Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
In June I wrote about several initiatives exploring how to make book subscriptions work for authors, publishers and readers. You can read it here. In the brief time span since then, several new developments have occurred that I wanted to bring to your attention.
The biggest, of course, is Amazon’s entrance to the “party.” When the announcement was made, this news article compared the three major subscriptions services. What the article failed to mention is that 500,000 of Amazon’s titles one can read via subscription are published by Amazon. So the number of titles from publishers outside of Amazon actually is 100,000, and none of the Big Five publishers offers its books via Kindle Unlimited.
But Amazon’s decision to make a grand entrance into subscription services suggests Amazon sees this as an important trend it needs to be a part of.
And that’s why you, as a publishing professional, need to be aware of what the subscription scene looks like. I’ve viewed the results on our clients’ royalty statements from Simon & Schuster and from HarperCollins, the two of the Big Five who have signed onto “selling” books via subscription. So far this revenue stream isn’t big; but it’s a stream, not a trickle.
Just before Amazon announced the launch of Kindle Unlimited, Scribd, one of the two largest subscription services, 
proclaimed they had developed a new search engine to aid readers in discovering books they want to read. Since discoverability is the biggest challenge each book faces, this is big news. You can read more about it here. As the author of the article states, “A better book recommendation engine is one of the things that Scribd is hoping will help it succeed against its competitors, traditional book retail and other modes of entertainment.
“’If people see subscription services as purely an economic decision, then it can never work,’ said Friedman [Scribd co-founder and chief technology officer]. ‘The opportunity is to create a differentiated experience.’”
According to Scribd’s vp of marketing Julie Haddon, the company enlisted a “50-person team of scientists, book publishing experts, librarians, and marketers,” as well as a small editorial staff, to “work out the ideal browsing experience…” Using a “proprietary category structure” readers can browse major categories like fiction or history, niche levels such as Western Romance, or tailored lists like “Private Detective Novels Set in Los Angeles” and “Strangers in Strange Lands.”
Just to keep things accelerating on the subscription front, Wattpad has discovered readers love to engage in serialized stories they can subscribe to. You can read more about it here. The enthusiasm with which serialized stories has been met is a mix-and-match of fan fiction, self-publishing, and subscribing.
As Clive Thompson, the article’s author, points out, “Wattpad’s success may presage a shift in how fiction is written—and read—by the under-25 crowd that the site primarily serves. The first lesson? Serialization is a powerful way to get readers hooked. It’s an old trick, of course: 19th-century novels, including many of Charles Dickens’, were often serialized, and the suspense drove fans nearly mad. (“Is Little Nell dead?” New Yorkers hollered from the docks at boats arriving from the UK with the latest installment of The Old Curiosity Shop.) Wattpad readers subscribe to their favorite stories, getting an alert the instant a new chapter goes live—a sort of literary ‘status update.’
“This addictive approach to publishing drives a stunning amount of reading: 30 minutes a day for the average user, according to Wattpad CEO Allen Lau. And nearly 85 percent of it happens on mobile devices. The chapter-by-chapter approach also encourages authors to write on the go. They compose fully half of Wattpad’s stories—200,000 new chapters a day—on smartphones or tablets.”
Subscription reading is, as newscasters are fond of saying, a developing story. The good news is that a better search engine will spur on others in publishing and retail to help us to find the books we want to read; more subscription options makes it more likely we’ll find one that works for us; and more (young!) readers on Wattpad means more readers in the future. Good reason to cheer for everyone who wants new ways to read books–or help readers find yours.
How do you think these changes in the ways readers can access stories will affect you?
Does it sound fun or sheer madness to write a chapter-by-chapter novel on Wattpad?
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I have experimented with short fanfic stories. (It wasn’t on any of the sites mentioned.) Generally, I only did a few thousand words for each plot arc and then went months between doing another story set in the same world. I wrote and polished each arc before posting it online. It was fun, but I didn’t want to spend much time on writing something that couldn’t be published.
For something novel length, I would want to finish it before posting anything. This would allow more polishing. I don’t want to leave readers hanging with something I never finished, or halfway through realize I need to change something I’d already written. I’d want to publish something that wasn’t too low end.
