I am, I have to say, crushed… filled with self-doubt… and also with an anger that I don’t know whether to aim at myself or in a more outward direction.
You know the post I did the other day, the one where I proudly… oh so proudly… proclaimed to the world that my second self-illustrated book for children is now available for sale? I just got another comment on that post. It was short, concise, and very to-the-point. All it said was:
’15 dollars plus shipping for 31 pages – really?’
I don’t even know where to begin.
I have tried to explain that I am all art-side-of-the-brain. I can’t market myself, or promote myself. I will never be a success. I have always known that. I am also manic-depressive, so I tend to wander between delusions of my science fiction series being made into movies and me doing the talk show circuit and looking at the few dozen books I have sold and thinking I am spending a lot of time and energy trying to do something I love that maybe very few other people will also love.
My wife and kids give me a hard time about the way I always seem to undervalue everything I do. Believe me, I made the argument that all my books are overpriced… even though the publishers take most of that money. I let my older daughter talk me into pricing the novels at $10.00 and the two kid books at $15.oo, but only reluctantly. My family made a lot of good arguments, none of them having to do with greed. They said, in essence, that selling the books too cheaply would make people think they weren’t worth any more than that.
The thing is… and this is a thing that I have given a lot of thought to… but I sweat and bleed all my art, and the writing most particularly. Yes, writing a book for young children might not seem as hard as crafting a thousand pages of science fiction or a gripping murder mystery. But you all saw the posts I did while I made this new book, right? All the art is hand drawn and painted, and then cleaned up and mixed together in Photoshop. There are a few thousand hours worth of work in this one book.
So what is my time worth?
Yes, I am sorry about the shipping cost, but that isn’t me. If you go into a Barns and Noble… before they become extinct, and look at the prices of the books in there, is fifteen bucks really unreasonable?
If it is, then I apologize.
I am not doing this to get rich. Yes, I would like to make a living doing something I love rather than getting another minimum wage job I hate. I know that to a working person, 15 dollars is real money. But how much did you spend last time you went to McDonald’s? Or Starbucks? What is it worth to support another person’s dream? What is the value of a bunch of words and pictures that will let you share some quality time with a young child, discussing the life lessons carefully strewn throughout both my books for kids? How do we determine the worth of any kind of art?
I’m not whining. I am very lucky. My wife is working while I do all this writing, and to be honest, the small account I started to fund this venture is bleeding money rather than swelling with it… because, while I get a slight discount when I order my own books, I have to pay for shipping too, and I need to order a few copies of each book before we get all the small glitches worked out… and then I have to buy a few on the off chance that a family member or friend might want to buy one.
So I am feeling a little vulnerable right now, because this comment hit me right where I am weakest… right in the part of me that questions whether my words make any difference to anyone but me.
Pouring My Art Out 
The statement makes no sense. If they were buying an exercise book and paying for blank pages then yes $15 would be a lot. But they are buying artwork, 31 pages of artwork. That’s a lot. It’s hard to pick up artwork for less than 50p. Or in other concepts, 31 moments of joy or whatever art does for you. Of course they may not like your art but that’s a totally different thing, like not liking a particular chocolate bar and complaining the sugar costs too much. I shouldn’t worry too much they have clearly missed the point.
Thanks… that makes me feel better.
Your time is worth millions. If it’s a good book, it will sell❤️
Thanks… and long time no see!
I know 🙂 You are very welcome. Don’t lose confidence!
I am over it now…
Good to hear 😉
It comes and goes.
Most things are like that
yeah they are
I clicked ‘like’ not because I like that you are feeling this way, but wanted to show my support but couldn’t think of anything helpful to say. Then I felt back for just leaving a ‘like’ so felt the need to come back and explain myself (!) Big hugs. You rock.
Thanks… they need a button that says exactly that.
My dad had a saying: “There’s one in every crowd” — obviously, this is the one. and not in that way that we all want to be “the one,” either.
Thanks, but I do kind of see her point too… sigh
I have no idea what children’s books are supposed to cost because I never bought one before, so to me $15 seems reasonable.
All I know is they cost more than that at a book store.
