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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Destan" data-source="post: 1724785" data-attributes="member: 12157">Hello again, folks.I started this thread to talk a little bit about the publishing process from a newbie's perspective. I touched on some things that fwere confusing to me - contracts, royalties, marketing, distribution, yada yada yada. Some of those things are, still, confusing to me. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> But I said earlier I'd like to revisit this thread once I got to the "other side" of the publishing process. That's where I'm at now. My first (and second) books have been released, and the first "official" review has arrived. Before I do that, however, I'd like to thank the other posters on this thread and elsewhere on EN World. As I had hoped, I learned a lot about publishing from reading your own experiences. I know that I and many others could continue to benefit if some of you have other stories to share. Ok, time to do what I do best - babble.For those of you just tuning in, here's a synopsis. I write a story on the Story Hour thread here at EN World. Through that vehicle I attracted the attention of an editor for Different Worlds Publications, a company new to d20 but old to the RPG industry. I was commissioned to write a campaign sourcebook based on my homebrew world. Shortly thereafter, before it was released, I was commissioned to write a module set within that world. That's it in a nutshell.So, my books have been released. How have they done? Good, and bad. The sourcebook has sold well, the module has not. The "official" release was at GenCon. I'm only guessing, but I would imagine 90% of the sales were directly to EN Worlders familiar with the Story Hour. That's good in that people who know the story liked it enough to plunk down the money. That's bad in that those who don't know the story felt no compulsion to make a purchase.Which gets me to one of my first points - marketing. It's non-existent. In the current d20 marketplace, I think the bulk of your sales come from the "pull" rather than the "push" process. If FLGSs are hearing requests from their customers for a certain book, they order it. If no requests are coming in, they don't. This is a bit different than other industries where, for example, a book store may put 10 copies on the shelves and see how they do. An unknown writer with a new publisher has difficulty getting their product on the shelves without a "pull" element in effect. So we lose out on casual buyers that may pick up the book simply after flipping through the pages.I've also proven to myself something I believed earlier - I'm not a salesman. I was uncomfortable standing at the booth at GenCon trying to sell my product to people. That's not good - for me as a writer in this industry, and for the product itself. I need to get better at it.I'm still mired in the days of 1st Edition AD&D. My "price levels" are still hovering around costs of supplements in the Olde Days. For example, I remember when modules were $5.99 or $6.99.  The Ippizicus module retails for $19.99. While it's certainly larger than most modules, that seems like a lot of money to me. The Valus sourcebook retails for $29.99. I'll be honest, folks - I don't think I'd pay that much money unless I had a very, very good idea that I would: 1) like it, and 2) use it. I've read someone's treatment on RPG prices (was it Andy Collins?) and the writer made a very good argument for why prices are what they are. That said, I still think d20 products are overpriced.Let's talk about the review. I may be jumping the gun by posting on this thread after only one review, but I just felt like getting some thoughts onto paper for others than may be going through this process or might soon find themselves where I'm at.<a href="http://www.enworld.org/reviews/index.php?sub=yes&where=active&reviewer=John+Cooper&product=Valu" target="_blank">John Cooper's EN World review</a> is the first, that I've seen, on the Valus sourcebook. You know what? It's a damned good review. And by 'good' I mean - fair, well-thought out, and detailed. It says some very good things about the book, and it brings to light some problems. This thread isn't to discuss whether I like the review or not (I do), but rather to share how I feel about it, now that I'm on the backside of the publishing process.Some of you reading this thread have doubtless published something and then read reviews upon your work. It's an odd feeling, isn't it? I mean - this is your baby.  Not everyone's gonna like it. Hopefully some people will. In the end, just like anything else, people will vote with their dollars. It comes down to sales. A lot of facets tie into how well your book sells. Three of the 'biggies' are marketing, distribution, and reviews. The first two are out of your hands. The third, however, is very much under your control (assuming you're the book's author).  The best way to sell your book remains simple - write a good one. If you write a decent product, then the reviews will reflect that. I have great confidence in reviews.  And note that I'm using reviews as a plural. You can't base your book on one review; or, at least, I don't think that's too wise.So here I sit on the far-end of the publishing train. I've signed two contracts and delivered two products, and I've met deadlines. I've sat back and watched how those products were marketed and distributed. I've had some eye-openers, some disappointments, and some enjoyment. I'm smarter now than I was going into this thing, but I'm only smart enough to realize how incredibly ignorant I am. You may think there's a glut of d20 stuff on the marketplace, justifiably so. But d20 companies come and go. In an era of high-priced (in my opinion) products, only the companies that can consistently put out a good product will remain when the dust settles. Whether you like their stuff or not, I think you'd be hard-pressed to ignore the staying power of companies such as Green Ronin, Necromancer Games, Malhavoc, and Mongoose. There are others, certainly - I'm just offering a small sample by way of explanation.I'll try to update this thread if and when other reviews come out. I think one question that may prove interesting to any aspiring writers (or even established writiers) is how the whole marketing and distribution things pans out. The jury's still out on that one. I'm only now beginning to understand the basic concepts behind distribution and fulfillment houses and their relationship between publishers and retail stores. You can rest assured that whenever I learn something, I'll post it here.As always, folks, please understand I'm a veritable rookie in this whole arena. Some of my assumptions may be wholly incorrect. I'm just trying to spit out what I think, in the hopes it may help others who are writing within the d20 world.Take care,D</blockquote>

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