[wolfrom]

I'm thinking of putting my upcoming novel (first in a series) into Kindle Select, as looking back on my sales figures I found what appears to be correlation between Select promos and sales.

But that will lock it down for three months as far as other markets are concerned, so I'm wondering if anyone has encountered any blowback from readers who don't like the Amazon-only option. Any angry e-mails?

My current following is probably less than twenty people, so I doubt I have to worry about a riot in the streets.

 

[ElHawk]

I haven't heard of any, myself.

With my most recent book, I put it up on KDP first and then gave it a day or two to put it on other platforms.  I can't remember why now; I was probably just short on uploading time.  I had a few readers write and ask me why it wasn't on B&N yet, so I quickly put it up there and then contacted the people who'd asked about it, and let them know.  This was three months ago.  Guess how many copies I've sold at B&N.  ZERO.

Even the people who emailed me to ask about the book didn't bother to buy it.  Meanwhile, it sells steadily on Kindle.  I put a single short story into Select to see whether it would bring up sales under that same pen name, and on the free days it did indeed bump up sales of full-price ebooks under same pen name.

I was previously reluctant to experiment with my Egyptian series in Select, because I was fearful of potentially alienating those readers.  After seeing how little effect having a title available on B&N has actually had on my sales, and seeing the positive effect of Select on my sales, I no longer worry about it.  I have developed a plan for how to handle upset readers who want Select books on Kindle, and I think it should all work out fine for me.

I'm finishing up the next book in the series today, so very soon I shall see how all this Select speculating works out for me.

 

[MLKatz]

I had a similar experience with createspace. Lots of requests for a print copy. Few sales.

 

[Elizabeth Ann West]

I play with 13,000 Nook owners everyday. Most have already adopted Kindle devices or apps, or moved to iPads where they get the best of everything. Even THEY know the handwriting is on the wall for B&N who reported losses across the board for the third straight quarter I believe (would have to check) but the biggest scares are that they've quietly shut down dozens of stores in major cities (LA, Washington Dc) and their digital side reported losses for the quarter too, so no, Nook isn't being the one-hand tied behind its back savior of the company either.

We did a poll asking if we should start sharing more Kindle links on Cheap ereads, our historically Nook only page, and over 80% of respondents said they have both devices or access to both devices OR convert the DRM titles after purchase to epub if they need to.

If you're really worried, don't put DRM on the book and your epub readers can still get it and convert it.

 

[Amanda Brice]

I know several authors who have gotten complaints from their fans when they put a title in Select, and since being in Select was hurting them financially anyway (one author in particular was losing $8000 each month from the sales at the other retailers and not seeing that type of uptick in her Kindle sales), they withdrew when the 90 days was up.

But if the bulk of your readers are Kindle owners and you don't get much in the way of sales at the other retailers, then Select can be a good option.

Personally, I'll never put one of my series in Select, but when I launch my new time travel series this fall, I plan to put the novella in for a 90-day term and then at the end of that term put it up everywhere else. The novel will be released everywhere right from the start.

 

[Bruce Blake]

If you're really worried, don't put DRM on the book and your epub readers can still get it and convert it.

The question you need to ask yourself is whether or not you can reasonably sell enough on the other platforms to outweigh not only the promo opportunity of Select, but the value of loans through the Kindle Owners Lending Library. A couple of my books sell well on Kindle, but I'm still trying to find an audience on the other platforms. As quoted, I think going DRM free is one of your keys (sorry if that starts a debate)...your readers can convert the file. (I have a Kobo and convert everything...it irks me when a book I want to read is DRMed).

 

[ElHawk]

Oh, yes...I thought I smelled doom for B&N when their location in one of the hoity-tiotiest, high-selling shopping centers in Seattle closed recently. 

And I think Bruce is right: think of it in terms of total value.  Do you need the big boost that the Select exposure can give you?  (Some authors don't.)  Will the book you consider putting there generate sales once people have borrowed it (first in a series, etc.)? 

