NEW Book Release: Black Mountain Secrets

IMMEDIATE NEW BOOK RELEASE               11/08/2012

At Amazon November 2012

Black Mountain Secrets

By James Moushon

A Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel

CIA Agent Jonathon Stone goes undercover to help in an FBI investigation after a fellow agent is murdered on the Colorado River.

Stone continues the agents' investigation of suspects who are stealing top-secret documents from a secret Army base in the middle of the Mohave Desert. The trail leads him from the rugged Black Mountains of Nevada to Laughlin, a gambling oasis on the Colorado.

As things heat up in this desert paradise, Stone dodges bullets and attempts on his life until he reaches the ultimate showdown. Jonathon Stone truly needs lady luck on his side to catch the spies and get through this ordeal alive.

Mystery Writer James Moushon brings to life Jonathon Stone, an undercover CIA agent assigned to the off the books CIA division - DOT.

He throws Stone right into the middle of the action. As each mystery unfolds, Stone uses his wealth of knowledge and keen analytical mind to complete his dangerous assignments, while at the same time battling his love for gambling and drinking and the ladies.

Book Cover

Book Information

Black Mountain Secrets

By: James Moushon

Published By: HBSystems Publications

November 2012

ISBN: 978-1-4675-5401-5   ASIN: B00A0QDBKU

Copyright © 2012 by James Moushon

Available at Amazon in eBook Format

Genre: Fiction, Mystery

Rendered eBook

     This is a rendered eBook created for the Kindle eBook Platform. In the rendering process the author has added in-book links to information to assist the reader in the eBook experience. The in-book links do not require the wireless communication to be turned on.

About the Author

James Moushon

Born in Illinois, James Moushon is a published writer in the electronic document field.

Moushon is a graduate of Bradley University in Peoria, IL.

     Starting over 15 years ago, he helped lead the startup of the electronic forms industry in the creation, conversion and usage of electronic forms by supplying that industry with a continuing source of published literature, software products and training seminars.

     In 2003 Moushon moved his focus to ebooks and their development. 

    

Black Mountain Secrets is the second in the Jonathon Stone Mystery series. Call off the Dogs was his first in the series.

Black Mountain Secrets Book Trailer

Contact Information

Follow Me on Twitter: @jimhbs

Or EMAIL at: jim@jamesmoushon.com

View my website: James Moushon – Mystery Writer

Or visit my blog: The eBook Author Corner

Take a look at my Author’s blog: HBS Author’s Spotlight

Check out the Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call Off The Dogs

The eBook Author’s Corner blog
This blog was created to assist eBook authors in writing and developing ebooks. The blog also discusses how the eBook author fits into the evolving eBook Industry.

HBS Author’s Spotlight blog

The HBS Author’s Spotlight was created to highlight interesting authors in book industry. It features author’s bio, their contact information, an interesting Q/A session and a list of their books with brief descriptions.

eBook Marketing: How Do You Target Your Reading Audience?

One of the first questions a new indie author must ask is what audience will buy my book? The second question is how will I market to this audience? Both questions should be asked way before you get to the publishing stage of your book.

In the old days, there was a very standard set of rules and procedures. If you were fortunate enough to get picked up by a publisher, you got the finished product to the editors and off your book went into the market place.

On the other side, if you had to do the publishing yourself that added a lot of extra action points to get your book to the reader and getting your book into bookstores was a major component in determining whether your book was a success or not.

Well the whole process has turned upside down. Now the marketing targets are all different and the bookstore is no longer the primary focus in marketing your book. It is a turkey shoot, as they say.

Marketing using social media and the Internet are becoming the top choices for marketing for self-publishing authors.

The author must determine their audience, what they read and where to find them all online.

Knowing your audience will be the key in how you approach the marketing of your book.

Multiple Reader Audiences
The first thing you must realize is that there are multiple audiences to address and each will require a different approach. I view audiences in three distinct groups, all separated by experience with online media.

1. Mature (55+)
Most of this group is new to electronics. Ebook readers and tablets are all new to them. They are accustomed to paper reading. Some have adapted but still fall back to paper. They look for the Deal of the Day or a low priced ebook. Their first selection maybe by genre or an author they like. They have no real online community involvement. Reaching them will take a more direct approach.

2. Working/Family Group (30-55)
These are readers that are established adults. They grew up reading traditional books but they are more computer-savvy than the mature group. They have adapted to ebooks because of the time and convenience factor. An online approach could work with this group but they will seek advice from more than online sources.

3. Mobile, on the Move Youth
They make quicker decisions. They can’t go anywhere and do anything without their cell phone or their iPad or some electronic device at the ready. They would rely almost entirely on online communications to make their buying decision.

They won’t read a book on their iPad but they may use the ebook for an information source. You see this in the resistance to accept e-textbooks. About 60% of this group does all their communication via cell phones exclusively.

In contrast, only 25% of the mature group use cell phones exclusively (No landline phone). (34% overall)

It’s like being in the right place at the right time to be successful. In this case, you need to be in the right genre and target the right audience.

Shooting at the wrong target
Let me share with you the experience I had with my first novel, Call Off the Dogs. This is a story about the JFK Assassination and now Jonathon Stone, my pragmatist, found another shooter from that day in Dallas and the adventure begins.

