The eBook Revolution

In 1999, eBooks flopped badly.  There were no stable digital platforms on which to read books.  A lot has changed since then.  We now have the Kindle, Nook, the Sony Reader, iPad, Kobo, and mobile devices of all kinds.  Authors, new and established, are tapping into the digital market, and any book published by a mainstream or indie press will also make the work available in e-format.  I personally still love paper and ink books because I like the heft and the smell of a book.  I like to hold it in my hand and turn the pages.

But time moves on.  People such as Amanda Hocking, Joe Konrath, and Karen McQuestion are showing that writers can bypass conventional mainstream presses and literary representation and still make money--millions, in some instances--on their eBooks.  Most eBooks, of course, are poorly written and sell very few copies.  The average sale for self-published books--eBook or POD--is 148 copies.

I have predicted for years that the literary marketplace would jump the riverbank--that Literary Chaos Theory would prevail.  In other words, the New York publishing establishment was only going to be able to hold the status quo for so long.  It's a brave new world in publishing, and now is the time when people can make both careers and fortunes, assuming they are great writers.  Mainstream publishers are scrambling to appropriate the new technology, but at present, people are able to self-;publish through dozens of different avenues.  It's going to be a wild ride for the foreseeable future. 

~ William Hammett

Index of Articles

Believe in Your Work
Children's Nonfiction: It's Now More Popular
The Craft of Writing
Daily Transit Public Ridership
The eBook Revolution
Fifty Shades of Boring
George Clayton Johnson: Fictioneer by Vivien Kooper
Ghostwriting: The Decline of Professionalism
How Long Does It Take to Write a Novel?
Is Journal Writing Worth the Effort?
Literary Agents
Kindle Direct Publishing (Select)
The Novella is Back and Thriving
Print-on-Demand
Promoting Your Book
The Quest for Literary Representation
The Rewards of Being a Writer
Short Fiction
Smashwords
What Is Developmental Editing
Why Do People Write?
Writing Celebrity Memoirs
Writing a Novel
Writing as a Full-time Job
Writing as a Mystical Process
You Own the Copyright to Your Literary Property
Zen in the Art of Writing