Lida Quillen
Publisher and Founder of Twilight Times
Books
Shares her Views on the Publishing Industry's Future
By
Dora Machado
How has the growth of self-publishing
affected independent publishers like TT Books? When considering
self-publishing, what are the advantages that authors may gain by signing with
an independent publisher instead? What are the challenges?
I lurk on a number of publisher email lists and
forums. I’m seeing reports that other small publishing houses have seen a
downturn in the number and quality of submissions and thus fewer contracts are
offered. At the present time Twilight Times Books continues to see a
significant number of submissions.
Taking everything into consideration, an author may
well have a certain amount of success (i.e. sales) if they self-publish a
number of their titles. Readers seem to be paying more attention to Indie
authors these days and showing their support by buying their books.
Several authors currently self-publish in addition
to placing certain titles and/or series with TT Books. I don’t have a problem
with this. If an author sends me their best work and I place them under
contract then I can ensure that galley copies of their book will be sent to the
pre-publication book reviewers. In addition, the editing process, the page
layout and design (both ebook and print) as well as the cover art will
generally be superior with a small press as opposed to what the author could
achieve on their own. Also, the book will be eligible for a number of major
book awards if published with a small press.
Sales for Indie authors can be rewarding, but so
can the addition of “award-winning” author to the author bio and/or a snippet
of a review from the Library Journal,
Publishers Weekly, etc. to the cover
of the book.
On the downside,
an author published with a small press is most likely not going to see their
book on the shelves of chain bookstores throughout the U. S. As you may know,
new titles remain on the bookshelves for six weeks to three months before they
are removed. Books with a small press will be in print for years.
Twilight Times Books was established January
1999 as an epublisher. In 2004, we evolved from an Internet epublisher to a
small press print publisher when we published 21 titles in trade paperback. We
currently have 150 ebook titles, of which 110 titles are in print.
In 2004, we had a
backlist of books that the authors were anxious to see in print. I had also
lined up a national distributor who carried all 21 titles. I was able to keep
up with production, just barely, but I was not able to properly market each and
every book. So I have slowed down to 12 – 15 print books per year since then.
In 2005 we acquired
new distribution channels for both our print books and ebooks more than
doubling overall sales. From 2006 to 2013, we’ve seen a steady increase in
sales of about 15% per year. Also, from 2006-2010 about 65-70% of our sales
revenue came from print sales, but that changed to 50% in 2011 due to the
increased demand for ebooks with the advent of a variety of affordable ebook
devices.
In 2014 we have again doubled overall sales, compared to 2013, primarily due to a significant uptick/interest in our SF/F titles in recent months as well as acquisition of new distribution channels.
Our print titles are
highly competitive with other trade publishers, large and small. By that we
mean the quality of the writing in the books. We have always been highly
selective as to what books we selected for publication since inception.
We have ramped up promo opportunities via our
ebook distributors such as Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Barnes &Noble
Digital, Kobo Books, OmniLit, OverDrive, etc. We have a direct relationship
with our ebook distributors. We do not go through a third-party.
Twilight Times Books
was listed in Writer’s Digest Magazine
2012 Top 100 Markets for Book & Magazine Writers. We are currently listed in
the Literary Market Place. Twilight
Times Books is on the Mystery Writers of America list of approved publishers as
well as the International Thriller Writers list of recognized publishers. Our
titles are eligible for major mystery and thriller awards.
We publish
award-winning books which consistently receive four and five star reviews.
Hundreds of libraries across the U.S. have purchased our books. Several titles
have been selected as required reading for college classes in such places as
George Washington University, Loyola College, Pfeiffer University, University
of Kentucky, etc.
We will celebrate 15
years in business this year. Twilight Times Books was established in 1999 to
publish the works of highly talented and yet unpublished and/or under-published
novelists. We are committed to providing an outlet for brilliant authors with
books that deserve to see print. Our philosophy has not changed in fifteen
years.
Fifteen years? Congratulations! One of the biggest changes that we've
witnessed in the industry during the last few years is the evolution of the
E-book. E-books or print books, which one do you prefer to publish and why? Are
print books fated for extinction?
I was perfectly
happy as an epublisher. I was publishing well-written, interesting books from
talented authors in a variety of genres. But I realized to maintain the quality
of the submissions I wanted, I needed to offer print versions. Also, my ebook
authors were clamoring to see their books in print.
We expect to see
ebook sales continue as an increasing percentage of our sales revenue over the
coming years. However, I don’t expect ebooks to completely displace print
books. I anticipate that print books will remain popular for another twenty
years.
What are the driving elements of the ever-changing publishing
industry? What are the main challenges that publishers like Twilight Times
Books face in today's changing environment? What opportunities will the future
bring?
The publishing arena is changing quickly so we
do need to stay abreast of any and all innovative developments. Publishers need
to be alert to new markets, new ebook reader devices, new ebook formats, new
developments in technology, etc.
Several of today’s
established small press publishing houses started as epublishers in 1998-2000.
At that time we knew ebooks were the wave of the future. We had no idea it
would require over ten years for ebooks to take off. In my opinion, the ebook
revolution took off with the advent of popular new ebook devices in 2007-2008.
For small presses who
maintain high standards, have learned the business end of book publishing and
who produce quality books, I feel the future is very bright indeed.
Thank you very much for sharing your insights
with us, Lida. Talking to you has been great. We wish you and TT Books another
fifteen years of continued success. And to our MB4 readers: The future is
bright indeed. Have a good one and as always, thanks for reading.
About
Lida Quillen
Lida E. Quillen is an author, editor, publicist and
publisher. She is the founder and owner of Twilight Times Books, Paladin
Timeless Books and Twilight Times
ezine and current owner of Futures
Mystery Anthology Magazine.
About
Twilight Times Books
The mission of Twilight Times Books is to promote
excellence in writing and great literature. TTBooks is dedicated to enhancing
the prospects of getting great fantasy, historical, literary, mystery, science
fiction and Young Adult books into the hands of readers.
Submission Information
Twilight Times Books will be open to
submissions from February 15th to March 5, 2015. Send a cover letter, synopsis,
first chapter and marketing plan in the body of an email message. The subject
line must begin with ttb or ttbooks.
Contact Information:
Lida E. Quillen, Publisher
Email: publisher@twilighttimesbooks.com – or –
publisher@twilighttimes.comWebsite: http://www.twilighttimesbooks.com/
*****
Dora Machado is the award-winning author of the epic
fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest novel, The Curse Giver, available from Twilight Times Books. She is one
only a few Hispanic women writing fantasy in the United States today. She grew
up in the Dominican Republic, where she developed a fascination for writing and
a taste for Merengue. After a lifetime of straddling such compelling but
different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to her stories.
When
she is not writing fiction, Dora also writes features for the award-winning
blog Murder By Four and Savvy Authors, where writers help writers. She lives in Florida with her indulgent husband and two
very opinionated cats.