I was so anxious to get the book out the door, I didn’t do my homework.

Where did the book fit in? Was it a mystery, a detective story, a historical novel or what?

My primary audience was the mature group mentioned above. They lived through that period and all the conflicts and conspiracy theories. I choose to take a ebook only approach and targeted my audience online.

I made all the wrong moves to sell my ebook to my target audience. It probably didn’t help that Stephen King released his book, ‘11/22/63’ in the same week so all my pre-publishing marketing was written over.

Shooting at the right target
Let’s discuss some authors that know how to target their audience. First there is M.R. Mathias, a fantasy writer, who has been quite successful with his online approach to his target audience. He focuses his marketing at the younger audience through Twitter and Facebook. At last count, his twitter followers were in excess of 87,000.

His main asset is he writes quality books. Lots of them. Next he feeds them to his followers like Halloween candy and they buy it. Sounds like a plan to me.

Another example is Amanda Hocking and a group of young writers who are writing to the young adult genre and targeting them through social media. Amanda has over 17,000 followers on Twitter and her Facebook audience is huge. Just send them a tweet and she is off and running. It is like having a barrel full of 140 word bullets.

Let’s take a test to see if you’re following me
Let’s say you write a book about an old biker who wants to take one last trip across the country. The book would highlight his conflicts between the way he approached the trip when he was young and full of adventure. And then compare that to the current old man who has declined in health and aggressiveness going down memory lane.

So do you have a family saga going here? Or is my biggest target group all the bikers across the country? How do I target them? Oh yeah. Do you start tweeting the world about your biker book or do you try a more conventional approach and get involved in the biker community? I believe you are looking at the mature group not the mobile one.

My first move would be to get involved with the Harley-Davidson audience. We are talking over a million people in this group. I’d try to get into their stores, sell at their events across the country, get a book display in their museum and get an endorsement from their owner's group.

I’d let my beard grow, get me some nice looking leathers, buy a good looking Harley and hit the road.

Social networking and publishing an eBook exclusively would be my last choice in selling to this audience.

Are you off target?
Where is your audience and how do you get to them? Tweet to tweet or do you hit the pavement and do it the old fashion way?

You must answer right up front, who is going to buy your type of book and define the genre? And then concentrate on marketing to them where ever they are.

Some good sources
Jason Boog
If want to keep up with who the top indie authors are and what they are writing about a good source is Mediabistro – Galleycat by Jason Boog. @jasonboog
Amazon Self-Published Bestsellers for the Week of Monday, September 17, 2012 by Jason Boog

Judith Briles
The Book Shepherd blog is another good source written by Dr. Judith Briles
"Publishing is riddled with obstacles. Sometimes nightmares for the author. You don’t need problems … you want solutions." She will shepherd you through the maze and chaos.
She also manages AuthorU.org which is for authors who want to be seriously successful.
Dr. Briles can be found on Twitter: @mybookshepherd

M.R. Mathias
M.R. Mathias Fantasy Author is in the HBS Author’s Spotlight this month.
He can be found on Twitter: @ dahgmahn or at his website: http://www.mrmathias.com
Also Mr. Mathias has written a must read book for indie authors about social networking and marketing books. The First Ten Steps - Ten proven steps to build a solid foundation for your ebook using free social networking.

Follow Me on Twitter: @jimhbs
Or EMAIL at: mailto:jim@jamesmoushon.com
View my website: James Moushon – Mystery Writer
Take a look at my NEW blog: HBS Author’s Spotlight
Check out the Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call Off The Dogs

eBook Marketing: Is Buying a Great Book Review Your Cup of Tea?

With the huge controversy brewing in the Book Publishing Industry over book reviews and how they’re obtained and used, I thought I would jump in on this.

We have exposed a problem in the trust of one of the decision points buyers have. Is the ebook as good as the review says it is? How much do readers/buyers rely on reviews? Could this start the end of a time-old tradition? Are there professional reviewers still out there that have strong ethics and do the job honestly?

Reviews are Part of the Game

Indie authors are easy to point the finger at. They already have an uphill battle against the traditional publishing and their large marketing machines. So if they buy a good review, is it gaming the system? What happens if they get a bad review? Do they bury it?

On the other side, traditional publishers call it a marketing plan. It’s the same thing, they just do it differently. It is just an investment in marketing. They sent out review copies to all the high powered media groups and get their feedback and then cherry pick the best reviews. The buying public has never called it a conflict of interest. Think back. Have you ever seen a bad review on a dust cover? I don’t think so. You’ll see the bad ones only online, where they are from customers or the reviews aren’t paid for.

Decision Making
So how important are book reviews to the buying decision? Will an author’s success depend on good reviews?

My first move was to review a study conducted by Mark Coker from Smashwords through Mobileread and posted on his blog. The study question was: “Select the single most common criterion you, the reader, follow to discover your next read.” The result was different than I expected but it should help guide indie authors in focusing their marketing effort.

The first item that caught my eye was: Reviews are considered first in the decision process only 7% of the time. I guess you can get used to reading words like: spell-binding, a real thriller, engaging, etc. after a while.

My pick for top method was second in his survey: 18% picked the ebook because it was one of their favorite authors.

That gets me to the survey’s top pick: 29% indicated that online recommendations from fellow readers, forums, blogs and message boards were first. That tells me that online communities are what readers are using the most to guide their decisions. The 7% may put this problem in perspective.

