I heard an interesting
interview with
Cory Doctorow about self-publishing on NPR's
All Tech Considered today. Some of the things he does to step outside the box of a traditional publisher:
- publishes his work online using a Creative Commons license
- uses Facebook and Twitter to build an audience
- creates an online community to edit for typos and give tips on packaging and shipping
- sells copies at traditional book stores
- provides print-on-demand with Lulu, four different covers
- gives attribution to readers if they fix a typo, providing their name in a footnote
- solicits donations
- sells limited-edition hardcovers, hand-sewn, with an SD card audio book and extra material bound into the book
- sells audio CDs
- sells stories for a commission on a mutually-agreeable subject
- supplements his income with deals to write a novel
Doctrow states that he will make as much money, or more, as he would with a traditional publisher for his short story collections. He thinks he will net $70,000 to $80,000 on his new book of short stories.
