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E is for...

Margaret I. Carr

Hype, secrecy and outright scams are some of the problems facing anyone interested in e-publishing.

Enthusiasm is understandable. The idea of electronic publishing is exciting. A little thought and imagination and you have a long list of potential benefits. The problems start when potential is interpreted as actual and not enough research and planning is done to keep the daydreams practical.

One of the most damaging bits of hype is probably the statement that it doesn't cost anything to do an e-book.

Adding an e-version of an already edited and proofread book which is already in an electronic format is much less expensive, for a conventional publisher, than starting from scratch; but even then the cost is quite a bit more than zero. It is not, however, high enough to justify the exorbitant prices some publishers set. Trying to sell an e-book at the same or even higher price than a hardcover book just leads to more negative hype. Pundits solemnly declare the death of e-books, ignoring the profits that reasonably priced e-books garner.

One problem that is particularly annoying, whether you are trying to get together facts for a business plan or are just interested in what goes on behind the website or bricks, is finding the facts. For example, everybody knows what a Best Seller is, right? It is one of those books you find on the rack in your supermarket or drugstore or wherever labeled Best Seller. Okay, pick one of them and tell me how many copies of it sold to qualify it for the label. While you're at it, tell me where you found the information and how reliable you think it is.

If you really want a challenge, try to find out what the standards are for a best selling e-book. I have run across a figure of 5,000 sold mentioned as the key figure, but nothing I have found tells how to verify the figures. Finding out average sales is even harder. For a business plan, the average sales figure for a year needs to be estimated. Estimate wrong and it throws off all of your figures.

What sales you can expect is an important figure in your planning, but it isn't the only figure you will need. Following the path of an e-book through the publishing process, there will be costs involved in Acquisition, Editing, Proofing, Design and format, Promotion and Distribution plus Record keeping. More, and more details as I can find them, on each of these aspects later.