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The Dorrance Saga: A Reflection of Changes in Publishing During the Past 90 Years

Elizabeth House — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:52:00 GMT

Dorrance, the oldest name is subsidy publishing, is celebrating a ninety-year history that
is unique in the subsidy publishing field. Colonel Gordon Dorrance, a member of the
distinguished Main Line Philadelphia family that owned Campbell's Soup Company,
originally founded the company in 1920. Throughout its history, Dorrance has had only
five owners; all have held the company for long periods of time and were committed to
its mission of offering excellence in publishing opportunities to authors, most of who
have been new and unknown, and who believe in their work and wish to exercise their
rights of self-expression.

The Dorrance family owned and operated the company for five decades, then during the
1960s the ad agency Dorrance had worked with in promoting its books, Briggs &
Associates, purchased the company. After a number of years Anthony Parrotto, who was
the ad agency's accountant, bought the firm and took on the role of president until the
early 1980s. While building Dorrance, Parrotto had spun off a new ad agency and
printing firm, The Kingswood Group, and wanted to direct more of his energies into the
development of that other business. Elizabeth and Robert House, both of whom had many
years of experience in traditional publishing, then purchased the company from Parrotto.
Finally in 1989, a successful Pittsburgh businessman, who had founded and owned
several businesses in Pittsburgh, purchased the Dorrance name, assets, and inventory.
Elizabeth House stayed on as managing director for sixteen years. From its first location
in downtown Philadelphia, to Ardmore and Bryn Mawr on the Main Line, the company
moved in 1989 to western Pennsylvania and took up headquarters in downtown
Pittsburgh where it remains to this day.

The Dorrance saga is a reflection of historic changes in publishing in the United States
throughout the years. When the country was new, one of its most well-known and lasting
works, Poor Richard's Almanack, was written and published by Benjamin Franklin. As
time went on and the costs of printing became more economical and more people could
read, greater numbers of books were printed. By the late 19th century, a hundred years
after Franklin, most books published in America were paperbacks that were pirated from
European publishers. American book publishers were not likely to publish American
authors when they could "borrow" from European authors. In 1891 copyright law was
introduced to protect European authors. This change forced American publishers to begin
to publish original American manuscripts. Still many well-known authors, Whitman and
Poe for example, had paid for the publication of their own work, and the tradition
continued.

Legend has it that, early in the next century, Colonel Gordon Dorrance had a dispute with
his publisher, Scribner's, over the editing of a book titled The Pocket Chesterfield, and so
he started his own company and published the pocket book himself in 1920 under the
Dorrance imprint. A 1921 issue of a publication titled The Independent contains a review
of the book, listing Dorrance as the publisher and calling it a "little volume of
gentlemanly wisdom."

Nineteen years later, Dorrance was still successfully releasing titles, including Gordon
Dorrance's own historical work, The Bonapartes in America, published in 1939. That
volume remains available today through Kessinger, Publishers of Rare Reprints.

In 1955 Dorrance published a volume of poetry titled Ommateum by A. R. Ammons.
This collection helped establish Ammons' career as he went on to win the National Book
Award in 1972 and the National Book Critic's Circle Award in 1981. The 1950s also
featured Dorrance in the then new medium of TV as Lucy Ricardo wrote and submitted a
novel to Dorrance on Episode 90 of "I Love Lucy."

After receiving rejection notices from traditional publishers, Doris Paul published her
seminal work, Navajo Code Talkers, with Dorrance in 1973. This book, having sold
almost 100,000 copies over the years, is still in print with Dorrance. It has been featured
by the Smithsonian Institution, was the subject of four segments of CBS's "An American
Portrait" series, and provided the basis for a major motion picture released by MGM
Studios in 2002 titled Wind Talkers. The book and movie tell the dramatic story of the
courageous and critically important platoon of American Marines who were instrumental
in cracking the Japanese code during World War II.

Ken Bruen, popular and highly acclaimed mystery writer who has been a finalist for the
Edgar, Barry and Macavity Awards and the winner of the Shamus Award for best novel
in 2003, published his first book with Dorrance twenty years ago.

Over the years Dorrance has been at the forefront of the technological advances that have
transformed the book publishing industry. In the 1960s when typesetting was first
becoming computerized. Dorrance embraced the change and purchased its own
typesetting equipment before most publishers would consider the new approach. During
the 1990s when higher quality laser printers became available and could be used in
conjunction with offset presses, Dorrance began to experiment with creating its own
repro for cameras that produced negatives that were then chemically burned into plastic
plates. Later in that decade, Dorrance became the first subsidy publishing company to use
print-on-demand technology. Today when the technological explosion is changing the
marketplace with high quality e-readers, Dorrance publishes all its titles in both
conventional paper format and in all the popular e-reader formats so that all Dorrance
titles are available for purchase electronically.

Likewise in the area of promotion, while forty years ago Dorrance press releases, media
letters, and flyers were reproduced on a mimeograph machine and placed in the mail,
today the company utilizes the Internet for much of its book promotion efforts.
Dorrance's use of e-mail to targeted lists, online press releases, a book review web site
for reviewers to request copies of books, social networking, virtual book tours, and online
bookstores represent an approach to promotion that utilizes the most up-to-date
technology available.

