When Fantasy author Brandon Sanderson smashed Kickstarter records in March 2022—earning more than $41 million over the course of his campaign, almost half of that in the first seventy-two hours—he sparked a shift in the indie author world.
Sanderson was not the first to discover the potential for crowdfunding as part of an author’s launch strategy. But beyond opening the wider public’s eyes to the support that exists behind independent publishing endeavors, his campaign also shined a spotlight for indie authors on the possible benefits of selling directly to readers.
“Direct publishing gets back to the core of indie publishing: taking the fate of you and your story babies into your own hands,” writes author Paddy Finn. Selling directly to readers requires authors maintain their own sales channels, on their websites, through crowdfunding campaigns, or at events. Often, those who host their own sales channels also have books available through distributors like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the like. But these direct outlets offer authors a faster, more intimate way to approach readers and connect with those buying their books. Because they control the sales, authors also have access to more detailed sales data. And direct sales typically result in greater profits—in a March 2023 example from Written Word Media, a direct sale of a three hundred-page, 5 × 8 inch paperback would earn the author 49 percent more than a sale on Amazon of the same title for the same price.
Selling direct isn’t without its challenges—as Finn writes, “It requires an investment of time and/or money” on the part of the author. But the freedom and flexibility it can offer individual creators, writes author Oriana Leckert, is one many will likely consider worth the cost in years to come.
“I think we’re in a thrilling moment of creative autonomy, where authors and content creators of all kinds are seizing control of every aspect of their work, from writing what they want, to building the audience they want, to producing, marketing, and distributing books in precisely the ways they want to do so,” she writes. “Authors have more avenues than ever to bring their books into the world, which I believe can only enhance the quality, quantity, and variety of creative work all across the industry.”
Finn agrees. “Direct sales is a natural evolution in the industry lifecycle,” he writes, “especially an industry built on a foundation of people who stuck it to the man. For many, direct sales is still an unknown, but that’s what makes it so beautiful! It’s like tapping into another gold vein very few have discovered … [and] those who brave the risks and stick with the process will reap the rewards of another indie publishing gold rush.”
Direct sales definitely favor
authors with large, cohesive
backlists. It takes quite a bit
of work to learn and address
the tech and taxes that come
with selling through Shopify,
WooCommerce, or the like—
and for many authors it simply
won’t be worth the time and
monetary investment.
I do think we're going to see
maybe the decline of the one
mega bookstore and the rise of
tens of thousands and hundreds
of thousands of many bookstores,
for lack of better words,
aka own author platforms. I
think that … the interesting
part of that equation is not just
a higher percentage of revenue,
but oftentimes you're able to
monetize in different ways that
leads to a literal increase in the
customer lifetime value.
I believe we are on the cusp of
a sea change surrounding how
digital assets are distributed and
sold to customers. I don't have a
(functional, yet) crystal ball, but
I would wager that in five years,
the traditional retailers will be
far less important to book sales.
In ten years, they may be largely
irrelevant as direct sales systems
mature and book advertising
improves.
Direct or direct-to-consumer [sales] is here to stay and will become a preferred choice more and more
in the industry. It will also help a lot of authors mature in the realm of business or strengthen their
perspective on business. Having more control, more return while also performing well in all the
previous retailers is ideal. I believe it’s here to stay and many who commit to figuring it out will see the
benefits of it more and more.
Publishing direct will mean
more money in the hands of
authors, instead of larger corporations.
It'll mean a deeper
connection with readers, one
where the wants and needs of
readers can be better met by
an author who is receptive to a
changing market.
Speaking as BookFunnel, direct sales for authors
is growing like crazy. What we've seen is that
most readers love their favorite authors a lot
more than they love their publisher or platform.
Whether it's via Kickstarter, Patreon, or
their own store, more authors are trying out
selling direct to readers. And, with every reader
who buys direct from an author, the whole pie
grows for all indie authors.
It may take time to change reader behaviors,
but it's already accelerating because of
how many authors are jumping into the directsales
waters.
[Consider] patronage. Artists
used to get patronaged by the
people who wanted their art.
And with writers, there was
always someone in the middle.
There was always a publisher
in the middle. And now there
doesn't have to be. So I think,
when these artists and creatives
realize they can have a direct
impact on their reader and
they don't necessarily need the
middleman, they will embrace
direct. I don't think that they're
going to want to do it themselves.
So I think that there's
going to be a community in the
industry for folks who can help
be that agent, if it were, but not
necessarily a publisher.
Authors will become even more used to being in complete control
of their product, and their marketing savvy will increase. They'll
plan to write books that are super easy to market as opposed to
writing books, then figuring out how to market the books they've
written. They'll care less about metrics like Amazon sales rank
and more about the overall health of their catalog.
I think indie publishing companies will start to look a lot
different too. The ones that nail direct sales will be a lot more
attractive to authors still wanting publishing contracts. So I
predict several more indie publishing companies will be started
by authors who have cracked the code of direct sales.
