Pearl Luke's Blog: Pearl Luke's Book and Writing Blog, page 34

Jan 18, Self Publishing Timeline 2011

This 2011 Self Publishing Historical Timeline is a fascinating overview highlighting the main events in self publishing over the past year.

Also very illuminating is this article, which provides many interesting facts: Self Publishing Facts

For example:

Average price of a self-published book in 2011 was $1.40, vs. $8.26 for all books in Top 100


There is a downward trend in both the number of books and the average price


John Locke is the author with the highest number of books in a single monthly list – 8 titles



Five authors stayed in Top 100 for at least 6 months – Barbara Freethy, Darcie Chan, John Locke, J.R. Rain and Michael Prescott


There are 18 self-published titles in a yearly Top 100 for 2011 (not a single self-published book in Top 100 for 2010)

Overview:

The beginning of the year was the best time – February, March and April were the best months of 2011. This can be easily associated with the hype around Amanda Hocking and her Trylle Trilogy, immediately used by John Locke to increase sales of his Donovan Creed novels.

There is a high rotation of self-publishers and their books in monthly lists. Out of 75 authors listed in all 12 monthly lists, only 5 were present for 6 months or longer. The usual self-published book stays in Top 100 for one or two months. Books from established authors like Suzanne Collins, Sare Gruen, Stieg Larsson or Michael Connelly were present in bestseller lists for most months of 2011.