The only thing keeping me from doing this is that I want to make money off my writing. I am currently playing with the idea of using a free story on a place like Wattpad to gain a following.
Jessi, it’s great that you’re experimenting yet not committing too much time to that sort of writing.
For what it’s worth, I’ve read that part of the rationale behind the subscription model is that few readers will make full use of it. The Health Club Model, I think it’s called.
That said, I’m hardly qualified to show my face here today. Don’t have a Kindle, and I’ve only ever even SEEN just one in use. I wasn’t impressed.
I don’t have a Smartphone. I do have a cellphone, but it doesn’t connect to anything any more. I use it as a watch.
The serialized approach is interesting, and I can see – to my horror – an eventual melding of serialized mainstream novels and anime. I hope I’m wrong.
I will look into Wattpad, though. It seems like a good way to create something like a dialogue, blind, to be sure, between writer and reader, and that appeals to me. I want to feel that I’m meeting a reader’s desires on a regular basis; it makes writing seem more like a Real Job.
Besides, I’ll try anything once.
But the last time I said that, it was 1979, and I tried to fly a light airplane under a set of 250,000 volt powerlines. Some stupidities should be enshrined in their singularity. (And yes, I was spectacularly unsuccessful in that attempt.)
Wattpad does seem to have the advantage of a high level of engagement with readers.
Andrew, at least you now know, for sure, about flying underneath powerlines.One lesson learned!
I don’t think I’d do very well writing chapter-by-chapter. I have a tendency to get halfway through a book then decide to make a major change that requires rewriting the first half. I would a be fun experience to post a finished book chapter-by-chapter though. It would be enlightening to see the readers reaction as they read each chapter. I imagine it would really help hone and focus my writing.
Thanks for keeping us up to date on the changing g market, Janet! This blog is an invaluable resource and I appreciate the time you all take to post each day!
You’re welcome, Andrea.
The immediate reader feedback would be a plus. I also wonder if Wattpad readers become your fans if they like what you’re writing. I would assume they do, and that’s certainly a good thing.
Thank you, Janet, for this information on this new trend not only in reading but in publishing.
I’m going to focus my comments on the chapter-by-chapter writing. As you pointed out, it hardly is a new concept. Dickens was the first person that popped into my mind when you mentioned this way of writing. For me, it is one of the problems with Dickens’ writing, especially in GREAT EXPECTATIONS which has consistency issues so glaring that even my freshman high school students noticed them–on their own. By the way, they weren’t honor students. Consistency (in characters, in details of plot) is something that I know I have to address when I start my revision of my current WIP. I know there are issues I have to go back and fix. That’s the luxury of being able to write a whole novel, look and the big picture, then go back and improve it.
That said, “chapter-by-chapter” writing is something that many of us are used to from watching television series and (dare I mention them 😉 soap operas. One of my favorite soap operas is DOWNTON ABBEY (admit it–it IS a soap opera no matter how classy it looks in period dress and sounds with a British accent). Why do so many of us watch it without missing an episode and go through withdrawal symptoms as we wait for the next (short) season? Because the characters and their lives have captured us. We’re interested in them and want to know the answer to the questions raised in each installment. Can Lady Edith really give up her illegitimate child? Will Mary marry again (poor Matthew!)? Will the butler and the housekeeper become romantically involved at some point (they’re always remarkably tender with each other)? It doesn’t matter whether anyone reading these questions has seen the show or not (though I am sure some of you have). These questions will look familiar. They’ve been questions before in many soaps, television series, and yes, serialized books. They’ve just been attached to different names. So why do we get addicted and ask them again? Because the writer (in the case of DOWNTON ABBEY, Julian Fellowes) has managed successfully to get us to love spending time with these characters and to care about them (even if it is just to see if that rotten, conniving footman finally gets repayment for all his foul deeds).