Do bookstores still fit into the process?

Remember the good old days when there were one or two bookstores in every mall. You could browse a store, make eye contact with the book cover, read the dust cover and the prominent reviews and that would close the deal right there.

Bookstores are slowly moving out of the equation. That touch and feel is not part of the process anymore. They are becoming more of a showroom.

Not the Internet. It has a massive number of books online and it’s really only starting. The reader has started to change their selection process and indie author must take notes. Ebooks will stay on the virtual Internet shelves of online retailers for a very long time without a space issue and so will all their reviews.

Time Management

As most indie authors know by now, time management is the key to their productivity. If you’re writing a novel, doing your marketing thing and trying to handle 1,000 followers on your twitter account, you have to manage your minutes.

Buyers and readers have the same problems. That is why the successful indie author must target their readers online. Your audience/reader’s attention span is getting shorter. As Coker’s study suggests, you must rely on online communications to get to your customers.

Remember you are dealing with a community of unorganized people talking about what books they like and don’t like. The question is: How much will they rely on reviews to make their buying decision and should you invest in them?

Are Buying Reviews your Cup of Tea?

An indie author has a big decision to make about buying reviews to sell their ebook. Some marketing experts say that word of mouth is the best way to promote your book. Whether it is word of mouth or tweet to tweet or by cultivating Facebook friends, the process will be online.

I am always doing a little study here and there trying to figure out what is going on in this crazy industry. Here is a quick one I will share. This is a very limited one involving reviews and success.

I choose a prominent indie author for the study who has had major success in the ebook market place. I took one of the author’s latest books and looked at the reviews versus success.

Source: Amazon buy page: contained the usual book description, a book trailer, editorial reviews, online reviews from major outlets, individual reviews and a brief question and answer session with the author.

Priced: $9.99 (not a cheap one).

Reviews: This book had over 350 reviews from verified customers and top ranking reviewers with lots of comments. (Would anyone ever read 350 reviews to make a buying decision? People have a hard time going to the second page of a Google search.)

Results: A 3 star overall rating (not one of the author’s better books)

Kicker: the ebook is 35^th in sales in the Kindle Store.

Conclusion: The quantity of reviews gave the buyers a good indication of the quality of the ebook and they didn’t care. They purchased it anyway. In this case, the reviews really didn’t matter. The downside to the author is that the mediocre reviews will stay online forever.

So how important are book reviews and should you pay for them?

The goal is to get readers to go to your buy page, charm and convince them this book is for them and then buy the book. Right. If paying for book reviews is not your cup of tea, you must come up with another plan of attack.

You need to understand how the buying process works and study your audience. Where are they? How can I get to them?

The author sighted above has developed a following through social media and has written to a popular genre. The author is not relying on reviews to sell books.

The Internet has lots of noise in the social media area but that is still becoming a popular method of marketing and communications.

Independent Book Reviews

I hate to see the individual review services take the heat on this. Many are honest, reputable, long standing people. Some of them do the reviews because they love to read. Just a few cross the line.

The Internet has changed the way we look at book reviews because of the quantity of them available to readers. No more does the reader rely on quick-snapshots on the dust cover or a glowing review in a major magazine or newspaper. Now we have real live readers giving their opinions. I think one of the reasons only 7% use the reviews to make the buying decision is that there so many book reviews, which in some cases are not reliable, they look for information.

The tea party is not over.

Some of the big hitters are trying to add credibility to the process. For example, Amazon has had their own accredited review system called Vine for several years now.

It is an invitation-only review program that allows manufacturers and publishers to receive reviews for books that have been offered on Amazon.com. Companies that use this service pay for access. Some receive a free book in exchange for the review.

The criteria for picking the reviewers is based on trust, whatever that means. The reviewers are not paid and the review will be published regardless whether the review is good or bad.

Another player in the review game is LibraryThing. They call their program Early Reviewers. They are more focused on publishers who furnish free advanced copies to readers in exchange for reviews.

They do have a program for self-published authors called Member Giveaways. The authors list their book in the program to give free to prospective reviewers. The reviewers are picked randomly. The catch here is they are not required to review the book.

Our host here, SPR provides a book review service. For a very small fee, the author gets his book reviewed by an expert and the review gets posted by SPR and with on-line retailers.

From reviewing SPR’s reviews they have posted, they do a good and fair job in reviewing the books.

There are other good review services that also show professionalism in their approach to the review process. Those are the reviews we need to get in front of the readers.

Maybe we can have some sort of industry accreditation system for reviewers put into place; a review that will give the readers a better idea of the quality of the book. You know, one that raises the flag when the book doesn’t match the reader’s expectations.

A big question I have is: If only 7% of readers use reviews to make the buy decision, do you need to buy 5 star reviews to sell your ebook?

That’s your decision. Before proceeding, check out some of the most popular online communities. There is a lot more to marketing than the book reviews.

Some sources

Some of the forums I follow are: Mobilereads, Kindleboards, Goodreads, Nookboards and LibraryThing.

A great blog discussion on the book review topic is: Should Authors Pay for Book Reviews? by Joel Friedlander on August 29, 2012

Another great blog that can help indie authors in the right direction is:

How To Get Amazon’s Top Customer Reviewers To Review Your Book by Joanna Penn on September 16, 2012. 