During the 1970s the prosperity of publishing houses made them attractive acquisitions
for large corporations, and conglomerates purchased most well-known, traditional
publishers. This phenomenon dramatically changed the book publishing industry.
Previously the vast majority of publishing companies were independently owned and
operated. Their editorial boards searched for quality writers and strove to introduce new
authors. With financial officers of corporations in control, over time modern-day
publishing companies have come to rely on issuing books by established authors and
celebrities and on following proven successful formulas. The number of new authors
published by these houses is extremely small. Ironically the small monopoly of
conglomerates that became interested in the industry for profits and that has controlled
publishing for thirty years finds itself now in a deteriorating position that has been
described as the "death of traditional publishing." A multiplicity of causes is offered, but
at the heart of the difficulties are the technological developments that have introduced
digital printing, web retailing, cyber communications, and social networking. As Michael
Levin, an industry expert, has stated, traditional publishing is "a victim of its own
inability to find a reason for being in the Internet and print-on-demand world."

Even beyond the impact of technological changes, the acceptance of subsidy publishing
and self-publishing as primary means for authors to communicate with their audiences
has diminished traditional publishing while highlighting the benefits of subsidy
publishing and self-publishing options. All forms of self-publishing are growing while
traditional publishing declines. Alice Pope of Writer's Digest says, "Self-publishing can
be just as much the author experience as (for) those picked up by major publishers
because these days it's mostly up to the author to publicize their book and market it."

Today Dorrance is not only America's oldest but largest full service subsidy publishing
company, having published almost 10,000 titles. The company continues to lead in the
subsidy publishing field by selling more books than any other subsidy publishing
company and by offering a wide array of publishing services that can be tailored to each
manuscript, author, and budget.. With all its various imprints - Rose Dog Publishing, Red
Lead Press, and Whitmore Publishing - Dorrance and its related programs provides
authors with choices that allow them to become active participants in the new world of
today's book industry where the democratization of publishing means there are more
ways than ever for authors to connect with readers to share their creative work and ideas.
Dorrance continues to hold to its ninety-year tradition of striving to satisfy its authors by
providing excellent service, as is attested to by the fact that the company has maintained
for decades a very good Better Business Bureau rating.

The company operates from its headquarters building in Pittsburgh in the historic
Triangle Building in the heart of the Cultural Center (next to August Wilson Center for
African American Culture). It is conveniently located close to the Pittsburgh Convention
Center and train and bus terminals. Authors come from all over the world to visit the
offices and are welcome to make appointments to discuss their manuscripts.
As Dorrance looks proudly to its past ninety years, the company sees its potential for
growth and success as practically unlimited. In the new climate of increasing acceptance
of and broad support for self-publishing and with technological advances that favor its
business, promotion and marketing models, with an experienced and knowledgeable staff
in place, Dorrance Publishing looks forward to its centennial celebration and the ensuing
decades with optimism and excitement.

For more information, contact Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc.
www. dorrancepublishing.com (web)
1-800-695-9599 (phone)
Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc., 701 Smithfield Street, 3rd Floor, Pittsburgh, PA, 15222.

The Trend Towards Growth in E-Books

Elizabeth House — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:41:00 GMT

Last year in a widely read and discussed article that appeared in Time, Lev Grossman commented on the digital age with regard to literature stating that "an unprecedented configuration of financial and technological circumstances" had brought about major changes in publishing in the early 18th century and that those same factors are poised today to repeat history with the emergence of new paradigms in publishing. He spoke of how a literate middle class and less expensive printing technologies brought about the rise of the novel in the early 18th century and that similar transformative variables are at work in shaping the revolutionary changes in publishing today. Grossman posed that new publishing, that is digital publishing, is "cheap, and unconstrained by paper, money or institutional tastes." In addition to being a technological revolution, he purports that the digitalization of publishing is a cultural revolution in that digital publishing reaches cultural sectors of our society that have not been served by conventional publishing.

And now this week Publisher's Weekly reports that last year e-book sales jumped 176 percent in what was otherwise a flat year in book sales according to the American Association of Publishers. Previously reported at about 2 percent of total book sales, in 2009 e-book sales rose to make up 3.3 percent of total sales. Mark Coker, an e-book publisher, predicts that in ten years 95 percent of reading will be done on screens. It seems the growing trend in digital publishing, in e-books and other electronic formats, is, as they say, unstoppable.

Also just this week Kindle announced an application for Blackberry users to use to search for, purchase, download, and read Kindle editions of e-books on their smart phones.

Additionally Publishers Weekly writes, "Scribd has unveiled its 'send-to-device' feature that allows consumers to send the more than 10 million documents on the site directly to their e-reader and smart phones. The company also launched mobile APIs, or Scribd Open Content Platform for E-Readers and mobile devices."

All of this points to the increasingly important role electronic publishing is playing in today's marketplace. Authors who wish to self-publish must include electronic publishing in their distribution plans. At Dorrance Publishing we publish every title in each of our imprints in both traditional print format and in all the most popularly used electronic formats so that our authors can take advantage of the "unprecedented configuration of financial and technological circumstances" that lies behind the current revolution in publishing while at the same time providing content in the print format most readers still prefer.

By Popular Demand: How to Become a Blogger

Elizabeth House — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 19:28:00 GMT

Several authors have contacted me asking how to create a blog and become a blogger. The truth is that it takes a bit of time and commitment. I became a blogger about a year and a half ago so I can describe the process I followed with the hope that it will be instructive for others who wish to start their own blogs.

The first thing to do is to research the world of blogs. By this I mean to find out what blogs are out there and what you like about them. Determine which blogs you do not like as well and why. Discover other blogs that are promoting books, or authors, or writing by searching for your topic on the blog search engines, such as Technorati or Google Blog Search, and looking there for your niche topic. After you have looked at and read a number of blogs, start commenting on blogs. By that I mean,post your own comments on others' blogs to get a feel for what it is like to write for a blog. This will allow you to find your own voice for blogging and will make you much more comfortable when starting to post on your own blog.

