Mark Coker is the CEO of Smashwords, the largest eBook distributor in America. Mark was kind enough to offer Mom’s Favorite Reads an interview, and his answers are truly fascinating, a must read for all readers and writers.
Smashwords is a wonderful platform for authors and publishers. What sparked the idea for Smashwords?
Smashwords grew out of my personal experience trying to sell a novel my wife and I co-wrote.
My wife is a former reporter for Soap Opera Weekly Magazine. About 12 years ago we wrote a novel titled Boob Tube that explored the dark underbelly of Hollywood celebrity.
Despite enthusiasm from beta readers and representation from a top New York literary agency, traditional publishers rejected it. Our agent told us that previous novels targeting soap opera fans had performed poorly which made publishers reluctant to take a chance on our book.
Our failure to land a publishing deal opened my eyes to what I perceived as a horribly broken publishing ecosystem that was no longer working for authors and readers.
Read the full answer and interview here
Reblogged this on Indie Lifer and commented:
Fascinating interview with Mark Coker, CEO of Smashwords, in Mom’s Favorite Reads May 2019.
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It’s always great to read the success stories and know you can follow the same path.
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Reblogged this on Grant Leishman – Author.
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Excellent interview with Mark Coker – the rest of the magazine’s pretty damn good as well.
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