I may never get rich, but...
The odds of me getting rich off my writing are, hmm...about the same as me hitting the lottery. No wait. A little better than those odds because I actually do write books. I don't play the lottery. You get the picture.
Few authors write to get rich. And I'm no different. I'm right with the fact that I'm not gonna make J.K. Rowling paper. But I'm not okay with the ongoing falsity that is this belief 1) Black teens don't read and 2) only a teen of color would read a book about a protagonist of color.
I'm so not okay with it that it's been hard for me to keep my mouth shut about it. And since my middle name is diplomacy, allow me to diplomatically rant against the notion altogether!
Yesterday, Justine Larbalestier spoke out about the cover for her latest novel, Liar. The book's protag is a Black teenager who wears her hair short and natural. The U.S. cover of LIAR features a white teenager with long, brunette hair. Yes, it's a very WTF-moment.
Justine articulated her feelings about the cover, well. The cover isn't what this rant is about.
It's about the larger issue at hand, the belief that a cover with a brown face dooms a book to no-sales land.
Pardon me if I'm totally offended by that notion since I have three books with brown faces on them. Or do my books get a pass because one of those covers happens to also have a white face on them. *rolls eyes*
Here are a few facts (as I see them!):
* YA books by white authors sell better, whether they're about a person of color or not. This isn't because these books are better written, it's because they're marketed to the "mainstream" audience and in relative comparison to - ugh, I'll have to say it "black" books get more marketing push, period.
* YA books by authors of color don't sell as many because they're often niche marketed. LIAR may be causing a stir, but it's also the front cover of the publisher's catalog. Add that and the stir into the pot and tell me what bookstore isn't going to carry it? Any "black" YA book not by Walter Dean Myers or Sharon Flake would love that treatment. Talk good or bad about us, but dammit just talk about us!
One thing that Justine said that nailed all of this home: "Perhaps the whole “black books don’t sell” thing is a self-fulfilling prophecy?" It's starting to feel like it is.
L. Divine's Drama High series are some of the most popular "black" teen lit books out there. The success of her books is not an anamoly. But if enough people say it is, then it will be.
My books aren't pushing Drama High numbers. But then again, half the time readers can't find my books in the store. I know, because I get more emails from people saying "I can't find your book" than I do "I love your book." And I get lots of "I love your books" emails, thank you, very much.
I always direct those email senders to request the book. But let's face it - as a buyer you've already done the one thing advertisers hope you'll do: get to the store and buy it. Having to request it is a real downer. I love reading as much as the next guy, but just how much work do I, the reader, have to do?
Point is, my series has readers. Coe Booth's Kendra has readers. Sherri L. Smith's Fly Girl has readers. Tanita Davis's A La Carte has readers. Varian Johnson's My Life As a Rhombus has readers. Derrick Barnes' The Making of Dr. Truelove has readers. Deborah Gregory's Catwalk has readers. Dana Davidson's Played has readers. And every book on the Brown Bookshelf Teen Lit page has readers.
And I bet some of them are even white readers. *mock awe and surprise*
When I hear the statement "black books don't sell," I know it's false. Usually, when I hear something I know is false, I'm able to discount the statement as silly, ignorant or just plain, wrong. But, this time, we discount these false cries at our own risk. Because as I said, saying it may make it so.
If publishers believe brown books don't sell they'll decrease acquisition of them. Already, these books don't get the marketing push of their mainstream counterparts. Already brown books are piegon-holed and relegated to our cultural lanes. You would have thought the success of Troy CLE's novel, Marvelous World , would have increased the number of fantasy books with brown characters...but not so far.
If the notion that brown books don't sell continues we'll find ourselves back at square one - portrayals of brown characters as the historical fiction and street lit hero.
No. No. And no. We must continue to push toward having depictions of brown characters broadened.
Apparently sales aren't enough, at least if those sales aren't within a certain range. As long as there is a sales goal, publishers can use the generic "they won't sell" statement.
Readers, refuse to be ignored. Write to the publisher of the books I've mentioned or any other brown book you've read and enjoyed and let them know:
I'm a reader. I loved this book. Don't leave me out of the count!
