John Locke (presumably a pen name) is the prolific novelist and author of the Donovan Creed suspense novels sold in digital form through Amazon.com’s publishing arm Kindle Direct. He was the first self-published digital author to sell over a million copies on amazon.com and was recently featured in a Huffington Post column by Laura Rowley.
As a novelist still way off any bestseller list, a couple of things popped out at me while reading Locke’s story:
The last two numbers are probably the most interesting. By virtually any standard, John Locke is a wildly successful author, whether published through a conventional press, an independent press, or self publishing. But, his revenues earned per book still hover around a level that of an elementary or secondary school teacher. After publishing nine books in his signature series, he’s earning about $3,000 per month, or $36,000 per year. This revenue was generated by non-stop marketing over three years and publishing over a dozen books.
This, of course, doesn’t diminish Locke’s accomplishment. Those of us struggling to make it in the publishing business, including me, are rooting for him because he’s breaking down all kinds of barriers for new authors.
Nevertheless, it’s useful to have a reality check every once in a while. Locke has “made it” by making a long-term commitment to writing, providing a product readers want to consume, and pricing his books low enough to capture a sizable market, marketing his books in a series format to build a loyal readership base, and incessant personal marketing by Locke.
