Experiment

One of the fun things about an author fair, even one with light foot traffic, is the chance to talk business with other writers.

Chatting with the other authors at this weekend's signing convinced me to try KDP Select for one item as a test case. I've not been terribly fond of the exclusivity requirement; I am concerned about what Amazon's market dominance means for the rest of us, and I have generally followed the philosophy of having my work available in as many formats as possible. If my readers want it in iBooks or Smashwords, they should be able to get it there.

However, my standalone novellas have not been terribly successful on the other formats. The difference is drastic. In a strictly-business review of sales, I lose very little by taking a novella and putting it exclusively on Kindle for three months. I'm conflicted about it, but if I look it at solely as a businesswoman, it's an experiment worth doing.

Some authors have said they lost a bucket on KDP Select. The majority, however, say it has done wonders for sales. We shall see.

For the next 90 days, Gethsemane will be available on KDP Select, unless I end the experiment early. (In which case it would be pulled entirely from sale, since KDP Select requires the 90-day option.)

There are very few items in my bibliography that I have control over, because all my work has been traditionally published except for two novellas to which I could not sell first rights. Those novellas are my experiment. I guess we'll see where it goes.

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