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VydorScope · 08-04-2013, 09:59 PM

I have been a "independent" or "self-published" author for almost three years now. (only counting my fiction years, non-fiction goes back further but is unrelated to these numbers). In Nov 2010 I released my first book... and tonight I loaded all of my Amazon Data in to Excel to look at...

(NOTE: I have never done ANY promotional spots, paid for advertising/etc.)
(NOTE: This is Amazon Data only - I also sell on Smash, B&N, and etc)

From Nov 2010->April 2011, the book cost 99 cents. In that time I sold 53 books for a grand total of $18.55 royalty.

May 2011 -> Book goes permafree (I did not even know the term at that time, never mind how to make that happen.) I "sell" (give away) 5200 copies that first month. Made it to #5 on the charts, was a fun ride!

June 2011 -> Book II is released @ 2.99 - Sells 50 copies that first month alone - $93.91 royalty. Yes, in one month I blow my previous 7 months of royalty out of the water.

To date I have given away around 21,000 copies of book one. Putting all my book sales on a graph shows something interesting...

The first month of a new release I have a spike in sales, but after that future books sell at about the same rate that prior books do. This leads me to conclude that if book 3 is out when people read book 2, they will buy it. If book 3 comes out 6-9 months after book 2 people are less likely to go find it.

So my suggestion for anyone starting out and planning a series... if possible hold your series until several books are ready and release them close together. Maybe one a month? Time appears to be an enemy here.

That is of course based completely on the anecdotal evidence of one author. Do others see the same?

08-04-2013, 09:59 PM	#1
VydorScope Wizard Posts: 3,418 Karma: 35207650 Join Date: Jun 2011 Device: iPad	Almost Three years... I have been a "independent" or "self-published" author for almost three years now. (only counting my fiction years, non-fiction goes back further but is unrelated to these numbers). In Nov 2010 I released my first book... and tonight I loaded all of my Amazon Data in to Excel to look at... (NOTE: I have never done ANY promotional spots, paid for advertising/etc.) (NOTE: This is Amazon Data only - I also sell on Smash, B&N, and etc) From Nov 2010->April 2011, the book cost 99 cents. In that time I sold 53 books for a grand total of $18.55 royalty. May 2011 -> Book goes permafree (I did not even know the term at that time, never mind how to make that happen.) I "sell" (give away) 5200 copies that first month. Made it to #5 on the charts, was a fun ride! June 2011 -> Book II is released @ 2.99 - Sells 50 copies that first month alone - $93.91 royalty. Yes, in one month I blow my previous 7 months of royalty out of the water. To date I have given away around 21,000 copies of book one. Putting all my book sales on a graph shows something interesting... The first month of a new release I have a spike in sales, but after that future books sell at about the same rate that prior books do. This leads me to conclude that if book 3 is out when people read book 2, they will buy it. If book 3 comes out 6-9 months after book 2 people are less likely to go find it. So my suggestion for anyone starting out and planning a series... if possible hold your series until several books are ready and release them close together. Maybe one a month? Time appears to be an enemy here. That is of course based completely on the anecdotal evidence of one author. Do others see the same?