http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405... By JEFFREY A. TRACHTENBERG
John Locke, a self-published writer who has built a large audience selling only digital books, is turning his attention to the physical paperback business and has struck a deal with a traditional publisher.
Self-published e-book best-seller John Locke turns to a traditional publisher, Simon & Schuster, to distribute his eight thrillers featuring Donovan Creed in physical formats. Jeff Trachtenberg has details on Lunch Break.
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CBS Corp.'s Simon & Schuster will distribute in paperback format eight of Mr. Locke's thrillers, which feature a former CIA assassin named Donovan Creed. Mr. Locke, through his John Locke Books imprint, will publish the books and Simon & Schuster will handle sales and distribution, including returns.
Mr. Locke, a Louisville businessman who put out his first book in 2009, was the first self-published writer to sell 1 million digital books on Amazon.com Inc. Still, he decided to enter the paperback field to capture readers who haven't yet embraced digital books.
"These are people who wouldn't have the opportunity to find me otherwise," said Mr. Locke.
The author noted that the agreement covers titles that he has previously written, and won't cannibalize his digital sales.
Mr. Locke, 60 years old, has self-published eight Donovan Creed thrillers, several Westerns, and a self-help book aimed at other self-published writers. Altogether he estimates his total e-book sales at about 1.3 million units, the bulk of them since Jan. 1. He has helped build his audience by pricing many of his works at 99 cents. On Monday, his novel "The Love You Crave" ranked No. 55 on Amazon's e-book best-seller list.
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"The e-book world has created an opportunity in self-publishing that simply didn't exist 18 months ago," said Arthur Klebanoff, chief executive of New York-based RosettaBooks LLC, a digital publisher house. "But one of the things not easily understood is that for every John Locke, there are probably 5,000 authors trying and falling short. This level of success is like hitting the lottery."
Jane Dystel, Mr. Locke's New York literary agent, said that she was approached by Simon & Schuster and that the two then came to terms on a distribution deal, which will begin in February 2012.
The deal comes as the bookstore business is shrinking, with Borders Group Inc. in the process of closing its remaining stores. Publishers also are facing increasing competition from authors self-publishing their books, and in some cases are pursuing distribution-only deals to feed their legacy warehouse and distribution arms. "There are still lots of retail outlets for books," said Adam Rothberg, a spokesman for Simon & Schuster.
Write to Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg at jeffrey.trachtenberg@wsj.com
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