Despite freeloaders, King’s online opus profitable

BANGOR – Stephen King, who temporarily closed the book on his serial novel “The Plant,” has opened his ledger to show the world that the online publishing venture was a financial success.

King, who shelved the project in December after turning out six installments, said on his Web site that “this fascinating little adventure” netted a profit of $463,832.27.

That figure was based on receipts of $721,448.61 for downloads and $257,616.34 in expenses, most for advertising and Web hosting and maintenance.

King’s decision to pull the plug on the novel was viewed in some quarters as a setback for the kind of electronic publishing in which author and reader deal directly, with no middleman.

But King disagreed.

“In my view, ‘The Plant’ has been quite successful,” he said, inviting readers to form their own opinion based on the story and on the financial data.

The author said the six parts of “The Plant” conclude the first major phase of the story and can stand alone.

But he reiterated his intention to return to the novel once he completes some other projects.

“‘The Plant’ is not finished online. It is only on hiatus. I am no more done than the producers of the TV show ‘Survivor’ are done. I am simply in the process of fulfilling my other commitments,” he wrote.