Interesting Publishing Statistics

Dear Authors,

After a long break in posting new blogs, I'm back with some interesting book publishing statistics. This data provides a window into the size and workings of the U.S. book publishing industry. It also reveals the challenges and opportunities faced by emerging authors and publishers. This information will give you a realistic perspective on publishing. I hope it will also encourage you to continue on with your book promotion activities.

BOOK PUBLISHING IS BIG!

• There are about 1.5 million books in print at any one time in the U.S.

• From 120,000 to 150,000 new titles are published each year in this country. About 200,000 were published in 2004.

• One book per year is produced in America for every 2,336 people.

• A poll of 2,700 U.S. Internet users, representing about 100 million U.S. Internet users, indicates that about 8 million unpublished novels and 17 million unpublished how-to books have been written by that Internet-using population alone.

• There are 5 colossal publishing conglomerates that control 80% of book sales. They are: Bertlesman (Random House), Time Warner, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, Disney, and Viacom/CBS. Four of these are foreign owned. They won’t take on a title unless it will sell at least 50,000 copies.

• The top 10 most popular American novelists in terms of sales are: Tom Clancy, Mary Higgins Clark, Sue Grafton, John Grisham, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Tim La Haye with Jerry Jenkins (co-authors), James Patterson, Nora Roberts, and Danielle Steel.

• It is predicted that online book sales will double between 2003 and 2008, going from $2.8 billion in late 2003 to $5.5 billion in 2008. Roughly five million new U.S. households will shop online each of the next five years, growing the e-commerce market to 63 million households by '08.

SMALL, BUT POWERFUL!

• In November of 2003 it was reported that the independent and small publisher base had grown at an annual rate of 21% since 1997.

• 78% of titles brought out come from a small press or self-publisher.

• Approximately 85 different non-exclusive distributors will work with small publishers. They typically expect a 55% discount.

WHAT SELLS BOOKS

• On the average, a bookstore browser will spend eight seconds looking at the front cover and 15 seconds scanning the back cover.

• Nonfiction typically outsells fiction by two to one. However, at least 20% more fiction is being published these days via the Internet and Print on Demand.

• 52% of all books are not sold in bookstores! They are merchandised via mail order, online, in discount or warehouse stores, through book clubs, in nontraditional retail outlets, etc.

• Fiction is considered successful if it sells 7,500 copies. A nonfiction book is deemed successful when it reaches 5,000 copies sold.

• 64% of book buyers say a book’s being on a bestseller list is not important.

• Women buy 68% of all books sold.

THE CHALLENGES

• Most readers do not get past page 18 in a book they have purchased.

• 94% of all books sold are sold by 6% of authors (excluding the Bible and the Boy Scout Manual).

• The average shelf life of published books is 60 days.

• Bookstores are famous for returning books to publishers. The industry return rate is typically 36% for hardcovers and 25% for softcovers.

• It takes an average of 475 hours to write a novel. Writing a nonfiction book requires about 725 hours.

CHRISTIAN BOOK OPPORTUNITIES

• The #1 nonfiction bestseller for 2001 was The Prayer of Jabez, exceeding eight million copies.

• The largest advance ever paid for a self-published book? A whopping $4.125 million. Simon & Schuster paid that for Richard Paul Evans' The Christmas Box.

• U.S. religious book sales, which include many self help titles, grew 5.6% in 2004, totaling $1.33 billion.

Our thanks to Evergreen Press author Freddy Davis for passing on this information!

Warmest Regards,
Brian Banashak, Publisher
©2005 Brian Banashak