 

[Lisa Scott]

I did select once for a new release about a year ago.  However, I put it out on the other platforms for a few weeks first so my readers with other devices could get it (and I warned them it would be coming down for a few months.)  No one said anything, but I don't have a huge following.  However, I know some of readers did buy it on those other platforms, and I felt good knowing they had a chance to get it right away if they wanted it.  (of course this was a year ago when books showed up and came off  BN and itunes pretty quickly.  Not sure what the wait time is these days.)

 

[MegHarris]

I don't mind putting the first book in a series into Select. But I personally haven't had great luck with Select. My het erotic romance sells steadily on B&N, my m/m seems to be doing well on ARe (though it's too soon to know for sure how that site is going to work out for me), and my "regular" romance name sells pretty well on  iTunes. I am earning enough from other platforms that I am growing more and more cautious about tying up books for ninety days.

 

[Rykymus]

Unfortunately, this is a business decision, not an "I wanna be nice to readers" decision. The fact of the matter is that if they want it, they can get it. If they can't be bothered to wander off their favorite platform, why should you? (Especially if it means that you'll lose money.) You have to do what makes you the most money, if you are trying to make writing a career.

 

[JRTomlin]

I never received any. I have received a couple of emails asking if it was possible to buy a novel in another format. I just sent them a free copy of the novel they were interested in (and threw in an extra one) and they seemed pretty happy

 

[dalya]

 

[Lisa Grace]

I did a book signing at the B&N in Nashville back in 2010. That place was hopping! The mall is next to Opryland, like sharing a parking lot. Lines were everywhere, sold a ton of books.

Shortly after that, the flood hit. Opryland was flooded and so was the mall. B&N never reopened. One of its best, busiest locations, closed forever. The handwriting has been on the wall for two years. As leases come up they're closing.

 

[Atunah]

I think this blog post by DearAuthor might be interesting to some. They have decided not to review books anymore, unless they are available in at least 2 digital forms. Mobi an epub.

http://dearauthor.com/news/dear-author-changes-for-2013/

There are some reader comments to that.

 

[Lisa Grace]

I think this blog post by DearAuthor might be interesting to some. They have decided not to review books anymore, unless they are available in at least 2 digital forms. Mobi an epub.

http://dearauthor.com/news/dear-author-changes-for-2013/

There are some reader comments to that.

B&N started the war by DRMing their books. Amazon retaliated by doing .mobi. Now with Calibre and other programs, it doesn't matter. If someone really wants to read a book, they will find a way.

More stores offering straight epub will get into the game, and authors will upload their books to as many sites as they can, except for a Select few...(pun intended).

 

[Saul Tanpepper]

I'm thinking of putting my upcoming novel (first in a series) into Kindle Select, as looking back on my sales figures I found what appears to be correlation between Select promos and sales.

But that will lock it down for three months as far as other markets are concerned, so I'm wondering if anyone has encountered any blowback from readers who don't like the Amazon-only option. Any angry e-mails?

My current following is probably less than twenty people, so I doubt I have to worry about a riot in the streets.

As you're still really just starting out (nothing wrong with that), I wouldn't worry about this issue at all. What I would be concerned about is whether going Select is in your best interests. There are plenty of arguments on both sides of the issue here, plenty of valid opinions, too. This is what I'd be focusing on.

If you think Select can help you grow a reader base faster than going non-exclusive (or grow it despite the restrictions), then do it and don't look back (at least for 90 days).

 

[JRTomlin]

B&N started the war by DRMing their books. Amazon retaliated by doing .mobi. Now with Calibre and other programs, it doesn't matter. If someone really wants to read a book, they will find a way.

More stores offering straight epub will get into the game, and authors will upload their books to as many sites as they can, except for a Select few...(pun intended).

Amazon does NOT "DRM" their books. A particular format is not a DRM.

 

[Lisa Grace]

Amazon does NOT "DRM" their books. A particular format is not a DRM.

I said B&N DRM'd their books, and Amazon responded with .mobi, so *how exactly* are you disagreeing with me?

 

[JRTomlin]

I said B&N DRM'd their books, and Amazon responded with .mobi, so *how exactly* are you disagreeing with me?

By misreading.

 

[wolfrom]

Thank you very much for the advice, everyone. Sounds like I can make that Select decision and just blame all of you for it.