Why Indie Publishing is Hotter than the Big 5

In the past, if you wanted your book on the shelf in major book stores, in other words Barnes and Nobles, if that was the best way for you to sell your particular book, then it was advantageous to go with the Big 5.

The conglomerates who controlled the publishing industry for a long time are:

1. Hachette

2. Macmillan

3. HarperCollins

4. Simon & Schuster

5. Penguin Random House

Also known as the Big 5.

However, in order for a writer to benefit from having books on the shelf at Barnes and Nobles, there has to be a Barnes and Nobles for their readers to go to in their area. There are fewer Barnes and Nobles with many having closed. However, since they were bought on June 7, 2019, hopefully at least the stores that are still open will stay open.

Independent Bookstores, unlike Barnes and Nobles, will shelf indie books and also order them at their customer’s requests. You don’t have to be published by the Big 5 to get your book in an indie bookstore though you may have to use Ingram Sparks as at least one of your distributors, but that’s no problem.

If customers are shopping on line and comparing books from Indie Authors to those published by the Big 5, the greatest difference the readers find is pricing. For those that think competitive prices don’t matter, keep in mind that if the publisher is pricing your books at a cost that readers won’t pay then you won’t sell books. That matters.

Many readers of late are making negative comments about incredibly expensive books. If readers think the books from the Big 5 are too high, they’ll try lower priced but top-quality indie books. If they find they like them just as much, they’ll buy them instead of your Big 5 published book. This is happening now. This practice will increase among readers.

As far as statements that some people make of Indie authors being less than Big 5 authors, keep in mind that many indie authors are award winners, and many are also on the NY Times Best Selling List. A lot of them used to be with publishers but out of preference began to Indie Pub their books.

Also, readers just want good books. They don’t care or even usually understand who publishes them. Readers care about quality and price. Writing is hard and takes a long time and books definitely shouldn’t be priced too cheaply but prices of $10 - $20 – even $30 more than most indie books is considered by the majority of readers to be too high. I can certainly understand why. Honestly, that is an excessive mark up. But, it’s not the authors doing it’s the publishers. Big 5 authors have no control of pricing. However, Indie Authors have control of their prices and discounts.

Please don’t be quick to dismiss Indie Authors and Indie publishing as being less than Big 5 publishing, Keep the above facts in mind and make your choice based on what is truly best for you and the book you’ve written. There are some exceptions but for most authors it is advantageous to Indie publish rather than with the Big 5.

As for me I have worked with 5 publishers all together. A couple of years ago, when I got all my rights back, I decided to indie pub all 36 of my books. And I have never regretted that decision.

I offer indie-publishing consultation and ghostwriting services as well. http://CorneliaAmiri.com