So do you have any ideas on how to improve the practice of paid book reviews?

How does buying your way in, benefit you in the long run?

Let’s build a list of forums through your comments that will help indie authors get exposure to there readers.

Follow Me on Twitter: @jimhbs

Or EMAIL at: jim@jamesmoushon.com
View my website: James Moushon – Mystery Writer

Or visit my blog: The eBook Author Corner
Take a look at my NEW blog: HBS Author’s Spotlight

Check out the Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call Off The Dogs

 

 

 

eBook Marketing: Include Live Contact Information in Your eBook

One of the most important things you can do in this ebook world is to provide your reader with your current contact information. I monitor over 50 authors and ebook experts blogs on a regular basis and finding their contact links is quite a challenge.

Surprisingly, I find the same problem in the current ebooks that are being published. If they do include link information, rarely is it a live link.

I feel the authors are missing a large marketing opportunity. Here are some ideas you may want to consider.

Different Products

One of the things I have been harping on for the last several years is that a traditional paper book is a different product then the ebook version, especially the pre-content information.

In fact, this information should be different between your retailers. Yes, you should have a different version of your ebook for each vendor. Whether it is Amazon or Barnes and Noble or Smashwords, they should have a different version of the ebook. Not the story or the major content but the front end of the ebook.

In other words, the ebook should not be just a copy of the paper version.

Contact Page

An easy way to keep in touch with your reader is to include a Contact Page in the front of the ebook. You know, one the reader can use to access your major contact points. The continuing communications with your followers should be a major part of your marketing effort.

Here is an example of the one I have in my novel, “Call Off The Dogs.”

Your Ebook can be updated

Your ebook lives on the fast moving Internet. Internet addresses and links included in ebooks will change and new communication points will definitely come along. In fact with the long life of an ebook, it is a reality. Wait a minute. Your ebook can be updated anytime you want. Just make the change and re-publish.

In contrast, once the paper book hits the shelves, any link to the Internet is cast in concrete. That’s not the case with your ebook.

Ask for a review, twice

You might ask me the following question after looking at the example above. I see a link to help my reader enter a review of my ebook. What is that all about?

You should give your reader easy access to your buy page to let them review your book. Just include it on your contact page.

Once the buy is done, most readers don’t go back to the buy page. Add this link to the contact information in the front of your book. Give them an easy way to write about your ebook.

To top it all off, ask them again for a review at the end of your ebook.

In a lot of cases, authors are still not providing live links to the outside world to help the readers keep in touch.

Don’t miss this marketing opportunity. Keep your contact information up-to-date in all your ebooks. It is just an upload away.

What do you think about adding a Contact Page to the front of your ebook? Will publishers buy into this concept? Have I missed anything you would like to add to the Contact Page?

Follow Me on Twitter: @jimhbs

Or EMAIL at: jim@jamesmoushon.com

Or visit my blog: The eBook Author Corner

Check out my Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call Off The Dogs

NOTE: The examples in this blog are displayed as an image (to keep borders to resemble a book page) and do not have live link to accommodate the blogging software.

Indie Authors: Your Copyright Page Needs Work

One of the first things an indie author should realize is that the printed version of their book does not have the same content as the ebook version and the differences start right in the front of the book.

 

It starts with the Copyright Page.

The first area that jumps out is the copyright page should be different. In fact, the copyright page should be different between the various ebook versions, i.e. Amazon vs. Barnes and Noble vs. Smashwords, etc.

After reviewing a couple dozen recent ebooks from indie authors, the first item that should be added to the copyright page is the paper source of the ebook. Not having that information now doesn’t seem to be a major problem. But ask me that question in three years when I still have that same ebook on my e-reader and the hardcover book has a new edition. This could be a major problem with non-fiction ebooks. Not so much with fiction.

Amazon has seen the need to add the source information in their on-line product description to help. They have added a line: Page Number Source ISBN. But the ebooks that I reviewed didn’t have a clue to the original source document.

Here is where the train leaves the tracks. With the missing source information, there was no indication where the book’s content originated from or how we got to the digital format.

Certain information is required.

Somebody must have missed the memo about what information is required and what format the information should be presented in because we had a wide variety of formats and information, to say the least. Almost none of them matched.

The copyright page should have the basics. They should have the copyright notice, the Publisher and publishing information, a disclaimer, the edition data, the Library of Congress information and the ISBN.

Although it is not required, some gave credit to the basic book formatting and design people. Things like cover photograph, cover image/art, interior design and edited by information.

The ebooks did have some direct information about the ebook. One had ‘First Kindle Edition’. Another said ‘Epub edition © with a date and eISBN 978- number’.

I don’t know if ‘eISBN’ is official but its meaning is obvious. One ebook even had ‘Mobipocket reader format’ mentioned.

Only one of the ebooks had any information at all about the source. (“Simon & Schuster hardcover edition June 2010”) Maybe it should have included the ISBN of the paper version.

Adding more information to the ebook copyright page goes along with the same concept we use for an accurate bibliography, footnotes and appendix.

Here is My Wish List.

We are missing the boat with the copyright page. It’s like seeing Original Source: Undisclosed on the copyright page. That just doesn’t work. The ebook is a different product than the paper version. We need to provide more information.

