Authors Can’t Rely On Publishers to Sell Books!
Authors Can’t Rely On Publishers to Sell Books!
I wanted to ask my editor, “Do you ever feel you’re navigating the Titanic?”
After all, publishing has hit an iceberg when giant bookseller Barnes & Noble decides to put itself on the sales block.
In the best days, the business model publishers used of consigning their products to retailers, was fundamentally flawed. When books didn’t sell briskly, retailers could return them for full credit, months and even years later. Still, for the longest time, the winning titles compensated for droves of losers.
My concern about the soundness of the consignment model dates back to my days as a top salesperson and then sales manager with Time-Life Books, the hardbound relative to Time, Life, Money, Sports Illustrated, and Fortune magazines.
At our division, we sold directly to the consumer, using what I suppose you might also
