Support for Indie Authors discussion

Hello all. I am thinking about moving a few of my books from Kindle Select to a broader marketplace in November when the 3-mth mark is done. I'm familiar with Smashwords, but I wondered if there were other sites authors are using that might be broader, easier to upload e-books, just all around better? I would appreciate any ideas or suggestions!
Thank you, Gail

Gail wrote: "Hello all. I am thinking about moving a few of my books from Kindle Select to a broader marketplace in November when the 3-mth mark is done. I'm familiar with Smashwords, but I wondered if there we..."

I use Draft2Digital.

Thanks, Rick, I'll check that out!

Glad you posted this Gail as I've been thinking along similar lines for some time. Haven't had the courage to expand out of the folds of Amazon so far but from what research I did do, Draft2Digital looked like the best alternative.

Hi E.D.! I checked into that, too, because of Rick, and it looks way better than Smashwords (which I tried once before). I've had a little income each month from Kindle Select, the "pages read" portion but I think it's time to expand. For you, too, I'm thinking. We have multiple books so it can be a "test":) Let me know if you switch. I am on for a couple 11/15. Hope all is well, Gail.

I use Draft to Digital which is easy, has a wide marketplace and the staff it awesome. I actually got quite a few sales from D2D with my last book.

Thanks, B.A. and Rick, I'm headed there just prior to the ending of my time on KU. I appreciate it!

I plan on going to Draft to Digital in Nov. Besides Amazon, Smashwords isn't doing much for me.

I tried Smashwords late last spring and not much either, so I went back to KU. Definitely trying D2D

Draft2Digital looked like the best alternative so I tried it
Wow - it was easy!
5 minutes and my first book was in 3 new places
I am going to do my new book there too.

Ty for the advice

I'm curious about ISBN. Does it automatically transfer from KDP or is it necessary to get a new number?

Hi Trana, according to another author I'm friends with, it does not transfer. So, you have to either find a site that issues another or buy one of your own. He said that Draft2Digital issues their own. I found that interesting.

I'm definitely going to give D2D a try soon, my books are in KU at the moment so I'll have to wait a while, but I'm glad to hear others like it.

Trana wrote: "I'm curious about ISBN. Does it automatically transfer from KDP or is it necessary to get a new number?"

An ISBN goes everywhere with a book. An ASIN does not. ISBN's are one you buy and they are registered to that book and format. They are internations.

ASINs are for Amazon only. They do not transfer and are only good in Amazon stores.

If you are going wide, you will need to go to Bowker and buy ISBNs for your books. You will need one for each format. So, if you are selling e-books, paperbacks and audio, you will need 3 separate ISBNs for that book. If you are also doing a hardcover, that is another ISBN. Make sure you get them correct. (I messed up one and it was a devil of thing to straighten out. That ISBN goes on your copyright page. If you have the book registered with the library of congress, that number also goes on your copyright page.

ISBN were $525 for 100, which if you write a lot, is a great price. They are more expensive the fewer you buy. If you plan on writing a lot of books, the 100 is the best bargain. Keep an eye out for sales. I got my cheaper on sale a couple of years back.

Hi again B.A., I should have gone to you straight away with my question rather than start another thread (which I'll delete) regarding ISBNs. I have only used KDP for paperback books and was thinking about purchasing an ISBN so I can go elsewhere. Was the cost of the ISBNs worth purchasing vs. physical book sales?

Thanks for answering my question, Gail and B.A.!

Well, my answer wasn't so good, Trana:)

For me it is. I got back more than the cost of the ISBN but I bought 100 knowing I would be putting out more books. After using a vanity press, I quickly discovered I could do all but the covers and editing. I'm seeing an increase in sales and 'organic' traffic to my website and a few books sold a month. I'm thinking the more I publish, the more people I reach and the more books I'll be selling.

If you are doing everything else without having to pay some one, the ISBNs are worth it as it the copyright (and yes, I have copyrighted all but my prequel) I did that more for my kids than me. I have one who is a good business person and she will see that she gets a return on the books.

Perfect, thank you for the info, B.A. I've wanted to do this but need to dig into my savings:) I appreciate you sharing!!!

