Big e-book price markdown!

Starting today, all my e-books are $2.99 or less. That's 25 titles, including my latest novel, the hilarious mystery A BOX OF PANDORAS, which came out in June. All $2.99 or less.

Kindle users can see my e-books here. If you use another brand of e-reader, go see my page at Smashwords here. Prices are going down at Nook and other retailers as well, but those changes sometimes take a week or more to appear. Remember: you don't need an e-reader to enjoy bargain e-books. The Kindle app is free for PCs, smartphones, etc.

All of us who are publishing e-books have experimented with price points, and I've come to believe $2.99 is the way to go for novel-length fiction. It's only half as much as a paperback, and readers will risk that much on an unfamiliar author, I think. Because the royalty rate is so much better on e-books, the author makes about $2 per e-book at $2.99, about the same as on a $24 hardcover published the traditional way.

My short stories will continue to be 99 cents, which again seems to be the going rate. I've published two new ones in the past month: SHOWDOWN and FOUND MONEY. Enjoyed writing both, and I've started sketching out another one. Short stories seem much more rewarding now that there's a guaranteed market via e-books.

I'm moderating a panel Friday at the Tony Hillerman mystery writing seminar in Santa Fe. The 9 a.m. panel, which is on writing humor, also features New Mexico authors Michael Orenduff and Richard Peck. Looking forward to it.

Now back to writing!