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April 23, 2012

Do You Read Indie Books? [Discussion]

Good news: the online writing community is, for the most part, extremely supportive of indie authors and self-publishing. Bad news: it can still seem like a very “every man for himself” world out there, even within that community.

When’s the last time you gave a fellow indie author a shoutout on Twitter? Left a comment on his blog? E-mailed her a note of support? As anyone who has been down the indie publishing path knows, it can seem ridiculously lonely and all help is appreciated. In the past we’ve discussed how you support your fellow indie authors, but today we want to be a little more specific and ask: do you read indie books?

We want to know:

  • Do you read books by your fellow indie authors? What was the last indie book you read?
  • How do you find indie books to read? 
  • Have you been surprised by the quality of an indie book you’ve read? How about disappointed (no names necessary)?
  • What would increase the likelihood of your reading more indie books?
  • Do you read indie books in paperback or eBook format?
  • Which indie book is the best one you’ve read? What did you enjoy most about it?

We can’t wait to hear your responses! To join the discussion, please leave a comment below addressing any (or all) of the above questions. Also, mention the discussion to your indie author friends — we’d love to hear from everyone!

Filed Under: Discussion

  • So far in 2012 I’ve read 11 books and i think 4 of them have been Indie. The last one was Prophecy by J.F Penn, and overall i think the quality is good

    They are sometimes a little rushed (one more good edit would usually do it), but nothing too inhabiting. The quality is certainly there, and in terms of what it would take to read more, i think it will just come in time.

    I usually read books as part of challenges, or recommended by others. This will bring more indie’s my way i’m sure

    It’s a market that’s certainly on the up :)

    Mat (Turndog Millionaire)

    • Thanks Mat! I agree with you that authors sometimes get in a hurry and skip important steps (like editing). Why do you think that happens? Do you think they’re just anxious to get their book published or do they assume they will have a chance to go back and edit it later?

    • i think it’s more down to cost. In general ‘Pro’ books will go through several edits (with an editor always there to offer a helping hand), but this would cost thousands for a self-pub author to do. 

      I think many indie writers do hire an editor now, but they save up enough for one edit, which in truth is probably never enough. I know i won;t be ale to justify more than one. Not for my first book.

      Anxiety probably does make a difference a little, but i don’t think people truly know how expensive becoming an author on your own is. It’s not a case of could be, but IS. Even great writers would have several edits before it goes to print

      Matt (Turndog Millionaire)

    • That’s true, editing is not cheap, especially for an indie author. But where possible, it’s always worth whatever you can invest in it! Thanks for sharing Matt :-)

  • I read almost exclusively Indie Authors these days. I still have a few of my favorite trad pub authors that I read, but I love trying new authors. I’m currently reading, Trinity by Patrick Fox. I’m about half-way through and am enjoying it immensely. A couple of my favorite indie authors are: Adrian James, and J. Kent Holloway.

    As Matthew said, some of the indie books could use another round of editing. But overall, I’ve been happy with them. The only time I was really disappointed was when I left a review for an author and he apparently sent his friends to attack the comment. I talked about what a great story idea it was and how if it hadn’t been for the lack of editing pulling me from the story that I would have been on the edge of my seat. I even said that I would try the author again as I thought he/she had lots of potential if the next book was edited better. It definitely wasn’t cool what happened afterwards and I won’t be reading that author again. I think maybe some have put their books up without having gone through critique and rejection and their skin just isn’t thick enough yet to handle the slightest criticism. And that is definitely needed in this business.

    I find my books through searches on Amazon, friend recommendations, facebook, twitter, blogs, etc. I read nearly all eBooks now. I reserve my shelf space for my absolute favorite authors.

    I also show the love daily by sharing and tweeting, liking and tagging, and writing reviews. :-)

    • Hey Rhonda! That’s really disappointing that the author took your comments poorly. It sounds like you were just focused on constructive criticism that I think a lot of authors need to hear (especially about editing). I’m interested to know, if your local bookstore carried indie paperbacks that you could pick up and thumb through, do you think you’d be more likely to get the paperbacks instead of eBooks?

    •  I’d probably still read more eBooks overall, but I’d definitely buy some in paperback. It would be great to have indie books in the bookstores!

    • I think it would be wonderful, too. I mean think of how many sections in the bookstore probably never get used? Just a shelf or two of highly rated indie books to start with would be amazing. Maybe someday we’ll see that! Thanks Rhonda.

