I have a client who doesn’t pay me reliably. This is, as one might expect, a nontrivial source of stress from time to time.
I also really like the idea of starting to get paid for writing, seeing as how (a) I do it all the time anyway and (b) I really like doing it.
In addition, I have some other projects I’m working on, which have the potential (or so i think, at any rate) to become a regular source of income.
So that’s where you come in, O fellow citizens of the Internettubes. I am using you guys as my Internet Reality Check. I’ve got several things I’d like to start working on, and I’d appreciate some quick poll answers to get a sense of whether or not you folks think these trees are appropriate candidates for some barking up upon…err, that sounds awkward, but you know what I mean.
Project #1
zaiah and I have created a new Tarot deck, the Tentacle Monster Tarot, whose theme is tentacle monsters and the schoolgirls they love.
It started out as a bit of a joke, but as we worked on it, we started to realize that it was shaping up into a very interesting project. We started out with a conventional Tarot deck, but frankly, the traditional Fool’s Journey story arc is rubbish. It starts out good, but it loses coherence and falls apart about two thirds of the way through.
So we scrapped it and came up with our own. You can see a list of the cards here. You can even do online readings here.
What we don’t have is an artist or the money to print the deck. However, I’m thinking about putting up a proposal on Kickstarter.com, which is a Web site for getting funding for art and creative projects. This proposal would include enough money to pay an artist and print some (very nice) cards.
What do you think? Is there any interest in either promoting such a project or buying a Tentacle Monster Tarot deck?
Project #2
A few folks have emailed me saying they’d like to see a downloadable version of the Travelogue I’ve written here. I’m currently working on a PDF/eBook version of the Baltic portion of the Travelogue, with some new commentary and higher resolution pictures. It looks like it’ll be about 200 pages or so by the time all is said and done. (I hadn’t realized that I’d written that much!)
Considering its length and how much work is going into the eBook–I’m laying it out like a high-end coffee table book–I’m wondering if this is the sort of thing folks would be willing to pay a couple bucks for.
Project #3
A while back, I blogged about the emails I get from the popular “Training” story I put on Literotica. I’t s a very popular story, which I’m working on finishing.
I’m also considering rewriting it, cleaning it up a bit (it’s currently about 135,000 words, which is a bit unwieldy), and offering it up as a downloadable eBook. I’m also wondering if this is the sort of thing that people would be willing to pay for.
Project #4
The Map of Non-Monogamy that I’ve done has actually turned out to be even more popular than the Map of Human Sexuality that I did and turned into a poster.
I’m considering making a poster version of the Map of Non-Monogamy. As with the Map of Human Sexuality, the only way I can afford to do this is by getting folks to pre-order the poster; if I get enough pre-orders to pay for the poster run, I can do it, otherwise all the pre-orders get refunded.
So, how many folks might be interested in that project?
Project #5
I’m also thinking of taking sections from my poly and BDSM Web site, bundling them up as eBooks with specific themes (for example, all the jealousy parts of the poly Web site, all the ‘never do this’ and ‘how to’ parts of the poly Web site, all the kinky sex ideas from the BDSM site, and so on) and making them into downloadable eBooks for about $1.99 or so, which is actually the lowest I can charge and not have all the money vanish in credit card merchant fees.
How many folks might find that useful and worthwhile?
So here’s the poll bit. I’d like to get your feedback even if you’re NOT interested in any of these things. I’ve made the results closed, so there’s no social pressure to say that you’d be interested in supporting a project if you’re not.
If you’d like to make any comments, feel free to leave them to this post. I’ll make the comments screened, so that nobody else will see them unless you specifically say it’s OK to unscreen the comments. I’d love to know what you have to say!
judging by your poll results i think you need more friends with money. good luck
judging by your poll results i think you need more friends with money. good luck
None of the above.
I am a fogey and – much as I like your writing – I don’t DO ebooks.
That said, I would likely spend a dozen bucks on decent paper books of the Pron and maybe the xeromag stuff, so I vote P.O.D.
None of the above.
I am a fogey and – much as I like your writing – I don’t DO ebooks.
That said, I would likely spend a dozen bucks on decent paper books of the Pron and maybe the xeromag stuff, so I vote P.O.D.
CreateSpace from Amazon
Get a CreateSpace account and sell Project #2 as a soft-cover book on Amazon. It won’t require any more work than getting the ebook ready (you submit your work to CreateSpace as a .pdf), and this way you could actually make it into a coffee table book and have something in your hand at the end of the day.
Your other ebooks could also get distributed as paperbacks. The nice thing about CreateSpace is that you do not lose your rights to the materials, so you are free to market them in other forms, with other publishers. I know a great deal about online publishing if you want to talk about it.
CreateSpace from Amazon
Get a CreateSpace account and sell Project #2 as a soft-cover book on Amazon. It won’t require any more work than getting the ebook ready (you submit your work to CreateSpace as a .pdf), and this way you could actually make it into a coffee table book and have something in your hand at the end of the day.
