Indie News: Amazon Bestsellers Make Less Than Minimum Wage

Aching to get on the Amazon bestseller list? Despite the title, the view isn't really so much better from the top of the heap. According to a new report, the authors on that list aren't even making federal minimum wage. 

Money, Money, Money

In fact, you'd earn more money (now) as a full-time government employee than as an Amazon bestselling author. Hugh Howey released a report detailing the actual earnings of Amazon's indie and self-published authors. He studied 3,439 authors responsible for the 7,000 bestsellers listed on Amazon. These are books that sell more than one copy daily. Only 944 of them were earning more than $58 per day, which is the amount you'd receive working 8 hours per day at federal minimum wage earnings of $7.25.

It's not very promising, but other numbers-crunchers argue that this is just a glimpse of a small piece of the big picture. Publishing is changing quickly now, and self-publishing is becoming more of a force in the industry.

Books on Film: A Little Princess

Frances Hodgson Burnett, one of the greatest children's book authors of all time, first conceived of "A Little Princess" way, way back in 1888. It got its lasting title and became a novel in 1905. A few years later, it became an iconic Shirley Temple film. And many years after that, I became familiar with the tale. It's still one of my favorites.

The Book

A Little Princess was serialized before it became a book. When the story was complete near the turn of the century, it was revised and richer in content. The book follows Sara Crewe, who is 7, as she arrives at Miss Mincin's boarding school in London. Sara is the only child of the well-to-do Captain Crewe. The two have been residing in India, but now it's time to go to school. 

She fits in well with the other girls at the school, delighting them with tales of India. They begin calling her "a little princess" because she's ladylike and has lived such a lavish lifestyle. But Sara is not snobbish despite her upbringing. She becomes friends with the school's misfits: Ermegarde, who is not regarded as intelligent; Lottie, a very young student; and Becky, a scullery maid.

Tragedy strikes when Captain Crewe is killed in a mining accident and subsequent business troubles render his estate very poor on funds indeed. Miss Minchin realizes she won't be reimbursed for the money she's spent on Sara since the last check, and puts the girl to work in the school as a servant instead.

Wearing the mean black dress she's been given, Sara is forced to work to earn her keep at the school. Living next door to Becky, Sara runs errands, teaches other students and engages in all sorts of chores. One night a pet monkey finds its way into Sara's room, and she becomes acquainted with a man named Ram Dass who lives next door. Sara begins to receive food and other small comforts, and she shares them with Becky generously.

Upon actually going next door to return the monkey, Sara meets Mr. Carrisford. He's her father's former business partner and he's been searching for her. At the end of the story, Sara's fortune is restored and she will be the daughter of Carrisford from now on. Becky is invited to come along as Sara's attendant.

It's a fine happy ending...but I must admit to liking the movie ending much, much better.

The Film

The movie was made in 1939, which some have said was the best year for film in history. It starred Shirley Temple, then the must-have child star, and it was her first to be shot completely in Technicolor. It's currently in the public domain, which means it's free to watch.

The plot is changed around a bit, and this is one of the rare instances where I believe the changes actually improved the story. This time around, Captain Crewes has been called up to serve in the Second Boer War. This gives us a tangible reason for why he's ditching his young daughter in London. 

Sara is given a hobby, horseback riding, and the appropriate animal to go with it. She lives at the school as a princess for much less time on film (because years go by in the book, and Shirley Temple just wasn't going to grow that quickly), receiving word that her father has died shortly after her arrival. His real estate has been confiscated, and that's why Sara is so poor this time.

Sara is again turned into a servant, but quickly strikes up her relationship with next door neighbor Ram Dass. She doesn't believe her father is really dead, so Sara spends all her free time combing through the hospitals. A few musical numbers speed the film along, and then Miss Minchin visits Sara's attic room. Here she discovers edible treats, rich blankets and other lavish gifts that Ram Dass has provided. Miss Minchin instantly believes Sara has stolen all the goods and locks her in the attic. Sara escapes and runs to the hospital.

An unknown man is at the hospital today, and viewers see it as Sara runs around trying to escape detection. It's Captain Crewe, but he has no papers and some sort of brain trauma whereby he has no memory. Also at the hospital today is none other than Queen Victoria herself, who meets Sara and actually grants her permission to search for her missing father. The actress really looks like the real Queen, and the addition of so grand a character is one of my favorite aspects of the adaptation.

Will Sara find her father, go work for the Queen or get captured by Miss Minchin and the police? You'll have to see the film in order to find out. Temple is an adorable dynamo who unfailingly carries all major scenes of the movie. This adaptation (the only one I'm prepared to acknowledge) does vary from the original book, so you'll have to enjoy both to truly experience the story. 

Shirley Temple

Temple passed away just a few days ago at age 85. She began her film career in 1932 and remained active in the industry until 1949. She is, arguably, the most famous child actress of all time. Watch her in "A Little Princess," and you'll know how she earned this legacy.

Books, Butterflies and Hope's

"The writing in this novel was superb. It was sophisticated, and witty, and engaging, and incredibly eloquent."