My point? Serial writing is great fun for readers. Having to wait a little for the answers (not being able to turn the page and keep reading) I think adds to the joy and excitement. Writing chapter-by-chapter can be great fun as well. It might even benefit the writing in the end. I have read my current WIP as a chapter-by-chapter installment to my critique group. The feedback I have gotten is that they can’t wait for the next chapter. It has kept me writing regularly because they tell me they come each week in part “to hear more about Siobhan [my main character]” so I know I have to have something to give them. Also, their questions and their interest have made me ask questions of my own (What really happened to Siobhan’s great-grandmother? Does Mrs. McAshinagh (who’s human) suspect that Siobhan’s aunt is a Faerie? What is the backstory of their relationship? She seems to be more open to believing in magic than the other people are). Exploring questions like these has made me deal with history about the characters and their world that will never be in the actual novel, but it has informed my writing. It has changed, at times, the direction of the plot, leading to a lack of sufficient foreshadowing of some things and an evaporation of things that had been foreshadowed resulting in the inconsistencies I mentioned above. Overall, though, I think installment writing has been a fun and addictive experience for all of us.
One last comment about chapter-by-chapter writing: readers can have short memories. While that might work well in regards to the inconsistencies, it works against subtle foreshadowing. While many of us who love to read can easily devour 50-100 pages (sometimes more) in one sitting, I found with my critique group (which met once a week) that if something happened (or worse, was just mentioned by the narrator) thirty pages ago, my critique partners often asked, “Did we know about this? The McAshinaghs have Faerie blood in them?” “Yes, Siobhan’s aunt discussed that with her three chapters back.” To clarify: the installments weren’t always an entire chapter as only ten pages could be read / critiqued a week. That’s a really SLOW telling of a novel. It plays havoc with pace and momentum. I think complete chapter by complete chapter is better, but I still think the issue of memory loss exists. I’ve found myself asking, “When did that happen? I don’t remember her going to Montana,” when I’ve read serial novels. So the question that comes to my mind, Janet, is this: with the Wattpad stories, do readers get to keep all the previous chapters in their readers so they can “flip back” to earlier pages in the novel to reread something they may have skimmed over earlier, not realizing it was a scene or detail that foreshadowed something significant?
Sorry for the length of the comment. I think chapter-by-chapter writing, despite its drawbacks, is a really exciting way to tell a story.
Christine, a reader can read a chapter more than once. If that reader can re-read all the chapters, I’m not sure. Apparently the writer can select something called “one direction,” which means readers can’t go back. I’m not a Wattpad user myself; so I’m based my comments on a Wattpad q&a I found.
Thank you for answering my question, Janet. I know as a reader I would hate not being able to look back and reread a passage that I didn’t realize was foreshadowing until I read the thing that was foreshadowed. It’s great that there are new ways to read, but I still prefer a good old book that I can hold and flip through.
Blessings!
I, too, immediately thought of Dickens. You make some good points, Christine.
In my mind, a serialized story is not the same as a novel broken up into chapters. While a novel is supposed to tie together as a single work, serials are designed as on-going stories–like soap operas, as some have pointed out. While it’s a subtle difference, I think it’s one writers should keep in mind if they decide to try writing serials.
Elissa, that’s an excellent point. When a person knows she’s writing a serialized story, she thinks about it slightly differently.
Thank you, Elissa. 🙂
Somewhat of an aside, on the Downton Abbey thing. Thomas, the evil conniving footman, is one of my favorite characters. He’s played to perfection, and he’s so REAL.
I do want him to get his comeuppance, but I kind of want him to try and redeem himself too.
Rachel,
I agree that Thomas is played (and written) to perfection, and that there is a certain sympathetic aspect to his character. He is not my favorite character, but I also would like to see him redeem himself. It would be wonderful if he’d find somebody that he cared about more than he cares about himself.
None of my books are in KDP Select; hence none are in Kindle Unlimited. I was seeing a modest increase in sales from April through July. Since KU launched, my sales have gone to essentially zero. Coincidence? Too early to tell.
It appears Amazon is giving special marketing attention to KU and KDP Select books, but as you say, David, it’s early to tell the long-term effect.
One question – for the clients whose royalty statements you mentioned as having a revenue stream from subscriptions…can you tell us if the other parts of the royalty sum have been affected?
Andrew, I’m not sure I understand your question. Are you asking if other format sales went down while the subscription royalties went up? I don’t think so, but that’ a very hard thing to discern. It would have to be a pretty profound shift for me to see it. I can readily see how many subscriptions sales occur, and the nice thing is the royalties are based on retail price, which means each sale is sans discounts and therefore heftier.
Ronie Kendig did a serial this summer and it was INSANE having to wait a whole week! A WEEK, I tell ya!! Ahem…for the next installment.