As an indie-pubbed author myself, I think one problem we’re both dealing with is we’re competing with writers who sell ebooks for next to nothing. Potential customers get used to paying $2.99 or less– or oftentimes nothing at all– so $15 ends up looking like a major price hike. But getting an actual book is a lot different than downloading an ebook into a kindle.
It really is hard to put a price on a creative project like a book. If I think about how little I am paid by the hour, it seems a little crazy. Thanks for the kind words.
Assuming someone is working at a minimum wage job, your book at $15 + shipping, is only about 3 hours of work. You put a lot more than that into your books. A good book is well worth a days wages. I work my arse off for my money and since I have your entire collection I can attest to the fact that every book I have paid you for I have also gotten my moneys worth for.
I can understand how young parents who are used to picking up cheap books “for cheap” might not see the wisdom of paying more for a better quality book. Many parents no longer see children’s books as something worth purchasing quality or rare versions of.
It’s also possible that the commenter is simply struggling with finances right now and wants to provide their children with options like your book but simply can’t spare a single dime to do so, and they are a bit frustrated by that.
Your books are worth it. Hang in there.
That is incredibly kind of you.
Just tellin’ it like it is.
thanks
Screw em if they dont like your book.
She didn’t actually say she didn’t like it… ha!
But they’re supposed to buy the book before they can make any decision on whether they like it or not.
Yeah… I can see people wanting to get their money back after… wait… never mind
I am struggling with the pricing,too. People seem to think Art shoul be free. I don’t think you overpriced.
Thank you very much.
I don’t think $15.00 is unreasonable for a children’s book. Anne Belov is charging $17.95 on Amazon for her book, Pandamorphosis, which is 48 pages and doesn’t contain any words. Granted, Anne Belov is a well-established professional artist who’s had a lot of experience pricing her books.
Perhaps you could offer an “introductory sale” and reduce your price to $10.00 or so? Then, once a little more interest in generated, you could put the price back up.
Don’t let the commenters upset you. It’s your book, and you can charge whatever you want.
PS: How much would you charge me for a signed copy of the Lonely Little Wizard? I have a signed Pandamorphosis – I could start a collection.
I wouldn’t charge you more for it, but you would have to pay for me to ship it to you also, and depending on the method we use, that might be like 5 dollars of 30 dollars… depending on where you are…
Is it not eligible for free shipping with a $35 Amazon purchase? I’m always buying books and stuff on Amazon.
I don’t think it is on Amazon. This is a place that prints individual books when they are ordered.
Ah. I’ll see what I can do.
I do have the first sci-fi book on kindle for cheap, I think/
I know, but I think I’d like the wizard book. It sounds adorable. Or maybe the monkeys book.
I would have to say the wizard book is a little better.
I could start a mini-library for those grandkids I’ll never have.
never too late to start… collecting books, I mean… HA!
well, your time is worth at least min wage, you said that…printed material is expensive…i’ve noticed that the upper crust bitches more about the cost of stuff than us poor saps…i want a online project that people think is cool and will check out…BUT i also want a store that will help me avoid living under a bridge when i turn 62…i want it illustrated and even found a open source 3D modeling suite, blender…i got to interact with the tutorials on yt…since there’s no BOOKS…i can relate to the underselling issue and i’m MD too…don’t pull it, let it sit there…those who want it will buy it…
I wasn’t going to stop selling them no matter what, I just like to feel less guilty about the cost.
don’t feel guilty (or perhaps shame?) about the cost…
I am working on that
awesome
yup
Reblogged this on Jdawgswords and commented:
NEVER EVER let a single critic’s piss water short out your dream!!! fuck the haters!!!
If it hadn’t hit so close to home, it wouldn’t bother me… and tomorrow I will be on an upswing and post a chapter of another novel I am working on… so… uh… thanks.
yeah, that’s my mood swings too
yup
Reblogged this on perfectlyfadeddelusions and commented:
Big hugs.
Sorry about, it’s hard to write and get criticism like that for your hard work.
If I could afford to buy your books, I would in a heartbeat and send them to friends and family.
I wish you lots of luck, and more people buy your books.
Thanks so much