The long tail

Every industry has its own language, and publishing is no exception. One such term that gets slung around, especially in sales and marketing meetings, is “the long tail.”

The basic concept of the long tail is a book that sells steadily, if slowly, over a longer period of time. The book provides the company a profit, but not in one big, bestseller burst as soon as it hits the shelves. Instead, perhaps over a few years, even a few decades, the publisher has constant income from the title continuing to sell. It’s a title they tend to nurture as the sales level out and the funds let them take more risks on new books.

Sometimes it’s because the book appeals to a renewable audience, such as teenagers, parents, or has a spiritual teaching that draws people to it. A lot of these books are known as “classics,” and they get the occasional cover art update, the holiday special sales or an updated/revised/expanded edition, to remind the public that it’s still there, waiting for them to pick up.

Being an author with books that sell in this way isn’t necessarily a bad thing. These sales patterns won’t kick you onto the bestseller list, it’s true, but it can mean you have a loyal (if small) reading audience that is always ready to pick up your next release and pass the word around to others.

In other news…

For the Clarity of Night contest, my entry got posted as #8, so if anyone is interested in peeking at it, follow this link. 15 entries so far, and plenty more to come by next Wednesday, I’m sure.

I see that smile.