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About Smashwords

Welcome to Smashwords! Smashwords is a self-publishing platform and online bookstore for indepedent ebook authors, publishers and readers. We offer multi-format, DRM-free ebooks, ready for immediate sampling and purchase, and readable on any e-reading device.

At Smashwords, our authors and publishers have complete control over the sampling, pricing and marketing of their written works. Smashwords is ideal for personal memoirs, novels, short fiction, non-fiction, essays, screenplays, newsletters, poetry, or other written forms that haven’t even been invented yet. It's free to publish on Smashwords.

For readers, Smashwords provides an opportunity to discover new voices in all categories and genres of the written word. For registered members, the site offers useful tools for search, discovery and personal library-building, and each week we add new features based on feedback from Smashwords members.

Q&A With Smashwords Founder, Mark Coker

What is Smashwords?
Smashwords is a digital self-publishing platform and online bookstore for independent authors, publishers and their readers. Authors and publishers retain full control over how their works are published, sampled, priced and sold. If an author wants to charge one dollar or ten thousand dollars, or give it away for free, they have that freedom.

Who publishes on Smashwords?
Hundreds of serious writers publish on Smashwords. Many Smashwords authors have been previously published in print through mainstream publishers, or have had their works published in well-respected literary journals. Starting March 17, 2009, Smashwords introduced new publishing options for publishers who want to publish and centrally manage two or more authors.

What does Smashwords offer readers?
Smashwords is a virtual playground for those who love the written word. Readers can sample most works for free (and in many cases, read up to 50% of the book before they commit to a purchase decision); read in multiple DRM-free formats; create digital libraries of purchased and sampled works; publish reviews (including YouTube video book reviews); and “favorite” their favorite authors and works.

What is an ebook, and how do I read these books?
Ebooks are digital books. The ebooks on Smashwords can be read online using our online readers, or they can be downloaded to other reading devices such as the the iPhone, iPod Touch, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader or IRex Iliad, or to other ereading devices. Smashwords offers generous sampling options so readers can try before they buy.

Why would authors give part of their book away as a free sample?
More and more authors realize they’re competing against free already, and they’re competing against the millions of alternative entertainment or learning options out there. The most valuable thing they’re competing for is the reader’s time and attention. Smart authors realize if a reader invests the time necessary to read 100 pages of a 300 page book, they’re much more inclined to purchase the book to know how it ends. Some authors choose to give their entire book away for free because it’s more important to them they reach an audience, or they may want to leverage the notoriety from the book to monetize their fame in other ways.

How does Smashwords compensate authors and publishers?
A primary mission at Smashwords is to help make publishing more rewarding for the world's indie authors and publishers, and more affordable to the world's readers. Smashwords pays authors 85% of the net proceeds from the sale of their works. Net proceeds to author = (sales price minus PayPal payment processing fees)*.85. This means if an author has a book they might otherwise publish as a $7.95 mass market paperback, they can price their ebook on Smashwords for two dollars and make triple the per unit amount of selling a print book through a traditional publisher.

What marketing tools does Smashwords offer authors and publishers?
Smashwords offers multiple marketing tools to help authors and publishers connect with readers. We offer distribution on Stanza, author pages with bios, headshots and lists of works; the industry’s broadest range of sampling options; embedded YouTube videos for video book trailers and virtual author events; reviews from readers; ebook downloads in multiple ebook formats; a coupon code generator for custom promotions; and dozens of additional tools in the works.

Will I sell a lot of books on Smashwords?
Probably not. How's that for an honest answer? Although ebooks are the fastest growing segment of the book industry, they still only represent less than one percent of overall book sales. Authors should publish their books on Smashwords not because they'll make a lot of sales today, but as a long term investment in their writing career, and at the same time they should also self-publish in print. eBook authors face the same marketing challenges all authors have always faced. By publishing digitally on Smashwords, however, authors can expand their potential readership by leveraging the power of viral marketing to reach more potential readers with less effort. To view the pay periods, please see the Smashwords Terms of Service.

