Harlequin Enters the Self-Publishing Field
Fresh when it gets here from
Julie Barrett
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Yesterday Harlequin unveiled a new self-publishing venture called Harlequin Horizons.
This is a partnership with Author Solutions, parent of AuthorHouse,
Xlibris, iUniverse, and other ventures. The press release announcing
the new venture is here.
This announcement has generated a lot of discussion, some of which I'll
round up at the end of the post. One of he most interesting is over at Dear Author, where Harlequin's Malle Vallik answers some questions about the venture.
Quoting from the press release:
Through this strategic alliance, all sales, marketing, publishing,
distribution, and book-selling services will be fulfilled by ASI, but
Harlequin Horizons will exist as a division of Harlequin Enterprises
Limited. Harlequin will monitor sales of books published through the
self-publisher for possible pickup by its traditional imprints.
Will some writers see this as an end run around the slushpile?
Digging down into the site, I see they're calling it "assisted self-publishing." At least they're up-front that you're paying them to publish your book. But I see some problems.
At the DA link above, Ms. Vallik mentioned a something that bothered me:
There are a number of reasons to select self-publishing including as a
way to see their work in print – to give copies as gifts, to have a
bound copy to help in finding an agent, or simply as a keepsake.
A bound copy for agents? I can't think of a single agent who asks for a bound copy of a manuscript.
And in the comments she added:
A writer receiving a standard reject letter will find a line included
about self publishing. The writer, if she wants, can then contact HH.
The writer will never be cold-called or contacted unless she has opted
in.
It depends on how that line is worded, I suppose. However, "not for us"
at Harlequin may be an acceptance at another publisher, depending on
the book.
So, let's see where the rubber meets the road. How much is this going to cost? Packages
start at $599 and go up to $1,599. All packages include an ISBN (but
does it belong to the author, Harlequin, or Author Solutions?), but
none except the most expensive package include copyright registration.
The charge for that: $204. You can do it yourself for as little as $35. Want your own web site?
That will be $479 plus $29 a month. The hosting company for this site
charges $10 a month. Another site I maintain is with a company that
charges about $60 a year, including domain registration. Both offer
templates.
Flip through the list of packages and extras and watch it add up.
In the end, you're paying for a book to get designed and printed - apparently with a Harlequin Horizons logo.
How much to you stand to make back? Again, Ms. Vallik from the DA comment stream:
The content is completely owned by the author. Royalties are 50% net from both eBooks and print.
From reading through her comments it's my understanding that the price
is set after consultation between the author and the publisher. How is
net defined? It may be different through various sales channels.
Standard commercial publishing contracts - even with reputable
e-presses - call for royalty on the cover price. If the net is low
enough and the sales high enough that can be a wash for the author, but
POD books are generally more expensive than offset, so an author
doesn't want to price themselves out of the market.
What can you expect for sales? First, keep in mind that YOU are
responsible for all marketing and distribution. Your book will be
available through Ingram, but who lets the bookstore know they can buy
and stock it? You. Who sends out review copies? You. Or, you can buy
those services from the publisher.
Before you start dreaming of those big royalty checks, check out this article in the New York Times in which A spokesman for Author Solutions says the average number of copies one of their titles sell is 150. Ouch.
At this point I'm not terribly convinced this is a great idea. As with
all such ventures, be sure to weigh the pros and cons (and your bank
account) before you proceed. Here are a few related blog posts you
should read:
The Dear Author article mentioned above. Please read through the comments. Breaking: Read
comment #127, a statement from the RWA stating that Harlequin is no
longer eligible for RWA-provided conference resources. Ouch.
Update (11/19 8:090 pm): Agent Kristin posted the contents of a statement from Harlequin. They'll be changing the name of the Harlequin Horizons venture to distance it from the parent company. Also, the Mystery Writers of America have published a statement. I couldn't find it on their site, but the Writer Beware Blog has posted a copy. (The MWA is now a supporter of Writer Beware.) The SFWA sent out a tweet that a statement will be forthcoming.
Update (11/19, 9:30 pm) No statement from the SFWA, but their web site now states that Harlequin is an ineligible publisher for books published after 11/2009.
Update (11/19, 10:15 pm) The SFWA has issued a statement.
(And, I can't believe that as many times as I've edited this post I never saw the typo in the line below. Mea Culpa.)
A discussion at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. (Stacia Kane has a very interesting comment published 11/17/09 @ 11:05 pm.)
Absolute Write has another interesting discussion.
Jane Smith of How Publishing Really Works (must add her to my writing links) provides some good commentary.
Victoria Strauss weighs in at Writer Beware Blogs! Spot on, as usual.
Falconesse does the math. And boy, am I impressed! (If you've been considering this venture or a similar one, please read this post.)
Two small bits of housekeeping before I go throw a ball at ten sticks of wood tonight:
I admit it: I broke the blog search functions and should be flogged
with an ASP.Net book for my sins. I'll try to get around to fixing it
tomorrow. (Update: Works now. Guess web karma bit me in the browser there, or something.)
The paperback of Two of the Deadliest hits the UK streets next Thursday. Something for me to be thankful for, at least! You can still get your very own hardcover in the US. Paperback release is scheduled for April.
Filed Under: Publishing
Filed under: Publishing
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