"I have no words to describe how phenomenal this book was written. Every little tiny detail had a purpose, and it all comes together in such a way that, at the end, your mind is completely blown."

Hope's Rebellion is featured at Book Butterfly reviews! Check out the full review to find out why the reader didn't want to read this story at all...and why they're happy they decided to do it, anyway.

You can get the book for FREE at Smashwords. Just use the code WQ47M to get your copy in any electronic format.

Writing 101: Consistent Marketing

As an indie author, it's a good idea if you write frequently so you can publish often and keep readers interested in your work. But it's not necessary. What's even more important than writing? Consistent marketing.

My Girl Likes to Market All the Time

I may be taking a somewhat controversial stance on this issue, of this I am aware. Some may say what's a writer without the writing? But that may be wrong. Writers do not have to be prolific in order to be successful. I know I bring her up all the time, but I must point again to Margaret Mitchell. She wrote only one book. But after "Gone With the Wind," where is there to go? Jane Austen wrote a mere 6 books. 

If you write great books, you don't necessarily have to write a ton of books. But you will have to do a ton of marketing, even if you only write one book. The key to being an indie author isn't in the amount of marketing you do. It's that you do it consistently. 

Writing 101: Mismatched Titles

I'm all for being artistic, and I personally consider myself a "creative type." I like irony and I appreciate authors who want to create a title that will instantly grab readers. But when you knowingly give your book a title that directly contradicts the content of the book, readers are going to get aggravated with you. Some may even give up on you. When it comes to titling your book, literal really is better...and mismatched titles really aren't a good idea.

By Any Other Name...

Don't believe me? Fine, then don't believe me. Believe Shakespeare, truly one of the most prolific, famous and enduring storytellers in human history. Think about the names of his most famous works. Romeo & Juliet, Henry V, MacBeth, The Taming of the Shrew. Suppose that Romeo & Juliet had been about an old church named St. Pat's instead. It wouldn't make much sense, would it? You'd be pretty put-out if you went to the theater expecting to learn about Romeo and Juliet, only to find they aren't in the story at all -- wouldn't you? 

Writing 101: My Unhealthy Relationship...with Writing About Food

I'm in a toxic relationship. It's not easy to admit or to talk about, but there it is. I have such a bad relationship that it seeps into everything I do...and almost everything I write. And as a writer who's having this toxic relationship, it's impossible for me to write about this relationship without giving readers a skewed, distorted viewpoint. But I know that I can't fix this toxic relationship...so I've found a way to make it work with my writing. If you have a personal issue or some strange quirk, you can't ignore it. You can't write around it. All you can do is embrace it...just like I have.

The Girl with the Most Cake

Those of you who follow my colleague Annalisa Crawford may be aware that I've been engaged in a battle with my toxic relationship for years. I am winning, but not without casualties. My toxic relationship is with food. We've been having a torrid love-hate relationship since...well, perhaps since I was born. Me and food just can't love each other the way we want to, and so we find ourselves constantly at odds instead.

Writing 101: Tick, Tock Are You Trying to Beat the Clock?

I'm one of those writers who figured out what I wanted to do very early. Age 9, to be exact. I didn't start doing my own writing right away, however. I read a lot first, and penned (literally) my first short story at 11. What can I say? I'm the type who learns best from hands-on experience. Back when I was 11, I set a goal for myself that seemed incredibly reasonable at the time. I told myself I would be a published author by the age of 18.

It was a perfectly logical plan...for an 11-year-old. I'm past the age of 18 now, good and past it really, and sometimes I still find myself setting ridiculous goals for no reason other than to make myself feel like a failure.

Tick, Tock

I mean, that's probably not why I do it. I don't think I actually set myself up to fail, but this is almost always the case. I didn't get published before 18. I didn't get published before 20. It took me years to get published, and even longer to learn that getting published isn't nearly enough. You have to keep getting published, and selling books, and you have to do it a lot.  

Indie News: Sony Out, Kobo In...What Does It Mean for Indies?

Next month, the Sony ebook store will no longer exist. Sony's Reader Store titles will be automatically transferred to Kobo. Well, most of them. Some of them. When it comes to self-published ebooks...the issue gets a little muddy. How will this switch affect your books and your readers?

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Through the new deal, some smartphones and Sony's entire line of tablets will now carry the Kobo app instead of the Reader Store app. The books in reader libraries are supposed to switch over. But what about self-published authors who have opted into Sony and/or Kobo through Smashwords?

According to a Sony representative's comments to Good e-Reader, ebooks purchased through Sony's Reader Store will transfer right to Kobo. Magazines and periodicals won't transfer, but Kobo already as a large library of these available to readers. Customers who transfer their libraries to Kobo will receive info about which titles didn't transfer, and why.

Self-published Smashwords books won't transfer automatically. The ePub files themselves won't be transferred, but Sony says that the digital identifiers for ebooks will still be available. This allows readers to find their self-published books in the Kobo library. Books distributed from Smashwords to Sony but not to Kobo will not transfer.

To make your books more readily available, opt in to Kobo through Smashwords. This will allow your books to be listed and accessible to Sony readers.