A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: Sales by Genre and Other Comparative Categories

 


It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. 

Today's post compares sales by genre and genre-related categories, using 2023 statistics. 

Rank-order of sales by genre

  • romance
  • novels/general fiction
  • self-help
  • science fiction
  • memoir
  • business
  • psychology 
  • humor
  • religion/inspiration
  • fitness
  • parenting
  • travel

Rank-order of sales by author type

  • politically famous author
  • socially famous author
  • experienced/well published, i.e. established, author
  • author with 2-5 published books
  • first-time author

Rank order by author age

  • 21-50 (this group dominates the book scene)
  • 50-70 (this group benefits from their experience and name recognition)
  • under 21 (this is a small group for obvious reasons and therefore would not be expected to rank high)
  • over 70 (if those with a long-standing reputation in this group do well; it is a different story for those just starting out at this point)

Rank order by gender

  • female
  • male
  • queer

Rank order by active presence on social platforms

  • Instagram (if using stories and reels)
  • Face Book
  • Twitter 
  • Substack
  • Blogs
  • Linked In
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Authors without a social platform (success depends upon strong word of mouth promotion)

    Rank order by online presence

    • Social media platform and website
    • Social media platform alone
    • Website alone
    • No online presence

    Rank order by use of promotional tools

    • Social media platforms
    • Book reviews
    • Eblast to a mailing list
    • Newsletters
    • Websites
    • Word of mouth
    • Book awards
    • Author blogs
    • Speaking engagements
    • Podcasts
    • Book endorsements
    • Book clubs
    • Webinars
    • Published articles
    • Second book
    • Book trailers
    • Seminars
    • Regional broadcasts
    • National broadcasts
    • Comments on blogs of other bloggers

    Rank order by book length

    • Novels (80K-100K words)
    • Books over 100K words, but only by established authors with highly anticipated releases in the areas of epic fantasy, detailed non-fiction, and historical fiction; other topics and not-famous authors do not fare well with books of this length
    • Novellas (50K-80K words)
    • Nonfiction (50K-80K words)
    • Short stories (1K-20K words)
    • Other length/type combinations do not sell well enough to be rank ordered

    Rank order by sales price (all formats)

    • 9.99-14.99
    • 15.00-24.99
    • .99-4.99
    • 25.00-34.99
    • 35.00 and up

    Rank order based on illustrations

    • four-color
    • no illustrations
    • B&W
    • two-color

    Bottom line: The sales success by category can provide a bit of a prediction for likely sales of a particular book, e.g., a 100K+ memoir by a first-time 80-year-old author is not likely to sell. It does not mean it cannot be published, but self-publishing or hybrid publication may be the only realistic options.

    See more Publisher Conversations with Authors HERE.



     Learn more about publishing from an acquisitions editor -- how to get your book proposal accepted, why proposals are turned down/accepted, and how to find the right publisher for your book. On special sale for $5 while inventory lasts at MSI Press webstore. Also available as an e-book and an audiobook.



    The Tuesday talks reflect real discussions between the management of MSI Press LLC and our own authors or those would-be authors who come through our doors but don't make the cut--yet. If you have a topic that you would like addressed, leave the question in the comment section. Chances are, in our 18 years of publishing first-time and experiences authors, we have had a conversation with one of our authors that we can share with you.

                                 

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