 1.      We need the ISBN number and the hardcover edition on the copyright page like Amazon is providing on their ebook Product Production page. Of course, they are including this to help sync the page numbers with the hard copy but it should have been required in an ebook by publishers before Amazon added the feature.

2.      We need different copyright pages for each version of an ebook. We need a unique copyright page for the Kindle, Nook and Kobo, etc. Smashwords has its own copyright page format which is the same with each version (epub, mobi, txt, etc.) they sell. I don’t know whether that is good enough in the long run.

3.      I would like to see a reference on the copyright page about the ebook conversion process used. Is this an ebook only version? Is the source document from the original book’s source file or was it a scanned /OCR version to a digital file. This will give the reader some idea of the accuracy of the conversion.

4.      If you have web addresses and contact information on this page, the links should be live links. Make it easy for readers to form a relationship with you by taking advantage of the opportunity to get the information to them. Never pass up a chance to keep in touch with your reader base. Remember unlike the traditional book that is cast in stone, the eBook can be edited easily and republished if the upfront information changes.

Here are two examples that I found.

Kindle Version

Original Source: How to Create Copyright Pages Right – by Jim Satire

Hardcover Edition March 2011 (ISBN: 978-9-9999-9999-8)
Kindle Edition – 1.5.1 – Build 11/7/2011
Original Process: Direct from Digital Source File
Created by: Amazon DTP
Conversion Services by: HBSystems Publications
Rendered by: James Moushon

Nook Version

Original Source: How to Create Copyright Pages Right – by Jim Satire
Hardcover Edition March 2011 (ISBN: 978-9-9999-9999-9)
Nook Edition – 1.6.1 – Build 11/23/2011
Original Process: Direct from Digital Source File
Created by: BN Pubit
Conversion Services by: HBSystems Publications
Rendered by: James Moushon

Traditional publishers and self-publishers are responsible for this additional information. Sometimes publishers get caught up in trying to get the ebook out the door at the lowest cost rather than doing their own due-diligence. The Indie author does not have that luxury. You must stay out in front of this information and marketing opportunity.

Your ebook can’t be just a copy of the hardcover. It all starts with the copyright page and the definition of the sources of the ebook. Right now it appears that this is missing information in most ebooks.

 

A Great Source of Information on this is from Joel Friedlander

Joel is an expert in this area. He blogged ‘Self-Publishing Basics: The Copyright Page’.

Use it as a starting point.

Are you including this information in your ebook? Does the Indie publisher have the responsibility to provide this information to the reader?

View my website: James Moushon – Mystery Writer

Or EMAIL at: jim@jamesmoushon.com

Follow Me on Twitter

Check out my Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call Off The Dogs

 

My next blog will discuss your ebook and the Contact Information Page that should be added.

Library eBooks: Is the eBook Ecosystem affected by the Amazon Library Lending Process?

My usual blogging direction is toward the ebook author and the self-publishing world. With this blog I take a left turn and explore the Amazon Library Lending Process and how it affects the ebook ecosystem.

The Jungle

The Inhabitants

In the ebook jungle, the traditional publishers are indeed the king of beasts. They control the prices and the access to the ebooks. Even the authors who create the content have little say. If publishers don’t want you to borrow one of their titles, you can’t. If they want you to wait for a title, you wait.

The next level of control is Amazon. They play the leopard’s role in this habitat. No matter how you look at the lending program, all paths out lead to their sales pages. I don’t see them changing their spots, ever.

Then there is Overdrive. They are the facilitator in this process. They feed you directly into the lion’s den.

The hunters in this jungle are the readers. They get to borrow what is put on the table. It is not their choice what is available. The decisions are made by the control groups.

The Problems

For something that was highly sought, library ebook lending has some major problems. I guess we thought that the ebook library process would mirror the decades-old tradition of libraries and their lending practices. You know the days when the library purchased a book from any source and placed it on the shelf.

For sure, problems with the new process are swirling around the blogosphere like a down pour in the rain forest. Let’s check in on a couple of the more popular discussions.

Privacy of Information

There is a lot of discussion about Amazon using the library lending process to more accurately profile our wants and habits and using that information to sell more products. I think it is the penalty we have to pay to get a free copy to read. Amazon’s incentive is to get you to buy something but this concept is everywhere? If I am not going to buy a $14.99 ebook, all the marketing in the world is not going to change my mind. There are some great discussions on this topic and I see merit in both sides of the argument. (Check references listed below.)

Of all the bantering and opinions about how to solve the privacy problem, the most absurd is to just pirate the ebook file, put it on the Internet and let everybody share in the free copy. Didn’t this happen in the music business? I wonder if those folks are out of jail yet?

Or I could pay cash for a hardcover book and avoid security cameras.

All I know is when I go to the grocery store and start shopping, I have a list of needs but I am also looking for discounted items I can buy with my shopper’s card. Today I found some hotdogs on sale. Because I am a hotdog kind of guy, I purchased a couple extra packages.

Then I headed to the checkout. I have several alternatives. I can give the checker my shopper’s card, get my discount but give up my personal information and buying habits. Or I can have the checker process my order without my card, lose the discount and save my privacy.

And I have another alternative. I could use the pirates’ method and walk straight out the door, saving my privacy and getting my groceries free.