"Wide" distribution is really a misnomer meant
to convey non-exclusivity to the dominant
retailer. In reality, "wide" authors sell to just three
to five relevant customers, or retailers, rather
than just one. Both situations are quite risky
and leave authors with relatively little control
over their career growth. Authors also have very
little knowledge of who their customers actually
are because that information isn't shared
by retailers. As more authors learn how to sell
directly to their readers, bypassing the retailers
altogether, Amazon exclusivity may become less
popular. ... "Wide" just means wholesaling to
more than one distributor. I think many authors
have experienced the serious drawbacks associated
with purely wholesale channels.
Direct sales will be an extra
incentive to be non-exclusive,
but I am skeptical it will change
the industry a great deal. The
majority of readers will continue
to want to purchase and discover
books on their preferred platforms
that they are comfortable
with. The real opportunity for
authors is that ability to have
a closer relationship with their
most loyal fans. What we've seen
play out in other creator communities,
such as video streaming
and music, will continue to
grow in the book world. Savvy
authors and publishers will offer
special editions of their books,
merchandise, and more, and
their fans will love it.
Everything is "with" rather than
"instead of." So new technologies
and new opportunities open
up, it doesn't necessarily remove
the other opportunities. It just
adds to them. So selling direct is
going to add to it.
Direct publishing will be critical
to the future of any writer going
forward.
We started selling direct from
our site,ww and paperbacks,
but with the emphasis on
paperbacks. And now from our
website alone on paperbacks, we
sell hundreds of books a month.
Direct publishing gets back to the core of indie publishing: taking
the fate of you and your story babies into your own hands. Indie
publishing began with a handful of authors who refused to let
gatekeepers tell them what they could or couldn't do. In bravely
exploring uncharted territory, those early indie authors discovered
a horde of insatiable readers salivating for more books. And they
delivered what that audience wanted, paving the frontier for those
of us who followed. And as any author worth their salt knows,
"The End" is just another way of saying "Next." Direct sales is a
natural evolution in the industry life cycle.
I believe direct sales will continue
to empower authors to think
outside the box, build communities
of readers, and expand
their income streams. In return,
I think this will inspire retailers
to introduce more tools to help
match the right readers with new
authors. I also think we'll see a
lot more author collaborations
and niche communities that
will help readers find the books
and authors they're looking
for, bypassing the retailers
completely. It will be fun to see
how it plays out.
People who are very motivated
to run their own businesses will
especially love the control of
direct. But I think a lot of people
who are not built to run a big
business (with a lot of moving
parts) are going to get really
overwhelmed and struggle. And
I think some people will end up
flaming out completely in trying
to do all the things ... which
direct sales is ripe for.
While I haven’t personally delved
into direct sales yet, I think
this trend could dramatically
shift the industry. When we
as authors are no longer reliant
on any single retailer to make a
living, it opens up the door for
creativity—both in the stories
we tell and the way we run our
businesses. We’re no longer at
the point where there’s only “one
true way” to make a good living
in this industry, and direct sales
will offer even more opportunities
for us.
I love seeing more authors move to direct sales! Whether it's putting up a Google Form and taking
PayPal payments, setting up a Shopify-type store, or planning to launch a new title on Kickstarter (or
all of the above), I think the move away from relying solely on the retailer platforms is a good one. And
it will definitely have a ripple effect on the larger publishing ecosystem. While the well-beaten path
(put your e-book on Amazon, you're done) is still viable for many authors, I think the opportunity
to niche down, connect with your readers, and really get a solid ecosystem growing in a space you
control is going to be amazing for authors. We're moving back to the "smaller number of true fans"
model as a successful path to a viable career for folks who struggle for visibility in the retailer spaces. I
do think that there are people this will work brilliantly for, but I also think that plenty of authors see
good success with the retailer-platform model and will continue to stay there without branching out.
Still, direct publishing will start to erode the power of the platforms, bit by bit. I also think that new
ways of connecting with readers, like Ream, will open up new paths to success that aren't necessarily
retailer-driven. And that's super exciting and empowering.
With the future rise of AI-generated
works, I think direct sales
will only become more and more
important for authors.
For this reason, cultivating
direct sales methods and
doubling down on being human
will become a huge boon to the
authors who put in the effort to
do it. Direct relationships are
going to matter more than ever.
Direct sales [are] a relationship,
and many of those fans can be
served with knowledge and love
for your book that they carry to
those other, more traditional platforms.
They want their favorite
author to succeed, and when
they buy an early release copy,
they proudly leave a review and
boast about being in the fan club
that gave them early access. As
more authors adopt direct sales,
realizing the investment is worth
the reward, it starts moving the
needle back to the reader as the
author's customer, not the storefront's
customer.
I think we’re in a thrilling moment of creative
autonomy, where authors and content creators of
all kinds are seizing control of every aspect of their
work, from writing what they want, to building
the audience they want, to producing, marketing,
and distributing books in precisely the ways they
want to do so. I believe this will continue the
trend of fragmented creative spaces, where authors
gather smaller but more passionate communities
of readers around them, forging closer relationships
with their audiences, often inviting these
supporters to participate in shaping their creative
output. Authors have more avenues than ever to
bring their books into the world, which I believe
can only enhance the quality, quantity, and variety
of creative work all across the industry
Most sales are still going to be
made on the big sites, which
means that’s where most book
revenue will continue to be
generated. But there’s room for
even a casual author to set up
a fairly self-sustaining website
with sales hookups. It might
start off very slowly, but there’s
room for this to grow.
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