Will Smashwords market my book for me?
The the bulk of your sales will come as a direct result of own marketing and promotion efforts. We provide you free tools to help you do this, but it'll be your hard work that makes sales happen. For authors who want to maximize their sales opportunities on Smashwords, we created The Smashwords Book Marketing Guide. The Guide starts with an overview of how Smashwords helps you sell your book, and then provides a series of tips for how authors can take their book marketing to the next level.

How does Smashwords change the economics of authorship?
Smashwords turns traditional authorship, publishing and pricing models upside down. With 85% of the net purchase price going to the authors, authors can charge readers significantly less for their works than would otherwise be possible through traditional print publishing channels, while making greater per-unit profit on each book. When costs to the reader drop, there is a fundamental change to the demand side of the equation. This will create a virtuous cycle of more profit for the author, lower prices for consumers, and greater demand and consumption for written works. It’s a win-win for authors and readers.

Does Smashwords require exclusive publishing contracts?
All author contracts with Smashwords are non-exclusive. The author retains all ownership rights to their works, and is still free to publish their work elsewhere if they choose. Authors can remove their works from Smashwords at any time (although they cannot take back works that have already been purchased or sampled by readers).

If I publish first with Smashwords, will my "First Publishing Rights" become less valuable to a publisher?
If your ultimate dream is to be published by a mainstream publisher, this is possible but not necessarily inevitable. If you do well as a self-published author, you may very well increase the value of your book because you will have proven the market for it. Your decision needs to be a personal decision. Most Smashwords authors believe it's better to get their work out there now for readers to start discovering than to languish in obscurity as they wait for a publisher to publish it. Many Smashwords authors have decided they don't want to work with a mainstream publisher.

If Smashwords publishes all authors, how do you maintain quality?
Our mission is to give every author a chance to find their audience. At Smashwords every author has a right to publish, and it's up to readers to decide what's worth reading. Because we publish everyone, it means we publish brilliant up-and-coming writers who haven't yet been discovered, and we'll also publish authors of lesser quality. The great authors will bubble up to the top and build audiences and the lesser authors will drop out of sight.

What does it cost to publish on Smashwords?
It's free to publish on Smashwords. There are no hidden fees. We earn our revenue by taking a 15% cut of all net sales on the site.

Can Authors Publish Partially Written Books to Gather Feedback?
We'd rather they didn't. Smashwords is a place for complete, finished books that are ready to be published. Numerous other writers web sites offer communities where authors can critique each other's partially written works.

I've been offered a book deal with a big mainstream print publisher. Should I take it?
This is really a personal call, and depends on the terms of book deal. For most authors, if a publisher offers you a six figure advance (and this is rare for any author), you'd be foolish not to accept it. However, if they're only offering you a couple thousand dollars, and they don't allow you to retain digital publishing rights, then, well, it's a personal decision. And if you do sell the rights to your book, make sure rights revert back to you if the publisher takes your book out of print or fails to deliver agreed-upon sales, marketing and distribution support. Better yet, if you have the ability to do so, consider retaining digital rights for yourself (so you can continue publishing on Smashwords) and sell the print rights. A good literary agent can help you navigate these negotiations.

I'm a book reviewer and want to review a Smashwords book. How do I obtain a free review copy?
If you're a reviewer for a newspaper, magazine or blog, please email Mark Coker at first initial second initial at you know where dot com and please provide a hyperlink to your most recent review and let us know which author and book you want to review. We will coordinate it for you.

How does Smashwords work with traditional book publishers?
Smashwords welcomes large and independent presses alike to list DRM-free ebooks of all their titles with us. Starting March 17, 2009, Smashwords introduced expanded support for publishers. Publishers can now publish multiple authors and their books, and centrally manage all aspects of the accounts from a single console. Click here to learn if you qualify for a free upgrade to Publisher status.