Checkout limits

This is an old business concept called a ‘click charge’. That is the payment for incremental usage of an item. In the Libraries’ version, the ‘clicks’ or checkouts are paid for in advance.

The ‘click charge’ concept in the digital world was tried in the 1990’s when businesses started converting their paper forms to electronic forms. Several software development companies created e-forms design software to assist companies in the conversion.

Once the process started and the software companies saw how popular digital forms were going to be and how much money businesses were saving on the e-forms, they decided they wanted more than just the money for the design software. They wanted a fee for each form designed. This was called a ‘click charge’. They sold a license for blocks of forms (usually 50 or 100 at a time). Once a company surpassed their block, they had to pay for a new batch.

Companies didn’t go for this very long. They looked for other alternatives. Eventually application software companies added e-forms to their systems. Now e-forms design software, with no extra fee, is everywhere.

By the way, the original e-form design companies are no longer in business. New ideas and competition drove them somewhere else.

Expansion of the Audience

With the low price point of the new Kindles there is a potential of three times as many patrons demanding to checkout ebooks. And it will get worse. In November, there will be a ‘Kindle Fire’ in the jungle. Because of the expanded audience and the way copy access is handled, Nook will take a direct hit on this one. Once free to roam the collections, Nook users will now compete with the Kindle users. This should deeply impact the library budgets, their collections and availability.

A quick look at my libraries’ James Patterson’s collection shows 718 access copies with only 36 copies available or 5 percent. Only one title is available that was published since 2009. With these stats many people move on to something else. They either select something else in the library catalog or because they have their Kindle in their hands, they just buy it. Amazon’s motive, I am sure.

Survival

As long as we have unlimited checkouts, the library must encourage early RETURNS.

The Principle of Maximizing Library Returns states that in the library lending process, returning one book earlier than the  loan expiration date, while keeping the titles available constant and with no checkout limit, will at some point yield a monetary return to the library.

Of course, all ebooks will never be checked out at one time but popular ebook titles will almost always create a waiting list. On hold, if you will.

So does the library buy access to more copies of the popular title or do they let their patrons wait for the title to be available? Trust me the wait can be very long.

So what happens when the reader is done with the title and returns it early? The next reader in the hold line has the opportunity to check the ebook out. If this happens often enough, the need for the library to purchase access to another copy of the ebook diminishes.

Let’s take a quick look at one title to illustrate the point.

Don’t Blink x James Patterson

There are Only 4 ebook access copies in my library’s collection.

There are 71 patrons on the waiting list. At the rate of a full 14 day checkout, it will take 248.5 days to meet the demand. If the ebook was returned early, let’s say 5 days, the wait decreases to 88.75 days. (Still a three month wait.)

A better scenario would be to purchase 6 more copies (about $60.00) and encourage early returns. A 5 day return would bring the demand down to a 35 day wait.                                                       

Click Charge Strategy

If the publishers elect to impose a checkout limit, then the libraries must modify their strategy. In a way it makes the process simpler. Just buy short and adjust up.

Maybe you could test this now with HarperCollins. Only buy one copy of a title. If you see a hold list developing, buy another. With this strategy at least you won’t get caught holding 10 copies of a title with no activity.

Managing your digital collection will be the key to handling ‘click charges’ and reordering.

I wouldn’t boycott but I would not embrace the limit system either. Just adjust your buying model and limit the bad apples. Libraries do have the final say on which ebooks they purchase access too.

Living in Harmony

So what does this mean to the ebook ecosystem? I do know the natives are getting restless. As new technology and software enter the ecosystem, the pressure on libraries to keep up will grow dramatically.

I believe that ‘Returns’ are a key for libraries to maximize their investment in their collections. The less days an ebook is on loan, the greater the opportunity for the library to not buy access to an additional copy. The patrons need an incentive to return the ebooks early.

In the end we need a new animal in the ecosystem. Competition could solve some of the problems. Whether it comes from Google or 3M or another player we need more choices. Maybe we are looking at Smashwords entering the lending business or Amazon themselves. They have access to the content and their selection should be much greater.

Library access to a source of self-published authors and their works at discounted pricing could help patrons get exposure to new writers and relieve some of the pressure from the Overdrive lending system we are seeing currently.

What are your thoughts?

What can we do to encourage patrons to return ebooks early?

Will libraries have to change the way they manage their collections?
Is the ebook lending privacy issue a major problem or our current way of life?
Will libraries ever be able to purchase a copy of an ebook, place it on their server and have unlimited distribution to their patrons, like they do hardcovers?

References

eBook Authors: Is the New Kindle Library Lending Program a New Opportunity for Self-Publishers? by James Moushon

Publishing Industry Forces OverDrive and Other Library eBook Vendors to Take a Giant Step Back from the blog Librarian by Day by Bobbi NewmanBottom of Form

Libraries Got Screwed by Amazon and Overdrive from the blog Librarian in Black by Sarah Houghton

Lessons For the eBook Industry – Study the E-Forms Industry Beginning by James Moushon

A Helping Hand

I need to thank Brenda Brown from the Chandler, Arizona Public Library. She helped me to be able to ‘see the forest for the trees’. Sometimes I get involved in the details and I don’t see the whole picture.

