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Selling Yourself—Selling Your Books 7/16/2007 6:02:42 AM
I posted a comment on Sandra Scoppettone’s blog earlier. It was in response to an article about the state of publishing these days and the fact that neither publishers nor agents are interested in books that don’t promise to sell huge amounts. This is the bulk of my response.
‘I’m 56 and new to fiction/mystery/crime writing. I self published my first book earlier this year mostly because I felt I didn’t have enough years to pedal (terrible typo) to agents and publishers. The state of the publishing world surprised and discouraged me to say the least.
This from Harper’s Index:
Minimum number of different books sold in the United States last year as tracked by Nielsen BookScan: 1,446,000.
Number of these that sold fewer than 99 copies: 1,123,000.
Number that sold more than 100,000: 483
I have to assume there are more than 483 good writers out there, which tells me that you’re correct—there is something very wrong with the system. Unfortunately, it goes beyond the world of publishing as your constantly moving war meter shows. (Sandra has a real time meter showing the cost of the war in Iraq.)
The last place I want my books sold is in a warehouse store next to a big yellow smiley face, so I will probably continue self-publishing. I don’t know what will happen, but I’d like to catch up on a few years of missed writing.’
I agree with Sandra about how screwed up the publishing business is. I guess that these days you have to write because you want to write, not because you want your work published or sold. Judging by the numbers from Harper’s Index, if you do it to make money, you might have a better chance buying a lottery ticket.
If I stop writing, it won’t fix the problem. It will only take away a newly found and extremely pleasurable activity. I guess I’ll continue to write, and on a bad day I can throw a manuscript from the top of a bridge. Maybe people will pick it up and read, and maybe the police won’t arrest me for littering.