How does Smashwords present an opportunity for book publishers?
When a publisher sells an ebook through Smashwords, they receive 85% of the net sales price. Publishers receive only about 40-50% of the price of a print book sold through a bookstore or through Amazon.com. That small number from traditional book selling channels can drop to 20% or less once unsold inventory returns are factored in. With Smashwords, publishers have no inventory, no shipping expenses and no returns. Like authors, publishers can increase sales volume and profits by selling their books for lower prices.

Does Smashwords publish only self-published authors whose works are not owned by a publisher?
Smashwords publishes everyone’s content, provided the author or publisher is legally entitled to publish with us. We welcome the opportunity to publish self-published authors, unpublished authors, authors of out-of-print books, and authors under contract with big-name publishers. If you own the digital publishing rights to your works, we want to publish you.

I'm an agent, and I rep many authors, many of whom control the digital rights to their out of print books. How can I list my clients' works with Smashwords?
Contact Mark Coker at first initial second initial at you know where dot com. We want to work with you!

What is Smashwords’ position on digital rights management (DRM)?
We are opposed to DRM because it treats lawful customers like criminals. Consumers value non-DRMed content and there's a growing body of evidence that digital content producers who have abandoned DRM are enjoying greater sales. Most buyers of ebooks resent DRM because it limits their ability to fully own and enjoy their digital book. At Smashwords, we only publish DRM-free works. By the same token, we strictly discourage illegal pirating of an author’s works.

Do I need to copyright my work prior to publishing with Smashwords?
If you are the author - the creator - of an original work, then most laws automatically give you copyright to the work. Although most authors don't choose to do so (because it's difficult to justify the expense), if you want to go the extra mile, you can hire a lawyer to formally register your copyrights with the federal government. Here's what Wikipedia says on copyright: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyrights.

Can I publish my book in print as well?
Since you own your book, you can publish your book anywhere you choose. We think it's important that indie authors publish their books in both print and electronic form. If you want to publish in print, Smashwords recommends Wordclay, a Smashwords partner. Click here to publish in print with Wordclay.

Why did you create Smashwords?
Smashwords was inspired by my own unsuccessful multi-year attempt to get my novel published. In 2002, my wife, Lesleyann, and I co-wrote a novel called Boob Tube, a roman a clef set within the daytime television soap opera industry (Lesleyann is a soap opera columnist at Soapdom.com and a former reporter for Soap Opera Weekly Magazine). We were fortunate to have multiple top tier literary agents compete for our representation, and in the end we selected one of the most respected firms in New York City. Our agent contacted all the top publishers of commercial womens fiction, and each rejected us. We took their feedback to heart (the book was too long, too complex, characters needed better development) and completed a major revision. We then shared the manuscript with multiple test readers. Soap fans and those who enjoy celebrity gossip loved it, and even non-soap fans enjoyed it. Confident we had a winner on our hands, our agent again pitched the book to publishers. All of them rejected it. Some publishers told our agent they didn’t believe soap opera fans read books! I found it frustrating that the whims and prejudices of a publisher could stand between our book and those who would want to read it. I ultimately came to the conclusion that the publishing industry is ill equiped to serve all authors.

Why can't the publishing industry serve all authors?
First, I should state I am a big admirer of the publishing industry. A good agent, editor and publisher can add a lot of value to your work. The pre-publication support provided by a publisher is invaluable, especially in terms of getting your book edited, packaged and carried by bookstores. However, beyond getting their books carried by bookstores, publishers are unable to provide all authors the publicity and post-publication support they need. First time authors often find themselves disappointed by the lack of publicity support. I can't completely fault the industry for this because publishers can't afford to lavish tens of thousands of dollars in publicity support and advertising on every author. As the publishing industry navigates the rough waters facing all media companies, it's likely over the next few years we'll see fewer publishers publishing fewer authors, and we'll also see many brick and mortar bookstores closed. With fewer physical bookshelves to showcase books, it will become increasingly important for authors and publishers to replace those shelves with digital shelves.

