Joe Konrath Quoted in Newsweek

[Juli schatz]

Quoted in the annual books issue of (August 9, 2010):

....“It’s an even playing field for the first time,” says J. A. Konrath, a thriller author (Whiskey Sour) who plans to release all his future novels as self-published Kindle
books. “The gatekeepers have become who they should have been in the
first place: the readers.”

Konrath began self-publishing e-books in April 2009. He quickly realized that by cutting out the middleman, he was making as much money on a single $2.99 e-book as he would on a $25
hardcover. “I started to be able to pay my mortgage on e-book money,
then pay my bills on e-book money,” Konrath says. “I’m going to make
over $100,000 this year, and a lot of the money is from the books that
New York publishers rejected.” Konrath attributes his strong sales on
Amazon to user-generated ratings and reviews on message boards, as well
as to the low price of his e-books. “Three dollars is a cup of coffee,”
Konrath says. “Wouldn’t you rather have eight hours of entertainment
from a book?” ....

[Juli Bridgers-Schatz]

True enough.... but he was once an unknown, too!

[I. J. Parker]

Yes, but this step is a great deal easier for a man who has already made a name for himself by being published by a major house.