What am I doing to contirbute to the destruction of the industry? Let's see...
I run a website that has gaming reviews that actually *gasp* encourages someone to decide for themselves whether a product is worth buying or not.
I work in the very industry that is crashing down upon us all. Like Ryan, I write books (as a freelancer) and like Ari, I get paid nothing or next to nothing for it. I also serve as the voice of more than one publisher/manufacturer in the business (of which only one actually pays me for doing so - sometimes), meaning you get to hear why a book isn't shipping or why something is priced the way it is from me.
Speaking of pricing. I understand the original posters point, but let me provide a bit of enlightenment behind the realities of publishing and why scoffing at paying $40 for a hardcover book is nonsense from the perspective of price alone. The costs of development dictate the price, not how much a publisher makes because that is almost pittance anymore for the smaller guy. Let's examine a book that I worked on about a year or so ago.
Hardcover 176 pages MSRP $29.99
-Development costs (writers: $3000 (nearly all of this was paid to those from open call - my take was $250), editing: $0, artwork: $1000, layout: $0)
-Printing costs: $8000 for 1500 copies (1000 copies sold in first year)
-Distributor cost to purchase above book: $12.00
-Net profit not counting extraneous expenses such as shipping charges, operating expenses, etc. associated with said book and company: $6000 (which is often used to finance next project)
Notice the zeros present in many of the development columns. That's because that aspect of the work was done by someone in an unpaid capacity. Meaning they volunteered to do the work so the book would see the light of day. To also add some light onto the numbers game, the average non-Wotc print book (with the exception of Mongoose, White Wolf and Steve Jackson) only receives about 350-500 copies in preorders from a distributor, which means IF it takes off and sells well, then it MIGHT sell 750 copies. If you sell more than 1000 copies within a 90-day period, you are considered to have a runaway hit on your hands. By the way, the current sell-through cycle from distributors is 30 to 45 days. After that time, a distributor will likely not reorder the book, instead telling the retailer that the book is now out of print. (It happens frequently.)
When Ari talks about
Doom of Listonshire having a very small print run, he's right. That's because publishers now are printing less than 1000 copies of most books (as opposed to printing 5000+ in 2000-2002). In many cases the print runs are in the 350-500 range. That's because preorders and sales don't support the larger numbers. If retailers dont' preorder, distributors won't stock high numbers.
Here's another reality check regarding printing. The fewer you print, the higher the costs. And printers always get their money up front before anyone else. That's why so many books are being printed overseas. It is simply too expensive to print domestically and price your product where the "perceived" value is good, especially printing in color.
Companies that produce products other than just RPGs can absorb the blow and costs of development a bit easier. AEG was able to price Spycraft 2.0 where they did because most of their money is made from the CCG end of the business. Fantasy Flight Games' profits come from their boardgame division. Companies that have diversified and established themselves prior to the drop in RPG sales that occurred in 2004 have been able to sustain operations (although reorganizing priorities often) since.
Do I think the industry is crashing down upon us all and in its death spiral? No. But I also think that people who believe that all publishers are out to screw gamers by overpricing books need to really rethink that position. Publishers price their books so they can TRY to make back what they invested in makign the project plus have enough left over to start the next book. There is no one getting rich here, especially the creative types that do 90% of the writing work.
Oh yeah, as for doing my part, I am only buying books that I am 100% certain I can make use of in my campaigns. Right now, this means that Privateer Press and Black Industries is getting my money.