If I had the time, I’d love to write a serial, it would be fun.
But as it stand, my life is now divided into weekly installments.
And am I wrong to see this new development as a play on the ancient device known as the card catalogue at the library?
The hardest part of writing is serial is getting readers snagged on it. Once hooked, I would think a good serial would keep them coming back for more.
A few friends of mine have written serializations on their newsletters to build readership before a new release. The serializations aren’t full books. They’re segments of a short story or novella. I thought it was a great idea! I’d be willing to try!
Jill, did you find yourself a happy reader of those serializations, or did you note they existed but not dip into them? I’m curious as to what caused you to read them, if you did.
I refuse to go KDP Select with my stuff, which is the only way for indies to get into KU and KLL.
But I am in the Scribd catalog via my use of Draft2Digital, and I’m using Smashwords to get into Oyster.
I don’t read on my phone or a tablet, and I hope I never have to. It wreaks havoc with my brain at night and interferes with my sleep. In bed, at night, is when I read the most.
Wattpad comes with its own set of problems, and they’re problems I’m not willing to deal with. Then again, I don’t really have to because my target market isn’t part of their majority readership.
Rachel, care to share your perspective of Wattpad’s problems? So far the rest of us appear to be uninitiated.
I write in a sub-genre that has people dabbling in Wattpad. There have been some VERY serious copyright violations, wherein Wattpad has been unresponsive in getting it resolved to the original author’s satisfaction.
They also recently switched to the newest Creative Commons licensing agreement, and by choosing it an author gives up ALL control of their work posted on Wattpad and anyone can take the characters/world and do whatever they want with it. They could take a traditional romance pairing and make it into a same-sex one, and the original author cannot have it taken down if they signed up under the CC license.
It’s also not for those with a thin skin, because there are a lot of trolls who hang out there.
From what I’ve seen most of what’s on there qualifies as fan fiction. Plagiarism is a problem over there too.
Personally, I would never even dabble in it, because of these issues. Their use of the CC licensing sealed it for me. I’m never doing anything there.
Rachel, thanks for mentioning these concerns. A writer would want to go into the relationship with his/her eyes open regarding these issues. I can kind of see where Wattpad is coming from; they want to encourage fan fiction.
This is why Wattpad is suddenly on everyone’s radar:
http://shelf-life.ew.com/2014/06/03/one-direction-fanfic-author-after-wattpad/
A woman who wrote a One Direction fan fiction story with over 250 million reads on Wattpad. She inked a three book, worldwide deal with S&S. It’s kind of in the same vein as 50 Shades, but from what I can tell not as explicit or out there.
If you write YA or New Adult, and are comfortable with the type of site Wattpad is, by all means explore it. But it’s not something every author should consider doing, IMO. For a lot of us it’s a waste of time and we’ll never reach our target audience.
I honestly have no idea how something Christian/inspirational would turn out over there. Probably not good, since the only category for it is “Spiritual” and a brief look at it reveals most of it to be stories with Muslim characters.
Hmmm. . .the serialized writing of a story.—– what a “novel” idea.
Way, way back in the 1800’s, Charles Dickens serialized his novels and the suspense drove his fans mad.
It was reported: New Yorkers hollered from the docks at boats arriving from the UK to get the latest installment of a Dicken’s of a story.
I wonder if people today will holler at their e-book devices?
Well, Donnie, today’s reader would feel free to write directly to the author demanding to know what happens next.
Hey, this is what I’m launching on my site – except this first story is a full-blown superhero comic, and the rest will have at least some illustrations. I was going to use Patreon to collect and fulfill subscriptions, though. I was a bit squeamish about Wattpad’s terms and Amazon has a somewhat draconian reputation. I might have to look into Scribd now, though.
Paula, it’s a brave new world that we’re all exploring (and developing) together.
No kidding 🙂 I know what I want to do, and I know it’s possible to do it, but actually figuring out what tools to use and explaining them to potential subscribers in an appealing way is quite a process. The trips into the Google zone aren’t actually making things easier… I googled a question once, and three weeks later I emerged, having forgotten everything but my own name… 😉
The more ways there are to read, the more reasons there are to write!
Amen to that, Peter!