Question About Mass Paperbacks?

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Author Message   Emanuel "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Emanuel Post Number: 222 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A Votes: 0 (Vote!) Posted on Thursday, July 27, 2006 - 05:27 pm:        How do publishers make any money on mass paperbacks that cost around $7.00 each? You would think the printing and cover design would cost that alone. Then there's marketing and paying the author. Any ideas?   Abm "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Abm Post Number: 5482 Registered: 04-2004 Rating: N/A Votes: 0 (Vote!) Posted on Thursday, July 27, 2006 - 05:38 pm:        Emanuel, Paperbacks are decidely cheaper to make than hardcovers. Authors generally get a smaller share of paperbacks than they do hardcovers. The market for most paperbacks is already pre-made, either via the attention it previously received as a hardcover. Or via the establishment of longstanding customer base (e.g., your romance, sci-fi novels). So they don't have to expend as much for marketing. And since they're less expensive to consumers than hardcovers, depending on the book, publishers might sell many MORE paperbacks than hardcovers (in part, because book dealers can better afford to STOCK them). Thus, I wager, in MANY cases, publishers earn decidedly MORE from the sales of paperback books than they do from hardcover sales.   Emanuel "Cyniquian" Level Poster Username: Emanuel Post Number: 223 Registered: 03-2004 Rating: N/A Votes: 0 (Vote!) Posted on Thursday, July 27, 2006 - 10:45 pm:        Thanks for the insight ABM. I'm currently reading a superb mass market paperback titled "Diary of an Ugly Duckling" by Karyn Langhorne. It's published by HarperCollins. I had vaguely heard of the author from her other mass market paperback "A Personal Matter," but had never read any of her work. It doesn't appear the new book was ever hardcover so it must be the fact that the publisher earns more money due to the reasons you stated. I still don't see how production costs could be so low to be able to sell them for so cheap and pay the author. I would imagine production would have to cost like $2.00 per book to make a profit.