What challenges does the traditional publishing industry face, and how do these challenges impact authors?
The publishing industry, like most media, is undergoing some wreching but necessary change. Overall book industry sales, according to recent data from the AAP, have stagnated or declined. Many publishers have reduced the number of new acquisitions and have laid off employees. Bookstores, too, are facing massive consolidation. It's likely in the years ahead will see fewer bookstores carrying fewer titles. There are several reasons for the challenges faced by publishing:

• Publishing is expensive: Books are expensive to produce, distribute and promote. Book publishers are structurally limited in the number of new titles they can publish each year, because each book requires editing, artwork, promotional flaps, production, sales support, inventorying and shipping.
• Books are expensive: If a $25 book is expensive to the average American, imagine how expensive that book is to literate people in developing countries?
  
• Publishers have difficulty predicting demand for a book: Despite hundreds of years of experience, consumers are fickle and it's difficult for publishers to predict which books will sell, and which won’t. As a result, they can’t predict the proper size of their print runs, and often saddle their warehouses and bookstores with expensive unsold inventory.
• Publishing is a “hit” business: Publishers lose money on many books they publish and try to make up the difference by having a few bestseller hits.
• Shelf space is limited: Bookstores are physically limited in the number of titles they can carry. Most Borders or Barnes & Noble superstores cannot stock more than 100,000 books at any one time. Amazon, by comparison, stocks approximately 2.5 million titles. The major bookstores are also struggling to remain profitable, and we'll likely see many bookstore closings in the years ahead.
  
• Bookstores have short attention spans: New titles are allowed only a couple weeks to find their audience and sell well before the books are returned to the publisher for full refund.
• New titles must compete against midlist: New titles are not only competing against each other, but also against established midlist books - published titles that continue to sell moderately well, year in and year out (often classics and former bestsellers).
• Tiny royalties: Most authors receive royalties of only 5-10% of the retail price of their written works. The other 90-95% goes to bookstores, distributors, publishers, printers, agents and discounts.
• Publishers don’t promote most books: Many first time authors receive little to no post-publication publicity support from their publishers. Many authors recognize they have to do the promotion themselves. They have to do their own PR; call bookstores to arrange signings; and personally hand sell books to local bookstores.
• Limited geographic distribution: Book publishing today is still geographically constrained. Most works are never published outside their own country, or in languages other than the native tongue of their author. In the United States, most published works will never receive distribution outside the US. Authors outside the US have little chance of finding an audience outside their own country.
• There's no "long tail" in print book publishing: To enter the midlist, books must be able to meet a certain threshold of sales, often several thousand copies per year, year in and year out, with little to no promotion from the bookstores or the publishers. What about the millions of previously written and out of print works which could be selling 50, 100, or 1,000 copies each year, if only they were available for their audience to discover?
• Readers are left unserved: All of these challenges faced by the publishing industry harm not only authors, but readers as well. Readers are effectively denied the freedom to discover new voices in the written word.
  

What is the business model for Smashwords?
Although Smashwords was founded to achieve a strong social purpose, we also recognize we must produce a profit so we can continue to carry out our mission. Smashwords generates income through commissions from the sales of written works and in the future, affiliate fees earned from our partners, and later, possibly through premium membership options. Guiding all of our business decisions will be an overarching mission to serve the needs of the authors, publishers and readers who participate in our community.

What is Smashwords’ privacy policy?
We will never sell, rent or share our members’ contact information with any third party. We respect the privacy of authors who choose to publish under pen names. We also protect the privacy of book buyers by not revealing their purchases or identity to anyone. Read our complete privacy statement here.

I run a writer's group.  Would you come speak to our group?
If the group is in the San Francisco - Silicon Valley bay area, then absolutely!  If your group is elsewhere, how about a conference call?  To arrange, contact me at first initial second initial at youknowwhere dot com.

I'm organizing a writer's conference.  Do you charge a speaking fee?
No fee.  Contact us with details and we'll see what we can do.

What’s next for Smashwords?
We’re just getting started. We have hundreds of ideas for how we can help improve the digital publishing experience for authors, readers and publishers. We listen closely to our members, whose valuable feedback guides our daily development. Stay tuned and tell a friend!