It ain’t brain surgery folks. Do you want your book to sell? Then price it accordingly, after taking a good look at the the current market trends. Don’t give it away. Yes, your hard work and your time are worth something, but which makes more sense - selling a lot of books (or at least more books) at a lower price or selling very few books (or no books) at a higher price? Not to mention the added benefit - my fingers are crossed - of interesting readers who buy Incorporeal in my other titles.
Author Bob Mayer has a great take on this. Click on his name to read his recent post on pricing ebooks.
I have a contemporary romance up on Amazon, one of my best books in my opinion - certainly my most sensuous - that gathers dust on a virtual shelf, Beauty and the Feast. I’d love to have the power to drop the Kindle price from it’s current high of $6.50, but the list price is not up to me.
In lieu of a price reduction, let me introduce you to two extraordinary characters, Miss Eva Raines and Mr. Gabriel Abbott.
Eva comes from a farm family in Iowa. Unlike her five older brothers, she decided to skip the University of Iowa and attend culinary school instead. She’s left the farm to make her mark in the food scene in San Francisco, only to discover the food scene can be pretty crazy. Lured away by a startup, ATAP (All Things to All People), she finds the small town of Napa more to her liking and she becomes head of catering and a personal chef for hire.
Enter Gabe Abbott. He and his sister were raised in the projects in Chicago by a single mom. Despite Gabe’s head start on the road to ruin, a priest befriends the family, realizes his potential and finds scholarship money to educate Gabe and his sister at a private academy. His sister becomes a pediatrician, while Gabe moves on to the Golden State where he discovers he possesses a golden talent for making money and attracting women. He meets a gifted wine-maker and together they form Gabriel Vineyards, making some of the tastiest red varietals in the Napa Valley.
Blurb:
Eva Raines is an uncomplicated country girl who’s all about food. Eva moves to the Napa Valley where her culinary skills come to the attention of the owners of a start-up, All Things to All People, and Eva finds her niche as a personal chef. Now all she needs is a man as perfect as her cooking, but she has serious doubts that such a creature exists.
When wealthy entrepreneur, winery owner, and noted lothario, Gabriel Abbott, makes plans to seduce his flavor of the month, his assistant hires All Things to All People to cater a gourmet dinner. Eva expects to use her way with food to showcase the startup. What she unexpectedly discovers is that her culinary skills showcase far more.
Once Gabriel finds himself seduced by Eva’s voice, and the sensual flavors and textures of her food, his previous plans are quickly forgotten. He begins to obsess about meeting his little chef in person. But when Eva and Gabe finally come face to face, the question is, how hot will their fire burn?
Here’s what Penny at Penelope’s Romance Reviews has to say about Beauty and the Feast:
“Beauty and the Feast has a special place in my heart because it’s the first Julia Barrett book I read. I absolutely loved it. This story is lush, sensual, and erotic. Julia uses an array of senses to show how attraction takes root between two people….the sound of a woman’s voice over the telephone….the scent of her on a pillow…..and most delicious of all, the taste of an exquisite meal, planned with infinite care down to the last detail. I had never read a story quite like this, where the hero falls in love with the heroine before they have ever met, just by the sound of her voice, her scent lingering in his home, and the pleasure of an intimate gourmet dinner she has prepared for him. She creates a sensual landscape for the reader, and an undeniable chemistry between the hero and heroine. This book is a delight, and a pleasure for the senses.”
Let’s cut to the chase. I want to sell this book. I want Beauty and the Feast read and enjoyed. That’s why I wrote it. Here’s the deal - I have enough Amazon points to purchase six Kindle uploads for six followers. If you have a Kindle, please contact me by leaving a comment here or email me at: juliarachelbarrett(at)gmail(dot)com. You can get a free Kindle read - a gift from you to me and all you have to do is spread the word about the book, if you enjoy it that is! LOL!
P.S. This post will stay up through the weekend so pass the news onto your friends!
P.P.S. A joke from my Scottish friend, Nigel:
Husband says to wife ‘My Olympic condoms have arrived – I think I’ll wear gold tonight’.
Wife says, ‘Why don’t you wear silver and come second for a change’.
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I loved Beauty and the Feast. Doesn’t it drive you nuts the prize tags publishers put on our books. How are we supposed to sell? I’m hoping to get rights back to a few books this year and self-publish them at a decent price.
Love the joke!
That should have read PRICE tags! ugh!
