HOW MUCH DO I CHARGE FOR MY NOVEL?
$0.99?
$99.99?
$999.99?
$999,999.99?
So here I was
with this dilemma.
A couple of weeks ago, I
launched my novel ‘Deconstructing INFATUATION’ in paperback, and as a
self-published author—do-it-all-by-yourself, doncha
know?—, I had not a publishing house making all the decisions, like a commander-in-chief.
So, after the
long walk alone, I was touched by having a sample of my book in my hands. I stroked it, smelled it, and embraced it. No, I did not kiss it but almost.
Above all, I looked backward, thinking that I was proud of myself. And although
once I thought it was difficult, if not impossible, to achieve it, it had
already came true. As Paulo Coelho says, ‘When
you want something, Universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.’ It
felt satisfying, but the process had not arrived to the end.
It was time to
get some distance from my precious work, suit up, and label a price on it. In
order to price my novel, I took into consideration the following hints:
1) The law of
supply and demand dictates the price of items. So one should do some market
research—target audience, genre books, your book design, and print specs such
as trim size, page count, paper weight, and so on. For instance, if a paperback
novel goes between $6.99-19.99, it means that the market cannot bear higher
prices[1] for this good.
2) Partially excludable
and rivalrous goods.
Although a
novel is rival—in economics, it means that the consumption of the novel
prevents simultaneous consumptions by other consumers—, it is partially
excludable: we cannot avoid someone copying it, despite copyright laws. In
addition, one should take into consideration that the production of a novel
requires a high initial cost, much higher than marginal cost of producing
additional units.
3) Between the
tyranny of the low price and the vanity of the high price.
I sell my books
through Amazon, which means I set my retail prices, the same price for everybody.
However, if I were selling them on a market stall, be sure I would go on giving
different prices to whoever came by.
You, $50; you
perhaps $10; and you, for you, it’s absolutely free.
[1] Fortunately for the
inheritants, once the author dies it can.
Copyright © 2012 by THE PYTHAGOREAN STORYTELLER. All rights reserved.
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