Something Constructive for ABA To Ponder
This post began as a comment I made here: ABA’s IndieCommerce Site Dropping Amazon Publishing Titles. And that comment ultimately came from this post: Indie Booksellers Tell Indie Authors To Go To Hell
ABA should compete rather than whine and obstruct.
Competing means having a new idea, one that uses existing expertise and resources in an effective and creative way. And you have to start somewhere. So, here’s one way that ABA could start to compete with Amazon.
First of all, indie book stores need to look at what sells … and stock what people want to read … and not what they THINK people OUGHT to read.
Second, with that mindset, they should mine their local indie authors and readers. Sponsor a contest among readers about their favorite indie authors. Then use loyal customers and/or bookstore personnel to read those books with an eye toward discovering good reads that other ABA members would like and which are likely to sell in their stores.
Third, ABA as an organization can (if they would prefer not to work with Createspace) sign up a high-quality print-on-demand vendor to publish the hard copy of the book. Pay the author the same (or better) percentages of the cover price as Createspace. Allow the author similar choices as CS on pricing, cover etc. Make the author work just as hard on promotion and other items as they do for CS.
Make sure the ABA system can accept the same digital file uploaded to CS. If new covers or an outside editor are necessary, then provide those, and give the author the choice of paying up front or out of royalties (with a “bump” up for the delayed payments) There are other details, but you get the point.
ABA can then ink its own deals with Ingram and B&T to distribute the books and then promote the books widely. Make sure the bookstores that nominate successful books get a royalty on top of their retail margins.
Do not make this an exclusive club. In order to compete with Amazon/Createspace, many books should be available, otherwise your author base and its enthusiasm for the service will never take off.
ABA can then try and urge B&N and other online book stores to get creative and competitive in their own thinking. Right now, authors who make their books available in all formats (like I do) find that Kindle outsells Nook and every other reader better than 50-to-1. Until that changes, Amazon will continue to dominate a market.
There are many other ways that ABA, B&N and others can compete. But they must be creative and must execute well. Booksense was not a good execution and IndieBound is an awkward child that assures customers will continue to click over to Amazon.
The book industry is never going to return to the old days. And those who continue to cling to that will continue to have their lunch eaten by Amazon … or whatever new company is out there right now gearing up to take on the giant of Seattle.