After you feel you have a good understanding of blogs and blogging, you need to find a blog platform to use to create and host your blog. There are many to choose from. Blogger, WordPress, Godaddy and other popular blog platforms offer options and help for building and hosting your blog. You will want to select and register a domain name for your blog so that you can create an aura of professionalism around your blog. Selecting a name for your blog then is important because it will help to establish the way you are viewed by visitors. The name of my blog is the Author's Advocate. It was selected because my goal is to provide support and advice to authors who wish to publish their work based on my years of publishing experience. You should choose a domain name that is, first, available, and second pertinent to the goals and objectives you have for your blog. You should be able to order your domain name through your hosting company.

Your host company will provide a design template for your blog. Choose wisely so that the design looks professional and conveys a sense of who you are and who you think your audience will be. If you are writing about how to best interact with the IRS, you don't want your blog to look free-spirited and trendy. If you are writing about modern parenting, you don't want your blog to look like something out of the Victorian era. Make sure the type you use for headings and for posts is clear and readable.

Think about what you are expert in when creating your blog and while posting content on your blog. You are unique as are your experiences and the message you have to communicate. While you want to promote your book and your writing on your blog, you need to couch those goals in something that will bring readers, traffic, to your site and bring them back time and again. Perhaps you may want to write about how you came to become an author; or the process involved in writing your book; or the process of publishing your book; or if your book is non-fiction, you may want to supply additional information that is educational and informative regarding the topic of your book.

Headlines for your blog posts are critical. Remember to keep them simple and on target. You want people who search for the topic you are specifically addressing to come across your blog post, so make sure the headline describes succinctly and by using key words the content of the post. Be certain your posts are well written without spelling and grammar mistakes.

When I launched my blog, I wrote four basic articles before I went public. These articles were in depth and established my topic and my expertise in the area. They provided basic and helpful information. They created the foundation for my blog. I think this is a great way to begin. It lends substance and authority to a blog. After you start your blog, you need to post frequently to it in order to continue to attract traffic. How often you post has to do with how much time you have available and how much relevant information you have to communicate. But you should post frequently - at least once or twice a week if possible.

Finally if your goal is to market yourself or your book, provide a link for readers to order or purchase merchandise or services. This may be as simple as including a link to an online bookstore or setting up a Paypal account for accepting orders.

Blogging is an effective and efficient way of communicating with thousands of potential readers and supporters. Good luck ahd have fun with your blog.

Book Promotion Through Social Marketing

Elizabeth House — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 13:25:00 GMT

Social marketing is becoming an increasingly popular and effective means for authors to promote their own books.There are now so many different ways to reach potential readers via the Internet, it's worth listing the various methods here.

First there's bogging. Authors can begin by commenting on other people's blogs and getting their names and titles out there. Once comfortable with the bogging process, it is a great idea to create a blog featuring a book or books, or one that helps reinforce the author's brand and platform.

Other ways to use social media include networking, such as Facebook or My Space, microblogging, such as Twitter, virtual reader comments, such as Goodreads, YouTube where authors can post videos of readings or events, and online forums dedicated to a relevant and related topic . All these media provide excellent opportunities to connect with readers.

Before beginning it is wise to target the market for a book and try then to determine where those people can be found on the Internet. Pick the platforms that will successfully reach those people and include people of influence in the target audience, those who share their own opinions and sway others.

In addition the Internet offers opportunities to distribute news releases through online newswire services and to send excerpts or articles related to a book for possible publication on a magazine site or blog. As with any worthwhile effort, to be successful at promoting a book on the Internet takes time and research. But the results can be surprisingly effective.

News in the World of Electronic Publishing

Elizabeth House — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 19:48:00 GMT

Amazon has just announced that the Kindle digital platform is now available to authors and publishers all around the world to upload and sell their books in English, German, and French. Up until now only authors and publishers based in the United States were able to sell their books in the Kindle format. This is great news for authors and for readers since it opens up the e-commerce of books to everyone who has access to the Internet.

Twenty-five million e-books were downloaded in 2009. That number is expected to grow at geometric proporions in 2010. A new record was set, in fact, on Christmas Day 2009. That day, for the first time, Amazon sold more e-books than paper and ink books. Why? The reason for the buying bonanza was the high number of people who received Kindle readers as Christmas gifts and went online to purchase their first downloads.

Look for more news on digital publishing formats when the anticpated introduction of the Apple Tablet occurs next week.

Distinct ISBNs for E-books

Elizabeth House — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 12:02:00 GMT

Recently both discussion and controversy have sparked around the notion of assigning a separate ISBN (International Standard Book Number) for electronic publications. Some have suggested there should be a separate number for each kind of electronic format in which a book is distributed, that is, for example, separate numbers for Kindle, Sony Reader, and pdf editions. And some suggest just one distinct number for all electronic editions of a book is adequate, while others believe there is no need for a distinguishing assignment beyond the book's original ISBN. To understand how to approach this question, it is good to review the purpose and history of ISBN numbers.

The ISBN is a way of organizing the commerce of the book publishing industry which has been suggested for more than forty years by the ISO (International Organization for Standardization). This non-governmental group, based in Geneva, Switzerland, consists of 163 member countries that come together to create standards for business, government, and society with the goal of creating more efficient ways of working internationally. All compliance to ISO standards is voluntary. There are no laws involved. However the ISBN (managed by the Bowker Company) has been an extremely successful method for tracking books internationally since its inception and is widely used. The notion that different formats of books should have different ISBNs is not a new concept. In fact, the idea goes back to the 1970 ISO consensus that each book format should have a distinct ISBN assigned, and specifically in 2005 the ISO addressed the electronic editions of books as separate formats requiring separate numbers.

