This blog's name is inspired by a quote from Thomas Edison: "Hell, there are no rules here—we're trying to accomplish something."
In an industry that's undergoing dramatic transformation, the only constant is change, and whatever rules we're following today won't necessarily work tomorrow.
Which brings me to an interesting bit of news forwarded to me by an F+W colleague. (Thanks, Erica!)
The
Book Industry Study Group (BISG) completed a case study of Random House's e-book giveaway earlier this year. For those who aren't aware, Random House offered a free digital download of an entire Suze Orman book (as a PDF file) for limited time that coincided with Orman's appearance on
The Oprah Winfrey Show.
The BISG case study concludes that giving away the digital book for free resulted in increased sales of the print book. One year after publication, the book (
Women and Money) shot back onto the New York Times bestseller list and has remained there ever since.
Some writers spend a lot of time worrying about their work being given away for free -- or being stolen and spread without their permission. These writers often ask what steps they can take to protect their work.
The question I want to ask in response is: Wouldn't it be flattering if someone wanted to go to that much trouble to steal and disseminate (or distribute) your work for you? It might mean your work has value and is worth reading and sharing -- and that's exactly what you want. Isn't it difficult enough to get people interested in your work (in a world with fewer readers and more books than ever)? Cultivating a strong readership is a process that spans your entire career, and giving back to your readers is part of that process.
What can you give your readers for free? Or what do you have to offer readers that would make them excited enough to share your work with everyone they know -- leading to even greater sales in the future? Giving stuff away for free is just the beginning, right?