In a full report on the Write Stuff Substack edition, you’ll see a breakdown of the essential points of book distribution. That word is not used in many discussions about what makes books great or how they become bestsellers. Not-great books do become bestsellers, and that result can come from the success of distribution.
For many authors looking for their first publication deal, distribution is a mystery unraveled by their first agent. What amounts to distribution for many authors is wholesale distribution through Amazon. A distributor sells your book to the customer directly, acting as your sales force. Simon & Schuster distribution services add as much as 30 percent in sales, and S&S is growing its list of publishers. In contrast, Amazon’s wholesale work simply makes the book available and marginally discoverable. The publisher needs to drive readers to the book.
Even book distributors use Amazon. The biggest store in the world is only part of a distributor’s toolbelt, however. Getting your book selected for a purchase is the job of a distributor. Nearly all hybrid publishers have no distribution on a scale of a traditional press. One hybrid that does distribute, She Writes Press, signed a new distribution resource in Simon & Schuster. She Writes publisher Brooke Warner says distribution is the biggest divide today between hybrid or self-published books and the traditional press.
Not everybody can get distribution from S&S. Small distribution has impact, too, in opportunity for promotions, awards, and library orders. The bigger the operation, in terms of people and newsletters, the greater the impact.