There are a number of reasons why distinct ISBNs make sense for e-books. Mostly, however, it is helpful to publishers to be able to track sales data and royalty information and helpful to customers, such as libraries, to be able to see at a glance if more than one format of a book is available for ordering. Third parties can assign ISBNs for their convenience. A wholesaler, for example, can assign a number to a book that does not have one. Nevertheless it is important to remember that ISBN has nothing to do with copyright ownership. That is a separate matter.

At Dorrance Publishing, we now assign a distinct e-book ISBN for each book we publish. In keeping with ISO recommendations, we do not assign a separate number for each kind of electronic publishing format, just one number for all electronic formats in which a book has been made available.

A Real Traditional Book Publishing Experience

Elizabeth House — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:08:00 GMT

Many literary pundets continue to make claims that authors should aim their efforts strictly towards traditional publishing; that other forms of publishing, self-publishing, subsidy publishing, print -on-demand publishing, are scams because the author does not realize the kind of support, promotion, and sales they expect. Critics of the self-publishing services industry paint a picture in which authors at traditional houses sell lots of books and are fairly compensated, while authors who use publishing services receive promises alone. Now one bestselling author, published by a very prestigious publishing house, and listed on the New York Times bestsellers list, tells a very different personal story.

As an established author, Lynn Viehl received a $50,000 advance from Penguin Group to publish her mass market novel Twilight Fall. The book has been very successful, having sold almost 90,000 copies. Her earnings to date on the book have been $24,500 with no money due currently, and she thinks it will take several years to earn back the full advance. Even after she does earn the full advance, she believes that after taxes, commissions to her agent, and other expenses, she will net $24,500 on this bestselling book. By her calculations, the publisher has grossed $450,000 on sales. A full accounting of her experiences including her last royalty statement can be found on her blog, Genreality.

The image portrayed by traditional publishing houses and by literary pundits about all the benefits and advantages of traditional publishing overlook much of the reality. Sales in the 90,000 range are considerably above average. Many publishers are happy with sales of 5,000 copies. And yet with authors receiving 5 or 7 percent on sales and having the responsibility for covering expenses as well as much of the burden of promotion and publicity, the truth is far different than the spin.

While the old prejudices remain, many in the publishing industry have now come to understand the merits of self-publishing and of the companies that offer services and support to authors who wish to take the publication of their own books into their own hands. The vital concern is that authors find ways to select and work with a reputable company that has been in business for a long time and that promises realistic services they can deliver. Dont' be fooled by dream weavers on either side of the argument.

Having worked in both trade and subsidy and self-publishing, I know first hand the advantages of each. Dorrance Publishing offers a variety of programs to fit authors' needs, budgets, and expectations. There has always been a place for the services of Dorrance and other reputable publishing alternative companies, but now more than ever, with the democratization and leveling of the playing field in publishing, the place is expanding and growing, for good reasons.

Media predictions for 2010

Elizabeth House — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 17:53:00 GMT

Content remains king, but technology is challenging the realm. Newspapers, magazines, books, and television will all continue in flux and encounter dramatic changes as the year unfolds.

The recent mega media deal between Comcast and NBC Universal signals the increasing importance of the Internet in delivering television shows and films. Newspapers and magazines are working on delivering their content through readers and finding new ways to earn money to support their base organizations. And in the world of books, the technolgoy is already in place. But the players are changing roles.

The arrival of the Nook will shake up Amazon and Sony. The Kindle and Sony Reader will have a run for their money. And because more and more applications for e-reading are being produced, many more dual screen notebooks and movile devices will eat into the e-reader market.

It should be a very exciting year.

Author Seizes E-book Opportunity Away from Traditional Publisher

Elizabeth House — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 23:41:00 GMT

Simon & Schuster cannot be at all pleased that Stephen Covey, author of 7 Habits of Successful People and Principle Centered Leadership, has signed on with Amazon.com for the publishing of the e-book edition of his bestsellers on the Amazon Kindle. The obvious reason for Covey's decision is that Amazon is offering 50 percent royalties on his e-book sales while Simon & Schuster is offering only 25 percent.

Traditional publishers are concerned that this phenomenon will occur frequently with more of the most popular and bestselling authors. They may hold on to digital rights while negotiating contracts for new books. Furthermore in older book contracts, digital rights were not normally delineated. Therefore authors are claiming they hold those rights.

To make matters worse, as I reported earlier in this blog, traditional publishers are delaying in publishing books in e-book format because they want to sell as many copies of the hardback version as they can, and they fear e-books, which carry a lower retail prices, will cut into sales and profits of hardback, more expensive book sales. It would seem traditional publishers continue to hold on to an outdated model. Print on demand and e-book publishing is much more in sync with today's technology and Internet marketing. By clinging to outdated models, the traditional book publishing industry is following the path of the music industry into oblivion. There was a time when there used to be music stores that sold cd albums for recording industry giants. But now Apple has the rights, and the i-pod makes is possible for customers to download the songs they want to hear and then play them through computer speakers, stereo systems, portable speaker systems, ear plugs, or whatever form that consumer desires. E-readers, by making use of the various software applications available, are the vessels that will allow the content of books to flow as the i pod has allowed music to flow. Traditional publishers cannot stop it, or hold it back.

Authors who publish their books with Dorrance enjoy the advantage of having their books available in just about every currently used e-reader format. it is important to keep in mind that the goal is distribution of desired content in whatever form consumers want to receive it. Do that, and success will follow.

