99-Cent Books

I see a lot of books permanently listed for 99 cents, and I wonder how the authors can afford to do that since they'll only be making about thirty cents per book. This is not only true regarding the first book in a series, but it runs the gambit of genres and types of books published. Many times, it's not only one or two books but the author's entire book list. If they sell 300 books, they've only made less than a hundred dollars. How much is all the time and effort that goes into writing a book and delivering a good story worth?

Indie authors, which most of these are, can also have a lot of publishing costs. Most editors charge from $150 - $850 per project. The covers on just the ebook range from $30 and up with $60-$75 being the norm. Then, if the author wants print or Audible covers, that will be additional expenses. 

I think the talent and determination it takes to write a book makes it worth more than ninety-nine cents per book. If you don't value what you do, perhaps you shouldn't be writing and publishing. I, like most authors, mark a book down to a ninety-nine-cent sales price now and then for a special occasion, but it only stays that way for about a week, and I don't do it often. I just marked The Prodigal Pastor down for Valentine's Day, but it's the first sale I've done in quite a while. Click on the title in the previous sentence to get your copy and happy reading.

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