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How's it going at Book Country Publishing?
Atthys Gage
Posted: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 12:19 PM
Joined: 6/7/2011
Posts: 467


I'm not ready to pull the trigger on self-publishing, but if and when I am, Book Country would certainly be one of the options I'd strongly consider.  To my novice eyes it looks like a pretty good package and I also feel a certain loyalty.  I have good feelings about the site.  I was glad when the new services came online.  

So, a couple of months have passed, and my main question is:  how's it going?  Have people used the service?  Have books been sold?  Can anybody report on their experience?  I notice the link to 'Bookstore' here on BC still leads to an 'in progress' page (meaning, I assume, no books have been sold through BC anyway.)  Is this a priority?  I honestly don't even know if it needs to be, since I assume sites like Amazon will always be the biggest sales platforms, but a nice online site would inspire confidence and maybe even, eventually, become a place people went to look for books.   

I understand that these things take time but I admit, these questions persist.  There are an awful lot of options out there.  

So seriously.  How's it going?


Mimi Speike
Posted: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 4:26 PM
Joined: 11/17/2011
Posts: 1016



I am very interested in this thread because, fool that I am, I plan to package my first four chapters as a novelette (after I come to terms with the problems, as I see them) and put it out there, Wool style, the canary in the coal mine, to sink or swim. Mixed metaphor there, but I don't care. 


William
Posted: Sunday, April 28, 2013 5:26 AM
Joined: 4/27/2013
Posts: 1


Ever thought up putting some chapters up on Wattpad to build a readership before publishing?
Mimi Speike
Posted: Sunday, April 28, 2013 9:29 AM
Joined: 11/17/2011
Posts: 1016



I know the name, Wattpad, but isn't it YA? I read something about it that stopped me from investigating further.


Brandi Larsen
Posted: Monday, April 29, 2013 9:40 AM
Joined: 6/18/2012
Posts: 228


Thanks for asking about the publish side. Please pardon my late reply. I'm covered in the Book Country rebuild construction dust.

People are choosing to publish with Book Country. Right now, if you go to iTunes, for example, you can see a list of titles. (Here's an image of the first few: http://postimg.org/image/ntat0d0n9/) You can also look on Amazon, Kobo, Google Play, Scribd, Sony, etc. Authors choose where to distribute their books, so you may not see all of the titles, but it'll give you an idea of what's out there.

We want to give authors who publish with Book Country flexibility. That's one of the many reasons that adding a bookstore is a priority for us, and it's something we're working on right now. There will be a bookstore this summer.

We think there's a lot of value in being able to distribute to multiple stores with a single process; something you can do easily with Book Country, and can't by going to Amazon. Book Country's free package gives authors like Mimi the ability to experiment with format while keeping initial costs low. The tools for Book Country's publish side are really easy
to use -- everything from creating a cover to your metrics dashboard -- is right at your fingertips.  Finally, we believe that authors like you who come to Book Country, workshop books, and then publish (both through our platform and traditionally) have an advantage because of the community of people who are already interested in your work and the confidence of knowing you're giving the world your best book.

I hope that helped. I'm happy to answer more questions.

Best,
Brandi

Atthys Gage
Posted: Monday, April 29, 2013 5:04 PM
Joined: 6/7/2011
Posts: 467


Brandi;

Thanks for the response.  I have, as I said, good feelings about this site.  All things being equal, I'd prefer to have a publishing relationship with Book Country than Createspace.  I'm not anti-Amazon by any stretch, but I do have a soft spot for the little guy (everybody's little compared to Amazon.)  

I am glad to hear things are going well.  It's a crowded field, and I'd certainly be glad to see Book Country carve out a space for itself.  I appreciate the opportunities you mentioned and I'm looking forward to seeing the bookstore when it comes on line.  

Thanks again for responding.  

Best of Luck.
Atthys