This past holiday season I released my first novel, Tournament of Hearts, and if you’ve been reading along on my blog, you might remember that I saw some pretty decent success in my first few weeks. There has been an expected drop-off in sales as of late, seeing my book fluctuate up and down in both the Canadian and American charts, but I’ve been thrilled with the response thus far from family, friends and new fans. I’ve landed a few interviews with local media, have had my first few reviews pop up on Amazon and have felt reinvigorated as of late, writing some of the best material I’ve ever produced for Book Two of The Librarian Gladiator series.
Things are definitely looking up, but then that asshole inner pessimist pops out my happy head, sits down, holds his chin in his right hand, lightly taps his cheek and says:
“What kind of success would you have seen if you’d had hard copies for sale on Amazon at launch?”
You son of a bitch pessimist…but he’s right, even if he is a dick.
I can’t tell you how many people have asked for hard copies, mainly because I’m terrible at counting, and partly because it was a lot. Here I was, thinking the physical book market wasn’t as prevalent as it once was, but that’s been found to be total and absolute bullshit. While more and more people are converting to e-readers, there are still a ton of people out there buying bookshelves and loading up their personal libraries with hard-covers. Not having my novel out in hard copy at release was an absolute mistake.
Here are three reasons why:
1) Having hard copies available will increase your sales in all markets, including the e-reader happy market.
For example: Someone is perusing your book, reads the synopsis, thinks it might be worth a look and checks out the price.
“Who does this prick think he is?” they say. “What kind of no-name nobody is trying to sell his first book for $12.99 when…oh look at that, his e-book is on sale for $2.99 on Kindle. Ok well, what the hell.”
Unbeknownst to anyone, until now, I can read the minds of people looking for books on Amazon. Or at least I think I can. *takes another hit of LSD*
Yup, definitely can.
It’s natural for us to see a high price, scoff at it, find the same product at a much lower price and feel inclined to buy it because it’s so bloody “cheap”. It’s the “on sale” strategy those pricks at Walmart and _insert any store in existence_ use, and it will work for you just by having hard copies available at the required higher price right beside your e-copy.
2) People who believe in you want to show that they believe in you.
Family, friends and your imaginary buddy will all buy your hard copy right out of the gate. This is especially the case when you break into their house, root through their purse and drawers, steal their credit card information and buy your own book with it (shame on you if you did…but points for effort!).
Now if we’re being serious for a second, unless you’re a greedy capitalist pig, you’re goal here is not to exploit these people you love, but to get the word out about your book. Of course you can badger them to spread the good news, but that will last only so long. What you really want is your physical book on their shelf, maybe your novel mounted in a gold-encased frame above their fireplace, or perhaps lying in a pile beside their toilet, which is perfect. Everybody poops!
When readers visit another’s home, they can’t help but be a little snoopy. They look at what’s on their shelves and just like a book store, if your cover is snappy it’ll grab their attention. They want to know what their friends are reading, and if that’s your book well then you might just have another sale from someone you’re not related to (for once)!
3) You’ll be more likely to get the reviews that you need, crave and BEG for.
Here’s a question: Would you be more likely to leave a product review for a brand new car OR a Donald Duck-headed pez dispenser?
The car of course, unless your my wife and you’re addicted to sugar.
The same goes for a hard copy book vs. an e-book. People who spend north of $10 on a book want to tell people what they thought about it, because humans have this propensity to speak their mind when they believe they really have some skin in the game. Hopefully your book doesn’t suck and these people come at you with praise instead of pitchforks.
Now I’m sure there are a few more reasons, but these are the one’s that really stick out for me. Having hard copies right off the bat at release is an absolute must in my opinion, and it’s one of the few things I would like to do over if I could.
If you can think of any other strong reasons, feel free to share them in the comments section below. But if you want to nay-say me and say the physical book is dead, go to hell. I don’t listen to reason no matter how well-articulated it is.
Dustin Bilyk 