Thursday Thoughts: Open Wide

Go exclusive or go wide. That’s the question.

For my next poetry collection, I have been looking at two options: Go with an agregate (Draft2Digital/Publishdrive for example) or do it myself.

If you (meaning me) are going to go exclusive, then there is really only one option: The platform who must not be named (and don’t dare say the name three times). But, there are other eReaders out there. I for one have a Kobo.

A what?
Ha-he, very funny.

I recently did a survey to find out what eReaders my subscribers have and the majority have, you guessed it, with second place being Kobo, with no Apple and the rest ‘other’, which I assume would be a Nook.

Here at some stats:

According to writer Max Lakin from Magnolia Media Network, it’s estimated that Amazon’s share of the eBook market is around 67%, making it the leading retailer by a landslide.

Behind Amazon, the second largest seller of eBooks is Barnes and Noble. B&N’s Nook accounts for nearly 25% of eBook sales in the US. Apple’s iBooks (or Apple Books as it is now named) holds roughly 5% of the market share, and Kobo holds less than 3% in the US. However, Kobo is the most popular eBook and audiobook company in Canada, and it has outperformed Amazon’s* Kindle Store in France, Japan, and Australia.

The figures above are based on Magnolia Media’s research. We think the US ebook market share looks more like this:

eBook Market Share

Amazon** 81%
Nook 9%
Apple Books 7%
Kobo 3%

https://booksliced.com/

There are some regional differences, with Kobo coming in second in Canada.

As, I don’t like to give my money away, I’ll probably try to publish on the main platforms myself. I already uploaded A Wonder of Words to Kobo, and I’m just waiting to download it to check it out. Poetry on eReaders is always tricky because with the text and spacing being adjustable, the poet’s vision may not always work. I try to format the eBook slightly different from the print version.

My goal is to have it available by April, which by the way, is National Poetry Month.

-Leon

^{*Ahhh! They said it three times!
**OMG! Four!}

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

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