Plaidypus is Coming! All you need to know about future releases, publishing schedule, etc.

Hey, folks. Today, you get me, the actual author. The cats are busy destroying everything I own in the name of play. (Oh, well. I didn’t need that stuff anyway…)

Plaidypus is releasing on May 17, 2022! It is priced at $5.99 at all vendors.

This and the Sekrit Projekt will be the last full-length novels priced at $5.99 on vendors. Due to Amazon’s insistence on being the editorial police, resulting in heightened editorial expenses, I am raising the price on all new releases to $6.99 starting on January 1, 2023. As I do polishing passes on the old material, once again adhering to Amazon’s editorial policing, full-length novels will be adjusted in price to $6.99 as well.

My per release Patreon will remain priced at $5.99 a novel. You can check out the details of the per release Patreon here. The per release patreon will support Amazon’s file type (.mobi) so you can sideload the book into your Kindle library. I am using Bookfunnel as my distribution system.

Here is how it works:

The month before the book releases to Patreon, users will be sent a charged post which includes 1-2 backlist books and directions on how they will be able to download their book. (The link sent will have a set lifetime of 2-3 weeks, so please make certain you download your book immediately. You can have bookfunnel email you the copy of the book so it’s in a long-term storage solution, but the links are NOT permanent. They are also unique to your specific email address you use for Patreon to help prevent piracy.)

When the book’s Patreon release date arrives, you will be sent a message with your claim link so you can download your copy.

Beginning in 2023, Patreon users (on both monthly and per release) will be receiving their copies several months before the book hits retail. Once again, this is due to Amazon’s policies. The current editorial process will remain intact for Patreon users. The retail version of the book will undergo additional editorial, thus the extra expenses. Once again, this is directly due to Amazon’s policies. If you’re unhappy with the price increase or my shifting to Patreon, complain to Amazon about their editorial practices. (They’re the only vendor that does this, but as Amazon penalizes authors for a: marking books cheaper at other vendors, b: insists on having editorial control over books, c: grrrrrrrrrr I am forced to raise prices at all vendors.)

As Patreon exists outside of Amazon’s sphere of influence, I am not under the same restrictions, so I can afford to sell them at a lower price there. I am also paid substantially more.

Patreon charges ~10% in fees.

Amazon charges 30% in fees plus a non-refundable transfer fee. (So if a book is returned, I’m charged the transfer fee.)

Earnings per novel with Patreon (at $5.99 rate): ~$5.40.

Earnings per novel with Amazon (at $6.99 rate): $4.87.

As part of the restructure, here is what will happen with retail editions:

1: Audiobooks will be produced and scheduled to release roughly at the same time as the print and ebook editions.

2: Print editions will be produced and scheduled to release roughly at the same time as the audiobook and ebook editions.

3: All will be done as normal, with one announcement on my blog/facebook/etc that a book will be released to Patreon users soon along with the official release date of the book.

Expect a delivery difference of 4-6 months between Patreon and retailers. (Yes, audiobooks really DO take that long to produce.)

The ebook increase will also help cover the cost of producing the audiobook and print editions at the same time.

Essentially, thanks to Amazon’s policies, I’m adopting a more “traditional” publication method. (If you have wondered how authors released all formats at the same time, it’s simple; the publisher holds ebooks back for 4-6 months while the actor or actress handles the audiobook, etc.)

However, I don’t LIKE holding books back. 1: I don’t get paid 2: I know readers are looking forward to the book.

As such, I came up with a compromise: patreon.

The per release patreon is going to be the one stop shop you go to buy books in advance of retail version. Patreon handles all the sales tax for me, and bookfunnel makes it easy for me to deliver the books!

I’ve been using patreon as a patron for years, and have yet had an issue with the creators. Bonus.

Like other services, Patreon does not have a return system, so I’m protected against things like Amazon’s read-and-return policies.

So, the nitty gritty about the Per Novel Patreon.

1: There are several tiers, including RJ Blain, Susan Copperfield, Bernadette Franklin, and Cindercorns.

A: the specific name tiers ONLY get books written by that name. You do NOT have a choice to skip out on a series you don’t want. However, you can change tiers at any time. When the warning post for the upcoming charge happens, I will remind people to jump to a different tier if they’re not interested in that title.

B: Want only two authors? Just jump tiers when you get the warning post for the upcoming charge to make sure you don’t buy a book you don’t want.

C: Want everything? Become a Cindercorn. You will get every novel I have written.

Due to the nature of Patreon, I will be charging $5.99 for everything regardless of length. This is going to mean that only novels will be going onto Patreon. Novellas and shorter works will be a Monthly Patreon perk. When I do an anthology of novellas and shorter works, that is when it will appear on the Per Release Patreon.

So, if you want a hands off (from me) approach to novels, you want the per release Patreon. If you want everything I’m up to plus bonus stories, sneak peeks, etc, you want the monthly subscription patreon.

Note: The $2 and $5 monthly tiers do not get upcoming/new novels. They get a ‘backlist read along’ that happens every Friday. (View it as a book club on the monthly patreon! There are behind-the-scenes commentary on each chapter with the Friday read along.

Unfortunately, I do not currently have a method of distributing specific backlist books on Patreon. While I’m giving away backlist books on Patreon as part of the new release posts, I am not taking requests for specific titles. (You get what I pick.)

If you want a specific book, you’ll need to buy on the vendor of your choice.

So, why am I doing this?

1: the Monthly Patreon is basically how I pay my rent. It’s my ‘mostly stable’ form of income, and the funds are used for bills, rent, etc, etc, etc. (And if there is extra left over, it goes to help… with my non-existent retirement fund hahaha… eeeh. I’m retiring??)

2: The per release Patreon helps pay for all expenses associated with the novel, audiobook format, print format, etc. It also lets me plan a more relaxed schedule for myself so I don’t die from stress.

3: My choice was either just hold books back to appease Amazon or adapt. I decided to adapt.

If you are offended about my shift to Patreon, that’s okay. Retail versions will be coming out as normal, and that is what I will mostly be promoting on my page/website. But for those who want it early… here is their option.

The choice of where you buy your books remains yours.

If you want to receive Plaidypus a few days early from the retail version, sign up on the per-release Patreon by April 25. Those who use the monthly patreon can sign up any time before the private messages go out, which will be sometime between May 10-14, 2022.

Thanks for reading, and thank you so much for your support.

Once again, I apologize if this transition offends you, but ultimately, when the cost of book production goes up due to a vendor, the ultimate result is a raise in prices to adhere to the vendor’s criteria. More editorial equals more expenses, and if I don’t adhere to their criteria, they may remove my titles from sale at any time.

That’s just, unfortunately, how the cookie crumbles.

~R.J.