No, agents aren't reading all the submissions: they scan and pick because they have no other option. As to self-publishing, I think selling 100 books is beating the odds. But then getting a book ‘deal’ doesn't mean much if you don't earn your advance. The print run gets sent to warehouses like better books and sold at a discount but these don't count as sales and there are no royalties for authors!
Not sure what you mean by "scan and pick". Is there anyone who found an agent thru unsolicited querying? I'd love to hear about it.
I'd also, again, love to hear a self-publishing success story. Selling 100 books may be beating the odds (how depressing) but that's not success. Success is 10,000, with hundreds of reviews on Goodreads. Then a call from that proverbial agent. Proverbial because no one's ever met one : ) Thanks James.
I think your expectations are unrealistic. Only 2% of books see a positive financial return (according to the latest Libraro newsletter). I'm trying to share the reality of writing/ publishing as one of the many bottom-feeders, rather than the perspective put out by the 'big 5' publishing corporations.
Well yes and thank you James. But there's nothing wrong with sales. And I'd love to find a self-published novelist who's selling. All the examples being trumpeted on the internet are like 20 years old.
Sounds like a fun trip and how great you got to go with your daughter. As for the state of publishing and especially self-publishing, it does become discouraging. It takes grit to stick with it, or maybe the mindset that's this is the thing I love most, and let the joy of writing buoy you when the waves of disillusion rise.
No consolation at all but I have a pile here of beautifully produced books that a friend's son was buying up from the remainder people a few years back. He couldn't sell them so gave them to me for the shop, now they are in the house. It's grievous all the work that went into writing, editing and production for them to sit unsold. One I am now reading The Cloud Chamber by Clare George (2005) fits very tidily with my reading around the Manhattan Project. I think she taught CW at Exeter for a time so you may have come across her. What I am saying is that it is not only self-published writers who suffer from poor sales. It's a whole big question of how a new name gets picked up and circulated, even when they have got through the agent / publisher barbed wire fences. Personally I think word of mouth through blogs and reviews is the best vehicle, in other words, lean hard on friends to get you noticed. And definitely get your local library to promote you as an author from your community. A trickle of PLR is better than silence.
My comment about the warehousing was based on the conversation I had at the awards: that only applied to the 'published' authors. Self-published on Amazon is print on demand.
I have fond memories of the BFI, as well as the NT. I'm glad you had such an interesting trip to London. As you say, Devon is the kind of place you need to get away from occasionally.
I've benefitted from living abroad three times, plus visiting a varied amount of countries since a young age. That's kept my mind open to new ideas and meeting different types of people (who are mostly decent). Coming home is better once you've left for a bit.
Re "spaghetti against the wall", I have been noticing how many more books fail with me now than ever before - too much hype? too many CW university courses? or am I getting old and cynical and my expectations are unreasonable? There are so many good books and authors that have been forgotten and need rehabilitating, and so many works in translation that need reading, classics that definitely need revisiting, that I no longer make myself go past the "I really don't like this" stage.
Yep, hence me ignoring the 'shortlist hype'. Once the PR is over, does the book stand up in a couple of years? R.F. Kuang is an example of being over-hyped. I'm currently reading Hardy's 'The return of the native.' First time reading him, despite living in Wessex for the majority of my life. He's got a good insight into humanity.
Sounds like you had a lovely excursion to London with your daughter on so many levels, James. It was interesting to hear about the similarities and differences between the US and UK publishing scenes. I think they both have the "throwing spaghetti at a wall" model in common right now, and it will be interesting to see if it changes.
Favorite podcasts for me - there are so many, but hands down "Hidden Brain" with Shankar Vedantam. Excellent and intriguing always.
"agents are overwhelmed with submissions (40-50 books per day, each)" If this is true then agents are not reading submissions. It's simple math.
On a brighter note, does anyone know any 2024 self-published books that did well? I need to feel better about (possibly) self publishing.
No, agents aren't reading all the submissions: they scan and pick because they have no other option. As to self-publishing, I think selling 100 books is beating the odds. But then getting a book ‘deal’ doesn't mean much if you don't earn your advance. The print run gets sent to warehouses like better books and sold at a discount but these don't count as sales and there are no royalties for authors!
Not sure what you mean by "scan and pick". Is there anyone who found an agent thru unsolicited querying? I'd love to hear about it.
I'd also, again, love to hear a self-publishing success story. Selling 100 books may be beating the odds (how depressing) but that's not success. Success is 10,000, with hundreds of reviews on Goodreads. Then a call from that proverbial agent. Proverbial because no one's ever met one : ) Thanks James.
I think your expectations are unrealistic. Only 2% of books see a positive financial return (according to the latest Libraro newsletter). I'm trying to share the reality of writing/ publishing as one of the many bottom-feeders, rather than the perspective put out by the 'big 5' publishing corporations.
Well yes and thank you James. But there's nothing wrong with sales. And I'd love to find a self-published novelist who's selling. All the examples being trumpeted on the internet are like 20 years old.
I did mention a while back about the SF author I met at Bristol Con: 400,000 sales and counting. All self published.
Who is this? I'd copy his program right down to the color of his shoelaces : )
Sounds like a fun trip and how great you got to go with your daughter. As for the state of publishing and especially self-publishing, it does become discouraging. It takes grit to stick with it, or maybe the mindset that's this is the thing I love most, and let the joy of writing buoy you when the waves of disillusion rise.
No consolation at all but I have a pile here of beautifully produced books that a friend's son was buying up from the remainder people a few years back. He couldn't sell them so gave them to me for the shop, now they are in the house. It's grievous all the work that went into writing, editing and production for them to sit unsold. One I am now reading The Cloud Chamber by Clare George (2005) fits very tidily with my reading around the Manhattan Project. I think she taught CW at Exeter for a time so you may have come across her. What I am saying is that it is not only self-published writers who suffer from poor sales. It's a whole big question of how a new name gets picked up and circulated, even when they have got through the agent / publisher barbed wire fences. Personally I think word of mouth through blogs and reviews is the best vehicle, in other words, lean hard on friends to get you noticed. And definitely get your local library to promote you as an author from your community. A trickle of PLR is better than silence.
My comment about the warehousing was based on the conversation I had at the awards: that only applied to the 'published' authors. Self-published on Amazon is print on demand.
I have fond memories of the BFI, as well as the NT. I'm glad you had such an interesting trip to London. As you say, Devon is the kind of place you need to get away from occasionally.
I've benefitted from living abroad three times, plus visiting a varied amount of countries since a young age. That's kept my mind open to new ideas and meeting different types of people (who are mostly decent). Coming home is better once you've left for a bit.
Re "spaghetti against the wall", I have been noticing how many more books fail with me now than ever before - too much hype? too many CW university courses? or am I getting old and cynical and my expectations are unreasonable? There are so many good books and authors that have been forgotten and need rehabilitating, and so many works in translation that need reading, classics that definitely need revisiting, that I no longer make myself go past the "I really don't like this" stage.
Yep, hence me ignoring the 'shortlist hype'. Once the PR is over, does the book stand up in a couple of years? R.F. Kuang is an example of being over-hyped. I'm currently reading Hardy's 'The return of the native.' First time reading him, despite living in Wessex for the majority of my life. He's got a good insight into humanity.
Sounds like you had a lovely excursion to London with your daughter on so many levels, James. It was interesting to hear about the similarities and differences between the US and UK publishing scenes. I think they both have the "throwing spaghetti at a wall" model in common right now, and it will be interesting to see if it changes.
Favorite podcasts for me - there are so many, but hands down "Hidden Brain" with Shankar Vedantam. Excellent and intriguing always.