  • I love books, and am very excited about the explosion of indie publishing going on right now. I try to read more indie than trad, but I do have my standards. Just as a trad-pubbed book isn’t guaranteed to be a good story no matter how slick it looks, an indie-pubbed book may have gold that just isn’t perfectly polished.

    My tendency is to read authors who are treating their books as part of a business, meaning investment has been made in editing, formatting, and other quality control. Joanna Penn, one of my new favorites, is a great example of that. However, I do find myself making allowances for newer authors, although if I find several errors in as many pages I’ll usually stop reading no matter what.

    The last indie book I read suffered from lack of editing, both developmental and end-phase proofreading, but the story and writing were good enough to keep me reading. It will be interesting to see if the editing improves in the author’s next book. 

    • Hi Christine! It’s really interesting to me that you like authors who treat their books as a business, but your reasoning is solid. Anyone who puts that much into their books (like Joanna does) is bound to have a good product. How do you research indie authors? Do you go to their website or check out what they’re saying on a social media site?

    •  I suppose I mean that while the book itself is an artistic creation, connecting it with readers for profit (monetary as well as the less tangible rewards) requires a certain level of professionalism.

      I like to follow indie authors on blogs, and have found them through other bloggers I trust. It’s great having the “backstage tour” of an author’s blog to get a feel for them as a writer and their approach to the art and business of writing.

    • Love the use of the word “professionalism.” That’s what indie authors need to do to take it to the next level. I also love referring to blogs as a “backstage tour”! I never thought of it like that but it’s perfect :-) Thanks for sharing Christine!

  • Meg

    I would like to read more indie books, but I’m having a hard time translating my usual realtime browsing methods to online.  It doesn’t help that I’m something of a cheapskate, and don’t want to spend any money unless I absolutely know I’m going to like it (most of my trad reading is done from library books, where there’s no risk of wasting money at all).

    • Hey Meg! I feel you on the risk/reward of indie books. That’s probably my biggest worry, I hate to spend money on something I don’t enjoy. But I’ve certainly had my disappointments with trad books, too. How do you think we can avoid this? Researching the author before we buy? Finding reviews? What would make you feel more secure about buying an indie book?

    • Meg

      Well, that’s the $64 question, isn’t it?  Actually, what I’d like is someone else to tell *me* how to find good indie books that isn’t so time-consuming and/or random.  Researching authors doesn’t answer the question of how to pick which authors to research.  I appreciate free samples, but that doesn’t tell me if an author can follow through.  One can drown in reviews, too.
      So what I would like answers, not someone asking *me* [g].

    • You definitely don’t want to spend hours researching authors just to make a $5 eBook purchase. I agree that the samples don’t always get you through. I think reviews from legitimate sources (other authors you like, bloggers who review books for a living) can help, but you’re right in that there’s no one, reliable source for promoting good indie books. Maybe that’s a thought for the future of Duolit…Thanks for sharing your thoughts Meg!

  • Allan Douglas

    Most, if not all, of the books I’ve read since Christmas have been Indie.  This is because I got a Kindle for Christmas, which make it easy to enjoy eBooks. Prior to Christmas I was limited to paperbacks because I dislike reading eBooks on a computer.  Those were moslt reference books.  A few novels in the past couple of years, and most of these were Indy/SmallPress – at least not published by the big publisher names I know.

    Most of the books I read are purchased from Amazon – mostly because I live on a rural mountainside and the nearest bookstore is over an hour’s drive away – when I have access to a vehicle, which I don’t most of the time because my wife uses ours to go to work in town every weekday.

    Yes, a few of the Indy books I’ve read were not only perfect in the technical sense but surprisingly well written, engaging stories.  On teh other hand, a few have been poorly written crap that obviously had not been edited by anyone other than the family dog.

    No inducement needed – I very much enjoy exploring Indy books – I just send for the sample before laying down my cash (so to speak) to see if an author I’ve not read before is any good.

    I prefer novels in eBook so I can use my Kindle.  Reference material, for me, needs to be print so I can flip through easily to find what I need when I need it.

    The BEST?  Oh, golly, that’d be hard to say, but I gues it would be The Second Ship by Richard Phillips (Synergy Books??).  But I’ve also enjoyed works by Lindsay Buroker, Mary Pax, Michael Rose and Michael Hicks – just to name those who leap into my mind at  the moment.  More would appear if I’d had more coffee before answering this.

    • Hi Allan! It seems like electronic reading devices are really helping us indie authors out! Not only is it convenient, but it gives the reader more choices right at their fingertips, it’s fantastic. Is there a price point you like to stay around when you’re purchasing eBooks?