Updates for June 2025
Here's a behind the scenes look at how independent publishing is changing in the current climate.
We've been on a ride this month.
My long time distributor of choice Smashwords essentially sold out their catalogue to Draft2Digital. Draft2Digital is an excellent company in its own rights, and if it existed when I was first starting to publish books, I likely would've gone with them to handle all that heavy lifting.
What that means is I've spent all my spare time the past few weeks reediting publication files to meet the new qualifications and standards of Draft2Digital. Some books imported directly with no issues; others needed a total tear down to work.
This is especially true for my new expanded paperback distribution. Amazon was my default for years because it was easy to get the work out. However, Amazon has shifted royalty rates for authors in a way that does not make sense to keep working with them for print publication.
The caveat is that Draft2Digital, in order to meet the demands of a much larger range of large and independent book stores that allow for independent authors to distribute their work, has higher starting prices for books. The quality of the product is amazing; the cost is much higher.
If you order directly from me at Ko-Fi, you'll get the pricing structure you've known for over a decade. My short fiction collections are $6 each for Paperback, eBook, or Audiobook; my non-fiction collections are $12 each for Paperback, eBook, or Audiobook. However, at all other partners, the price has bumped up. Short fiction is $12 and non-fiction is $18. I'm earning the same amount as I previously did with my Smashwords partnership, but the price has to go up unless I'm paying a fee for each copy sold.
The only exception right now is Take Out, which is short enough to stay at $6 for eBook, Audiobook, and Paperback. I do need to expand it in a new ultimate edition to be able to distribute paperback copies through Draft2Digital, but that's a much larger project.
I believe in transparency. This is the reality. The industry is shifting in this political climate, especially for US-based business, and costs have to go up.
I've also always encouraged you to buy directly from independent authors, myself included. These prices will remain the same unless I literally can't get my own author copies without losing money. You can buy them from me online or in person at the $6/12 pricing structure. I also believe that there shouldn't be a tax on any particular format as they all take an equal amount of work, which is why Audiobooks, eBooks, and Paperbacks are all the same price and DRM-free. It is absurd to me that many audiobooks actually cost less than the paperback release.
I finally am going to have time to record the audiobooks for all three collections that don't have them. When I say I'm an independent artist and publisher, I mean it. I do it all. I know what the voice of the text is and how to bring out the meaning for the experience I want you to have.
As for that event last weekend, I injured out of it. Three weeks ago, I sprained my thumb at a charity event. Last week, I pulled my quad loading all the gear in my car for Steampunk Alchemy Fest. I let the organization know I would not be able to attend due to injury and ate the cost on half the hotel rental.
I will be doing a pop-up event at the Hackensack Brewing Company on Sunday, June 29 with what I would've brought to that event, so it's not a total loss. It's just a disappointment.
Anyway, onwards and upwards to summer horror season. M3GAN 2.0 is coming and I'm buzzing with anticipation.