Everand and Fable (both owned by Scribd) conducted a survey of 1,600 people, ages 18 to 64, who self-report having paid for an audiobook or ebook subscription in the last two years. They also studied the activity of Everand and Fable users in 2025. In a press release, the company says that their headline finding is that “people I know personally” is the top source of book discovery, surpassing social media and various platforms. The report predicts that best book lists and awards will hold less weight over time as people prioritize peer recommendations. Learn more.
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
