. Well…that didn’t work out for them.
Today, traditional publishing regards indie as an
accepted part of the literary world. Okay, maybe not accepted. But tolerated. I
mean, they can’t do anything about us, after all. There are still some of those
jerks around who shout at the sky about how we’re ruining everything. But
they’re few and far between. For the most part, we have earned our place at the
table and go about our business relatively unharassed.
But just when things started to calm down, a new beast
emerged from the fog. Audio Books! Sure, they’ve been around a while. But
recently people have discovered how enjoyable they can be. And with new
downloading technology and mobile devices, it was just what the hungry reader
on the go was looking for. Even the most old-fashioned of souls had to admit it
was a great way to read a book when their time was limited by the rigors of day
to day life.
I remember years ago when I was doing a lot of cross
country traveling; I would stop at the Cracker Barrel and pick up a book on CD
for the trip. You could rent it, then return it to any location so long as you
saved the receipt. But they were bulky and it took several cd’s for one book. Not
very practical from the point of view of the new age technological world. But
the narrations were great and I very much enjoyed the listen. Not to mention it
made the trip pass by more quickly.
I remember clearly the first time I heard one of my
books in audio. Derek Perkins was the narrator and did such a fantastic job, he
made a book I knew better than any other new again. I had never considered an
audio version. At the time, it was the territory of the Big Five. Indies barely
had a presence in the market. But you know indies. We’re a bunch of rowdy
disruptors if nothing else.
In no time, audio went from less than 10% of my income
to a full 1/3. By the time Dragonvein came along I was convinced audio was the
future. During this period, Big Five publishers were shouting that the kindle
was on the decline. People were returning to hard copies, just as they had predicted.
And I admit, kindle sales dropped off. But not because readers were going all
retro. The drop-off rate match almost identically with the rate of the increase
of audio book sales.
The traditional publishers still did not understand
the kindle reader. We’re talking about a reader who is unafraid of technology;
welcoming of change. Audio books are just another way for them to consume the
stories they want and love. And you can read them here and there, you can read
them anywhere, Sam I Am.
But some companies could see the writing on the wall
and took swift action. Audible.com noticed how well indie writers were doing in
the emerging format. They noticed the rise of other audio publishers that were
formally below their radar. They checked the numbers and were highly impressed.
And being that they are owned by Amazon, they had the financial resources to
act aggressively.
This spawned a rights war that is still being waged.
The Big Five were not about to simply let go of this newfound income. It was
either you sign over audio, or no deal. Years ago, that would have been the end
of it – game, set, match. But that was then and this is now. Audible fought
back. How? With cold hard cash, of course.
Out of nowhere, advances of a few thousand dollars
turned into a few hundred thousand. Now an author could sell their audio
rights, retain their digital and print rights, and receive a larger advance
than the Big Five offered for all of their rights combined. This has gone far
to empower the author. You want all of my rights? Fine. Pay me as much as
Audible, then double it. You think I care if my earnings come from paperback
sales or from audio? Why should I? Indies don’t care about the pedigree that
comes from being traditionally published. But now, it’s not only indies who are
getting wise to this. Already several authors are fighting back and demanding
either more money, or to retain their audio rights.
Where this will all end up is anyone’s guess. But once
again, indies are slap-dab in the middle of it. It makes me wonder what’s next?
What new format will come along that has the industry in an uproar? Whatever it
is, you can bet indie writers will be jumping on it like a starving man on a
loaf of bread.