Increasing Demand for E-books As Dinosaurs Still Roam the Earth

Elizabeth House — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:26:00 GMT

E-book retail sales are expected to increase from $150 million in 2009 to $201 million next year, according to Professor Albert Greco of Fordham University Graduate School of Business. Professor Greco is an expert in the book publishing industry and measures expectations and trends. But even without benefit of study, one can easily see the inroads e-book reading devices, and therefore e-books, are making in the world of book publishing.

Television commercials for the Sony Reader abound. Kindles are the most popular selling item on all of Amazon. The recently released Nooks are flying out the warehouses faster than Barnes & Noble can make them. So then it is certain. The publishing industry is finally embracing e-books. But actually that's not quite the true picture. In reality, the resistance of traditional publishers to the technological advances of e-books remains. Just recently Simon & Schuster announced they will delay the publication in e-book form of their most highly anticipated books next year by four months. That is there will be a lag of four months from the time the book is launched in the hardback format until the e-book is made available. The reason they site is the lower price of e-books - typically $9.99.

It is understandable that large publishing houses such as Simon & Schuster would want to squeeze every penny they can from the sales of much more expensive hardback books when the market is hot for a new release. Organizations such as these are immense with enormous overheads to pay. There are all the top executives' salaries, the editorial team members, the production and publicity teams, the sales forces, rights and permissions teams, the expensive real estate for headquarters offices, to say nothing of the royalty advances paid to top selling authors. And of course this is the reason traditional publishing is on the ropes. It cannot embrace the new advances in technology. They all call for meaner, leaner, more efficient, more cost conscious business models. These are the days when dinosaurs are still roaming the earth, trying to hold back the inevitability of global change.

Self-publishing holds the advantage here. As authors are able to connect more readily with readers, through online publicity, radio interviews, bylined articles, blogs, social networking, third party reviews, etc., authors can quickly meet the changing demand in the marketplace and adapt to whatever technology seems to be winning out. For an author who undertakes publishing his or her book to decide to make it available in e-book form, as e-books continue to burgeon in popularity, makes sense, and it is easy to accomplish.

At Dorrance Publishing and our related imprints, RoseDog Publishing and Red Lead Press, we make all the books we publish available in all the most frequently used e-book formats. We want to be sure our authors are in position to take advantage of an area of the market that may well experience a 33 percent increase next year.

Promoting Your Book By Lending It to Readers

Elizabeth House — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 23:04:00 GMT

One of the most original and promising new ideas I have heard about in the world of book publishing comes from Stephen Elliot, author of seven published books, who created his own Lending Library. Elliott had the notion that using advance copies of his forthcoming book, The Adderall Diaries, would result in significant advance publicity and ultimately in increased book sales. Through social networking he found 400 readers who signed up to receive, read, and forward on a copy of his book. The original cost for launching the promotion were the costs of the initial number of advance copies produced and of mailing them. The cost to the person receiving the book was only the cost of mailing the book to the next person via parcel post - about $4.

Elliott found his experiment to be wildly successful in that it gleaned many Facebook conversations and mentions on other social media sites, several articles about the method and the book, interviews, book reviews, and a web site hosted conversation about his book. In other words, he achieved his goal of creating a great deal of buzz about his book before it was actually published.

Previously in this blog when I have discussed the opportunities offered by new technologies for promoting books, I have always suggested that sharing information and generating word of mouth recommendations through social media are excellent means for authors to utilize to create interest in their works. The Lending Library is an extra hook for getting people interested in and talking about a book and may well be worth a try.

In Praise of Independent Bookstores

Elizabeth House — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:20:00 GMT

In a recent blog post, Alan Rinzler of The Book Deal wrote in praise of his neighborhood bookstore in the Elmwood section of Berkeley, California. You may wish to read his entire, interesting and informative post, “Let’s hear it for Neighborhood Bookstores: Here’s Mine,” right here: http://www.alanrinzler.com/blog/2009/05/05/lets-hear-it-for-neighborhood-bookstores-heres-mine/

Reading it made me think of the under-rated benefits and often ignored value of independent bookstores, so few and far between now in this age of Internet retailers, mega stores, and discount stores. But these courageous, hearty, and dedicated survivors have much to offer authors and publishers, especially self-published authors and publishers offering self-publishing services. Buyers in these stores tend to be readers themselves. They have more interest in the book publishing business than just bigger profits and movie deals. They love books and authors, and they are inclined to take time to read your book and meet with you.

A local bookstore is a great place to promote your book. The store may be open to stocking books, hosting a reading, or holding an autograph party. The secret is to connect with a buyer or an owner in the store. Often times the best approach is to call in advance for an appointment and then go in person. Have a copy or copies of your book with you along with some promotional pieces. Find out what they normally do to promote local authors. Do they have a local author section in the store? Do they have groups meeting at the store itself that might like to meet a local author? Do they host signings, and do they have any autograph parties scheduled? If possible, see if you can be there when other authors are signing their books. That way you may benefit from their promotion and their traffic as well.

At Dorrance Publishing, over the years, we have had more success getting local and independent bookstores to promote and stock books than chains. Notwithstanding all the high tech opportunities to promote books discussed previously in this blog, these stores can play an important and valuable role in getting out the word about your book, and they should be a part of your book promotion plan.

Self-publishing Creep: Inroads into Traditional Publishing

Elizabeth House — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:55:00 GMT

Recently two large traditional publishers have opened self-publishing divisions, giving further credence to the notion that, even if not all literary purists approve, many publishing houses themselves believe self-publishing is the wave of the future.