D2D is a nice, easy to use platform. I use it for apple and a couple of others. However, I would recommend going direct with Kobo. This would allow you to use their promotions tab which I've found gets me some sales.

Gail wrote: "Hello all. I am thinking about moving a few of my books from Kindle Select to a broader marketplace in November when the 3-mth mark is done. I'm familiar with Smashwords, but I wondered if there we..."

Try Draft2Digital. They are a wide distribution center and distribute to over 20 venues. They also have an very user friendly staff who is always willing to answer questions in a timely manner.

Thanks, Gail, I will be going that route. (love your name, btw:)

I have a question about Draft2Digital sales, if anyone can help. Through them, I have four books available. A friend bought 2 copies directly through Barnes & Noble (one of the retailers for my books), but I don't see those sales on D2D. I wondered - if someone purchases the books directly from the retailer, does that mean there is no royalty payment? If that's the case, I may as well put them back on Kindle Select.

Thank you and Merry Christmas!!!!
Gail

Hello Gail,
I received this email from D2D a couple of weeks ago regarding Barnes & Noble




We felt it necessary to update you on where things currently stand with sales reporting for Barnes & Noble.

Due to the security breach that Barnes & Noble recently uncovered in their system, the retailer has been taking extensive steps to ensure that both customer and publisher/author data remains secure. The steps that Barnes & Noble is taking are necessary, but also time consuming to implement.

Despite estimates that sales reporting would be back online by November 23rd, the security measures are taking longer than Barnes & Noble initially expected.

At this time, Barnes & Noble has not given us any manual reports for sales, and they have not given us an updated timeline for when reporting will once again be available.

While reporting is currently disabled, Barnes and Noble is still tracking sales. We fully expect all sales to continue to pay out as expected. Payments for October will be included in this month’s royalty statement, and are unaffected by the delay.

We are continuing to work closely with Barnes & Noble to find a solution to sales reporting, and we appreciate your patience as we do this. This is a frustrating development for all of us, but we will continue to work toward a solution.


The Draft2Digital Team

Oh, wow, Terry. I didn't know. Thank you SO much for this. I was confused as I've had my books strictly on Kindle Select until now. That makes me feel better. Not that the royalty is very much, but it would be like giving books away if no one was tracking it. I very much appreciate you taking the time to post that.

Merry Christmas to you and your family!
Gail

Another interesting note about KDP is that when they get busy, they contract out the paperback books to independent publishers. These publishers only report sales monthly. I knew people were buying my book because they were posting pictures of it on Facebook, but KDP wasn't reporting any recent sales. I wrote to them and that is how I learned about the independent publishing. They did report the sales and pay me at the end of the month.

Well, not happy. I received a notice from D2D regarding books purchased thru Barnes & Noble.

"Unfortunately, Barnes and Noble has just recently come back online with sales reporting for October and November and are working on sending those sales to us for the past two months. They had a site wide cyber attack back in October that put a hold on some of their systems when they updated them after this event.

As long as the friends bought the book from your listing through us (whether they look up the book or link to it from you) you'll see a sale on your reports about 24hrs after the sale normally."

My friends did not do either, they just purchased from B&N website. So, I'm thinking, no royalties from these sales and that stinks. It's like giving books away! I'm pulling them and going back to Kindle Select.

Just an FYI.

Thanks for all the interesting info. Worth knowing.

Well, low and behold. After contacting D2D, my sales suddenly appeared. They said it was due to B&N issues as Terry, above, explained. My apologies for getting a little heated about it:) I'll blame the stress of the holidays.

Hurrah, Gail!

Gail wrote: "Well, not happy. I received a notice from D2D regarding books purchased thru Barnes & Noble.

"Unfortunately, Barnes and Noble has just recently come back online with sales reporting for October a..."


They sent me that notice almost 2 months ago. I'm surprised you didn't get one at that time. B&N had a major issue and is still working on solving the mess created by the cyber attack that affected their royalty systems for everyone. You'll be paid, but it may take some times.

Thanks, B.A., I learned that here. I switched my books from Kindle Select to D2D/B&N only a few weeks ago. I wasn't expecting payment yet...just saw 0 B&N sales and knew there were 2 for sure. They updated the info yesterday and they're showing up. Thanks.