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I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
The reader gets involved in the making of the book, the writer gets a way to talk with their best customers, everyone wins.
A savvy author trumps a crappy publisher any time.
I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
It's not a bug, it's a feature! The reader gets involved in the making of the book, the writer gets a way to talk with their best customers, everyone wins. A savvy author trumps a crappy publisher any time.
Not disparaging this specific author or publisher, but this was once accomplished by having advance reviewers offer their criticisms without any money changing hands.
> A savvy author trumps a crappy publisher any time.
Yes, but not the reverse. :)
I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
From my perspective, there's nothing more motivating than having people chomping at the bit to get their hands on your book. The end product is arguably better because it's not being written in a vacuum and is bolstered by a ton of support.
I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
Actually, it's the primary hack for getting on best-seller lists (pre-orders, then fulfillment in strategic batches designed to show consistent sales over time).
Or is this a more basic "No one should sell anything that doesn't already exist" argument?
If so, I'd point out concert tickets (usually 6 months advance sale), seminars, conferences, and most other large undertakings that need some sort of validated audience numbers as counter-evidence.
Why not all products, as long as there's no attempt to deceive, and the purchaser is clear that the product is not ready yet?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
From my perspective, there's nothing more motivating than having people chomping at the bit to get their hands on your book. The end product is arguably better because it's not being written in a vacuum and is bolstered by a ton of support.
Yes, but that end can be accomplished through pre-publication excerpts and interviews, not by accepting payments for a book not yet written. The former increases public enthusiasm for a book, the latter doesn't. Reasonable people may differ.
Give this dude your money (I'm about to), he's doing it right.
I've really enjoyed the build up to the book. I haven't pre-ordered yet (mainly because I wanted to see how serious the author was), but Brendan has been on top of his game. I've received maybe 2-3 emails, each containing great little bits of information sharing info that (I imagine) will be further articulated in the book. The best part: it's hyper-relevant. I'm coming up with strategies for my design business and B…
I hate to sound old-fashioned, but this puts the cart before the horse. Authors should have a book available for sale before accepting delivery payments. Ask any publisher how this sort of thing usually works out.
Not sure I follow this. Pre-ordering books is a pretty well established practice among publishers (yes, real ones, not just ebook authors). Actually, it's the primary hack for getting on best-seller lists (pre-orders, then fulfillment in strategic batches designed to show consistent sales over time). Or is this a more basic "No one should sell anything that doesn't already exist" argument? If so, I'd point out concer…
The difference is the person pre-ordering can back out, and generally speaking in pre-orders, no payment is made until delivery. It ends up being a measure of public enthusiasm, not a way to gather revenues in advance of delivery. In this case, people are paying for a book that doesn't exist yet.
> Actually, it's the primary hack for getting on best-seller lists
Yes, true, but see the pre-order discussion above -- generally, no money changes hands until the book is actually available.
Also, I have to add, the ultimate best-seller-list hack is to buy copies of your own book and put the copies back into the pipeline, endlessly, as the Scientologists are said to do.
> Or is this a more basic "No one should sell anything that doesn't already exist" argument?
But that's true in general -- in the worst cases, where delivery doesn't happen, the seller can be charged with fraud. I hasten to add I am not comparing this hypothetical (but all too common) outcome with the book under discussion, which for all I know is perfectly worthwhile.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes, but that end can be accomplished through pre-publication excerpts and interviews, not by accepting payments for a book not yet written. The former increases public enthusiasm for a book, the latter doesn't. Reasonable people may differ.
In your arguments against presales, you haven't said why you think that the other way is better. What's your reasoning? I'm assuming "because one creates better publicity" isn't it, since you seem to have something against the idea for deeper reasons.
In the traditional approach, reviewers who have no economic stake review a book or an excerpt and let the public know what they think. In most cases the public can assume the review is objective.
In an approach like this one, an author uses pre-orders or advance payments as evidence for the book's merit. But those pre-ordering haven't yet seen what they're buying. The problem should be obvious -- the author can say, "My book must have merit -- look at all those who have ordered it in advance of seeing it!"
Again, I am not saying any of this applies to this author or this book -- it's completely hypothetical.