The industry is in such turmoil when it comes to pricing. The big 6 can’t afford to drop their prices. People who self-publish without having to pay for editing can price at $.99. Small to mid-size press are forced to price in between. Such a crazy time.
Each of my books coming out next year will be different prices based on which publisher it’s with.
We’ll see. I’ll go check out Beauty and the Feast, now.
*Waving hand madly* I want! I want! I’ll post reviews, too, if you want. And hype it. I’m good at hyping books I love.
I’d love to try your book. I’m always looking for new authors with a different take on the classic, or a different flavor to them. I do leave honest reviews(never mean or destructive) usually on Amazon since the kindle is my ereader of choice.
I’ve looked at Beauty and the Feast several times and almost purchased. But that price stops me every time. Even on Fictionwise, the price only drops to about $5.50, unless I get it when there’s a promo code. ARE is at least gives you their rebate but then you don’t get to download in multiple formats like FW.
What I purchase on Amazon tends to be impulse or gotta have on my ereader now books. For impulse buys I’ll go up to about $5 before I start thinking about when I’ll actually have a chance to read the book. For the books I’m waiting to buy, I’ll have ereaderIQ track the book for me and notify me if the price should drop. We won’t discuss the size of my amz wish list/ereaderiq notify list; but when a book ends up there rather than purchased, it may not float back to my attention for quite a while. Therefore, lost sale.
I feel bad for the author when the publisher prices the book outside my impulse buy price zone since I know they don’t have any control of the publisher’s price. Here’s hoping the rights to this one come back to you soon.
FYI, your post did remind me of my intent to purchase this book.
Thanks so much, Elizabeth! Love your comment. An impulse buy, for me at least, is $3 or less.
Hi Janet! I will be happy to send you a copy, along with Elizabeth and Christine. Thanks so much!
LOL! You got one, Christine. I emailed the three of you.
It is pretty crazy, Ciara, but right now the market demands inexpensive ebooks. Do you want a copy for your Kindle?
I caught that one, Amber. I could have fixed it for you!
Thanks, Amber. Yes, it does drive me nuts.
I would say anything below $3 is a complete impulse buy, especially for quality entertainment like a good read.
XXOO Kat
Julia,
I’d love to read your book. It sounds like a ton of fun. I’d also be happy to give you a shout out on the 7 Scribes blog and my own.
And for the record, an impulse buy for me ranges from .99c to 5.00. It all depends on the book and how much I have to read it. I also purchase new releases from my “must have” authors at the going e-reader price (as high as 14.99 for the latest J.R. Ward - still cheaper than Target’s price).
Thanks, Casey! Sounds superb! I agree that I’ll pay more for my must read authors, but I’m not willing to pay more than say…$3 for an unfamiliar author. Once an author becomes familiar and I like her, I’ll follow her anywhere!
I have one of thost books. It makes me sad because I love the story. I love the characters. Fortunately for me someone somewhere dropped the ebook price and it’s now reasonably priced at Amazon. Maybe a few more people will find it.
Love the joke!
A few thoughts on price point:
1. 99 cents as a sale price has a value if your goal is to complement the sales of other books you have out there, and/or increase your name recognition.
2. It may not be so valuable if you do not have other books to sell immediately. SALES ultimately rely on CRITICAL MASS and NAME RECOGNITION.
3. DO NOT ASSUME that those who price their book at 99 cents HAVE NOT had editorial screening. (I paid for mine, happily. I have known her for years and knew she would give me a professional critique.) I also refer you to many NY print houses who are know offering backlist titles of their authors at 99 cents as a promo!
Cerise - I think $.99 works great as an introductory price, whether you are a new writer or you want to draw readers to your overall body of work. I decided $2.99 was right for me. I think I’d have more sales at $.99 and I will use that price for a shorter work, but at $2.99 with the 70% royalty rate, I get a reasonable return for my labor. It’s certainly much much more of a return from Amazon sales than I get from even my highest price book with an epub - well, especially from my highest price book!
I hope so, Nina! It makes sense to drop the price, for both the publisher and the author. Especially if the book has just been sitting there!
Nina and Julia, The marvelous part is being able to set a price and see how it affects your sales and your career. Knowing each person has an expenditure of time and effort, I think each price has its added value. And while many authors have tried FREE, some of them involuntarily, I have an aversion to giving my work away. However, from what I understand, sometimes vendors decide on that for you.
Another factor to weigh!!