Publishing Prediction for 2017

Mother nature is throwing fits.

In Oregon, just west of us, forty thousand areas of beautiful forests are burning near Multnomah Falls. Here in Portland the sky glows an apocalyptic orange and ash sprinkles all over, dusting my car and home.

In Florida, where both my husband and I grew up, and some family still resides, a monster hurricane roars toward land and residents flee before it.

What is going on?

My brother in Winter Garden, Florida, commented that the two events should meet and cancel each other out.

If only it were that easy.

Maybe an author could use the two events to pen an apocalyptic novel. They seem so popular nowadays.

Meanwhile, there’s hope for the future. While the hurricane is still whirling toward Miami, our winds have changed course today and are blowing the smoke away from us. (cough, cough)

So, hopefully, we resilient humans will survive nature’s tantrums.

Looking into the future, Written Word did a survey at the beginning of 2017 on publishing, and since I’ve been in full blown survey mode lately, I thought to pass along the results and implications for you as an author. The caveat is that Written Word sponsors ad sites such as Freebooksy, Bargain Books and others and is ebook friendly.

Here’s the link : http://bit.ly/2hVpPOQ  

Their Findings:

1. The Majority of Fiction Sales will Come from eBooks.  What does this mean for you? For a first-time fiction author, publishing your work as an ebook is an affordable and easy way to enter the market.
2. Indie Authors and Small Presses will Dominate. Fifty percent of fiction’s market share consists of small presses, Indie authors and Amazon imprints. Competition is increasing and pricing alone is not enough.
3. Amazon Imprints will Command Top Spots. Amazon now has thirteen active publishing imprints, each in a given genre. If you can market your book in conjunction with an Amazon imprint title, the number of readers who see your book may go up.
4. Kindle Unlimited Readership will Grow. The subscription based model is catching on all over. While belonging to KDP Select puts your book in front of more readers and enables you to be paid by the page, this trend may over time decrease single unit sales as readers stock up their libraries with “borrowed” books.
5. Crowding will Result in Increased Competition. Books are no longer short term. There is a long tail that an author should cultivate. Check out Katherine Rusch’s blog on marketing and branding. (see previous blogs) Think out your strategy. For some authors, it may involve getting back rights, re-invigorating old titles with new covers, and bringing them online.
6. Audiobooks will Gain in Popularity. Already I’m hearing readers talk about how they listen to books in the car, on the job, at home. Expand your horizons to include other formats such as paperback. The more formats you have, the wider your audience.
7. Marketing will Determine the Winners. More and more, this is becoming true. This survey was done by an ad site that offers various ways to pay for marketing, but even so, I feel this is true. Marketeers are springing up to provide the dreaded marketing service, so once again, author beware of what you are paying for. Research how you plan to market your work and then work your plan.
8. Amazon Marketing Services ads are likely to become the next big thing. Maybe. The point here is that this is a rapidly changing business. Keep abreast of what is working and what has played out. Don’t be afraid to try new techniques when it comes to selling your books.
9. International Audiences Provide for Growth. Mark Lefebvre of Kobo talks about the growing trend in international publishing. I sell a certain percentage of my books to the UK, Canada, and Australia through Amazon. “Going Wide” may be a way to extend an author’s reach and generate more sales.
10. Author Will Band Together. I already see a rise in book bundling. Authors such as Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck have bonded together under the pen name of James S. A. Corey to write international best sellers and produce a popular television series. Others join with authors in a similar genre and publish together in a set. Each brings their fans to the table and expands the fan base of the others.

Are there trends that you are noticing? What do these trends mean to authors and how can we adapt to them?

This week I wanted to support a small press offering that I discovered from an ad site. Chimera by N. J. Tanger has received 260 reviews with a 4.6 rating. Pretty impressive.

The story: For over  a decade, Earth’s first colony has been waiting for word. No contact, no resupply from the mother planet is causing the colony to slowly go extinct. The only way to make contact is through the ancient colony ship Chimera. But the onboard AI is asleep and the ship derelict. It needs extensive repairs. A selection process is put in place for a young crew, and one desperate teenager hacks his way onto the list.

Another young girl has piloted a trawler illegally for her alcoholic father, and through a chance encounter onboard the Chimera, makes contact with the AI when no one else can.

An interesting story with a YA flavor due to the main characters, but adults will like it for the characters and developing plot. This is the first in what looks to be an enjoyable series.