By Ramona Richards  @RamonaRichards

A few weeks ago, I had a lengthy conversation with an author about those greatest of author expectations: sales. Oh, we all dream of receiving “The Call” (or more likely these days, The Email), celebrating that first contract, having those great marketing moments and interactions with editors and readers. 

But many of us also dream of that best-seller list, that notification that we have arrived, have reached thousands of readers, and sold tons of books. The numbers vary, but new authors especially dream in terms of five or six figures. I mean, how hard can it be to sell 10,000 books.

That’s what this author desired, in her reach for the stars. And I hated to bust that balloon…but I did.

When I started working in Christian publishing 40 years ago, the general understanding was that AVERAGE sales for a trade nonfiction title was 5- to 6,000 units. The AVERAGE. That meant that some sold a lot more and some sold a lot less. Throw in top sellers like a Charles Swindoll or Robert Schuller title, and that skewed the numbers even more. I worked for a top-tier publisher and saw many titles sell less than 1,000 copies, while the brand authors sold 100,000 or more. And, yes, most of those top sellers had a high-visibility profession—megachurch pastor or speaker—that sold more books than someone who wrote for a living could.

Thus the birth of the “platform” as a way to move books.

So expectations for many authors were already grim, even when publishers did more marketing and helped authors build that elusive platform.

Then came the rise of self-publishing. Now, please understand: I am a huge fan of self-publishing. I think it’s instituted some much-needed changes to the industry. But one of those changes means that competition is even stiffer when it comes to finding readers. It means some authors are developing a serious marketing savvy when it comes to discoverability, and new authors are in a position to scramble for placement, not only with retailers but also with those beloved readers. 

And readers are changing. They look for more in an author—and in a book—than ever before. They want as much interaction as they can get. They want authenticity, a reliable voice, and lots to choose from. Or they’ll go elsewhere.

The results of all this is that sales on individual units for debut authors began to drop. A book that would debut to 8,000 units in 2010, now debuts with 4,000. Smaller presses scramble for visibility as well. A small press could do well with a debut book that sold 3- to 5,000 ten years ago. Now they’re looking at 1,500 … or less. 

There are exceptions. There are ALWAYS exceptions, and whenever I lay out these figures at a conference, someone hits me with a “but I know someone who” statement. And I don’t doubt it. Good for them. I retain the most supreme hope that our next publication will sell 15,000 copies. Hope springs eternal.

But unlike someone who knows someone who … I see sales figures on hundreds of books, and I try to console authors whose brand new, extremely well-written novel has sold 500 copies in the past six months. 

And in the realm of full disclosure, that’s about where my own novel, Murder in the Family, is right now. A little under 500 units after 8 months on the market. I hired a publicist. I’ve promoted on social media. The publisher has run free or low-cost sales on Amazon, and they promoted on social media. I have received more than 80 reviews on Amazon, with a 4.7 rating. I have 40 reviews and 134 ratings on GoodReads with a 4.58 average ranking. I have done more than a dozen speaking engagements, during which I promoted that book and others. I have a small but growing platform. 

And that’s where the numbers are. 

So if you “know someone who” is doing well with their sales, then talk to them, learn from them. Listen to marketing tips from conferences and experts and put them into play.

But don’t expect a lot of chickens to pop out of that nest, at least in the beginning. Be realistic, work like crazy, then scream to the high heavens when YOU become that “someone who.”

And NEVER stop writing. Because in the long run, it’s not just about the numbers. 

Ramona Richards is the award-winning author of eleven books and the founder of Psalm 98 Ministries, a speaking and teaching outreach effort. Ramona has edited more than 500 publications, including study Bibles and curriculum, and is currently the associate publisher for Iron Stream Media. In 2019, she received the Joann Sloan National Award for the Encouragement of Writing, a mentoring, editing, and coaching award presented at the Southern Christian Writers Conference. Ramona lives in Moody, Alabama.

Website: Ramonarichards.com

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Twitter: @RamonaRichards

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