Readers of my series, send your letters here:
Kensington Publishing Corp.
c/o Paula Chase's Books
119 West 40th Street
New York, New York
10018
Be heard. Be counted. Let the industry know, if brown books don't sell it's a total surprise to you!
Few authors write to get rich. And I'm no different. I'm right with the fact that I'm not gonna make J.K. Rowling paper. But I'm not okay with the ongoing falsity that is this belief 1) Black teens don't read and 2) only a teen of color would read a book about a protagonist of color.
I'm so not okay with it that it's been hard for me to keep my mouth shut about it. And since my middle name is diplomacy, allow me to diplomatically rant against the notion altogether!
Yesterday, Justine Larbalestier spoke out about the cover for her latest novel, Liar. The book's protag is a Black teenager who wears her hair short and natural. The U.S. cover of LIAR features a white teenager with long, brunette hair. Yes, it's a very WTF-moment.
Justine articulated her feelings about the cover, well. The cover isn't what this rant is about.
It's about the larger issue at hand, the belief that a cover with a brown face dooms a book to no-sales land.
Pardon me if I'm totally offended by that notion since I have three books with brown faces on them. Or do my books get a pass because one of those covers happens to also have a white face on them. *rolls eyes*
Here are a few facts (as I see them!):
* YA books by white authors sell better, whether they're about a person of color or not. This isn't because these books are better written, it's because they're marketed to the "mainstream" audience and in relative comparison to - ugh, I'll have to say it "black" books get more marketing push, period.
* YA books by authors of color don't sell as many because they're often niche marketed. LIAR may be causing a stir, but it's also the front cover of the publisher's catalog. Add that and the stir into the pot and tell me what bookstore isn't going to carry it? Any "black" YA book not by Walter Dean Myers or Sharon Flake would love that treatment. Talk good or bad about us, but dammit just talk about us!
One thing that Justine said that nailed all of this home: "Perhaps the whole “black books don’t sell” thing is a self-fulfilling prophecy?" It's starting to feel like it is.
L. Divine's Drama High series are some of the most popular "black" teen lit books out there. The success of her books is not an anamoly. But if enough people say it is, then it will be.
My books aren't pushing Drama High numbers. But then again, half the time readers can't find my books in the store. I know, because I get more emails from people saying "I can't find your book" than I do "I love your book." And I get lots of "I love your books" emails, thank you, very much.
I always direct those email senders to request the book. But let's face it - as a buyer you've already done the one thing advertisers hope you'll do: get to the store and buy it. Having to request it is a real downer. I love reading as much as the next guy, but just how much work do I, the reader, have to do?
Point is, my series has readers. Coe Booth's Kendra has readers. Sherri L. Smith's Fly Girl has readers. Tanita Davis's A La Carte has readers. Varian Johnson's My Life As a Rhombus has readers. Derrick Barnes' The Making of Dr. Truelove has readers. Deborah Gregory's Catwalk has readers. Dana Davidson's Played has readers. And every book on the Brown Bookshelf Teen Lit page has readers.
And I bet some of them are even white readers. *mock awe and surprise*
When I hear the statement "black books don't sell," I know it's false. Usually, when I hear something I know is false, I'm able to discount the statement as silly, ignorant or just plain, wrong. But, this time, we discount these false cries at our own risk. Because as I said, saying it may make it so.
If publishers believe brown books don't sell they'll decrease acquisition of them. Already, these books don't get the marketing push of their mainstream counterparts. Already brown books are piegon-holed and relegated to our cultural lanes. You would have thought the success of Troy CLE's novel, Marvelous World , would have increased the number of fantasy books with brown characters...but not so far.
If the notion that brown books don't sell continues we'll find ourselves back at square one - portrayals of brown characters as the historical fiction and street lit hero.
No. No. And no. We must continue to push toward having depictions of brown characters broadened.
Apparently sales aren't enough, at least if those sales aren't within a certain range. As long as there is a sales goal, publishers can use the generic "they won't sell" statement.