Your other ebooks could also get distributed as paperbacks. The nice thing about CreateSpace is that you do not lose your rights to the materials, so you are free to market them in other forms, with other publishers. I know a great deal about online publishing if you want to talk about it.
i asked for a downloadable or otherwise more available version of your travelogue and i would probably be willing to pay for it but for the fact that i’m living with my mother and can’t afford beer. : (
best of luck acquiring money.
i asked for a downloadable or otherwise more available version of your travelogue and i would probably be willing to pay for it but for the fact that i’m living with my mother and can’t afford beer. : (
best of luck acquiring money.
what’s the deal with the screening? is this for everybody or did i say something offensive? or is it just for this post?
It’s just this post. I want to make sure that people feel they can leave honest feedback without worrying what other folks might say.
what’s the deal with the screening? is this for everybody or did i say something offensive? or is it just for this post?
I want to ask… why sell #5 at $1.99? If that’s the absolute minimum you can charge and not have everything go “poof”, why not charge $3.99? That’s still really, really cheap, and will actually give you some profit. What about $4.99?
I see people I know try to monetize the fruits of the labor (of love) and often undervalue it. Maybe you are undervaluing it, maybe you aren’t, but I’d encourage you to take a second (third, fourth…) look at that price point.
Same goes for #3. If it’s that substantial it will take a LOT of work to edit. What would your hourly wage be at that price point. Fairly negligible, I would expect. You’re worth more than that… and I think that a story THAT popular and THAT substantial might very well be worth $6.99… that’s what I think paperback novels are selling for these days.
Then again, I might just be completely out of touch with reality. 😛
I want to ask… why sell #5 at $1.99? If that’s the absolute minimum you can charge and not have everything go “poof”, why not charge $3.99? That’s still really, really cheap, and will actually give you some profit. What about $4.99?
I see people I know try to monetize the fruits of the labor (of love) and often undervalue it. Maybe you are undervaluing it, maybe you aren’t, but I’d encourage you to take a second (third, fourth…) look at that price point.
Same goes for #3. If it’s that substantial it will take a LOT of work to edit. What would your hourly wage be at that price point. Fairly negligible, I would expect. You’re worth more than that… and I think that a story THAT popular and THAT substantial might very well be worth $6.99… that’s what I think paperback novels are selling for these days.
Then again, I might just be completely out of touch with reality. 😛
If you are able to convert the ebooks into an apple app I am sure that would very successful and reach a different market to whom you currently reach
If you are able to convert the ebooks into an apple app I am sure that would very successful and reach a different market to whom you currently reach
I reckon the Tentacle monster tarot would have enough pervy geeks wanting to buy it that it would be a commercial proposition – aside from kickstarter. What kind of incentives would you be offering to donors? Good luck with it all, btw.
I reckon the Tentacle monster tarot would have enough pervy geeks wanting to buy it that it would be a commercial proposition – aside from kickstarter. What kind of incentives would you be offering to donors? Good luck with it all, btw.
You might want to also consider printing actual books. A lot of self-publishing places have a really good rate for printing books as ordered, so you wouldn’t need to deal with inventory or start-up cash, or even shipping; after the customer pays you you just forward the order to them and they ship it right to the customer and send you a bill.
You might want to also consider printing actual books. A lot of self-publishing places have a really good rate for printing books as ordered, so you wouldn’t need to deal with inventory or start-up cash, or even shipping; after the customer pays you you just forward the order to them and they ship it right to the customer and send you a bill.
I think putting pieces of your poly & BDSM website in an eBook format is a great idea. You have great resources that people seek out. However.. charging only $2 for it is insane. The eBook information market for niche markets commands much higher prices… especially if you expand upon what is available on the website for free.
We just bundled up several of our popular topics from our travel/lifestyle design blog into an eBook (and added about 50% more content) and it’s selling great. (Actually.. we offered it up on a ‘pay as you wish basis’ with a $20 suggested price… including free. Folks are opting to pay anywhere between $1 – 40 so far, with an average of about $13. It’s a great way for your fans and followers to opt into supporting your efforts and get something of value, and for new folks finding your site to download and read your content at their leisure.) eBooks in our venue tend to be priced more in the $30-100 range however.
I would also think that your Training book would be a viable e-product as well, if marketed wisely.
Publishing on the Amazon Kindle is apparently pretty easy too, and a great way to distribute eBooks.
There’s a decent market out there for eProducts, especially if you can utilize social networking for marketing (ahem, take it outside of LJ and your website). With your limited starting capital, I’d highly recommend investing time into creating those and getting your reach further spread, than projects with hard start-up costs that require storage, distribution, shipping, etc.
But hey.. that’s me.. a digital nomad who seeks simplicity in all aspects of my life 🙂
Happy to chat with you further about any of this if you wish.
I think putting pieces of your poly & BDSM website in an eBook format is a great idea. You have great resources that people seek out. However.. charging only $2 for it is insane. The eBook information market for niche markets commands much higher prices… especially if you expand upon what is available on the website for free.
We just bundled up several of our popular topics from our travel/lifestyle design blog into an eBook (and added about 50% more content) and it’s selling great. (Actually.. we offered it up on a ‘pay as you wish basis’ with a $20 suggested price… including free. Folks are opting to pay anywhere between $1 – 40 so far, with an average of about $13. It’s a great way for your fans and followers to opt into supporting your efforts and get something of value, and for new folks finding your site to download and read your content at their leisure.) eBooks in our venue tend to be priced more in the $30-100 range however.
