Podcast Novel Collects Over 5,500 Readers, and Counting

Podcast Novel Collects Over 5,500 Readers, and Counting

SAN FRANCISCO, April 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The typical print run for a first- time novelist ranges from 3,000 to 5,000 copies. EarthCore, one of the world's first podcast-only novels, already has over 5,500 readers after just four weeks and five episodes.

EarthCore chapters are hosted at Podlot.com, which provides the statistical tracking that validates the subscription numbers.

"Podlot.com confirms that each chapter of 'EarthCore' has distributed nearly 5,900 copies in the month of April," said Russell Holman, president of Podlot.com. "Based on its record of growth, we expect that number to grow to over 6,300 by then end of the month."

EarthCore, written by Scott Sigler, is a free action/suspense audiobook that was launched on March 24. Listeners tune in to EarthCore in two ways: subscription to the RSS feed, and by clicking on the chapter links to manually download the MP3 files.

"Despite the rising popularity of podcasting, most listeners get their weekly fix the old-fashioned way," Sigler said. "Direct-click downloads outnumber podcast subscribers 4-to-1. You don't have to know what 'podcasting' is to enjoy the book."

EarthCore (http://www.scottsigler.net/earthcore) currently has 1,400 subscribers to the RSS feed, with another manually 4,500 downloading each chapter.

EarthCore is syndicated by The Dragon Page (http://www.dragonpage.com/), one of the world's highest-rated podcasts, which is key part of the novel's success.

"We're a mixture of proud, pleased and surprised at the success of Scott's podiobook," said Evo Terra, Dragon Page co-host. "Scott's EarthCore should act as a shining example to all podcasters: Develop quality content, find a great distribution partner, and tell the world."

Terra coined the phrase "podiobook" to refer to serialized audiobooks delivered via an RSS feed.

Sigler's goal is to reach 10,000 subscribers and use that momentum to land a publishing deal for a print version of EarthCore.

"I'm thrilled so many people are entertained by the novel," Sigler said. "Listeners want more and more. The demand is so great I'm release two episodes a week starting in May."

The Dragon Page also syndicates "Moravi" by Tee Morris and Lisa Lee, and "The Pocket and the Pendant" by Mark Jeffery.

EarthCore has a total of 30 episodes. The novel is available only in weekly episodic format, creating format similar to weekly television suspense shows with continuing storylines like "24" and "Battlestar Galactica."

Source: Scott Sigler

CONTACT: Taxi Communications, +1-415-290-5756

Web Site: http://www.scottsigler.net/earthcore http://www.dragonpage.com/

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