At Wordeee, we believe that an educated and informed author is their own best friend. This article is all about demystifying the reality of book sales and giving you metrics, so that you can assess your book's potential and make a plan if you want to quit your day job and become a full-time writer making 100K a year. To begin, let’s break down the numbers:

Only .08% of books in the traditional publishing market make the bestseller lists.  That is about 300 books a year...of the millions printed. If being a NY Times bestselling author is your aim, roll up your sleeves.  Some say your odds of playing the lotto or being struck by lightning twice may be more likely if you are a first-time author, but we believe everything is possible with bulldog tenacity. But knowing the numbers and the effort needed to make your desire a reality may be helpful.

• First, start with a superbly written book. 
• Know that success takes time as you build your career.
• Know, in reality, there are big-list authors from traditional publishers who make only about $25,000 a year.
• To make $100K a year means selling about 25,000-50,000 books a year, depending on your royalty rate.  
• Consider the average author who sells 3,500-5,000 books a year, even at a traditional publisher, you know you must do something different and exciting to connect with your readers. 

How will you do that? What strategies will you employ?

• Consider having a Marketing and PR team: Set a realistic plan and set goals with your team. Become a master of time management.
• Know the impact of awareness on book sales. Media shows, TV, radio, podcasts, and reviews create awareness which is vitally important to book buyers, librarians, and consumers.
• Buzz: This is the hype when you connect with your audience. Use social media and word of mouth to connect with your audience regularly through your Wordeee Lounge and by creating a YouTube and a TikTok channel. When social media is done well, the effect on book sales can be exponential, but it requires massive creativity and consistency. 
• Check out a few people who have everyday lives and who have created massive content with millions of followers, and you'll see that their shows are sponsored. Aha! A new revenue stream. For example, we happen to like a podcast by Rose, a Ugandan woman living with her Chinese husband and children in a remote village as she shares her simple, day-to-day life in rural China. She has over 12 million followers and enough sponsorship to have built a new and fabulous home. She also made the people in her village internet stars!
• Create and use your email list. Start early and update your contacts; reach out to long-lost friends, alums, and colleagues...they may turn out to be your biggest supporters.
• Speaking at a conference? It could yield not only an honorarium but also book sales.
• Big Name Sponsor: Are there any sponsors on the horizon who might want to support your book? Dig deep.
• Ambassadors: These are your ten best friends.  If each hosts an event for you and invites 30 guests, all of whom will most likely buy the book, that's 300 books sold.
• Conventions, seminars, libraries, academic institutions, civic and faith-based organizations, and book festivals: Any place that puts you in front of an audience can yield higher sales. 

Understanding your metrics, audience, and data will go a long way toward charting your course to leaving your day job behind.

We would like to hear from you. Please send us your comments: contact@wordeee.com