I would also think that your Training book would be a viable e-product as well, if marketed wisely.
Publishing on the Amazon Kindle is apparently pretty easy too, and a great way to distribute eBooks.
There’s a decent market out there for eProducts, especially if you can utilize social networking for marketing (ahem, take it outside of LJ and your website). With your limited starting capital, I’d highly recommend investing time into creating those and getting your reach further spread, than projects with hard start-up costs that require storage, distribution, shipping, etc.
But hey.. that’s me.. a digital nomad who seeks simplicity in all aspects of my life 🙂
Happy to chat with you further about any of this if you wish.
Oh.. another idea. Still have an iPhone? Have you explored iPhone app development? Perhaps releasing an iPad/iPhone version of Onyx or others of your projects? You might need to come up with an inventive ways to get some of your more risque card sets into the app via direct download, but I would image the shell of the game could make it through their app approval process.
Oh.. another idea. Still have an iPhone? Have you explored iPhone app development? Perhaps releasing an iPad/iPhone version of Onyx or others of your projects? You might need to come up with an inventive ways to get some of your more risque card sets into the app via direct download, but I would image the shell of the game could make it through their app approval process.
It’s just this post. I want to make sure that people feel they can leave honest feedback without worrying what other folks might say.
Have you ever looked at lulu.com ?
They are an on-demand publishing company who can handle both print and e-book formats. I’ve not published through them, but I’ve ordered a few books from them and the binding and printing quality is not bad. This might help you expand your market to those of us who really don’t like e-books.
Have you ever looked at lulu.com ?
They are an on-demand publishing company who can handle both print and e-book formats. I’ve not published through them, but I’ve ordered a few books from them and the binding and printing quality is not bad. This might help you expand your market to those of us who really don’t like e-books.
I really like the xeromag.com material you’ve posted. It’s very useful to me and, and I refer other people there all the time when they ask me about BDSM and/or polyamory. But I’m rather old school and would really enjoy having a PAPER version of the material. No need to keep this comment screened.
I really like the xeromag.com material you’ve posted. It’s very useful to me and, and I refer other people there all the time when they ask me about BDSM and/or polyamory. But I’m rather old school and would really enjoy having a PAPER version of the material. No need to keep this comment screened.
I think you should charge more for the poly stuff, and think more about print on that one. I still think there’s a great big market for “here’s a poly primer, honey, read it and get back to me” as well as something to give your parents when you come out, that sort of thing, and your stuff is the best I’ve found for both purposes.
I think you should charge more for the poly stuff, and think more about print on that one. I still think there’s a great big market for “here’s a poly primer, honey, read it and get back to me” as well as something to give your parents when you come out, that sort of thing, and your stuff is the best I’ve found for both purposes.
“Tentacle Monster Tarot”
Am I wrong about you being an atheist??
Wouldn’t it be hypocritical to try making a tarot deck??
Is tomorrow’s blog going to be about the tickets you sold to midnight mass??
“Tentacle Monster Tarot”
Am I wrong about you being an atheist??
Wouldn’t it be hypocritical to try making a tarot deck??
Is tomorrow’s blog going to be about the tickets you sold to midnight mass??
I would be more willing to pay slightly more for the entire bdsm or Poly sections of your Xeromag pages but as a dead tree book form. Easier to loan them out that way. $5-8 for standard paperback $10-14 for trade paperback size. I like having the digital versions of books but since I don’t have an e-reader, if I want to show someone something in them I have to haul the whole computer out.
What about reading your training story as a podcast? read a chapter at a time over a number of months. There aren’t enough good erotica podcasts out there and THAT I would be willing to subscribe too. (I listen to erotica at work, makes the days go faster) it could also be a platform for getting your other business ventures advertised. the podcasting net spreads wide and fast from what I see with all of the crossovers and guest hosting and promos for other podcasters.
I Know it is so NOT your style but I also think you should write a childrens book about Liams adventure to Oregon and another one about Liam and Kyla(?) becoming siblings. but that’s just me.
ok that’s my 2 cents worth…..
I would be more willing to pay slightly more for the entire bdsm or Poly sections of your Xeromag pages but as a dead tree book form. Easier to loan them out that way. $5-8 for standard paperback $10-14 for trade paperback size. I like having the digital versions of books but since I don’t have an e-reader, if I want to show someone something in them I have to haul the whole computer out.
What about reading your training story as a podcast? read a chapter at a time over a number of months. There aren’t enough good erotica podcasts out there and THAT I would be willing to subscribe too. (I listen to erotica at work, makes the days go faster) it could also be a platform for getting your other business ventures advertised. the podcasting net spreads wide and fast from what I see with all of the crossovers and guest hosting and promos for other podcasters.
I Know it is so NOT your style but I also think you should write a childrens book about Liams adventure to Oregon and another one about Liam and Kyla(?) becoming siblings. but that’s just me.
ok that’s my 2 cents worth…..
now you may be wondering, “why?”
