So there are a lot of things afoot (as usual) and I wanted to let you know about them and ask for some input as well…
First of all, the website is being redesigned (again) and moved from the Joomla platform over to a WordPress platform, because I need more flexibility with the design. Expect an unveiling within the next few weeks.
As part of the new design, I’ll be offering a lot of things for sale on the site. Obviously, the majority of this will be related to my writing. I already offer a number of ebooks for sale, but expect that number to increase substantially. You’ll be able to buy ebooks from me directly (using PayPal), over at Amazon, over at Smashwords, and within the next few weeks the first of these offerings will be available for purchase over at iTunes as an app for your iPhone/iPad/iTouch. I’ve already seen the app for Parallax and it looks great. The app is entirely self-contained with ereader software so there’s no need to download anything else.
As part of this ebook push, I realize a lot of you will still want printed versions of my books. I can’t say I blame you since I still very strongly about having things actually “in print.” So I’m looking into a number of print-on-demand services to satisfy this need. Obviously, I don’t want to do a huge layout of cash for offset printing and then have to deal with inventory, shipping, postage, etc. That takes away from everything else I’m doing. So, as far as I know (and feel free to chime in if you know differently) POD looks to be the answer to this problem. I want everything that I have to sell to be available in as many ways as possible. So, I hope a lot of you will comment below and let me know about your experiences with any POD services (Createpspace, Unibook, Wordclay, Lulu, Blurb, etc.) below.
Also, as part of the POD question, would you be more inclined to purchase a trade paperback or a hardcover if you were offered one or the other. Some of the places I’m investigating offer hardcovers for only a few bucks more than the paperback. Figured I’d see where your inclinations lie in this regard. So don’t hold back! 🙂
Additionally, we will start selling some other swag: specifically sweatshirts, T-shirts, and stuff like that. All of this is going to be available via this site through a 3rd party vendor. So I’m also looking for your input on this front. I *think* I know who I’m going with for this function, but again, feel free to chime in below.
More news is coming soon, but for now, I hope you’ll share your thoughts below. Thank you!