Thomas Nelson has launched its self-publishing arm, West Bow Press, and Harlequin has just announced Harlequin Horizons. The self-publishing services they offer do not come cheap, ranging from $599 to $19,999, depending upon the support and marketing services desired. And many bloggers are livid. They see this as publishers cashing in on a growing industry without concern for the quality of books they publish or the dashed expectations of authors who come to them thinking the link to their famous imprint names will guaranty success.

But as I mentioned in a previous blog, the former CEO of Harper Collins has put it this way. "What is coming is not an evolution. It is a revolution." Thomas Nelson and Harlequin have seen the merits of attempting to go with the flow of change. As time passes, the lines between traditional publishing and self-publishing will continue to blur until it will be impossible to tell the difference in most cases. Even now, traditional publishers are offering critique services for a fee, and printers are acting as publishers, and retailers are serving as printers. The entire book publishing industry is in flux. To be outraged that publishers are trying to survive by keeping up with change is small minded and ultimately futile.

In 2008 the number of self-published books increased 132 percent from the year before. Since 2002 the growth has been 774 percent. At Dorrance, just a few years ago, we published only approximately 300 titles a year. Now we publish three or four times that number. All this makes it even more important that authors make well informed decisions when publishing their books. This blog attempts to provide authors with an understanding of the publishing climate and context in which we all now operate and to offer solid advice about what specific questions to consider as well as what activities to be prepared to take on as they attempt to publish and market their own books. Technological advances have created a scenario in which the author can speak directly to the consumer more efficiently and effectively than ever before. And the traditional book publishing industry must either adapt to the new models or many of its number will cease to exist.

First Annual Self-Publishing Book Expo

Elizabeth House — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:46:00 GMT

The First Annual Self-Publishing Book Expo was held on November 7, 2009 in the midtown Sheraton Hotel in New York City. Organized by two veteran publishing executives, the purpose of the show was to highlight self-published authors and self-publishing companies and to expose their books to a greater audience. By all accounts, the debut was a success.

Approximately 200 people attended the show which according to The Epoch Times, drew a "small but quality crowd of people, 55 exhibitors, and 12 panelists" who led lively discussions on cutting edge topics.

Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc. and its various imprints had more tables with titles on display than any other company. Several authors attended and autographed copies of books they sold at the show.

This Expo is a sign of the times, since the book publishing industry, according to Jane Friedman, former CEO of Harper Collins, "is at the beginning of a revolution, not evolution." She herself has decided to jump ship from traditional publishing and is starting her own new company, Open Road Integrated Media. This new enterprise will publish e-books and print on demand publications from back list titles of cooperating publishers and will also offer self-publishing and marketing platforms for a fee. Friedman says legacy publishers will continue to have hard times. "Lots of things are broken."

Another noteworthy sign of the times is the book price wars going on between Walmart, Target, and Amazon.com. Hardcover books normally selling for $25 are going for $9 as these three retail giants compete for the control of the book retail market. Such prices leave little margin for publishers and authors and may help to foster a sooner than anticipated end to the book publishing industry as we know it.

In the meantime, the digitization of books continues to increase and e-readers become more and more popular. This year it is anticipated 3 million e-book readers will be sold with forecasts for sales of 10 million in 2010.

Dorrance plans to attend the second annual Self Publishing Book Expo next year. It will be very interesting to see the changes that will transpire between now and then.

Promoting Books Through Third-Party Reviews

Elizabeth House — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:42:00 GMT

People who love reading love to talk about the books they have recently read, just as people who love reading love to hear from others about good books. Word of mouth has always been the most effective means of book promotion. And now with the help of technology, especially the Internet, spreading the word about good reads is easier and more achievable than ever.

Authors and publishers compete for book reviews from professional reviewers in magazines, journals, newspapers, and on web sites for the readership those forms of media command and for the accompanying increase in status a review in those publications can bring. But taking into consideration the long tail of marketing theory, there is another very effective alternative to draw attention to products you are marketing. And that phenomenon occurs when many small independent consumer reviews appear. One major review reaching several hundred thousand people can be matched in impact by several hundred reviews, each reaching several hundred or a thousand people.

This is of course where the Internet comes in. Almost every newspaper, blog, and retail site on the Internet offers the opportunity for reader and user comments. Most book retail sales sites and book lovers' sites include an opportunity for readers to voice their opinions on books they have read. These third-party reviews are particularly valuable because they represent varied and neutral voices offering honest and impartial comments. People like reading these reviews because they trust other buyers with whom they can identify, folks just like themselves.

When creating a promotion plan for your book, be sure to include exposure on sites where readers can post comments. Some of these are:

Amazon.com

Anobii.com

Barnesandnoble.com

Bookarmy.com

Borders.com

Goodreads.com

Librarything.com

Shelfari.com

Weread.com

In addition, you can create a blog or web site about your book and invite readers to comment there. It's smart to provide a link from your web site to an online store where the book may be purchased so those who read positive comments can click through to buy the book.

Dorrance Publishing has created a Book Review Team to encourage independent, third-party reviews of all their books. They invite people who have purchased books from the company in the past or have done business with them in any way to join the team and benefit by receiving coupons for free books in exchange for posting reviews. This gives every book published by Dorrance a chance at receiving widespread support from people whom buyers trust when making book buying decisions.

Whether you publish your book with Dorrance or by some other means, it is important to consider and take advantage of all the opportunities for book promotion and exposure that exist in today's highly technological world of book publishing.

