2016 – Book Sales

Well, Happy 2016, I really do hope that you are well and also that you are doing better than I am so far this year. I realise that we are only three days into 2016, but I hope that they are not an indication of what is to come. One book sale is not good in three days whichever way you want to look at it.

This time last year, I think I had written thirty-two novels and I wanted to have fifty by now. I think that I have forty-eight, plus one that I haven’t published yet because I would like to use it to gain representation. However, it has been mouldering on my hard drive for six months now, so I will have to do something with it soon.

Anyway, back to the point. I have fifty percent more books to sell now than a year ago, but made only $17.39 more money over the whole year. I think that that is pretty pathetic. This year, I am aiming to have sixty-five novels, but not if it will only make $20 more than in 2015.

Now I live in a very isolated part of the world, so I am quite out of touch with what is going on, especially on the social level in Europe, America and Australia, which are my main markets, but surely it is not that bad out there financially, is it?

My sales were growing by 145% for years until 2015 and to be even more specific, I would have been way down if it hadn’t been for sales in the first six months of 2015. In June, sales crashed by 66% recovering to be ‘only’ 52% down in December.

So, what does 2016 hold out for me (and other writers)?

I don’t see why 2016 should be any better.

Waterstone’s, the book shop chain, stopped selling ebooks last year, saying that ebooks had been a fad and that it was over. Somehow, I can’t see that, but they are not stupid and have done their homework. On the other hand, my paperback sales could not support me and my family, so it looks like another challenging year ahead.

Good luck with 2016, I would love to hear your views.

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All the best,

Owen

Podcast: 2016