The First Half of 2017 for Traditional Publishers: Holding Steady with Backlist and Digital Audio
NPD BookScan released a report showing that print sales are still increasing—up by 2.6 percent compared to the first half of 2016.
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Italy’s StreetLib Publishing Service Looks to Grow Its US Business
One relatively new entry—new to the New World, that is—is StreetLib. It was founded in 2006 in Loreto, near Italy’s Adriatic coast.
A New Website-Building Tool Customized for the Needs and Abilities of Authors
The service is called PubSite, and it’s been developed by Fauzia Burke and John Burke of FSB Associates, a book marketing and publicity firm.
David Levithan of Scholastic on YA: “Don’t Write to the Market”
In a WDC conference-closing keynote address, Scholastic editorial director David Levithan offered expert insights into the young adult sector.
Hot Sheet Index: August 23, 2017
The Hot Sheet Index reviews global viewing time for network television, online videos and videos on mobile phones.
Closing Image: August 23, 2017
NPD BookScan, which tracks print book sales in the United States, recently released a sales report for the first half of 2017
A New Calculation Tool for Editorial Service Rates
Author-services marketplace Reedsy last year created a snapshot of average prices for various services offered by its independent contractors.
A New Tool for Managing the Beta-Reading Process
A new service has just opened that promises to streamline the process of managing feedback from betas: BetaBooks.
Simon & Schuster UK Commits to Society of Authors Special-Sales Rules
The UK arm of Simon & Schuster has signed on to Society of Authors’ protocol for protecting writers’ revenues from special sales.
A Marketing Service for Publishers That Don’t Have a US Office
Since Cursor is a publishing office, not just a PR office, they consult on areas such as backlist promotion.
Hot Sheet Index: August 9, 2017
The Hot Sheet reviews Amazon’s revenue in the UK, Japan and Germany for 2010 and 2016. People who own smart speakers find them essential.
Association of American Publishers: 2016 Revenue Down 5.1 Percent
Report of 2016’s financials, Association of American Publishers (AAP) lists industry revenue at $26.24 billion, 5.1 percent below 2015.
Facebook Chatbots: The Next Book-Marketing Trend?
Last year, Facebook opened up its Messenger platform to allow businesses to build and integrate branded chatbots.
Amazon Complaints: Gaming the Biggest System in Town
Increased complaints from self-pub authors about gaming of Kindle Store rankings and the KU system, Some authors have left KU as a result.
Reader Analytics from Jellybooks: Crunching the Numbers to Improve Book Marketing and Sales
Jellybooks has already run dozens of reader analytics campaigns spanning hundreds of titles for all types of publishers.
Long Unpaid Galaktika Authors Assisted by Authors Guild and SFWA
As many as 342 authors weren’t paid correctly for the use of their content by Galaktika, a science fiction magazine based in Budapest.
AuthorCafé Serves Up More Options for Academic Writers
AuthorCafé has major investment from TNQ, a tech company headquartered in Chennai, and is aimed at STEM authors.
Update: Open Road’s Email Newsletter Advertising Opportunities
Open Road has just reported that its revenue grew 23 percent in the first six months of this year over last year.
Hot Sheet Index: July 26, 2017
The Hot Sheet reviews the change in Amazon Prime membership from 2016 and the percentage of Amazon customers that are Prime members.
Closing Image: July 26, 2017
Consumer Intelligence Research Partners released an analysis of buyer shopping patterns for Amazon. Prime memberships doubled last two years.
Enthusiast Publishers O’Reilly and F+W Media Take a New Direction on Book Publishing
Infrastructure and resources required to sell directly to readers may make direct-to-consumer ecommerce unsustainable model for publishers.
A Hungarian Platform in Silicon Valley: PublishDrive Goes to Google
The Budapest-based self-publishing platform PublishDrive has been singled out by Google Developers Launchpad for its accelerator program.
Europe’s Bookselling Dilemma: Geo-Blocking in the Balance
While ebooks remain a small part of the market in continental Europe at this point, the general industry thinking is that this will change.
Hot Sheet Index: July 12, 2017
The Hot Sheet reviewed the membership of the American Bookseller’s Association and the publisher sales data from 2016 compared to 2015.
Closing Image: July 12, 2017
This graphic from AAP StatShot shows the sales performance of trade book formats from traditional publishers between 2011 and 2016.
Draft2Digital and Findaway Voices Make a Run at Audible and ACX
Ebook distributor Draft2Digital and audiobook producer Findaway Voices go live with new joint service to help authors produce audiobooks.
A Potentially Beneficial New Road Opens in Email Newsletter Advertising
After the successful BookBub run, Open Road Integrated Media offered to advertise Steen’s books in their newsletters.
Amazon + Whole Foods = ?
For those working in the book business, it can be easy to forget that books represent just a fraction of Amazon’s interests and profits.
A New Attempt to Quantify the US Market, Part 1: Industry
We are an industry that can’t accurately count its own output and can’t represent its value accurately because of incomplete data.
A New Attempt to Quantify the US Market, Part 2: Authors
Cader underlines two key differences in how traditionally published and self-published authors make their money:
Could Instant Rights Be a Boon to Authors?
Self-publishing authors have largely been unable to access meaningful international-rights-trading activity without an agent.
Barnes & Noble Does Fine on Profits, But Not Sales in Fiscal 2017
Barnes & Noble’s fiscal year ended in April. We have earnings reports and commentary for the bookstore’s beleaguered performance in 2017.
Hot Sheet Index: June 28, 2017
The Hot Sheet reviews the percentage by age groups of people who read News online and the types of devices people use to view this info.
Closing Image: June 28, 2017
At BookExpo 2017, Kristen McLean from NPD Group presented worrisome data showing a decline in teen reading over the last two years.
Was It BookExpo or IngramExpo? The Biggest Footprint of All
The largest BookExpo exhibitor in terms of space on the floor at the Javits Center was the international distributor Ingram Content Group.
The First Six-Figure Audiobook Deal for a Self-Published Author
As Anderson indicates, traditional publishers and audiobook publishers retain dominance in the digital audio market.
More Positive News on Audiobooks—and Some Surprises
For a third year, the Audio Publishers Association (APA) has found growth of around 20 percent in audiobook sales in the United States.
Hot Sheet Index: June 14, 2021
The Hot Sheet looks at the growth of internet usage from mobile devices from 2015 to 2016 and also examines the growth of gamers worldwide.
Closing Image: June 14, 2017
The most anticipated slide pack in Silicon Valley: Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends Report. It dissects tech and internet trends across globe.
Smaller, Shorter, Quieter: BookExpo 2017
While Book Expo looked vacant, with much wider aisles and fewer exhibitors’ stands, the Javits Center teemed with enthusiasts during BookCon.
Amazon Charts a Different Kind of Bestseller List
Amazon Charts shows which titles have been Most Read and Most Sold in the past week in fiction and nonfiction categories.
Tapas Now Open to Self-Publishers for App-Based Serials
Earlier this month, Tapas announced new functionality for creators to self-publish through their platform.
Kindle Unlimited: Approaching Two Years of Page-Based Payouts
It’s once again time to revisit the fortunes and strategies of indie authors participating in Amazon’s ebook subscription service.