The Self-Publishers Cometh

Most of us have heard that 195,000 new titles were published in 2004 – a staggering 14 percent increase in one year. But most of those books don't sell very well. According to Nielsen BookScan, 93 percent of those new books sell less than 1000 copies a year and account for only 13 percent of total book sales. Put another way, 7 percent of new books account for 87 percent of sales. The BookScan numbers are further evidence that the rapid increase in new titles is being driven by self-publishing through print-on-demand services, and not by conventional publishers expanding their lists. Emphasis added.

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