View my website: HBSystems Publications
Specializing in the ebook experience

Or EMAIL at: jrm@hbspub.com

LinkedIn Profile: James Moushon

Author: Call Off The Dogs, a rendered eBook

CIA Agent Jonathon Stone
discovers another shooter in
the Kennedy Assassination

eBook Authors: Render Thy eBook or Miss The Boat

I am a non-fiction and technical book reader at heart. Lately I have become addicted to ebooks. I like the ability to get the ebook anytime and anywhere and read it anytime I want. Recently a historical fiction hardcover book was passed to me. A book about Elizabeth 1 of England and the period in history called the Tudor dynasty.

Sometimes I like to read a good historical fiction novel and this turned out to be a good one. After I was about half way through the novel, the analytical part of me took over. This hardcover book was the ideal candidate for an ebook.

It was large and heavy. It was over 670 pages and weighed in at almost two and a half pounds.

I put down the book. I needed to see how this book appeared as an ebook. Online I went and seconds later the same book was on my Kindle. No expense spared for my blogs.

As a side note the Kindle version was $14.99. Ouch!

I started a comparison of the hardcover and the ebook. I wanted to find out what the publisher had done in the way of creating the ebook. They had made it digital okay. They did add a linked table of contents and they did put a link to their website. That was it.

The potential for so much more was there. What could they have done to make this a real ebook not just a copy of a hardcover book?

Rendering

Right up front they missed the opportunity when they listed the author’s credits. They listed several of the author’s books with no links to a buy page. I guess they wanted me to go to the Internet and search for the other books, if I was interested. There I had the purchasing device in my hands and they missed the opportunity.

Next there was no mention of a website for the author or even better a link to that site to get the reader hooked on the author’s books. Now mind you this was not an older book that the publisher was just getting around to digitizing. This was a brand new release. I went back to the hardcover and that information was missing there also. Finally they got it right on the dust cover. There it was. A web address for the author.

The cover was not included in the ebook, just a title page. I don’t understand that one.

There were many historical characters referenced whose names I recognized like Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Drake and Shakespeare. Some I had never heard of like Robert Dudley, one of the main characters in the story and in English history. This was a great opportunity to have some information in the appendix about him and many of the other fringe characters. Not done.

I am one of those readers that always is looking back in the book to try to keep up with the story. In-book links added in the rendering process can help the reader with this problem especially with a book of this size. Sorry no effort here.

How about a family tree of the Tudor dynasty? Or some background on the Spanish Armanda? Or some pictures of some of the characters? Wikipedia has some great pictures of Elizabeth and her followers. I can think of lots of things I could do to make this a real ebook.

This book is a great read but there is little or no effort made to make it a real good ebook. If you’re going to read this book while you are traveling, you definitely want the ebook version. It is not a book that you want to read on your cell phone or blackberry. So why not go further than just a copy?

By the way for you ebook reading buffs, I am 54% done with the hardcover version. eBook Authors, you are taking notes aren’t you?

Good Examples of Rendering

First I would like to highlight a good example of how an author can use the power of in-book links during the rendering process. Bloody Omaha by biographer Garry M. Graves is a rendered ebook. His ebook had 39 pictures and illustrations in which he needed to give credit to the sources. Instead of interrupting the reading process, he linked the picture’s titles to a credit note in the appendix of the ebook. If the reader wanted to know the source of the picture, the information was just a click away.

Another example is my novel, Call Off the Dogs, a story about the Assassination of President Kennedy. This is a rendered ebook with in-book links to various terms, location descriptions and color pictures to assist the reader in enjoying and understanding the content. That additional information is also held in the appendix of the ebook so it doesn’t interrupt the reading flow.

Another example of rendering to improve the ebook experience is the use of links in Travel Guide ebooks. So many times the ebook Guides don’t have quality links to important information. Again most of the Guides I have read are just copies of the hardcover version.

Missing the Boat

I think we are missing the boat here. Not only traditional publishers but self-publishers are falling into the same trap. Let’s get the printed version out there and follow up with a copy in an ebook format. No wonder the indie authors/publishers are getting a bad rap. And the traditional publishers must feel like that with little or no effort they can add to their bottom line.

We need to do something here. What are your ideas? Do you think new ebook author can take advantage of the ebook technology? Is a copy of the original hardcover version good enough?

Related blogs:

eBook Authors: Render Your eBooks

eBook Authors: Use The Power of Links

A Bloody eBook Conversion Project

Ebook Authors: Travel Guides are the Ultimate eBooks

View my website: HBSystems Publications

Or EMAIL at: jrm@hbspub.com

Or goto my blog: The eBook Author Corner

Author: Call Off The Dogs, a rendered ebook

LinkedIn Profile: James Moushon

eBook Authors: Render Your eBooks

Rendered eBooks
The eBook Author has the opportunity to add to the reading experience. The eBook conversion process must be much more than converting a paper book to a digital format. It must take advantage of the power of the electronic reader.

The eBook author is defined as an author who is writing directly to the eBook platform. You can read more about this concept in my blog: eBook Author: New Breed of Author.

As an author, you must think about the reader and what he can do with the added features the eBook allows him to use. You must add to your content something of value for your readers.

You should include in-book links to help the reader enjoy the content. The eBook’s advanced features should be exploited. And you should think about the future of the eBook and the software and devices and plan for the changes in your research and writing.