1. There are hundreds of specialty tarot decks out there, and I already have the only ones I want.
2. I don’t travel. If I did, I would want a pocket paperback of your travelogue, even though the pics would be smaller.
3. Porn is always worth spending money on.
4. I don’t buy posters anymore.
5. I feel much better about pointing friends and not-friends to your bdsm pages than handing them a how-to book. Also, I have all the how-to books I need. I have even tried to pass along the ones I’ve memorized, but nobody wants them. You’d think they were tainted like an unwashed dildo or something.
feel free to unscreen this if you like. -Devon
now you may be wondering, “why?”
1. There are hundreds of specialty tarot decks out there, and I already have the only ones I want.
2. I don’t travel. If I did, I would want a pocket paperback of your travelogue, even though the pics would be smaller.
3. Porn is always worth spending money on.
4. I don’t buy posters anymore.
5. I feel much better about pointing friends and not-friends to your bdsm pages than handing them a how-to book. Also, I have all the how-to books I need. I have even tried to pass along the ones I’ve memorized, but nobody wants them. You’d think they were tainted like an unwashed dildo or something.
feel free to unscreen this if you like. -Devon
I’m based in the UK – I suspect the postage on a poster tube would be extortionate – but I suspect it would be popular round here if that could be worked out.
I’m based in the UK – I suspect the postage on a poster tube would be extortionate – but I suspect it would be popular round here if that could be worked out.
I refer people to your Xeromag site when they have questions about poly, so I’d hate to see that taken down as a public resource.
I’m interested in fiction eBooks, and would potentially buy the Training series — although I’d like to check it out on Literotica first (you would not BELIEVE how frantically busy these past couple of months have been, and it’s bidding fair to be the same for the first few months of 2011) . . . I’m not sure how I’d feel about the nonconsent issue until I have a chance to dip my toes in and see if it gets me hot or makes me squeamish.
If you theoretically wrote more of a BDSM-themed scenario, I’d pick it up as an eBook.
I don’t personally want the Tentacle Rape Tarot (not my cup of tea), but I’d be willing to support it on Kickstarter, and if it gets made, I have a friend who I think might enjoy it, depending on how the art style turned out.
And I *adore* your travelogues (and have been sharing them with Kira, who has a long-distance Polish boyfriend) . . . however, I’m not in the market for any physical books right now — I’m moving in a couple of months (if all turns out well with my apartment application, which they seem to have NO urgency in completing), and I need to divest myself of a good chunk of my possessions already. However, I do think they have potential as a book, for people who buy coffee-table books 🙂
Feel free to unscreen if desired!
— A 🙂
I refer people to your Xeromag site when they have questions about poly, so I’d hate to see that taken down as a public resource.
I’m interested in fiction eBooks, and would potentially buy the Training series — although I’d like to check it out on Literotica first (you would not BELIEVE how frantically busy these past couple of months have been, and it’s bidding fair to be the same for the first few months of 2011) . . . I’m not sure how I’d feel about the nonconsent issue until I have a chance to dip my toes in and see if it gets me hot or makes me squeamish.
If you theoretically wrote more of a BDSM-themed scenario, I’d pick it up as an eBook.
I don’t personally want the Tentacle Rape Tarot (not my cup of tea), but I’d be willing to support it on Kickstarter, and if it gets made, I have a friend who I think might enjoy it, depending on how the art style turned out.
And I *adore* your travelogues (and have been sharing them with Kira, who has a long-distance Polish boyfriend) . . . however, I’m not in the market for any physical books right now — I’m moving in a couple of months (if all turns out well with my apartment application, which they seem to have NO urgency in completing), and I need to divest myself of a good chunk of my possessions already. However, I do think they have potential as a book, for people who buy coffee-table books 🙂
Feel free to unscreen if desired!
— A 🙂
I’d actually like the posters in a smaller size, something I can take to the poly meetings and display. The current Map of Sexuality is rather unwieldy for transporting, hanging for 2 hours, taking down, & taking home.
I’d actually like the posters in a smaller size, something I can take to the poly meetings and display. The current Map of Sexuality is rather unwieldy for transporting, hanging for 2 hours, taking down, & taking home.
part 1
Here is an unstructured brainstorm of some surface thoughts/ideas regarding each potential project; feel free to contemplate or discard as appropriate.
These awful/awesome ideas are completely un-vetted; they are not meant to be “you should do X” but exploratory shots-in-the-dark, just in case there are some possibilities that hadn’t already occurred to you:
1. Tentacle Monster Tarot Deck
This is my favorite.
I think this idea could be stupendously successful, but you will need more than an artist and an Overnight Prints coupon to do it justice… some awesome/awful ideas:
Definitely do some hard thinking on answering the question, “What is the target demographic?” Who are you expecting/hoping to buy these? What goals will be more achievable for people who purchase them? What are your customers going to do with them?
Are you exclusively catering to the Tarot-buying crowd? If so, you might be giving up a potentially huge source of cash. For example, would you feel comfortable selling them to a decidedly non-mystical crowd who wanted to buy them for the “omigosh look what I got” factor?
