Supply and Demand

At my day job, one of my functions is entering the freight received that day into the computer so the tires will be available to be sold to our many customers, which include every tire shop through half the state of Missouri, and half the state of Kansas.  As I was doing this I think about certain types and sizes that even though we order hundreds from the manufacturer, we only get say 10 of that tire in.  The laws of supply and demand come to mind from any basic business or marketing book.

As I endeavor to be a stay at home, full time author, and at least keeping my standard of living close to what it currently is or hopefully better, I consider how the laws of supply and demand are changing with the creation of the E-book.

With traditional publishing they each have their own marketing, wholesale and retail outlets through which they move their products, their authors' books, through.  Depending on the deal made with the particular author it will be paperbacks, hardbacks, and now the additional medium of the e-book.  Generally an initial printing run quantity would be established to start and hopefully as supply dwindles and demand maintains or increases there would be further runs or different editions of the same said book.  Those real books take up real space, have to be inventoried, and when the demand runs low the supply of the book will stop.  Then that's it.  What is out there is out there for people to buy, sell, trade, horde, or sit on book shelves of stores and libraries.

With an E-book there is no physical book, no inventory, and the supply is inexhaustible!  It will be there until the lights go off and there are no more computers, phones, I-pads, etc.  Which for everybody we hope never happens at least not in our life time.  Whether demand is high or low they are there and available.

The interesting part is that old books are being scanned and entered into places for purchase or free through your e-reading device of choice.  Books you would never be able to actually get your hands on except through researching libraries, E-Bay, or Amazon that would be coming from someone else's collection.  If you could get them they will cost, plus shipping or have to be returned to the library that found it for you.  The E-book version you can easily keep with you forever in your virtual library!

With the shift in people skipping the traditional publishing step, except maybe through using Createspace, where they make the book as you order it and ship it out as copies are sold.  This is a very environmentally clean way to make and sell books by the way.  Anyway with people skipping the publishers, all these books will not end up in book stores.  There will not be copies going to libraries of old.  For the book stores and libraries that don't follow and change with the times by getting books and making them available as E-books to their customers they too will diminish along with their publishing house counterparts.

As far as Createspace is concerned.  I was slow to get involved with it and was kind of drug into it by my Editor.  I really wanted to read all I could about it and get more comfortable with the idea and concept and see what was involved.  It reminds me of being a kid visiting a lake for the first time.  Who kind of knows how to swim, has been in a pool before but has never swam in a lake before.  This kid is standing on the dock and checking it out, thinking about it, but not getting any closer to getting in the water.  Along comes the bigger kid and pushes the other kid off the dock and into the water.  You're shocked, you panic a touch, but when you realize you're not drowning, and the water is really nice.  When you get that first paperback copy of the book in your hand, you realize everything is going to be all right.

This is reason number one million and something I love my big bad mean Editor!!  I have 11 copies of my first book being shipped to me right now.  Six copies for my parents, all of which I have to sign for other family members, or their friends.  Four our mine, three for my children, one for my book shelf.  One a guy at work just paid me cash for and asked that I sign it for him when it comes in.  OMG!  I get to sign copies of my book for people!!  If that doesn't help make you feel like an author nothing will.  My wonderful Editor threw me into this.  I have hopefully repeated the process with my second book.  The proof is on the way for me to review.  654 pages worth of late nights, writing, fixing mistakes, re-writing.  Thank You, Jo Murphey.

Oh Yeah, Jo writes also!  Her newest book just launched yesterday!! 

http://jomurphey.blogspot.com/   Check out her blog, especially if you need an editor and want to get serious about becoming an author.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/79723    Her Newest Book!!

Zombie Apocalypse:Redemption

I have to be honest I usually don't read Horror, and I understand Jo isn't a big fan of horror either.  Yet she has written a book which I have read and it scared the hell out of me with the lights on in the middle of the day.  Very scary.  I will definitely read more of this Horror if she writes a sequel to it!!  Please check it out!!

One final note, If anybody reading my blog posts from Germany ends up going to Amazon DE and purchasing one of my books please come back and leave your name as a comment to one of my posts!!

You will be an instant hero of mine.  I have sold books in America, and in the Great Britain but not one book on Amazon DE.  I know Germans read they are some of the most intelligent people on the planet.  I know people from Germany are looking at my posts because it tells what country people are from who drop by.  Zepplins and Volkswagons, just to name two of the greatest things of all time!!!  If it's because my books aren't up to German standards or that I love Volkswagons over Porches, which I am aware they are the same, kind of, I won't tell anybody who bought my book from there. 

The hell I won't, I am going to buy a soda pop and dance a scottish gig, when I sell one there and will do a post about selling a single book and tell everybody who bought it!

Posted in: Supply Demand Zombies E-books