Are Authors Really THAT Special?

By Kim Dushinski - Aug 31 , 2007

Having recently signed my first book contract, I have seen first-hand how people react when I tell them I am writing a book. Usually, it involves some sort of awe and amazement. I get huge exclamations of congratulations. One friend actually bowed to me. Occasionally I see a tinge of jealousy. Universally, it’s a big deal. This all seems so odd to me.

You see, for the past 10 years as a book publicist and now a book marketing consultant, I have worked with authors every day, day in and day out. Nearly every time my phone rang, I was talking to an author. When I go to trade shows and other events, I am surrounded by authors. Whenever I go into any bookstore, I see books written by people I know personally. To me, authors are a part of daily life. But are they (make that, we) really THAT special?

Consider that Bowker reported 291,920 new titles were published that in 2006. That is an astonishing 799 books published each and every DAY. But wait–is it astonishing at all? I’ve heard statistics that 90% of the population has a book inside them. Let’s say that is exaggerated and the real number is 60%. That means that, of the 300 million people in the U.S., 180 million of them WANT to write a book, but only 291,000 of them actually get published. That is 1.6% of the population. In general social circles, it IS a big deal simply to be an author.

What goes through my mind, though, when people are giving me big kudos is that I haven’t done anything yet. Granted, I have a signed contract, but I still have to write the book. I have to write it well and do it while meeting my deadlines. That will take me months to accomplish and a lot of time at my keyboard. And then the real work will start.

As I have told countless authors over the years, writing the book is only 10% of the work. The other 90% is marketing. Marketing, marketing, and more marketing. (Fortunately for me, I know what needs to be done. I have the contacts. I know exactly what to do.) It is clear that to be a truly successful author I will have to work to make my book a success.

Even though I am working with a terrific publisher with whom I have a great working relationship, I will need to step up to the plate on marketing. From creating a comprehensive marketing plan to pitching in on follow-up phone calls to the media and building mailing lists for review copies, I know that my specific knowledge of my industry will be invaluable to the publisher. This is true for every author, by the way.

Once my book is out there, I will need to make sure I keep things moving. I’ll need to keep posting on my blog and driving traffic to it, making speaking arrangements for myself (and then selling well from the podium), and ensuring that my website converts visitors to buyers, just to name a few things on my to do list.

Keeping in mind the 80/20 principle, it follows that the top 20% of books sell 80% of the copies sold (I think the actual statistics are much more lopsided than that, though). These top 20% authors are special among authors. Clearly, it will be a bigger deal to be a successful author. Of the 291,000 books, only 58,000 of them will sell enough to be considered successful. Mine will be one of them – I’ll make sure of that.

I’ll keep writing about my journey as a book-marketer-turned-author because I am finding that many things I understand about being an author I know from my background as a professional in the industry. However, most of the other 291,000 authors don’t have this same advantage.