Shared from my Facebook page:
Alright, friends and fans – It’s time for your annual explanation of Why Preorders/Early Orders Matter SOOOO Much to Authors.
The short answer? Because they matter to publishers. And therefore they can make or break an author or a series.
Preorders and first week sales are the primary numbers that publishers use to evaluate authors. Weak sales out of the gate? Weak sales in the first few weeks? The publisher won’t want to take a chance on more books.
They also have a big impact on bestseller lists, because preorders and first week sales are lumped together. So order early (and often)!
Also helpful: Don’t wait until a series is “complete” before starting it. Publishers determine whether to commit to later books in the series based largely on how well the first ones do. If sales aren’t high enough soon enough, they won’t publish any more books in that series. (So if you’ve wondered why some of your favorite series just stop–that’s why. Not enough early sales, so publishers stop publishing them.) If you’re interested in a new series, try it sooner rather than later!
So thanks to everyone who preorders and who tries out a series early on. It’s very, very, very appreciated!
😘
xoxo,
Chloe