Comments on: How many books do you need to sell to be successful in Ireland? http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/ It's that simple -- and that hard. And that inescapable. Fri, 25 May 2012 15:29:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Claire http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54447 Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:49:04 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54447 Though I guess it depends on what you mean by ‘success’ – doing well enough to get another book published, or doing well enough to be thought of as ‘successful’? I’m presuming there’s a gap between the two, but maybe I’m wrong on this one…

]]> By: Daniel http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54443 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:21:38 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54443 Eoin,

As an Irish consumer I have no idea about the numbers and would happily adopt Paul’s (he seems trustworthy!) measure of success as my benchmark.

However, if a book was published on ‘how to quit smoking’ and only 300 people purchased the book but as a result 30 people kicked the habit then I would also consider this book a success. Although as a publisher you probably would not be to happy.

This obviously applies to any idea and while I know you were looking at it from the perspective of number of books sold I kept coming back to the question of impact as well as quantity. This is probably symptomatic of the general populous and helps explain why most of us will have no clear idea of success in terms of book sales. Also as an author I would prefer it if my books were only bought by the same 500 people every time rather than have a on hit wonder of 5,000.

]]> By: Phil http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54442 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:05:31 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54442 The answer varies greatly depending on the type (fiction/nonfiction) and the market segment. Non-fiction titles sell in tiny numbers and 2000-3000 is good in my experience. Nonfiction sales in excess of 10,000 are exceptionally rare.

I guess the format and quality of materials in the book also are significant. A glossy, large format photo book is going to need to sell a lot of units to be considered successful by its publisher.

I guess it highlights the difficulty in achieving financial success or even financial independence as an author in the Irish market. I’m sure its a shock to many authors when they have their sales expectations set by publishers.

]]> By: emerging writer http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54440 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:59:29 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54440 Is that fiction? Surely I could find 749 friend and family to buy my book in one week. Does every bookshop count or only certain ones? I’ve read that some supermarkets don’t report

]]> By: eoinpurcell http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54438 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:42:02 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54438 Paul,

I will do that!
When you in Dublin next?
Eoin

]]> By: eoinpurcell http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54437 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:41:11 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54437 Now that is a tricky question. It depends on the week. The necessary number for a week in the Christmas run in would be huge, for a regular week not so high maybe 750 upwards!
Eoin

]]> By: Rich http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54436 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:28:39 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54436 As an ex-pat who comes home to Ireland once or twice a year, success in the Irish book market is measured by how easily I can find a title in my brief window of opportunity. If it’s in the little book store in my parent’s hometown (Navan, Co. Meath) it must be a) brand new or b) a success. If I have to search all over Dublin to find a copy, it must not have been a success.

May not be the numbers you’re looking for, Eoin. But, that’s the terms of success as defined by my annual book-buying expeditions.

]]> By: Paul O'Mahony (Cork, Ireland) http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54435 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:16:38 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54435 Eoin,
Greetings. I’m sorry for not staying in touch. I hope you are in great form.

I ought to know the right answer to this, being the son, grandson, & brother of a bookseller. People who bought books put shirts on my back and food in my stomach.

I’d say that you’d go to the top of bestsellers if you sold 1000 copies of a new hardback over three months. 4,000 a year would be a big success. Some time ago I heard it said that what I thought was a small number would get you into the UK bestseller list.

As for paperbacks in Ireland, I’d say 7,000 would be a success in first year of publication.

Because of this thinking, I’m incredibly interested in getting my book on Depresion into UK & US bookshops – otherwise I won’t make any money from it.

Please give me a ring if you still have my number.

]]> By: emerging writer http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54434 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 16:59:27 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54434 How many books do you need to sell in an average week (and where) to get no the top 10 bestseller list?

]]> By: eoinpurcell http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/2009/08/11/how-many-books-do-you-need-to-sell-to-be-successful-in-ireland/#comment-54433 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:40:54 +0000 http://eoinpurcellsblog.com/?p=1342#comment-54433 I am Calvin and some data to back me up!

Eoin

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