THE Group for Authors! discussion

Any advice from fellow authors or readers on combining a series of books into a single volume as an alternative to the individual books?

In my case three approximate 100k word books into one 300k one. Sold at a discount on the three individual ones.

As an e-book by the way rather than a large door stop.

It seems to me you'd do the same thing that you did to publish the individual books: You create a Word document that contains all the text you want to publish.

I've purchased a number of ebooks that were comprised of multiple full novels (several in my own MM romance genre, but in "mainstream" publications, the Terry Pratchett single-ebook collection of the Tiffany Aching novels comes to mind).

I'm going to be doing something analogous for a 150K historical novel, which is going to have a 10K new short story, involving the same characters, added to it. My plan is to simply start the story (with an appropriate text "cover page") on a new page in a new section of the Word document at the end of the epilogue. Then add a table of contents with hyperlinks to get to the first page of the main book and the start of the story. Then publish at AMZ as I usually would.

Just my USD .02.

Eric

Eric wrote: "It seems to me you'd do the same thing that you did to publish the individual books: You create a Word document that contains all the text you want to publish.

I've purchased a number of ebooks th..."

Thanks Eric. Happy with the how to create the MS - I don't use Word but Scrivener. Should be just drag and drop existing elements into new book.

It's more the advice and even the 'is it worth the effort' advice. Has anyone done this and do sales make a difference or completely kill the individual part sales - not that I have many to kill.

I have several multi-volume books like Hitch Hikers Guide, Bourne series etc

Philip wrote: "Any advice from fellow authors or readers on combining a series of books into a single volume as an alternative to the individual books?

In my case three approximate 100k word books into one 300k ..."

I am not certain your aim, but this is what happened to me. I wrote a trilogy, instead of a stand alone. The trilogy would have been 3 genre size (meaning around 285 pages each of a trade paperback size format) BUT my beta readers felt the arc of each book was "dangling" It read more like a cliff hanger of a TV series. I thought this was good, but these readers were in the publishing industry and their opinion was that the first book in the series would have to stand alone -- much in the same way as the first Star Wars or Indiana Jones could have been a stand alone. My protagonist didn't have a complete arc. So, I spent one more year, combining the three into one stand alone. That meant a lot of cut people, and cut scenes. I wish I had been able to have all three books at the get go because it is much easier to market a series. Now I am working on the prequel to The Sleeping Serpent. And hope to follow up with the sequel. Then I will again have a trilogy!

Philip wrote: "Any advice from fellow authors or readers on combining a series of books into a single volume as an alternative to the individual books?

In my case three approximate 100k word books into one 300k ..."

If you have already released the three books individually...and you are only looking for a way to sell all three at once, you can make a slip sleeve -- that's how my Lord of the Rings paperbacks came... and as an ebook - you just create another ISBN and upload as one file to KDP -- with a Book One, TWO, THREE title page inserted at the book break.

Philip,

I have absolutely no idea about the financial effects based on a total lack of personal experience. >s<

However, I bought the Tiffany Aching 5-book collection at $34.95 because I figured that since 5 paperbacks at $7.99 would come to $39.95, I was saving a smidgen by buying the collection. This was also influenced because the 5th book (the last written by Pratchett before his death) was only currently available in hardcover.

On the other hand, the MM romance "bundles" and a few others outside that genre have generally been cheaper than buying all the books separately. Frankly, I think you have to take a technical "hit" on the aggregate price in hopes that volume will make up for it.

Just more of my USD .02.

Eric

Thanks

I have two parts of my spy thriller out. The third is nearly (I hope) finished. Part 2 was a year after the first and part 3 is more than that after 2. Some comments on part 2 were that the reader could not recall part 1 therefore it will be worse on part 3 and leads to the need to recall parts of the earlier stories in the text. In a multi volume hopefully this would not be necessary but then it might require a further re-write.

Decisions decisions....

Eric wrote: "Philip,

I have absolutely no idea about the financial effects based on a total lack of personal experience. >s<

However, I bought the Tiffany Aching 5-book collection at $34.95 because I figured ..."

Thanks again Eric for the comments, that's the pricing discussion/decision and of course as an e-book it would have a whole other dimension

Just another quick thought. (Sheesh! I really need to get back to typing for dollars a/k/a earning a living instead of having fun in GR!)

Under this set of facts, you should probably release Vol. 3 as a standalone, even if it's at the same time as you release the trilogy as a set. My reasoning: If I had purchased the first two books, and I've been patiently waiting for the trilogy to conclude, I would be thoroughly pissed if the only way to get the third book is to buy the first two again.

As for needing to recall stuff from earlier books in a trilogy, there's a simple solution. You go back and re-read the first two and then read the final one. Or, as in the Robert Jordan Wheel of Time series that covered 20-25 years of publication and 13 THICK hardcover volumes, you reread the first 10...probably a couple million words?...before you tackle the 3 that were written after his death (by a brilliant author) to finish out the series.

Just write #3 as you normally would, on the assumption people either recall what they need to recall from 1-2, or will re-read, and then they can buy/read #3. Then you put those 3 in one book, and a "newbie" to your spy thriller can read them straight through.

More USD .02. (Getting inundated with all those pennies yet?)

Eric

My latest novel was based on a time when I sold everything and moved into an abandoned house S. of Cancun, 100' from the Caribbean. I found that because the time was so special to me I wanted to include every bit into the fiction, but had to savagely edit. That made me sad. What did I do? I collected all the edited bits, and am now forming a non fiction memoir of the time. It is amazing how sleeping with the sound of the surf becomes of a part of one's dreams .... k

I'm not completely sure how easy it is to change prices on Amazon -- if that's a headache just make sure you price #3 and the bundle appropriate to keep current readers following the series happy and to attract new readers.

If worried about the $$$ sales, price the omnibus where it's more than buying two books of the series but slightly less than buying all three individually. Then promote the launch at a sales price (still more than buying two books individually but way less than buying all three individually).

Are your books in Kindle Unlimited and generating decent $$$? Omnibus should pay out the same number of pages as readers reading all three books individually. I don't think for KU the $$$ would be greatly impacted by whether or not borrowing individually or omnibus editions (I'd think more readers might borrow the individual ones since no waitlist situation like public library holds).

Your existing readers/fans have already gotten the first book. The bundle isn't going to impact sales of first book to current readers (already got) but rather the sales to new readers. How much do you want new readers discovering your books? How more likely are readers to try the series for the first time if there is a discount and there is clearly more than one book already available?

How many potential new readers have heard good things about your books from friends reviews, promotions, etc. where planned to check them out eventually and decide to take the plunge when they see the omnibus discount or see that final book was released?

Sure, the bundle could discourage some new sales of the first book to readers new to the series, Some readers sample and like then decide to go ahead and get the bundle instead of buying each independently -- but, would you have made those sales at that time without the bundle?

Eric wrote: "If I had purchased the first two books, and I've been patiently waiting for the trilogy to conclude, I would be thoroughly pissed if the only way to get the third book is to buy the first two again. ..."

I would be, too.

Books still need to be available individually. #3 needs to launch individually either at same time as omnibus or shortly before. Possibly with a discount just on book #3 for your "loyal readers" with a note that an omnibus is coming soon or also available (not enough of a discount on #3 to take away from the omnibus savings but enough to say that you appreciate readers who invested in #1&2 even though now offering a discounted omnibus).

Thanks everyone for our comments and advice. Now to finish the book Part 3...