Learn the 10 publishing industry trends that will most impact the future for book authors. Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords, examines how the simultaneous rise of ebooks, self-publishing and democratized access to retailers will forever transform the publishing landscape. Learn how the power center in the publishing industry is shifting from publishers to writers, and how self-published authors now how the tools to out-sell and out-compete the big publishers. Learn why the former stigma of self-publishing has been replaced with growing pride as indie authors scale all the international bestseller lists. Meanwhile, the stigma of traditional publishing is increasing as publisher missteps cause authors to lose faith in big publishers. View the companion video of this presentation at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbT7r-DUa6M

1. 10 Trends Driving the
Future of Authorship
September, 2013
Mark Coker
Founder, Smashwords
Twitter: @markcoker

2. Notes for the Slideshare edition of this
presentation
This is the companion deck to a Smashwords video workshop
available on YouTube
Here are links to each video in this 5-part series:
#1 - An Introduction to Ebook Publishing (a primer and e-publishing checklist)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khM4czIJUVM
#2 - The Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success (best practices secrets for reaching more readers)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jnd7jYcjqm8
#3 - Smashwords Survey Helps Authors Sell More Books (pricing strategy and fun metrics)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rrl4NExo3Y
#4 - 10 Trends Driving the Future of Authorship (indie authors are the future of publishing!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbT7r-DUa6M
#5 - How to Reach More Readers at Apple iBooks (merchandising secrets to grow sales!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKwwcL_FS_c
The complete video collection is at http://www.youtube.com/user/smashwords
View more Smashwords presentations on Slideshare at
http://www.slideshare.net/Smashwords/presentations

3. About this Smashwords video
• What you’ll learn
• 10 trends driving the future of authorship
• How authors can position themselves to
benefit from the trends
• Why traditionally published authors face
increased disadvantage when competing
against indie authors
• Who this video is for
• All authors, both indie, traditional and
aspiring

4. My Backstory
(Cliff Notes version)

5. Who’s this dude talking?

6. About me
• Wrote a novel about soap operas
•
Rejected by every publisher
•
Decided publishing industry was broken
•
Realized author community deserved freedom to
publish
•
Founded Smashwords to try to change the way
books are published, marketed and sold
• Previously:
•
Founded BestCalls, an investor web site that published
earnings conference call schedules for individual
investors
•
Ran a Silicon Valley PR agency for about 20 years

7. Back to Publishing

8. The Problem:
Publishers Controlled Everything
• They controlled the …
• printing press
• distribution
• knowledge to professionally publish

9. My solution: Smashwords
• FREE eBook Publishing Platform
 Free ebook printing press
 Distribution to major ebook retailers and
libraries
 Best practices knowledge to help writers
become professional publishers

10. Ebooks published at Smashwords
250,000+
September 2013
250,000
191,000
200,000
150,000
100,000
50,000
92,000
28,800
140 6,000
0
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

11. Enough about me.
Let’s talk about your future as an author

12. WE LIVE IN UNCERTAIN TIMES

13. CHANGE BRINGS BOTH THREAT AND
OPPORTUNITY TO AUTHORS AND
PUBLISHERS

14. YOUR REACTION DETERMINES YOUR
OUTCOME

15. Let’s examine the forces of change, and
what these changes mean for your future

16. 10 TRENDS THAT WILL TRANSFORM THE
FUTURE OF PUBLISHING

17. TREND ONE:
The Rise of Ebooks

18. Screens are the new paper

19. A blast from the past: US ebook
market share in 2008
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Source: Association of American Publishers, publishers.org.

20. Ebooks as a percentage of US
wholesale trade market
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
Source: Association of American Publishers, publishers.org. 2012 Smashwords estimate

21. Ebooks to overtake print
Print books
Ebooks
Print books
Ebooks
Dollars
Units

22. Why ebooks are hot
•
Screens offer better reading experience than
paper
•
Changeable font size
•
A
B
C
D
Ebooks offer better consumption experience
•
Lower cost than print
•
Convenient sampling and purchasing
•
Huge selection

23. TREND TWO
Bookselling moving to the
Web

24. US Percentage of book purchases
made online vs B&M, Print and E-
Web
Brick &
Mortar
Today?

25. Bookselling moves to the Web
• Brick and mortar stores
disappearing
• Decline of print
• Consumer drivers:
• Price
• Convenience
• Selection
• Implications for publishers…

26. TREND THREE
Democratization of Publishing

27. Publishers Once Controlled
Publishing
• Publishers controlled the…
• Printing press
• Access to retail distribution
• The knowledge necessary for
professional publishing

28. Today, authors have free tools to
e-publish
• FREE ebook printing press
• Ebook distribution available to all
• The knowledge of professional
best practices is free and
available to all

29. Publishers losing their monopoly
• Writers no longer need publishers to
publish, distribute and sell
• Writers asking two dangerous
questions:
1. Do I need a publisher?
2. Will a publisher harm my ability to reach
readers?

