This is an experiment.
Mack Landry's latest book, Echo Effect - Cascade Mountain Harem - Book 5, is available via pre-order and will be published on March 18th, and at that time will be available in Kindle Unlimited. We're delighted readers discovered it and began to pre-order.
We have a window of time between the completion of the eBook, including final edits, and the actual publishing date, during which we can sell my book directly to readers outside of KDP. So, after I finish editing, I will put it up for sale in my direct sales channel here, using the PayHip platform. I'm selling either an ePub or PDF format between
We want to increase our direct sales, improve the customer experience, and develop a publishing platform independent of the megastores in the publishing space.
As an independent author and publisher, I've always sold my eBooks and paperbacks via Amazon's Kindle store using Kindle Direct Publishing. Most of my books are in the Kindle Select program, which makes them available for free to Kindle Unlimited (KU) Subscribers. As a KU subscriber, I've enjoyed the variety of books available and will continue supporting the program. It's the easiest and most cost-efficient way to read books.
The world isn't always easy; some people don't frequent the Amazon website or use Kindle Unlimited. The rules of Kindle Unlimited preclude authors in the program from selling their books to other storefronts while enrolled in the program. This is a book-by-book decision that independent authors make.
For us, being Kindle Unlimited has been a good choice, but with the changes in the landscape, businesses must explore other ways to sell their wares—in my case, books. We can sell our books as print books in any storefront, but with each new store, there are new rules and marketing strategies to consider.
We could also forego Amazon's Kindle Unlimited exclusivity for an eBook and make our books available in other online marketplaces. This option has the same caveats, new rules, and new marketing strategies, but it's a risk.
Having been on Kindle Unlimited since January of 2021, our books grew more popular (really a drop in a vast bucket), and to shut down our Kindle Unlimited presence would cut our current revenue in half. We have no idea how much in demand our books would be at Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, or Kobo Plus. There is also a reduction in the percentage we earn as a royalty outside of Amazon.
Long story short, we're happy with how our business is running. However, we are risk-averse because royalty income has become increasingly important during Hank's prolonged job search. We're not expecting this sale to be more than a few, if any, sales. But it could signal that I have a broader audience than KU and Amazon.
I'd love to hear any comments or feedback.
Best,
Hank