Your eBook must be more than just a copy of a paper book. You must render your eBook to set the content apart from the paper version.

Think about the reader
The eBook author should think about the reader when he is rendering his eBook. The object is to improve the eBook reading experience.

Picture the reader of a paper book and some of the things they do while they are reading. Let’s explore the practice of Read back.

Read back is the action of the reader to go back through the content to look up information. The eBook can make this practice an easy and quick process.

I am a typical reader and some of the things I would like to be able to do while I am reading are: (I have included the rendered eBook solution.)

1. Read back: I would like to look up the definition of a word or a term.
Render: This is addressed directly by the e-reader’s dictionary and encyclopedia if it is a common word.

2. Read back: I would like to look up the definition of a word or term coined by the author or that is not in the standard dictionary.
Render: You can supply information in the appendix and link to it using bookmarks. (see the in-book link section below)

3. Read back: I would like to see pictures of people, buildings and objects that I am reading about.
Render: As an eBook author, you can easily insert jpg files into the content during the rendering process and link to them.

4. Read back: I would like to actually see the locations that are referenced in the content.
Render: You can enclose Google Maps or better yet Google Earth snapshots. Just give them credit.

5. Read back: I would like to see an easy-to-access character tree.
Render: This is important if the eBook is large and has marginal characters that are revisited throughout the eBook.

6. Read back: Sometimes I would like a calendar of events so that I can keep track of where I am in the story.
Render: You can render a filled in calendar to support the reader.

As an eBook author, you can easily provide the reader these items by using the power of the e-reader’s links.

Use in-book links
In my eBook, Call Off the Dogs, I used four types of in-book links. In-book links are used to move the reader to content that is not online (no need to be connected to the Internet) but is included in the books appendix area.

The in-book links have an advantage because they do not interrupt the reader’s train of thought. This is important especially if the eBook is fiction. I have included Internet links to the example below for your reference.

The first type of in-book links I used were links which I called eBook Gems. The gems are terms I invented as part of the story.

For example, the main character, CIA agent Jonathon Stone, used a device to scan for bugs, GPS locators and bomb residue. It was called a waffle scanner(follow the link to view the description) because of the texture of the back of the device. Well this was a figment of my imagination so I inserted in the content a quick symbol link for the reader to view a broader description of the device. The reader just clicked on the symbol and reviewed the information. Then he pressed the Back button and continued reading.

The second type of in-book links were brief definitions from Wikipedia. The reader could click on an underlined link and view a short summary of the topic. (You need to give credit to Wikipedia to use this feature – see their guidelines on their site.)

For example, one of the locations used in the novel was Belmont Shore, California. (follow the link to view the definition and the credit statement) I enclosed a brief description from Wikipedia about the location and the area around Belmont Shore to inform the reader.

The third type of in-book link was a link to a map from Google Earth which showed the location of part of the story. (Again you need to give credit to Google Earth to use this feature – see their guidelines on their site.)

For example, Call Off the Dogs, is a novel about the Assassination of President Kennedy. It discusses Dealey Plaza (follow the link to view an aerial map) in Dallas where the assassination took place. I captured an aerial view of the plaza and inserted building references so the reader could visualize the scene.

The fourth type of in-book link was the insertion of a picture of an object to assist the reader in the visualization of the content. A digital picture (jpg file) was quickly added to the appendix and linked so the reader could view it.

For example, one of the objects in Call Off the Dogs was a reference to a Wild Hog Trophy. (follow the link to view the digital picture)

Also, I have included extra information to help explain the in-book concept. Follow the next link to the reader reference material in Call Off the Dogs. The section in the eBook was entitled the eBook Experience Notes.

Think to the future
I am sure authors will start to render their back-list titles to add value to their writing. Although it is time consuming, the information gathering process for rendering can be incorporated in the research of your eBook.

I wrote Call Off the Dogs in MS-Word and put my research notes at the back of the document. When I was done with my first draft, I started adding bookmarks to the important items. That made the in-book link part of the rendering easy.

Enhanced eBooks are coming. We are starting to see them appear in selected books on the iPad. They include maps, graphs, pictures and video. Author information is expanded to give the reader an insight into the author’s thinking process.

As other e-reader devices come up to speed with their software and hardware, enhanced eBooks will one day be commonplace.

eBook Rendering is coming
But for now, rendering the standard eBook would greatly improve the eBook experience. The eBook author is the key. Remember you are in the creativity business. Rendering is an opportunity to set you apart from the traditional author.

I encourage comments and feedback on this. I believe this is an important concept.

Book Information
Call Off The Dogs
By: James Moushon
Published By: November 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4507-4529-1 ASIN:B004AYCTI8
Available at Amazon in eBook Format
Genre: Fiction, Alternative History

Coming Soon on this blog:
Lessons For the eBook Industry – Study the E-Forms Industry Beginning- a CASE STUDY
This post will discuss the highlights from a case study I have written about the parallel of the eBook Industry and its transition from paper to digital to the beginning of the Electronic Forms Industry in the 1990’s.

This post originated from HBSystems Publications.
Posted by James Moushon

Or better yet subscribe to this blog and get all sorts of information that will assist you in becoming an eBook Author.

To contact me directly, mailto: jrm@hbspub.com