Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew H.
I know Baen is popular among some e-book readers, but is Baen notably more successful than other publishers? Is there any published data on earnings, profits, etc?
|
I'd have to go googling, but the reports I've read over the years have said that Baen went from an also-ran SF publisher to a major SF hardcover and ebook publisher primarily due to the Baen Free Library and their ebook sales policies (they've always done well in MM paperbacks). This is significant in a time when publishers are taking actions they claim are meant to cut costs, such as firing staff, and supposedly having great difficulty making a profit.
I think there's a connection between that and the fact that they don't blow huge budgets chasing blockbusters that don't pan out, promoting books that are only in the stores for 90 days, and of course finding new and different ways to dick over their own customers. They know what their customers want to buy -- competent, reliable, and enjoyable SF in convenient formats at fair prices -- and they supply it. Their customers know what Baen sells, and they buy it. I think a big part of that is Baen knows who their customers
are. For instance, Baen does not try to publish historical romances, modern mysteries, or cookbooks. That's not where their expertise lies. They leave those areas to the people who specialize in them (or who dabble in them and get burned) and keep on selling the books they know will sell to the customers they know will buy. And we keep on buying.