Are Bloggers the New Gatekeepers?

Read the first chapter online

This week, I was interviewed by Jane Friedman on her Writers Digest Blog, "There Are No Rules."  The title of the interview is "Are Bloggers the New Gatekeepers in Publishing?"


Please stop by and give it a look. In it I discuss my recent self-publishing venture involving my 2001 novel, An Uncommon Enemy. Those who have been following my progress on this project will already know how a review and excerpt of the novel on the Kindle Nation blog sent sales of the ebook soaring into the bestseller range a few weeks ago. 


An Uncommon Enemy's success stands in contrast to the sales figures for its sequel, The Second Glass of Absinthe, published as an ebook and a mass market paperback by Macmillan the same week. How does a self-published book out-sell its New York-published counterpart?


Price may be one factor. Enemy's list price on Amazon is $2.99.  Absinthe retails at $7.99. That's a hefty price differential.  Still, the decisive difference may be that I, as the publisher, took the trouble to increase my book's exposure to the reading public.  No one can buy a book if they don't know it exists.

I want to thank Jane Friedman for the opportunity to share my views and my experiences on this interesting new topic of digital publishing. Her blog is filled with the latest information on all aspects of publishing today. I am now a regular reader and believe writers can learn valuable information on all aspects of the trade. Be sure to visit There Are No Rules. 


And STAY TUNED...the trade paperback version of An Uncommon Enemy is in the works.