How to get documents to your Kindle

One of the people who requested a free Steve Dancy short story (See the box to the right) asked if there was a way to get it transferred to her Kindle. I've been transferring documents to my Kindle forever, so I forgot that some people don't know it's possible. Every Kindle has an email address associated with it that can be used to get almost any kind of text document onto your device.

It's a two-step process:

1. Authorize the sending email address

This step safeguards your device. No one can upload to your Kindle without prior approval. Go to "Your Digital Contend and Devices under "Accounts and Lists." Then select "Preferences." Under "Personal Document Setting" you can add approved sender email addresses.

2. Attach a file to an email and send it to the Kindle email address

That's it. Before retiring, my assistant sent work documents to my kindle because I found it easier to read large documents on my Kindle rather than on my PC. It also works with a Kindle app on a phone or pad.

P.S. I don't want to know your Kindle address, so I'll send the free short story as an MS Word document that you can then transfer to your Kindle.

Is This Re-gifting?

Amazon has an under-publicized program called Matchbook. By enrolling in this program, a publisher can offer a Kindle book at a steep discount to buyers of the print format. You can see the books in the Matchbook program here.

Think of the possibilities. You can buy books as Christmas presents and then download a Kindle copy for yourself. Kinda like two for one. This might be a great idea, but you may not want to buy your great aunt Sex Love Repeat by Alessandra Torre. Maybe Johnny Carson by Henry Bushkin would be more appropriate. Or perhaps she would prefer Tempest at Dawn, since all of my books are enrolled in the program at 99¢ for the second copy in Kindle format.

It's only two weeks until Christmas, so you may want to use my great idea to finish off your shopping list.

Publishing Trends Viewed from an Omaha Armchair

The digital revolution continues to roil publishing, so here are a few of my recent observations. I suspect at least three of these five are correct. It’s your job to figure out which three.

1. Shift from books to e-books is leveling out
2. Content becoming more profitable than e-reader devices
3. Amazon continues to innovate ahead of traditional publishers
4. Traditional publishers are adapting
5. Indie-e-books are a saturated market

Can traditional publishers fight off the pesky indies?

Shift From books to e-books is leveling out

For the prior five years, my printed book sales as a percent of total sales have declined. Until this year. In 2013, the ratio of print, e-book, audio, and large print sales have all held steady with 2012. In fact, in recent months, I have seen a slight resurgence in printed books. I suspect this means that the e-book phenomenon has reached a mature state.

Content becoming more profitable than e-reader devices

Amazon appears to be shifting its e-book strategy, with increased emphasis on content rather than on selling Kindles. Device prices have dropped as technology-prone readers have for the most part already purchased Kindles. Now, the big money is in selling content and annual device upgrades. Amazon has taken a couple of subtle steps to nudge e-book prices up, or more precisely to inhibit low or zero priced content.

Amazon continues to innovate ahead of traditional publishers

Amazon has recently started two new programs. The Matchbook feature allows publishers to offer a steeply discounted Kindle version to print book purchasers. This is doubly clever. Matchbook encourages book purchases through Amazon rather than competitors who cannot offer a similar deal on the market-leading Kindle. Matchbook also adds revenue without cannibalizing either format, while at the same time furthering Kindle domination. The second program is called Kindle Countdown Deal, which allows publishers to program discounted e-books for a limited time. The trick here is that Amazon "counts down" the remaining discount days to build urgency into the buy decision. Both of these are attempts by Amazon to increase their control over e-book discounting.

                                         Traditional publishers are adapting

Even a battleship can eventually turn. Traditional publishers are flexing their promotional muscles and showing contract flexibility with their bestselling authors. Mid-list authors aren't getting any better treatment, but they seldom made money for traditional publishers anyway. Few care if they jump ship. It looks like it’s turning into a build your platform first world. By the end of the publishing digital revolution, it’s possible traditional publishers will be more profitable. 

Indie-e-books are a saturated market

First giving away books for free quit working, now it’s hard to sell e-books at 99¢. When there are tens of thousands of e-books published every month, it’s hard for any particular author to get noticed, despite whatever financial shenanigans are employed. As more and more indie-authors experience weak sales, a growing number will pursue other endeavors. This will reduce supply until we reach market equilibrium. In the meantime, indie competition will be a slugfest.