30. TREND FOUR
Self Published Ebook Authors Gaining
Competitive Advantage over
Traditionally Published Authors

31. Benefits of Indie Authorship
• Indie ebook author advantages
• faster time to market
• greater creative control
• lower expenses
• better distribution to global market
• immortal ebooks never go out of print
• lower prices to consumers
• earn more per book

32. QUADRUPLE +

33. Indie Ebook Authors Earn Higher
Percentage of List Price
Indie
Traditional
60-80%
12-17%
• Indies earn more at lower prices
• At $2.99, indies earn ~$2.00. Trad. author
would have to price at $10-$15.00
• Lower price = reach more readers = more
sales at higher profits per sale
• Higher price = reach fewer readers

34. TREND FIVE
Traditionally published authors
suffering from high prices

35. Book buyers are price sensitive

36. Authors Yield Two Benefits from
Every Sale
1. Money from the sale
• Unit sales X royalty per unit = profit
1. Gain a reader
• Readers lead to more readers
 Pricing strategy essential to maximize
both

37. How Price Impacts Units Sold

38. What Price Yields the Greatest
Author Earnings?

39. TREND SIX
Print is Dead for Most SelfPublished Authors
(and will become less and less
important to traditionally published
authors)

40. Print is Dead for Most Indie
Authors
•
Most self-pubbed authors don’t have access
to brick and mortar distribution
•
Brick and mortar bookstores disappearing
•
Customers choosing low cost ebooks over
high-priced print books
•
Exceptions:
•
Face to face print sales will continue
•
Some books are meant for print (for now)
•
Specialty souvenir books sold in non-traditional
outlets

41. TREND SEVEN
Ebooks are going global

42. The Global Ebook Opportunity
•
Countries outside the US are entering the
exponential growth phase of their ebook
markets
•
Ebook retailers going global
•
•
Apple iBooks (51 countries), Amazon (~13), Kobo
(14+), B&N (US, U.K.+)
~45% of Smashwords/iBooks sales global

43. TREND EIGHT
Big NY Publishers getting into self
publishing

44. In July 2012, the parent company of
Penguin acquired Author Solutions
Author Solutions earns over 2/3 of its
income selling over-priced services to
authors
$25,000 publishing packages!
Blood sucking parasites

45. TREND NINE
The Previous Stigma of SelfPublishing is Disappearing

46. Stigmas to reverse
Aspire
Traditional
Aspire
Indie
Aspire
Indie
5 yrs ago
Today?
Future?
Aspire
Traditional

47. TREND TEN
Indie Authors Are Beginning to
Outsell Traditionally Published
Authors

48. Indies are Now Out-Publishing
Big Publishers
• Self-published ebooks scaling all
the bestseller lists
• Every week, indie ebooks in retailer
bestseller lists of every retailer
• Multiple Smashwords authors have
hit New York Times bestseller list in
the last year
• Prediction: Within three years, most
bestselling ebooks will be selfpublished ebooks

49. The Plan Forward

50. The 10 Trends Create a Future that
Benefits Self-Published
Authors
&
Disadvantages Traditionally
Published Authors

51. The Plan Forward for Writers
• You’re in charge now
• You decide when you graduate
from writer to published author
• Honor your readers
• You have the opportunity to
publish…
• Faster
• Smarter
• More profitably
• at lower prices

52. Thanks for considering the future.

53. Free Ebook Publishing Resources
•
Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success (best practices of
successful authors)
•
Smashwords Book Marketing Guide (how to market any
book)
•
Smashwords Style Guide (how to format an ebook)

54. Publish and Distribute with
Smashwords
•
Learn to publish like a pro

Join Smashwords – www.smashwords.com

Learn the best practices of professional indie e-publishing

Download and read my guides (all FREE!)


Smashwords Book Marketing Guide


Smashwords Style Guide
Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success
Watch the Smashwords videos on Youtube

Upload to Smashwords

Stay connected with your fans

Get to work on your next book!

55. Thank you for considering the
future!
Q&A
Connect with Mark Coker and Smashwords:
Web: www.smashwords.com
Blog:
blog.smashwords.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/markcoker
Facebook: facebook.com/markcoker
HuffPo: huffingtonpost.com/mark-coker
Twitter: @markcoker