If you’re a serious writer, chances are you’ve collected more rejection letters than your file cabinets can hold. There’s also a good chance that you’ve wondered if you’re any good and if you should just give up and, *gulp* get a “real” job. Well the answer is no. The world of book publishing has been a’ changin’ for more than a decade now, and thanks to the Interent and ereaders such as Kindle and The Nook, anyone with a story to tell can tell it, and in many cases, sell it.
Such is the case with one talented 26-year old writer named Amanda Hocking. Hocking writes stories for young adults that fuse the paranormal with romance and suspense. The Austin, Minnesota-based author sells her stories without the help of a traditional book publisher. After being rejected by publishers all over New York, Hocking decided to self-publish in ebook platforms only. That decision turned into gold. In December of 2010, Hocking sold 100,000 works. Over 10 months, she sold 900,000. So, at $3 per book/70% per sale for the Kindle store alone, it’s safe to say that Ms. Hocking is now a millionaire.
According to the Atlantic’s Daily Dish,
a publisher on the private Reading2.0 mailing list has said, to effect: there is no traditional publisher in the world right now that can offer Amanda Hocking terms that are better than what she’s currently getting, right now on the Kindle store, all on her own.
Hocking will be featured in Elle Magazine’s April issue. In the meantime click here to watch the KTTC news story to learn more about Amanda’s journey or visit her blog.
