The New Author Lottery Odds

How difficult is it to get a legitimate publisher to publish your book?

Each year publishers publish between 500,000 and 1,000,000 books.

Not bad, right?

Our books should have a shot, shouldn't they? And if not, we can always self publish.

Another 2,000,000 books are self published annually.

The odds of getting a legitimate publisher (a lot may be the latter while not being the former) to publish your book, or mine, is between 1% and 2%.

The odds of getting our books in a bookstore, 1%.🫤

So why attempt it? Why write?

ideas.bkconnection.com/10-awful-truths-about-publishing​

​I didn't know the numbers when I began Raymond Quinn's story, but I did know the likelihood of sales success was extremely low.

Still, I had the time.

I wanted to see where the vague notion of a story would take me.

I'm almost to the finish line ("The Unlived Lives of Raymond Quinn" will become available October 15). I have no regrets along with no illusions of what will happen when I do pull the publish "trigger" this fall.

Keep your expectations reasonable.

Enjoy the process.

If only you, your family, and a few friends read your book, so be it.

You've come this far, don't give up now.

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