E-Ink: Evolving and Expanding the Options for Digital Reading Devices

Elizabeth House — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:52:00 GMT

The worlds of publishing and consumer electronics have been all atwitter during the last week about two exciting additions to the options for readers who choose digital reading devices for their content consumption : The Nook and the Apple Tablet.

Last week Barnes & Noble launched the Nook, obviously in direct competition to Amazon's Kindle 2, at the exact same price as Kindle 2, $259, but boasting some impressive distinguishing features. The Nook has a dual screen that displays both grayscale (shades of black) and color print. It allows readers to browse through all the books in a store without downloading through content streaming via in-store WiFi connections, and it can be synced with about 100 mobile devices for portability. Perhaps most distinguishing is the Lend Me feature, which allows the purchaser to share books with other readers by allowing for the transfer of files for up to fourteen days from purchase. However once the file has been transmitted, it can no longer be opened on the original Nook that purchased it. The drawback for the device, in my mind, is that it is centered on going to a bookstore for the browsing and purchasing. Sadly perhaps, it seems the trend is away from that particular experience.

The other device being talked about is the Apple Tablet. Everyone from the New York Times to Newsweek to bloggers from Australia are speculating about the impending release of this multi-functional appliance. It is thought to be an over sized iPod that will operate as a media player, web browser, and e-reader. It may also have some notebook features. It will offer high resolution color on an LCD screen. Unlike the other readers that use e-paper, the Tablet may have the problem of causing eye strain as many experience in reading their computer screen for long periods of time. The Tablet is expected to offer better file management than other popular digital readers, and may therefore be a popular choice for college students. One other area of speculation is that Apple may be negotiating a 30/70 split with content developers ( book, newspaper, magazine, and application). If this is true, it would create a great incentive for content developers to work with Apple. The split with Amazon for the Kindle is exactly the reverse, with developers keeping only 30 percent. Newspapers in particular may find a great means of distribution with the Tablet. No one has seen a Tablet to date but speculation is that the appliance will cost about $800, far higher than the Sony Reader at $199 or the Nook and Kindle 2 at $259.

What is not in doubt is that technology appliance manufacturers are paying a lot of attention to the publishing marketplace and focusing on delivering content in a greater number of formats on more and more convenient, readable, portable, and accessible readers that meet the growing demand for reading without paper. At the moment, there are almost thirty formats for providing content on such devices. The most popular are the Kindle format which is available on the Amazon Kindle; the e-Pub open format which is used by the Sony Reader and the Nook; e-Reader which is freeware available on the iPhone, Blackberry, and Windows Mobile devices; and PDF, which is the Adobe format used on home and office computer screens. Some speculate Apple will use an open format for their Tablet while others note that Apple has always used proprietary software in the products.

No one knows which format will prevail, if any. It is possible that in the end there will still be many formats used for delivering content on digital reading devices. Publishers must continue to keep up with the advances and expansions in this important area. Dorrance Publishing, for example, makes each new book published is available in all the formats discussed in this post. For a minimal investment in software, it makes good sense to be able to offer books to potential buyers in whatever format they find most convenient for them.

Growing Acceptance and Use of Digital Readers

Elizabeth House — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:20:00 GMT

In a recent survey, Retrevo, a gadget review website, discovered that 21 percent of those they surveyed said they are planning to buy an e-book reader this year. Of those who were canvassed and responded positively about purchasing a digital book reader, 26 percent were men and 17 percent were women. A full ten percent said they would ask for a reader for a holiday gift, more than would be asking for MP3 players and video game players. They favor the Kindle to the Sony Reader by a 2 to 1 margin.

The largest percentage of those who plan to purchase e-book readers are men under 35 years of age, with household incomes of more than $100,000, and who live in the Northeast.

The Kindle's wide acceptance and its promotion by Amazon give it a current advantage. But more digital readers are scheduled for release within the next year, and rumors about Apple launching a Tablet abound.

In recent times only about 2.5 percent of all books sold have been sold in a digital format. However if the survey results presented by Retrevo are true, that percentage will quickly grow. Authors and publishers must take seriously the need to make books available in the various digital formats, in addition to having inventories of books and offering print-on-demand, in order to keep up with the changes in the way consumers desire to obtain content.

It is unclear whether one format will eventually dominate the field, as happened with the iPod, or if there will be several major players for the foreseeable future. At Dorrance Publishing and all of our imprints, we make our books available for downloading on the Kindle and Sony Reader and continue to expand the ways in which we publish books. The marketplace transforms itself so rapidly these days, a company cannot afford to wait and catch up without risking being left behind indefinitely.

Long Awaited Google Settlement On Hold

Elizabeth House — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:18:00 GMT

In 2005 the Author's Guild and the Association of American Publishers sued Google for scanning books without the copyright holders' permission. A settlement was negotiated and, as most people know, the terms were announced last October. The settlement would have allowed Google to set up a database from which customers could purchase books, photographs, portions fo books, etc., and the copyright holder would receive payment from revenues received by Google. Now the court has received more than 400 filings objecting to various parts of the settlement agreement, and the hearing on the settlement that was scheduled for October 7, 2009, has been indefinitely delayed. Interestingly Google did not object.

The delay will give the parties time to work out all the differences and see if they can agree to a new settlement. I think this is a very good development and is in the best interests of authors. While I think the settlement as it was proposed would have offered many benefits to readers and to authors and publishers, most notably that many out-of-print books would become available again for distribution, I think it also could create a monopoly in which Google would have controlled almost everything published. The settlement would have given Google too much power, and, in the long run, could serve to limit access and to stilt the development of competing technologies for delivering reading materials and for consuming information. If the vast majority of copyrighted, both in print and out of print, books and other materials as well as materials no longer in copyright are available through Google, the formats, readers, and other delivery systems Google chooses to support will have a clear advantage over all other competitors.

