EBooks. Love 'em or hate 'em, one thing is for certain. They're shaping the romance industry. How? I'm so glad you asked. :P
Before the advent of eBooks, pretty much all romance had to offer was Westerns, Regencies, Medievals, and contemporaries, with a few romantic suspenses thrown in. Nowadays, you walk into the romance section and see all kinds of strange and unusual stuff. Vampires. Shapeshifters. Werewolves. Angels. Demons. Dragons. Ghosts.
What is going on here?
Well, first of all, electronic publishers are more apt to take a chance on a strange manuscript than New York. So the authors who loved vampire heroes (et al.) were sending their work to publishers such as Ellora's Cave. (www.ellorascave.com)
Now, EC was the first electronic publisher to successfully move into print. You're pretty much guaranteed to find their books in Borders and Waldenbooks, perhaps even a few Barnes and Nobles and Mom & Pop shops. When New York saw this trend of paranormal and urban fantasy that was becoming so hot, they took notice. EC skyrocketed into a VERY successful house, because readers just weren't getting those kinds of stories from the traditional publishers.
Not only do these books have strange and different plotlines, they also had much spicier love scenes. It really is true that sex sells, folks, even for women. So not only was the industry itself revamped (no pun intended) for paranormal and urban fantasy, but also with spicier sex.
Ever wonder why traditional publishers suddenly began having their authors add more than one sex scene in their romance? Where were all these paranormals coming from?
Yup, New York was finally getting on the band wagon.
Now, your traditional publishers have lines like "Nocturne" and "Brava". Hmm, I wonder why?
EC isn't the only electronic publisher moving into the fray. Samhain Publishing (which I'm sure you've heard me yak about time and again) is also making quite the name for themselves. In fact, they recently signed a deal with Kensington Books to become their latest imprint, the "Samhain" imprint. :) Now, this doesn't mean they'll ONLY publish through Kensington, but that only a choice few of their books will go through the new imprint. But the fact that a famed New York house signed an electronic publisher as a new imprint tells you something.
They want a piece of the pie.
So while you might not like eBooks in general, keep your eye on them. There are indeed many gems that aren't published through New York. The moral?
Even the little guy can shape the course of the publishing industry as a whole. :)
~~Becka
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Comments: 15
And I also realize that probably only the hardcore reader is going to buy a specific device to read an eBook. It is indeed a niche audience, however, that isn't to say a few awesome authors don't write them, or at least got their start in eBooks.
Even Sherrilyn Kenyon got her start years ago in eBook. Jaci Burton, Lora Leigh, Michelle Pillow, Mandy Roth... You might not have heard of these ladies, but they've all been recently signed by New York. Heck, one of my collegues, Shiloh Walker, was actually CALLED out of the blue by New York to ask her for a submission.
That's when you know your the shizzy. :P
~~Becka
Oh, and thank you, Kathryn!
~~Becka
The wonders of technology !! Getting it's little nose into everything. :).
I had a brief flirtation with e-books a few years ago, but it didn't seem the time was right, either for me or them.
But it is certainly very true that what I call "Independent Publishing" has been a serious force for change. I can remember the days when Kathleen Woodiwiss was considered a trailblazer -- you look at her books now and they seem, well, quaint...
Love those spicy vampires!!!
Three Alarm Tenant