You could even go so far as to package them as completely different products–you could sell the Tarot deck as a Tarot deck, but you could also use the concept and art assets to create something else that people who are turned off by Tarot would still be interested in.
I love the online reading, and I love the “share” feature. Maybe it could be expanded slightly into something slightly more complex, slightly simpler, or more game-like? How about a “which Tentacle tarot card are you” survey that scrillions of people will post on their LiveJournals and subsequently click through to the site and maybe buy stuff?
part 1
Here is an unstructured brainstorm of some surface thoughts/ideas regarding each potential project; feel free to contemplate or discard as appropriate.
These awful/awesome ideas are completely un-vetted; they are not meant to be “you should do X” but exploratory shots-in-the-dark, just in case there are some possibilities that hadn’t already occurred to you:
1. Tentacle Monster Tarot Deck
This is my favorite.
I think this idea could be stupendously successful, but you will need more than an artist and an Overnight Prints coupon to do it justice… some awesome/awful ideas:
Definitely do some hard thinking on answering the question, “What is the target demographic?” Who are you expecting/hoping to buy these? What goals will be more achievable for people who purchase them? What are your customers going to do with them?
Are you exclusively catering to the Tarot-buying crowd? If so, you might be giving up a potentially huge source of cash. For example, would you feel comfortable selling them to a decidedly non-mystical crowd who wanted to buy them for the “omigosh look what I got” factor?
You could even go so far as to package them as completely different products–you could sell the Tarot deck as a Tarot deck, but you could also use the concept and art assets to create something else that people who are turned off by Tarot would still be interested in.
I love the online reading, and I love the “share” feature. Maybe it could be expanded slightly into something slightly more complex, slightly simpler, or more game-like? How about a “which Tentacle tarot card are you” survey that scrillions of people will post on their LiveJournals and subsequently click through to the site and maybe buy stuff?
part 2
(split up cause it was too long for 1 LJ comment at first)
2. Travelogue
“Spin” and presentation and focus on customer goals is import here imho: Again, thinking about who would buy it and why. I almost feel like the results from this LJ survey are very skewed, because there’s a universe of people out there who I bet would be interested in this, that just don’t happen to read your LJ. You could advertise this cheaply in a number of different places (Facebook? FetLife? Project Wonderful?), but it can also probably be presented in some different and important ways. Would it be of great interest to people who are about to travel to the same places you did? What about someone who just loves the culture and wants to read whatever they can about those areas? What about someone who just wants to look at the pictures? (Also, maybe some of the photos can net you licensing royalties on photo sites?)
3. Training
Not as much faith in this one… unless you’re offering extra content to people who purchase the ebook (pictures, a subscription to something, a video, another publication only available as a bundle with the ebook, etc.)
4. Map of Non-Monogamy
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! Maybe give it a shorter name? Maybe advertise? (again–FetLife? dunno).
5. Poly & BDSM Site -> eBooks
I don’t think the translation from site to eBook is inherently increasing the value of something; imho the “reading it for free on your site is enough” option in your survey will be very prescient if all you do is repackage the content as an ebook.
This is a tough one because you’ve done a lot of hard work to create excellent content, and you want to spread the word as much as possible, which means completely restricting it to buyers/subscribers goes against your M.O. But there must be other ways to monetize.
You could probably figure out a way to clean up & redesign the site to drive more traffic and more repeat visitors–I think the current design isn’t functional in that most pages either have too many things to click on or too much to read. The content itself is phenomenal, but maybe a better presentation would be cutting down the site to simpler overviews and having the inexpensive eBook be a “read more” option, for example, “Buy the ebook for answers to common questions like X Y and Z”.
Also, I know this is faddish, but maybe a non-LJ blog to reiterate, re-state, or elaborate on the content of xeromag? Maybe some different ads–the “Facebook of sex” ones that pop up are tragically tasteless and make the site feel skeezier than it is. Your site is a haven of wonderful information for people who want to have healthy relationships; it should feel that way too.
I hope there were a couple of usable nuggets in all of that; overall I think you have a stupendous amount of great content and ideas, so that’s not a hurdle you need to worry about, it’s more about packaging, presentation & getting the word out there. It’s true that some ideas are so great that they sell themselves, but for every such idea, there are 1,000 ideas which are just as good–or better–that go unnoticed, because the proprietors are waiting for “word of mouth” to take care of everything. I don’t believe in “If you build it, they will come”, is what i’m sayin. ;-P
part 2
(split up cause it was too long for 1 LJ comment at first)
2. Travelogue
“Spin” and presentation and focus on customer goals is import here imho: Again, thinking about who would buy it and why. I almost feel like the results from this LJ survey are very skewed, because there’s a universe of people out there who I bet would be interested in this, that just don’t happen to read your LJ. You could advertise this cheaply in a number of different places (Facebook? FetLife? Project Wonderful?), but it can also probably be presented in some different and important ways. Would it be of great interest to people who are about to travel to the same places you did? What about someone who just loves the culture and wants to read whatever they can about those areas? What about someone who just wants to look at the pictures? (Also, maybe some of the photos can net you licensing royalties on photo sites?)