If you bought print copies of my books from Amazon, get a Kindle version for 99¢

Many people are unaware that Amazon has a program called Matchbook. If the publisher enrolls their books in the program, Amazon purchasers of print books can get an Kindle e-book version for a steep discount. The price for Matchbook must be between zero and $2.99. All of my books have been set at 99¢. This means if you have ever bought one of my print books on Amazon, you can now pick up a Kindle version for less than a dollar. 



Here is a link that will display all of your eligible titles.  

You'll see all the books you've purchased that are enrolled in this program, but I'm sure you'll jump on my books first. If not, maybe second? Anyway it's a good program, especially for people who have made many purchases through the years, but have only recently acquired a Kindle. 

Happy reading.

Creative Librarians

Book Riot has published a piece on Finding Libraries in Unexpected Places. There are some great pictures and an interesting narrative for each. There are some nifty ideas here that might help libraries remain as a place to check out books—real books, printed on that stuff they call paper. I would hate to see libraries turned into book museums, or internet portals for the digitally deprived. I prefer librarians information savvy rather than technology chauffeurs.

Concord Free Public Library

Boston Public Library

As you can tell, I’m a bit old fashion. I love bookstore and libraries. My favorite libraries are the Boston Public Library and the Concord Free Public Library. I like both of these because there are surprises buried in their stacks—surprises that knowledgeable librarians help you uncover. 

In the Boston Public Library I found a Roger Sherman doctoral thesis by Christopher Collier, the author of Decision in Philadelphia. In Concord, I found a one hundred and sixty year old biography of Roger Sherman. Both finds were invaluable for my research for Tempest at Dawn. Since I was not a resident of Massachusetts, I was further surprised when the Concord Free Public Library issued me a library card on the spot and let me walk out of the building with this valuable book. Free library cards for everyone is a longstanding tradition of this charming bastion of American literary history.

Bookstores are great, used bookstores are fun and great, but libraries are indispensable because they come equipped with tour guides called librarians. I sure hope the digitization of books doesn't cost us this valuable resource.

Related Posts
Will libraries end up as museums? 
Musings about Concord, Massachusetts
Libraries that are architectural wonders
I just gave away over 300 books

"Mike Reads" reviews Tempest at Dawn

The "Mike Reads" blog has reviewed Tempest at Dawn. This is not exactly a New York Times book review, but I liked it because Mike took away from the book what I intended. I love writing Westerns and like the freedom to plot my own stories, but Tempest at Dawn was a five year labor of love. It was a huge responsibility to write about the founding fathers and such an important event in American history. I read or seriously scanned over 100 history books on the Constitutional Convention, and used at least 3 biographies for each of the major characters in the story. And yes, it was a story—a great story with great characters, intense conflict, and hopeful resolution.

Tempest at Dawn continues to be well received by readers and historians. At the time of this writing, and five years after publication, the Kindle version is still ranked #28 for books about the U.S. Constitution. 78 Amazon customers have reviewed the book for 4.5 stars, and 185 readers on Goodreads have given the book an average rating of 3.84.

I'll probably never again tackle a book as challenging as Tempest at Dawn, so it's gratifying that it still sells well and continues to receive attention from readers and reviewers. Thanks.

Even diehards are turning to e-books

It’s fun to watch sales when a new book comes out. Even though the official release date is August 15^th, The Return has been available since about the first of August. Exactly two thirds of the sales have been e-books. Fiction readers love e-books. Especially voracious readers. Printed books still hold the edge for nonfiction, but the trend is irreversible for fiction.

As this fourth novel in the Steve Dancy Tales matures in the marketplace, the numbers will skew even further in the direction of e-books. I know this from patterns of earlier books in the series. Why would this be? My guess is that ardent Steve Dancy fans buy early, including printed book enthusiasts. After the initial buying spurt, the general reading public must find and then buy the book. Discovery and sales are now weighted in the direction of e-books for several reasons.

First, e-book shoppers can shop anytime, anywhere. I’ve bought books in the security line at the airport, in the car waiting for my wife to complete an errand, in bed, traveling down the highway, and in that little room they stick while you wait for the doctor to finally appear. Online booksellers also have nifty ways to search for books by author, genre, or sales status. They suggest books based on your prior purchases. More important for discovery are digital samples. Without doubt, the best sales technique is word-of-mouth. Now, when someone hears about a book from a newspaper, TV show, radio program, or a friend, they can download a sample as a potential buy for later. This is huge. If the author is any good, the reader is hooked by the time they reach the buy button for the remainder of the book. Except for a few inept publishers, the e-book format is less expensive than the printed format. This makes the buy decision easier after discovery. It is also more convenient to return an e-book than it is to drive down to the local brick and motor store and argue with a clerk over whether the book looks too tattered for resale. All in all, e-books have the sales edge over the printed variety.

