Authors: Make Money on the Intarwebs!

Like any author worth her salt on the intarwebs nowadays, I try to make a little bit of money everywhere. Stress on the word LITTLE…but I keep telling myself that eventually, this will all pick up and will be a nice steady little Starbucks budget to support this crazy writing habit I have.

Things I have monetized:

1.) Short stories on the Kindle & Nook: A lot of the stories that I have previously had published in various magazines and anthologies, I have released in e-format on the Kindle and Nook platforms for only 99 cents apiece. As a bonus (because I’m a huge fan of DVD extras), each short story has an essay with it that tells you the origin of the idea–and sometimes the path to publication–of each piece. Some of those essays have been previously published elsewhere, and some I wrote specifically for the e-book versions. But for those folks who would like to try out some of my other writing…it’s there to click on. Amount made in last 12 months: $10.85 (Amazon), $0 (Nook)

2.) Short stories on Anthology Builder: Any SF author who has has a story published in a pro venue can submit their work to be included in the Anthology Builder archive. I’ve mentioned this site before — it’s like making your own mixed CD out of stories you’d just like to try out. Create your own collection of your favorite authors or new authors you’d like to try, select a theme, or build a custom anthology of folks you’re going to see at the next convention…and then get them to sign it! A one-of-a-kind collector’s item. Authors make a royalty on every sale, depending on the length of the story (and therefore % of contribution to each anthology). Amount made in the last 12 months: $22.91

3.) YouTube Monetization: A little while ago, AdSense offered me the chance to monetize my YouTube videos. Sure, why not? I’m still not quite sure how this works. I *thought* I made a penny every time someone clicked on one of my videos. But apparently not, because last month I had 123 people click on my videos and I made a total of ONE PENNY FOR THE MONTH. It’s definitely more $$ if people click on the ADS in the video…so if you’re bored one day, I highly encourage you to pop on over to my YouTube Channel and go on a clicking spree. (Mostly so I can collect the data.) I get paid from AdSense when I have accrued $100. Needless to say, I haven’t been paid yet. Amount accrued to date: $9.73 (0 paid)

4.) Amazon Associates Links: I’ve had an Amazon Associates Link for a while (wwwaletheakon-20), but I only recently got smart about it. First of all, Amazon seems to have made the link more difficult than just adding “wwwaletheakon-20” to the end of the url for the item listing. Secondly, I only get a kickback when OTHER people order books. Like a ninny, I’ve been ordering books using my own Login instead of The FairyGodBoyfriend’s. *headdesk* Thankfully, I’ve wised up. I’ve also fixed up my Books page–if you order from Amazon using the links here, I will get the kickback (and thank you). Amount made in the last 12 months: $13.27

As you can see, I’m totally rolling in the dough. It’s all very glamorous. But yes…maybe someday, when I’m all Celebrity-Kind-Of-Popular, this sort of thing will add up nicely. Regardless, it would be silly of me to NOT go ahead and set these things up to be churning away in the background.

Anyone else know other ways of making a penny (or less) on the net? I’ll happily take suggestions.