3. Training
Not as much faith in this one… unless you’re offering extra content to people who purchase the ebook (pictures, a subscription to something, a video, another publication only available as a bundle with the ebook, etc.)
4. Map of Non-Monogamy
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! Maybe give it a shorter name? Maybe advertise? (again–FetLife? dunno).
5. Poly & BDSM Site -> eBooks
I don’t think the translation from site to eBook is inherently increasing the value of something; imho the “reading it for free on your site is enough” option in your survey will be very prescient if all you do is repackage the content as an ebook.
This is a tough one because you’ve done a lot of hard work to create excellent content, and you want to spread the word as much as possible, which means completely restricting it to buyers/subscribers goes against your M.O. But there must be other ways to monetize.
You could probably figure out a way to clean up & redesign the site to drive more traffic and more repeat visitors–I think the current design isn’t functional in that most pages either have too many things to click on or too much to read. The content itself is phenomenal, but maybe a better presentation would be cutting down the site to simpler overviews and having the inexpensive eBook be a “read more” option, for example, “Buy the ebook for answers to common questions like X Y and Z”.
Also, I know this is faddish, but maybe a non-LJ blog to reiterate, re-state, or elaborate on the content of xeromag? Maybe some different ads–the “Facebook of sex” ones that pop up are tragically tasteless and make the site feel skeezier than it is. Your site is a haven of wonderful information for people who want to have healthy relationships; it should feel that way too.
I hope there were a couple of usable nuggets in all of that; overall I think you have a stupendous amount of great content and ideas, so that’s not a hurdle you need to worry about, it’s more about packaging, presentation & getting the word out there. It’s true that some ideas are so great that they sell themselves, but for every such idea, there are 1,000 ideas which are just as good–or better–that go unnoticed, because the proprietors are waiting for “word of mouth” to take care of everything. I don’t believe in “If you build it, they will come”, is what i’m sayin. ;-P
*ahem*
Tentacle Monster Tarot WANT.
That is all. 😉
*ahem*
Tentacle Monster Tarot WANT.
That is all. 😉
Tarot Deck & Ebookoptions
Please keep this screened…
First, the tarot
There’s a lovely webcomic I was a fan of, dating back to 2001 that is about “tentacle monsters and the women who love them”. Ghastly, the artist may be amenable to both the use of his webcomic artwork and/or special commission pieces.
The comic is here:
http://www.ghastlycomic.com/
Ghastly’s other works:
http://www.webcomicsnation.com/ghastly/
LJ:
http://ghastlycomic.livejournal.com/
Second, for the ebook
You may know her but…Cheryl Morgan is starting up her own Ebook press. While I think she’s focusing on fiction, she might be interested in selling your work (at leas tin a its here and on my website..). If not, her blog is at least worth a look for the stuff she writes about gender* and on the publishing industry (ebook and otherwise).
http://www.cheryl-morgan.com/
*e.g. http://www.bilerico.com/2008/09/transgender_themes_in_science_fiction.php
http://crossedgenres.com/archives/012-2/heinleins-friday-a-trans-novel-by-cheryl-morgan/
Tarot Deck & Ebookoptions
Please keep this screened…
First, the tarot
There’s a lovely webcomic I was a fan of, dating back to 2001 that is about “tentacle monsters and the women who love them”. Ghastly, the artist may be amenable to both the use of his webcomic artwork and/or special commission pieces.
The comic is here:
http://www.ghastlycomic.com/
Ghastly’s other works:
http://www.webcomicsnation.com/ghastly/
LJ:
http://ghastlycomic.livejournal.com/
Second, for the ebook
You may know her but…Cheryl Morgan is starting up her own Ebook press. While I think she’s focusing on fiction, she might be interested in selling your work (at leas tin a its here and on my website..). If not, her blog is at least worth a look for the stuff she writes about gender* and on the publishing industry (ebook and otherwise).
http://www.cheryl-morgan.com/
*e.g. http://www.bilerico.com/2008/09/transgender_themes_in_science_fiction.php
http://crossedgenres.com/archives/012-2/heinleins-friday-a-trans-novel-by-cheryl-morgan/
Is there enough material to make a book of the travelogue? Because that would be very cool- although I wouldn’t see it as a pocketsize guidebook, more like a coffee table book with lots of big pictures and it wouldn’t be obvious at first that the text was actually worth reading, until you happened to catch a line about the cries of the tortured souls of dryads, or the Russian monarchy attempting to create a 2 headed heir through generations of inbreeding.
Is there enough material to make a book of the travelogue? Because that would be very cool- although I wouldn’t see it as a pocketsize guidebook, more like a coffee table book with lots of big pictures and it wouldn’t be obvious at first that the text was actually worth reading, until you happened to catch a line about the cries of the tortured souls of dryads, or the Russian monarchy attempting to create a 2 headed heir through generations of inbreeding.
I have very little discretionary income, so I wouldn’t buy anything. However:
I think 1 and 4 have decent market potential. I wouldn’t buy #1, but I know people who would. I think the posters in #4 will sell easily.