All of the above, of course, is predicated on the popularity of e-readers. I’m on my fifth Kindle. When I flew with my first generation Kindle, no one paid me any mind, not even the flight attendant. Now every seat sports a device capable of displaying an e-book, and that includes those with private accommodations on the flight deck. 



Why are e-readers so popular? Try jamming a Ken Follett hardbound in your purse or briefcase. How about a half dozen books into your luggage for extended trip. When I toured Namibia, I preloaded my Kindle with African history books, travel guides, The Number One Ladies Detective Agency series, and more than a few shoot-em-up Westerns. All those digital ones and zeros didn't add an ounce to my travel weight.

Then there's readability. A good quality hardbound or trade paperback may be easier on the eye, but the same cannot be said for a mass-market paperback. With higher resolution and the option of adjusting the light on the screen with some devices, e-readers are much more comfortable to read for extended periods.

Shop from anywhere, lower cost books, portability, less eye strain … no wonder e-readers are gaining in popularity. The Guardian reports that even Rick Gekoski, a rare book dealer has succumbed to the lures of the Kindle.  And for good reason. The bottom line is that if a fiction writer does his job, the reader will be lost in the story. The medium doesn't matter. Only what happens next.

Get lost in a good story

Is a Gift Card an Appropriate Gift?

My kids called to find out what I wanted for Father’s Day. When I asked for a gift card from Amazon, they said that would be impersonal. I didn’t argue, but it made me wonder why they asked me what I wanted. Their response made me think about the appropriateness of gift cards. I think they’re great. If emailed, shipping costs are nil, they arrive at the speed of light, and I get to pick my own gift at the time of my choosing. What could be better?

What would be better is a present the giver enjoys giving. A gift is not one-way social exchange. Fathers used to be effusive when they received ugly ties. There was a reason. The giver was a loved one … perhaps one with lousy taste, but a loved one nonetheless. You don’t make someone feel crummy because you didn’t like their gift.

That said; I’m getting an Amazon gift card for Father’s Day. How did I convince my kids? I told them I would email a thank you each time I bought a book for my Kindle. That promise overcame the biggest negative of gift cards; the giver never knows what the recipient does with it.

Gift cards are becoming ever more popular and they are changing the ebb and flow of book sales. Print sales are best before the holiday and ebooks are better after the holiday. You can almost feel people using gift cards to load up their electronic devices.

(Here is a my post: Selling Books During the Holidays.)

By the way, if you expect a gift card for Father’s Day, download samples of my books now so you can decide where to spend your largess.

Books are such simple creatures

I’m currently going through the galley proof for The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale. In my supposedly perfect manuscript, I've already found over twenty revisions, errors, and typos. After these changes are incorporated into the text, the final step will be proofreading. Getting close.

The publishing process made me think that a book appears deceptively simple. Mental_floss recently published “10 Terms to Describe the Anatomy of a Book.” All of these words describe myriad parts of a book. Not such simple creatures after all.

Leaves

Endpapers

Edges

Wire lines and chain lines

Signatures

Manuscript

Head-piece

Half-title

Foxing

Diaper

Physical books are being shoved to the side by eBooks, so these terms will become increasingly important as books are collected for their aesthetic value. If you interested in the meaning of these terms, you can follow this link to mental_floss.

The Shopkeeper—Featured Book

The Shopkeeper, A Steve Dancy Tale is a featured book today on “Kindle Books and Tips” and “Bargain Booksy.” For a short period, the Kindle version of The Shopkeeper is priced at $3.99, instead of $5.99.  The first in the Steve Dancy series now has 110 Amazon reviews for 4.4 stars and 215 Goodreads ratings for 3.7 stars.

If you haven't started the series, this is a great opportunity to see why the Steve Dancy Tales have developed such a strong following.

"I just finished reading this book and I have to say its one of the best western books I’ve read in a long time.  The characters, the plot, everything seem so real. You’ll find yourself lost in the book—the fast pace keeps it interesting." — Maritza Barone, Woman'sDay

"The James Best books...are about the best new Western series to come along since Larry McMurtry" Larry Winget, True West Magazine, March, 2012

Looking for a gift?

