Order Now!
Don't wait!
Don't ask what it is we're asking you to order!
Little, Brown has informed book sellers that there's going to be an exciting new piece of non-fiction arriving in November. They aren't telling anyone what the book's about.
Of course buyers are buying.
If the book turns out to be a loser, they'll box it up and send it back.
All they'll lose is their time in ordering, stocking, and re-packing.
On the other hand, if it sells, they'll make some money.
So what's in this "inside story" of a figure that dominated news coverage recently?
There's some speculation that the new book is a tell-all about Bernard Madoff as related by his son's fiancee. Or maybe it's not. The publicity machine has booked an interview on "60 Minutes", so it's expected that television appearances will generate enough buzz to get people into their local shop to buy their very own copy. As a store owner, you'd want those copies on your front table, prominently displayed.
Then again, the untitled book by Anonymous could be a complete bust. In that case, the problem is all on Little, Brown's shoulders. The publisher has to lay out money to get the manuscript into print, they have to pay shipping costs, and they'll have to pick up the price of pulping unsold copies.
Book sellers can take a chance without too much concern because the publishing business has a very bizarre method of operation.
Imagine a home builder constructing a new community, and then bulldozing the lot when it turns out that they guessed wrong on what the public wanted. What would that do to the price of a new home if they had to recoup all their costs on the units that did move?
Look for copies of Untitled at a book store near you. The mystery of its subject will be revealed in November.
Whether or not Little, Brown will come out ahead is a mystery that won't be solved until sales figures roll in some time later. Expect book shops to repeat their venture into the unknown the next time a publisher asks them to. They have less to lose on taking a chance than the publisher does.
And new authors will pay the price in lower advances and smaller royalty payments if Little, Brown has to make up the difference in the end.
No comments:
Post a Comment