I think #5 is a good idea, but I think physical pamphlets would make more sense than e-books. They could be sold at conventions, panels, and the like. There’s not a whole lot of difference between reading an e-book and reading a web page, so why pay $1.99 for an e-book when you can read the page for free? But a pamphlet bridges the gap between the electronic and print media. You could use an on-demand printing site and probably sell them for $5.99 or so.
Thanks for sharing the info about kickstarter! That’s a way cool idea, and I’d never heard of it.
I have very little discretionary income, so I wouldn’t buy anything. However:
I think 1 and 4 have decent market potential. I wouldn’t buy #1, but I know people who would. I think the posters in #4 will sell easily.
I think #5 is a good idea, but I think physical pamphlets would make more sense than e-books. They could be sold at conventions, panels, and the like. There’s not a whole lot of difference between reading an e-book and reading a web page, so why pay $1.99 for an e-book when you can read the page for free? But a pamphlet bridges the gap between the electronic and print media. You could use an on-demand printing site and probably sell them for $5.99 or so.
Thanks for sharing the info about kickstarter! That’s a way cool idea, and I’d never heard of it.
I would be more than happy to assist with your projects, especially in selling you posters and finished items at vendor sales at the Center for Sex Positive Culture and at their Paradise Unbound festival the second week of August. My Master is a writer and I completely agree that you should get paid for what you already do. (He writes faerie tales on his lj here and has a great half-orc story brewing in his head, among others I’m not aware of.) As far as compensation for my efforts, we can negotiate. I’m cool with bartering and I’m more interested in helping than I am in personal gain.
Send me a message and I’ll be happy to give you my contact information.
~Suzanne
I would be more than happy to assist with your projects, especially in selling you posters and finished items at vendor sales at the Center for Sex Positive Culture and at their Paradise Unbound festival the second week of August. My Master is a writer and I completely agree that you should get paid for what you already do. (He writes faerie tales on his lj here and has a great half-orc story brewing in his head, among others I’m not aware of.) As far as compensation for my efforts, we can negotiate. I’m cool with bartering and I’m more interested in helping than I am in personal gain.
Send me a message and I’ll be happy to give you my contact information.
~Suzanne
Whurg. Well, personally, I buy very little extra stuff, and would be unlikely to buy any of the above you sell for money, and (seperately) am grateful that they exist for free on the webs, and I link everyone who expresses the slightest interest in non-monogamy to xeromag. I think it’s an absolutely brilliant resource (and I’d be really sad to see it come down off the web and stop being free.)
I do think that this stuff would sell, though, and hugely support your considering selling it. And I’d spend money on gifting the ebooks to friends and the like. So consider this a general supportive comment from a relative anomaly who doesn’t actually spend money on anything!
Whurg. Well, personally, I buy very little extra stuff, and would be unlikely to buy any of the above you sell for money, and (seperately) am grateful that they exist for free on the webs, and I link everyone who expresses the slightest interest in non-monogamy to xeromag. I think it’s an absolutely brilliant resource (and I’d be really sad to see it come down off the web and stop being free.)
I do think that this stuff would sell, though, and hugely support your considering selling it. And I’d spend money on gifting the ebooks to friends and the like. So consider this a general supportive comment from a relative anomaly who doesn’t actually spend money on anything!
If I don’t have an ebook reader (I really like BOOKS), can I still download it as a pdf or other file of some sort? Sorry, I know nothing about ebook stuff.
If I don’t have an ebook reader (I really like BOOKS), can I still download it as a pdf or other file of some sort? Sorry, I know nothing about ebook stuff.
I would actually buy the tarot decks at some point (especially if some part of it was signed!), but just can’t float that kind of cash right now. Maybe a couple of years, when I finish school. (No pics on the site? No artwork yet?) (Cashflow is also what’s keeping my shiny copy of your map from getting this kick-ass custom framing I have in mind.)
Not familiar with kickstarter… will have to look that up later.
I’m not into travelogues in general.
Love Literotica. Have started reading some of the stories you mentioned… very much enjoying them so far!
I’ve only barely looked over your Xeromag stuff, but if it’s anything like your blog, I’d probably be very interested, and might even be interested in it as a physical book I would pay for (or an ebook) – not sure if it would lend itself to a coffee-table book? But without looking further, I can’t definitively say one way or the other right now.
Again, all subject to current cashflow.
No need to screen.
I would actually buy the tarot decks at some point (especially if some part of it was signed!), but just can’t float that kind of cash right now. Maybe a couple of years, when I finish school. (No pics on the site? No artwork yet?) (Cashflow is also what’s keeping my shiny copy of your map from getting this kick-ass custom framing I have in mind.)
Not familiar with kickstarter… will have to look that up later.
I’m not into travelogues in general.
Love Literotica. Have started reading some of the stories you mentioned… very much enjoying them so far!
I’ve only barely looked over your Xeromag stuff, but if it’s anything like your blog, I’d probably be very interested, and might even be interested in it as a physical book I would pay for (or an ebook) – not sure if it would lend itself to a coffee-table book? But without looking further, I can’t definitively say one way or the other right now.
Again, all subject to current cashflow.
No need to screen.
