I just shake my head at writers who set
low prices for their books because of some unknown thing they heard on a blog post like this one.
With the rise of self publishing, finding the
right price for a book falls heavily on the shoulders of the author.
It seems brutally clear that every publisher is going to shift to the agency model: They set their
own price for books, and whoever's selling it takes a cut.
Having the author present to sign copies usually ensures plenty of sales on the day and it helps if you can offer a
discounted price for books bought at the launch.
UP does not charge fees of any kind from authors, nor charge inflated
prices for books from readers - or writers.
Of course, that too is an assumption — that there is such a thing as «a
reasonable price for books» and that «books should be kept at that price».
Most
prices for a book usual include the cost of the time to create it, the time to print it and the materials and transportation and such.
Popular Hachette titles are already being discounted again, but I believe the announcement will mean
higher prices for their books across the board.
[Blu Phier Publishing] agrees to pay client a royalty of 30 % of the cover price per book sold, 15 % of the cover
price for all books sold by a wholesale distributor who [sic] has been granted a 45 % or more discount by BPP (after all funds expended by B.P.P. in the production of the book have been reimbursed).
The range
of pricing for book design and layout is very large, and you'll do better querying individual designers to get real, specific estimates for your book.