Perhaps the answer, in part, may be to require Google to offer the information stored in their database in all the formats used by the various popular reading devices, phones, and computers so that Google does not act as the gatekeeper to the publishing industry. It will be interesting to see how all the objections are addressed and whether a new settlement can be reached within a reasonable amount of time.

Author Services Scams

Elizabeth House — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:17:00 GMT

As in almost any industry or vocation - investment firms, medicine, home improvement companies, distance learning, mortgage banks, insurance companies, discount retailers, and many, many more - the author services industry (subsidy publishing, print on de-mand, book promotion services, editing services, literary agencies) has both legitimate providers and scam artists competing in the marketplace. All the rules of thumb apply: read the agreement carefully, don't accept vague terms, ask questions, talk to a live per-son, check business references and company history, don't be pressured, if it sounds too good to be true, be skeptical and find out why. And while it is a fact that there are indeed scammers among the companies that provide author services, by no means should all author services companies be categorized as such and painted with the same broad brush.

For example, the author services company with which I have been associated for over thirty years, Dorrance Publishing and its related companies, is not and has never been a scam. There are individuals who believe authors should never pay to have their work published. For them, charging authors for publishing services is in itself a scam. We have heard this criticism throughout the decades, and it is born of individual prejudices. Literary purists say, if a work merits publication, a traditional publisher will pay for its publication. That has never been the case. There have always been good, worthwhile books written for a niche market, or written by an unknown author, or written for private distribution, or written in conjunction with a business or organization, or written for a workshop or course that do not have broad appeal or meet the criteria of a trade, mass market, paperback, textbook, religious, or scholarly publishing company. It is for that reason the Dorrance name has been attached to high quality publishing for almost ninety years. Companies that last that long provide a valuable service. Today newspaper and magazine headlines shout out the opposing truth. "Time" Magazine recently stated that traditional publishing is dying, " a victim of its own inability to find a reason for being." And "The New York Times" in an article appearing earlier this year about self-publishing stated, "Traditional publishing declines while self-publishing is flourishing."

In 2008 almost half a million new titles were published, many more than ever would have been published without authors services and self-publishing options. Victoria Cochrane writes in BestSyndcation.com," Because many publishing houses have been known to edit and pare down individual style, self-publishing has become the preferred method of choice for many authors." And Alice Pope of "Writer's Digest" says,"Self-publishing can be just as much the author experience as that of those picked up by major publishing companies because these days it's mostly up to the author to publicize the book and market it." So much for the purists, many of whom despite the disintegration of traditional publishing, still write of the alternatives, "Don't do it!"

If you read a consumer complaint or see a blog post about Dorrance or any other author services company, consider the source. Is it a competitor? Is it someone who has a vested interest in that company's failure or demise? Is it an emotional outburst not based in facts? Is it just one of many posts, others of which are positive? Look at the dates. If it's three, four, five, six years old, why are there not more recent complaints if a pattern exists?

When choosing a company to partner with you in publishing your book, consider all that you have read; check with the Better Business Bureau to be sure there are no unanswered complaints; and make a rational and reasoned decision. A company such as Dorrance will be honest with you and upfront about both fees and services. They will not promise you the moon, but they will make an honest effort to provide all the services they offer and that you pay for. You can't beat honesty, longevity, and success.

Who Buys Books and Why It Matters

Elizabeth House — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:20:00 GMT

Last month R.R. Bowker, the major publisher of reference books and resources for the book trade, released the 2008 U S. Book Consumer Demographics and Buying Behavior Annual Report which is being published print-on-demand by Lightning Press and retails for $999. Its findings about book buying patterns have emerged from data collected from Bowker’s Pub Track Consumer and from other information gleaned from the vast amount of statistics on titles published and books sold that the company regularly monitors. The findings are very helpful for authors and publishers who wish to perform targeted and effective promotion of their books.

Some interesting facts contained in the report are:· Most buyers are women (53 percent as opposed to 47 percent men)· Women buy more books than men (65 percent of all books purchased)· Men buy more e-books than women (55 percent)· Women buy the great majority of paperbacks, hardbacks, and audio books· Generation X buyers (ages 30 to 48)purchase more books on the Internet (30 percent)· About 21 percent of book buyers heard about a book first online· Mass merchandisers continue to gain market share while bookstores show declinesFor authors and publishers all this is critical information when attempting to gear promotion, publicity, or advertising to a book’s particular audience.

If you have written and published a book that you think is aimed primarily at men, then the e-book format should be utilized. If the audience for a book is men or women in their 30s and 40s, then promotion and distribution should be geared towards online promotion, viral marketing, social networking and Internet book distribution sites. The report also highlights the vital role the Internet plays in getting the word out about books since 21 percent of buyers say they learned of a book they purchased online. Word of mouth too has always been a very large factor in disseminating information about books. But if 21 percent have heard of a book online, that means 79 percent have learned of it through more traditional means. Therefore reviews, news articles, book signings, speaking engagements, workshops, seminars, media appearances, postcards, posters, bookmarks, and other means of getting the word out about books cannot be ignored without fear of losing market share.

If you think you would benefit from information on more of the behavioral trends described in Bowker’s new publication, rather than paying $999, you may be able to locate a copy at a reference library.At Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc. we take into consideration what we know about buying patterns when creating tailored promotions for the books we publish, and we always use all the tools at our disposal to gear publicity and promotion to a book’s intended audience.