Oh yeah, you can unscreen my comment if you want 🙂
Oh yeah, you can unscreen my comment if you want 🙂
I’d be in for all of the ebooks, but would love to see some of these on the Apple app store. The formatting possible in an app simply can’t be matched in a pdf. The beauty of that approach is it also makes it dirt easy to send as a gift to someone. I have more than a few friends I’d buy copies of these for.
No need to keep this comment screened.
I’d be in for all of the ebooks, but would love to see some of these on the Apple app store. The formatting possible in an app simply can’t be matched in a pdf. The beauty of that approach is it also makes it dirt easy to send as a gift to someone. I have more than a few friends I’d buy copies of these for.
No need to keep this comment screened.
Since I’m a mod in our local poly group, I think having a few paper copies of stuff from your Xeromag site would be wonderful to have around. I also think you’re selling yourself short by offering them @ only $1.99.
I do also like the idea of the map of non-monogamy to take to meetings, as well as the map of human sexuality, but would find it unwieldy. I worry that if it’s made smaller though, that it would be too hard to read, so I donno what to tell you on that one.
No need to screen.
Since I’m a mod in our local poly group, I think having a few paper copies of stuff from your Xeromag site would be wonderful to have around. I also think you’re selling yourself short by offering them @ only $1.99.
I do also like the idea of the map of non-monogamy to take to meetings, as well as the map of human sexuality, but would find it unwieldy. I worry that if it’s made smaller though, that it would be too hard to read, so I donno what to tell you on that one.
No need to screen.
My tupence
Hi Franklin,
just an outsider on your blog… but I’d hate to see you fantastic material on poly being limited to people who pay. It’s too good to limit its spreading. Have you thought of implementing a “pay as you wish” type of structure ? As in “here, download the pdf, if you like it, if this is useful to you, consider giving 5-10$ to support my work”. Lots of eBooks are published that way in the lifestyle design world…
AM
My tupence
Hi Franklin,
just an outsider on your blog… but I’d hate to see you fantastic material on poly being limited to people who pay. It’s too good to limit its spreading. Have you thought of implementing a “pay as you wish” type of structure ? As in “here, download the pdf, if you like it, if this is useful to you, consider giving 5-10$ to support my work”. Lots of eBooks are published that way in the lifestyle design world…
AM
(Unscreening is fine):
Aside from the travelogue series (I found it fun, but am less interested in that part of the world than some others), I’m generally interested in the rest. The poster thing is unlikely for me, because I don’t have a good space in which to hang such a thing, but I still think it’s a good idea. Regarding the erotica: I have friends who’ve published really fantastic erotica in ebook format, and I bought it, and am happy I did so. I’m simply unlikely to do that for something I’ve already read (which I have with the Training series, as far as it’s published so far).
The poly-and-BDSM reference materials from Xeromag, especially if given some editorial attention (your voice has changed fairly significantly in the last several years, IMO, and I enjoy your style even more now) would be invaluable in eBook format. If you do small booklet-type publications for $1.99 a pop, I hope you’ll also consider doing something more comprehensive for more – I’d rather have one document than twenty. (But the whole is worth much more than $1.99, I agree!)
Finally, the tarot deck. This is right up my alley, I’ll happily support it on Kickstarter, and I even checked ‘will buy at $45’ – but I must note that my purchase of tarot decks is significantly tied to the art. If I can’t connect with the art, I don’t know that I’d follow through with the purchase. Perhaps you might consider posting links to some artists for style reference? That would solidify my decision, there, and if I knew the art was going to mesh with a style I enjoyed a lot it would drive me to support on Kickstarter at a higher level.
Cheers!
(Unscreening is fine):
Aside from the travelogue series (I found it fun, but am less interested in that part of the world than some others), I’m generally interested in the rest. The poster thing is unlikely for me, because I don’t have a good space in which to hang such a thing, but I still think it’s a good idea. Regarding the erotica: I have friends who’ve published really fantastic erotica in ebook format, and I bought it, and am happy I did so. I’m simply unlikely to do that for something I’ve already read (which I have with the Training series, as far as it’s published so far).
The poly-and-BDSM reference materials from Xeromag, especially if given some editorial attention (your voice has changed fairly significantly in the last several years, IMO, and I enjoy your style even more now) would be invaluable in eBook format. If you do small booklet-type publications for $1.99 a pop, I hope you’ll also consider doing something more comprehensive for more – I’d rather have one document than twenty. (But the whole is worth much more than $1.99, I agree!)
Finally, the tarot deck. This is right up my alley, I’ll happily support it on Kickstarter, and I even checked ‘will buy at $45’ – but I must note that my purchase of tarot decks is significantly tied to the art. If I can’t connect with the art, I don’t know that I’d follow through with the purchase. Perhaps you might consider posting links to some artists for style reference? That would solidify my decision, there, and if I knew the art was going to mesh with a style I enjoyed a lot it would drive me to support on Kickstarter at a higher level.
Cheers!
I love the idea of the tarot cards, but $45 is about the top limit I’d pay even if the art was great. I definitely wouldn’t pay to get access to the website, though.
Feel free to unscreen this.
I love the idea of the tarot cards, but $45 is about the top limit I’d pay even if the art was great. I definitely wouldn’t pay to get access to the website, though.
Feel free to unscreen this.