"Creativity is intelligence having fun." Allegedly, Einstein said that. Doesn't matter if he did or didn't, I like the quote.
Before I self-published my first book, I looked into all sorts of different options. The literary agents I spoke with (who all sounded like they recently graduated from college - aka they sounded like children to these old ears) almost turned me off of writing forever. I spoke with folks from a few small publishing houses, and Geez Louise, if your first complaint is how little money you're making, maybe try a different career path. I would have thought that NO ONE was making any money - but I was soon to find out just who is.
Barnes and Noble is one of the last remaining bookstore chains. Personally, I always preferred Borders, but they're long gone. Walden was another fave. Coles was pretty good. I can still spend a tidy sum at Half-Price Books (and MUSIC!) but I save that for special occasions. I am, admittedly, a library guy. As I opted for self-publishing, Barnes and Noble seemed a logic jumping-off point. B&N customers are likely to visit their website, so - fingers crossed - maybe a few sales.
Let me be clear, I entered this with no delusion about sales. Like my music, my writing isn't necessarily a commercial venture. I'll just point back to the alleged Einstein quote here.
Ideally, my books will find their homes in libraries. Sure, I welcome any and all to buy a book, enjoy it (or not), and hopefully recommend them to friends. I've received a lot of nice feedback on BODIES. One kind reader even left a five-star review! Those are important - but maybe not for the reasons you think.
Kind words are always nice to hear/read/perceive. In the digital realm, however, the feedback/reviews alert B&N that people are reading the book. Most web sites will use this data and make my books more visible on the site. Let's be honest, there's a LOT of books out there. I can online imagine the Twilight Zone episode starring Burgess Meredith. He finally had time for ALL THOSE BOOKS. For the sheer volume of books and B&N, he'd not only need new glasses but an Evelyn Wood Speed Reading course!
OK, so who's making the money? According to the publishing stats I've been able to get my hands on, it ain't the writers.
B&N's self-publishing site has lots of 'helpful tips' and 'special offers' for the new author. If you're looking for a new career, one of these might put you on your own corner of East Street! (DISCLAIMER: I can't say that for certain - but look at the numbers)
Need a book cover design? $300-1200. OR you can design it yourself or hire a friend to do it. Photoshop, GIMP, etc. aren't that difficult to use. I figure if someone is smart enough to write a book, they can create a book cover. For BODIES, I altered an old image of a chair and a window. It wasn't too hard. I think it turned out OK. I added the title and my name, Boom, Done. But...you can pay these folks more than you're likely to earn from the book. It'll look very nice.
BookTrib claims they'll guarantee you these sorts of numbers! I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. While I might not be from Missouri, show me anyway.
I think B&N would be better served in promoting the books they sell through their own self-publishing entity. Nope, they push BookTrib and these outrageous claims.
EXPOSURE!!!!!!! I can hear all of my musician friends laughing. We know the jokes about how Exposure Bucks don't pay the electric bill. Looking at these numbers, they better guarantee 7 figure sales or higher. (NOTE: They don't)
DISCLAIMER: For all I know, B&N's partnership (if it is technically such) could be legit. The authors listed on the page, singing the praises of these services - honestly, I've not heard of a single one. I'm sure they haven't heard of me either, so we're even.
I'm reminded of a conversation I once had with Charles Fox. He told me the easiest way to make a million in show biz is to spend 2 million. It looks like publishing is the same as the music biz. And NO, Amazon is no better and is no different. eBooks, while useful to some (as a friend put it, these are useful for folks with low vision. God bless them for still wanting to read!), are an easy way to rip off writers. No physical inventory means they can fudge numbers however they see fit.
I hope you've enjoyed this little look into my journey in self-publishing. I could appear disheartening but again, money/fame/notoriety/sales isn't my goal. I tell stories. Some folks seem to enjoy them. My goal is to get them to those who want to read them. Like I said, I'd love my books to find homes in libraries - and I'm working on that! It's going to involve some business and financial moves on my end. When I can afford to make it happen, I promise I will.
A lot of this comes down to ISBNs (International Standard Book Number). This tells you a book's specific edition, format (e.g., hardcover vs. paperback), publisher, and country of publication. Acting like a book's "fingerprint," it is used by libraries and retailers for inventory tracking, cataloging, and precise ordering. In short, it's a big part of how books get to readers. In the US, a single ISBN is just over $100. You can purchase bundles at discount (10 for $500) ...so you can see where this goes. Canada, and a few other countries don't charge for them. For more info you can look here: www.isbn-international.org/agencies
Self-publishing through B&N, among other things, grants me a 'free' ISBN for my books, but only for purchase from B&N. In my eyes, this is totally fair.
One last bit of kudos for B&N: My books are POD (Printed-On-Demand). This is important to me as I can't abide waste. I would be more upset at wasted paper than people not reading my books. The only real downside to this is the individual book-print quality can change depending on who is working the day of the print. This is nitpicking, really. Some days, it's great. Some days, page numbers might be wonky or some other small detail. Way I see it, books are sold to people who want to read them, not nitpick. The only thing I've ever noticed in a self-published book vs a publishing house book is the occasional editing detail. I own a book (signed by the author, and one I thoroughly enjoy) that, in spots, looks like it was edited with a free version of Grammarly. A few odd words and grammar structures here and there; not enough to detract from my enjoyment of the book.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. As always, my books are available from Barnes & Noble. I'll put the links below. If you read them and enjoy them, please consider leaving a review. It helps a lot. Feel free to tell your friends, post on social media, hell - smoke signals work (but as it's wildfire season, I'd maybe hold off).
Keep on reading! I'll keep writing.
-MCM 7/20/26
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