A self-published author friend of mine uploaded the first novel of his series for free on Amazon, Smashwords etc… because he said so many people download free ebooks for obvious reasons. However, I said even if it's a series better than Harry Potter, I don't think it will get taken seriously if you give away book 1 of the series for free.
Now, it seems he's proved me wrong, as apparently he's sold over 20, 000 ebooks on various sites and earned thousands of pounds in a matter of months as his free book lured people in. What are your opinions on the matter of publishing your first ebook for free? Does it help get you a fanbase or hinder your future prospects of the series being taken seriously?
I'm in a dilemma as I'm not sure whether I should emulate my friend's methods or not.As we all know, there is no secret or success manual to follow when trying to make it as an author. But, I'm sure many people with Kindles, Nooks etc… love a free book that is completed, edited and had over a year dedicated on it.As you know, most freebies are just excerpts or fanfiction, but what road would you take to self-publishing?
As always, everyone's opinions are appreciated.
Added (1). @Steven: some very valid points. Yeah, I've got 2 in the series completed with the 3rd in it's rough draft.So, I could publish 2 in the same series, but would it be weird if the first was free and I put up a small charge for the second? Believe me, I'm not serving up steaming piles of cr@p. I've worked at them for over 3 years, had them picked at and critiqued by fellow writers; I've had beta-readers highlight any noticeable mistakes or what they think didn't work etc…
So, what route should I take? Should I wait until the 3rd book is fully completed before I even think about self-publishing in ebook format? Again, I'm grateful for everyone's input.
>>> Your opinions on this matter please: should you self-publish your first ebook for free?