Welcome to the Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog. Today's post, "Celebrate Books In August" provides an opportunity to pause, reflect, and read. This year, National Book Lovers Day falls on August 9. That said, now would be an excellent time to ponder how books continue to impact our lives, from reading to creating and publishing. There's a saying; everyone has a story to tell, a book to write, and a song to sing.
Regardless of the genre, books cover every subject one can imagine. The major literary types are Fantasy, Science Fiction, Westerns, Romance, Thriller, Mystery, Detective Story, Historical, Dystopia, and Memoir. However, with the advent of the Internet, the book industry has not been able to escape the disruption phenom. Besides new categories, there are new distributors, new formats, and new demand structures from Amazon, which offers both hard copy and digital versions think Kindle or iPad, and of course, various publishing houses, and of course, self-publishing.
Speaking of genres, the rise of streaming has afforded new-found success to newcomers and industry veterans. Since we slipped into the music industry, we'll briefly mention the newest music genre, "Hick-Hop." Thanks to Lil Nas X's, "Old Town Road," the breakout-single featuring, Billy Ray Cyrus, is garnering accolades and multiple collaborations in this category. "Old Town Road," recently broke the record for the longest-running No. 1 single on Billboard's Hot 100 and entered the 17th week at the top of the charts. Likewise, in the book industry with paranormal romance fiction writer Amanda Hocking. Ms. Hocking began self-publishing e-books in 2010, thereby creating a new genre, and now has a net worth of $10 million.
Best Seller Lists Vary!
When looking for best-selling books, you'll find different rankings depending on the book retailer and how the data is collected. Many book enthusiasts believe that the New York Times best-seller lists are shrouded in secrecy as to the tracking methodology. Whereas Amazon presents two-variable best-seller lists: Amazon Charts and Amazon Best Sellers.
Amazon Charts is reported once a week and tracks the number of books sold regardless of format or distribution point, including online through Amazon, its Kindle store, Audible store, and brick-and-mortar storefronts. Amazon also charts the most read or listened-to books on Kindle and Audible. Furthermore, the Amazon lists are not broken out via category, genre, or format, and is limited to Amazon and its subsidiaries.
What is Best: Books or Screens?
Since the beginning of the Kindle online book reading era, the debate continues as to which book format is the best. Print hard copies or digital versions? Business Insider produced an article in 2018 that states, "Many students prefer reading screens over books. They thought they were comprehending more when reading the screens. However, they actually performed better in comprehension tests after reading the printed books," "... longer articles seem to be better read in print."
An article by Quora in 2017 offers yet another opinion: "No, book vs. screen reading is very different. Research suggests that reading from a book is completely different than reading from a screen. … If you take notes, your handwriting on a page helps you to remember what you just read. Typing your annotations does not have the same impact.
10 New NYT Recommended Books (July 4th, 2019)
If you're ready for a good read, here is a list from the New York Times' Editors' Choice, which is an excellent place to start. As you will note, this list focuses on Democracy and America's national identity, "twin themes running through much of this week's list."
- The Porpoise, by Mark Haddon
- Democracy May Not Exist: But We'll Miss It When It's Gone, by Astra Taylor
- III Winds: Saving Democracy From Russian Rage, Chinese Ambition, and American Complacency, by Larry Diamond
- Spying on the South: An Odessy Across the American Divide, by Tony Horowitz
- Problem of Democracy: The Presidents Adams Confront the Cult of Personality, by Nancy Isenberg and Andrew Burstein
- This America: The Case of the Nation, by Jill Lepore
- Once More We Saw Stars, by Jayson Greene
- Fleishman Is In Trouble, by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
- Never A Lovely So Real: The Life and Work of Nelson Algren, by Colin Asher
- Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Genetic Drug Boon, by Katherine Eban
Amazon's Best Sellers of 2019
Now, let's take a look at Amazon's list, which is more broad in that it encapsulates the best sellers from the start of 2019 to date.
- Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens
- Becoming, by Michelle Obama
- Educated, by Tara Westover
- Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies..., by Rachel Hollis
- Girl, Stop Apologizing: A Shame-free Plan for…, by Rachel Hollis
- Howard Stern Comes Again, by Howard Stern
- Unfreedom of the Press, by Mark R. Levin
- The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo
- Oh, the Places You'll Go!, by Dr. Seuss
- The Wonky Donkey, by Craig Smith
These are the 10 best-sellers thus far, according to Amazon. Nevertheless, between the New York Times and Amazon, there's plenty of titles to select. If the titles above don't interest you, we encourage you to search for titles that you have been wanting to read or for the latest releases by your favorite authors.
The Business of Books
We would be negligent during our August celebration of books if we didn't delve into the publishing side of books. Authoring a book of your own (self-publishing) can be not only fulfilling from a learning perspective but also offer an opportunity to expand your revenue stream. There is money in book sales. There are also multiple routes to market and advertise your book(s). Taking an omnichannel approach can help you identify various opportunities, thereby affording you a boon and career change in the foreseeable future.
In the event you are a first-time author and decide to go through a publisher, your royalty earnings will range anywhere from $1.12 to $1.50 per copy. Conversely, self-publishing is based on sales and not royalties. Small and self-publishers typically hold onto 35% of the list price for books that sell in brick and mortar book stores. Online self-published book-sellers retain about 60% of the list price.
That said, some expenses that come with self-publishing, include printing, editing, copywriting, proofreading, cover design, text design and layout, marketing, publicity, and touring.
Here are some expense averages that a self-publisher should be aware of:
- Printing, paper and binding - ordinary text book on average is $0.90 per copy plus $0.015 per page, in that range for POD (print on demand) printing. If offset printing is used it will be half that or less.
- Editing, copywriting, proofreading, and text design/layout each cost on average from $3 to $4 per standard page.
What most folks will tell you is that outcomes will vary in the extreme. Many authors wind up in the red on a self-published book, while some make vast fortunes, the majority are lucky to get coffee money.
However, if you can write and find a genre that excites and stimulates your senses, you have a great chance of becoming the next literary phenomenon. Or, if you are a great storyteller, you are halfway there.
Read More
Reading books expands and stimulates the brain, thus increasing the aptitude for higher intelligence. We also know that knowledge begets power. As you enjoy this year's August National Book Lovers Day, take notes and consider how the authors give life to the written word. Not only will you be able to remember the content, but you may also learn how you too can write a riveting story for the world to enjoy.
The Net-Net
It's summertime. One of the best seasons to curl up with a good book and enjoy the sun. We hope this short list of recommended books stimulates your reading palate. By the way, we print books too! Thanks for reading "Celebrate Books In August."
Let's have a conversation about book printing, catalog direct mail marketing strategies, printing, transactional documents, variable digital printing, brand equity and unified marketing collateral during our next Open House. We invite you to join us on Thursday, Aug 29th, 2019, for an hour or two, anytime between 10:30 am to 4:30 pm. Let us show you how to improve your document processes to optimize your workflow, reduce your costs, and maximize your organization's printing, letter shop, and mailing capabilities. Dove Direct has an official USPS certified bureau located within our offices that will save you time and money. Moreover, if you bring us your files, we will create a demo file for you. For more information, call Carla Eubanks at 404-629-0122 or email Carla at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Dove Direct, your Atlanta based print and mail solutions provider offers organizations end-to-end data, printing, and mailing solutions: Data Management, Variable Digital Printing, LetterShop and Fulfillment, Fully Automated MLOCR Presort Bureau, Marketing and Production Management Support and Secure Data Life Cycle Management.
If you don't want to wait for the Open House, you can reach Dove Direct today by calling 404-629-0122 or use the contact form for Dove Direct.