The eReader revolution is accelerating

I've been tracking print versus eBook sales for years. In 2008, my print sales were four times my eBook sales. In 2009, three times. By 2010, sales were almost even between the two formats. As you may have guessed, 2011 was the year sales flipped upside down--with a vengeance. In 2011 my Kindle sales alone were three times my print sales. To my surprise, the shift in format continues to accelerate. This month my eBook sales were eight times my print sales.

Is this good or bad? Let me see. I earn a higher royalty on eBooks, I can monitor my sales in near real time, and I'm paid monthly with only a sixty day delay. That's the good side. The bad side is that I've participated in a couple of recent book signings at Barnes and Noble. Both were duds. Book signings used to be fun ... and educational. Now I drive home wondering if they're worthwhile. Probably. I see eBook sales go up after an event. I'm not sure what this tells me except that my signature is not worth six dollars--the difference between the print cost and an eBook version.

There's an old saying in investing: Don't fight the tape. It means don't buck the trend. I'm personally on my fifth Kindle. When I took my first model on an airplane, people would ask what it was. Now, every reading passenger seems to have an eReader. I used to see a book cover I recognized and asked my fellow passenger how they liked it. Now what we read  is a big dark secret. In a way I like it because I imagine they’re all reading one of my books.

It appears the print format for narrative books may go the way of the 8-track. Some will lament the good ‘ol days, but what really counts is that people read. And it certainly appears from my personal sales that the Kindle and like-devices are causing people to read more. Hurrah for that!

Selling Your Books on Amazon

I'm conducting a webinar today at 2:00 PM PST at Book Street Cafe. This is a new membership site for publishers, authors, and publishing vendors. It's a fun virtual cafe hosted by terrific people dedicated to the book industry. This webinar, as well as all the others, will be posted to the site to be viewed at any time.


Book Street Cafe
Webinar Page: Selling Your Books on Amazon

The Shopkeeper #1 Bestselling Western on Amazon

The Kindle version of The Shopkeeper has moved to the Number 1 bestselling Western on Amazon for print or eBook formats. The print version of The Shopkeeper has taken the 34th position. The Shopkeeper is also 23rd bestselling Action/Adventure book and the 27th bestselling Historical. Thanks to everyone who is buying the book. It encourages me to get working on the 4th novel in the Steve Dancy Tales series.









Amazon Western Bestseller List

eBooks Changing More Than Just Formats

Beyond reading articles touting the eBook phenomenon, I have personally witnessed the shift in book sales from print to eBooks. In the first half of 2011, 72% of my book sales were eBooks. This contrasts with eBook sales of 33% for the first half of 2010. This is not a shift, this is a stampede.

There is an aspect of the eBook trend that is less obvious than the change in format: eBooks are shifting the timing of book purchases. In January of 2010, my total book sales dropped to 45% of my December sales, but my January 2011 sales were 81% of the sales in December of 2010. If eBooks alone are evaluated, the shift to after Christmas sales is even more dramatic. People who own eBook devices are voracious readers and what they want more than anything else is a gift card for their favorite online bookstore. For 2010, my top selling week for the year was the seven days after December 25th--almost all eBooks.

What does this mean for authors? It means authors need to reassess the timing of their promotional efforts. For example, I'm wondering how the heck do I get to readers on Christmas day, Father's Day, Mother's Day, and on their birthday?

Kindle vs. iPad

The Christmas season is behind us, and it appears the Kindle and iPad were two popular gifts. That makes us writers happy, because people have to fill all those devices with content. (My best Kindle version sales date was December 27.) Since I have owned four Kindles and my wife uses an iPad, I thought a consumer comparison might be useful to the seven or eight people  who haven't acquired one or the other yet.

First, my wife and I love our gadgets, and neither of us is willing to trade. Buying a Kindle or iPad is not a lifestyle choice. It's a amplification of an existing lifestyle.

I'm a writer and a heavy reader. I'm almost always reading at least three books at the same time, especially when I'm in research mode. I read text-heavy narrative non-fiction and novels.  I can get lost in my Kindle for hours. The only game I play is Spider Solitaire on my laptop. I travel a lot, so subscribing to my newspaper on the Kindle means my paper is always there to enjoy with my first cup of coffee. Last, I use a laptop for writing, and almost always have mine within reach. The Kindle is perfect for me. It's light to carry along with my laptop, holds an entire library, and is easy to handle and navigate. With the search, highlight and note capabilities, it's also the best research tool invented since the Internet. (I still trust history books more than most websites.)

