[daringnovelist]

I would just correct what Ryne said slightly:

Most books are not priced between .99 and 2.99. They priced one or the other depending on the philosophy of the author. 99 cents if they want to go as low as possible, 2.99 if they want to get the 70 percent return from Amazon (and also match the more standard "bargain novel" price). Prices in between those two are in the "dead zone" though some of us are experimenting with them for novella length fiction.

Anything below $5 is a good price, frankly.

Here's how I price, just for reference. I seem to fall in the middle of the range of indie authors. Around here folks might lean a little lower, but if you talk to authors outside of here, they tend to go a little higher. Dean Wesley Smith has influenced me to push the word count limits downward for each price range, but I'm not sure about that yet:

99 cents = novelette or small collection of short stories to total about 7500- 17500 words.
1.95 = novella or script -- 18,000-39,000 words
2.99 = short novel -- 40,000-59,000 words
3.95 = novel -- 60k-99k words
4.95 = door stopper novel 100k words and up, or maybe equivalent in collections of shorter works.

As I said, I'm not set in stone on this, and my off-genre works are no test for people with more commercial fiction. Frankly, I sell a very similar amount no matter what price I put on the story. (Except free. When I run a free special, I get more "sales.") I have also not run more extensive marketing tests because I want to get more work out there first.

Camille

 

[daringnovelist]

Just one note on a self-fulfilling prophesy: one of the main ways to tell an indie is that they price at 99 cents or 2.99.  If they price higher, most people assume they aren't indie.  Most pros are indie publishing their back lists at higher prices, even when the books aren't famous and put under a pen name.

I suspect prices are going to settle a little lower than what they're using now, but IMHO, it won't be because of competition.  It will be because of the illusion of competition.

Camille

 

[daringnovelist]

LOL! If I knew the secret, I would tell it.

At a glance, I'd say you've stacked the decks in your favor for quick interest with:

1.) Great special-interest title (beading) which is also fun sounding to the general population
2.) Cute, professional-looking cover, highly suited to the genre
3.) Hot genre (light commercial women's fiction) with a hungry audience

You're book's going to have to take it from there -- but when you've got something that so suits a hungry audience, and you can easily signal them that this is what they want, it is much easier to start off with a bang.

Camille