Based on Circana sales data and author analysis, BLK Bestsellers is a new monthly resource from the African American Literature Book Club for identifying bestselling books by Black authors. It features the top 20 hardcover and paperback fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books, plus lists for YA and poetry.
Industry researcher Peter Hildick-Smith conducted in-depth research on book buyers of color in 2021. He wrote me recently to comment about this list, pointing out that “the Black book segment is the most evolved after general publishing in terms of author development, title range, and other key factors. However, it’s been underdeveloped to date due to the lack of author and leading title awareness and the definitive source to present them—until now.”
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.