My wife is visual. She loves the graphics, color, and touch features of the iPad. We make family movies together with iMovie on our desktop Mac. She is also an excellent photographer. I love carrying around a library on a device that can almost fit in my hip pocket, while she loves carrying around all her movies and photographs. (Don't get caught sitting next to her on a long plane ride.) She'll search the web for entertainment, and loves the process of exploration. I go to the web with a purpose, and get frustrated when I can't immediately find what I want. She is a big game player and moves to different game right after a yelp of victory. My wife still prefers to read her books in hardcover printed form, but will read an occasional book on her iPad, especially if I've raved about something I've read on my Kindle. She tends to pick up her iPad and use it for an hour at the most before she bounces off the couch to do something in the real world.

We both love our respective machines because they fit our personalities and lifestyles. Someday they may merge, but I don't think so. I predict they will each just keep getting better at providing a service to their constituencies. I've owned all three versions of the Kindle, and each has been better—that is better for me in what I am looking for in a companion device. Despite these improvements, my wife was never tempted to get her own Kindle, but immediately went out to buy an iPad. To each, his own makes for a great world.

More on the Kindle and e-books

Last post I said that 42% of my January books sales were Kindle. Now, two months into the year, Kindle sales are 44.2%. More startling to me, 78% of Tempest At Dawn sales are e-books.

Anecdotally, on recent flights to Boston and back, my seatmates in both directions had Kindles. Both said they loved their Kindles and no longer bought print books. A year ago, I seldom saw another Kindle, and now I know many people who own e-book readers. The trend toward e-books seems to be moving faster than I expected, and I was an early adopter and Kindle enthusiast.

So … what does this mean? Everybody's up in arms over the dominant position of Amazon, but the current pricing dispute won't move the flag. Nor will pitting Apple against Amazon. For one, Apple is not a good opponent for Amazon. The Apple iPad may end up a barn burner, but the narrative word is not Apple's primary target. Once again, Apple is trying to capture people who like motion. The kind of customers that talk, text, and tweet people and share videos and photos of friends and celebrities. Games and music are good too, but long text narratives are generally a bore.

For the moment, everyone in the industry seemed focused on pricing. Wrong. In business, pricing makes a good weapon, but a lousy bulwark against attack. The industry needs to reassess the entire value equation for books, assuming that e-books will grab a larger and larger market share. Publishers might also take an under-graduate course in elasticity of demand.

A more perfect gift?

In my last post, I said that books were the perfect gift. Judging from my sales, evidently Amazon Kindles were a popular gift as well. A year ago, barely 10% of my total sales were e-books. Kindle sales now average 21.6% overall, with a whopping 42% so far in January. Wow. Evidently, readers are loading up their new Kindles and depleting their gift cards. Combine these numbers with the introduction of the Barnes and Noble's Nook and the Apple Tablet, and one has to question the direction of book publishing.

I'm not one of those who predict the demise of the printed book. I'm a Kindle owner and love having my entire library at my fingertips, but I still prefer to read many publications in print. In fact, I subscribe to the Wall Street Journal on my Kindle—which is handy because I travel a lot—but I read the paper version when a hotel offers a free copy.

That said, e-books are a tsunami hitting the publishing industry. And tsunamis do their most damage when they recede, sucking everything away from the landscape. Publishing is older and more staid bound than the music industry, and will have more difficulty adjusting their business model. But adjust they will, and after this wave has receded, the major publishers will remain the dominate power driving popular books.

Traditional publishers provide four services. They act as quality gatekeepers, edit and design books, print them, and do large scale promotion. Although all the services are affected, an e-book only eliminates printing. Publishers still represent an arbitrator of market-worthy material, but e-book readers are giving increasing credence to customer reviews. At the present stage of technology, e-books have reduced the value of book design, but that will change with future generations of e-readers.

That leaves book promotion, which remains fundamentally untouched. Here, the almighty power of the traditional publisher remains intact and bestsellers will continue to be the domain of the large houses. Nationwide and global sales require hitting the market right, eye-catching design, and media clout. (Sounds more like an ad agency, doesn't it.)

Paper-based books won't go away, but print runs will become shorter, which means the unit cost will be higher. If this analysis is correct, publishers will probably whittle down their backlist and much of their mid-list. Publishers only gave these authors puny advances and zero promotion anyway, so this won't hurt too much. Besides, the growth in e-books gives authors an easy to reach, low-cost market. I just hope these self-published authors remember to buy editing and proofreading. Just because it starts with a lower case e, doesn't mean e-books can be as sloppy as email.