As a self-published author, I pay to have the publisher make my work available. While similar to "vanity" publishing in the past, today's print-on-demand services offer far more than just a stack of books. For the fee, Infinity Publishing handles the final set-up and design, as well as lists the title with Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and many others, including the Ingram catalog. Distribution is excellent, and the final product is very high quality.
The disadvantages are that Infinity's titles are rarely on the shelves at physical bookstore locations, and any marketing and advertising are the responsibility of the author. That's why I use social media like Facebook and APS to spread the word about my novels. Since the setup and distribution of e-books is somewhat different than printed copies, companies like Infinity charge an extra fee for them. Deciding whether or not to spend extra money on an e-book is simply a cost-benefit analysis, and up until this point there simply hadn't been enough demand for e-book versions of my novels to justify the expense.
What makes The Fox and the Eagle different this time is the overall success of my existing trilogy. With an established fan base, I anticipated a greater demand for an e-book version. This has proven to be true, and so far the e-book version of the novel accounts for approximately 1/4th of my total sales. It seems likely that I'll have all of my initial setup fees earned back within the first year of publication. As far as business ventures go, I consider that to be a success.
So, the only remaining question is why not make my previous titles available as e-books? Again, it depends entirely on the success of The Fox and the Eagle. If I think that I've earned enough new fans, an e-book version might be cost effective. I'll have to make that decision within the next few months.
Thank you for your interest in my writing, I hope you check out the first few chapters of The Fox and the Eagle, which are available online at Amazon.
