I found this wonderful post on Wise Ink Creative Publishing and am sharing. As always, there’s been some editing to add my thoughts, but you can read the original post on the Wise Ink‘s website.

10 Inspiring Facts for Indie Authors

If I had a dime for each time one of you has told me you’re going through a rough patch with your writing, I’d probably be able to get Michelangelo to illustrate my book covers (yes, I’d also have enough to build a time machine). It’s probably even harder for Indie authors, as we have to do everything ourselves. So, I thought you might appreciate these statistics that should bring a smile back on your face.

  • Self-published books accounted for 31% of all e-book sales in the Kindle Store in 2014.
  • Indie books account for 31% of e-books. However,
  • 40% of all e-book revenue is going to indie authors. In other words, indies are raking in more money, which means that their sales figures are higher than many of their traditional counterparts. Which brings us to …
  • Indie books represent 25% of books on Amazon’s e-book bestseller list. Readers aren’t nearly as prejudiced against indie books as they were even a few years ago, and their buying practices suggest it!
  • You can safely dismiss the 50 Shades effect. Only 1.2% of self-published books sales are for erotica titles, which proves that you can indie publish successfully without writing a kissing book.
  • In Smashwords’ 2014 survey, they found that pricing your e-book at $.99 won’t make you rich. In fact, $2.99-3.99 is the sweet spot for a bestseller, and earn more in sales than books priced higher.
  • Think you can only release shorts and novellas on e-book? Think again. The bestselling books in e-book are usually over 100,000 words. Maybe because they’re easier to hold?
  • If you write non-fiction, try increasing your prices. Your buyers aren’t as price-sensitive as fiction buyers, so be wary of undervaluing your work!
  • According to Bowker, 458,000 books were indie pubbed in 2013 in the US. That’s up 437% from 2008! The self-publishing ranks are growing, and with increasing number comes more exciting and innovative strategies to publish your perfect book.
  • It’s a good time to be a woman. Indie bestsellers are twice as likely to be written by a woman than traditionally published bestsellers (67% versus 39%).

While I’m pondering the benefits of  a sex-change operation, why don’t you enjoy my children’s book, Runaway Smile for free?