Readers, refuse to be ignored. Write to the publisher of the books I've mentioned or any other brown book you've read and enjoyed and let them know:
I'm a reader. I loved this book. Don't leave me out of the count!
Readers of my series, send your letters here:
Kensington Publishing Corp.
c/o Paula Chase's Books
119 West 40th Street
New York, New York
10018
Be heard. Be counted. Let the industry know, if brown books don't sell it's a total surprise to you!
posted by Paula at 8:28 AM
7 Comments:
Of course I've read brown books. The Color of Water. Song of Solomon. City Boy. (Didn't like City Boy, too violent.) I've also read books where the main character was brown, but that wasn't an issue, like The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin. I think you do have a point. A brown character on the cover wouldn't stop me from reading a book.
But I can also understand the publishers. Bookstores have been known to refuse to stock a book because the cover or title wasn't viewed as appealing enough to a wide audience, and we're talking big chain bookstores, like B&N. Fact is, we can't force people to buy books, so everything publishers can do to help bookstores sell their books is a step in the right direction.
Did you know, for example, that it's bad to have anything remotely Christian in a title if the book isn't Christian? That's because when people see a book called, for example, "God Knows," they automatically assume it's a Christian book. It limits your audience.
I've written a picture book for the general religious market. It's called, "'Who Is God?' Abram Asked." It's suitable for Jews, Christians and Moslems, but I couldn't interest any non-Jewish publishers, because they saw it as too Jewish.
Do I question the publishers? No, because it's their money, and only they can decide how they want to invest it. They're in the business to make money. I get that. So I write other books and hope that maybe one day after I've published many other books I'll also get my book on Abraham published.
I have another book, by the way, that's definitely "too Jewish," but I think that will be a selling point on it. It's a semi-autobiographical YA about a Jewish girl with an over-active imagination in an orthodox Jewish school. Sometimes taking something as far as you can in a personal direction can be appealing to readers who don't know that world.
Bookstores have been known to refuse to stock a book because the cover or title wasn't viewed as appealing enough to a wide audience
Yes, but this isn't a case of white photo or black photo. There were many graphic options in between. The Australian publisher used a graphic-font cover and it's as interesting as any photo (IMO).
I'm grounded in the reality that publishers can spend their money the way they want. Dare I say, I'm okay with that? I may as well be, since it's reality.
But we shouldn't pretend that the only option was to go with a photo, that clearly mis-represents the character. This issue started once that photo was chosen - not when it was decided to use a photo vs. abstract graphics.
And as others in the blogosphere have pointed out, this happens too often not just for race, but for gender (female model cover about a boy protag), size (skinny girl cover about a fat girl book) etc... Misreprsenting a whole demographic of folk just to appeal to another.
Maybe the photo cover revolution needs to end and we should get back to covers that are interesting because they artistically express the concept of the book.
Amazing post Paula! Thanks also for the love on my blog and the Brown Bookshelf :) I really love your books. Only the first three in your series are at my library, but it may be because they are just slow on getting books from the current year about black people. But they always have the latest white people YA books. Or the books are on their way. So frustrating!
This weekend I intend on heading to Borders and buying books (including your last two books) with brown/black/poc faces on them! It especially works because Borders is having a buy 4, get 5th free sale! yay sales :)
Ooh thanks for the tip on the sale. I may have to stock up myself!
Welcome to the lit blogosphere. You certainly picked an exciting week to join. :-)
Quote: "...LIAR may be causing a stir, but it's also the front cover of the publisher's catalog. Add that and the stir into the pot and tell me what bookstore isn't going to carry it? Any "black" YA book not by Walter Dean Myers or Sharon Flake would love that treatment..."
I think this is a new and interesting point that has been a bit overlooked in the argument. What gets "pushed" is what sells. Hello? A publisher's marketing plan (or lack of it) is often what makes or breaks a book. The difference often between a best-seller and a midlist book is the fact that the lead title was pushed, not that it was better. How else does an author that no one has ever heard of enter the NYT best-seller list the first week her book is out? Not word of mouth, but publisher's push.
In that sense, sure people can say, well, "black" books don't sell, so we'll stick this white girl on the cover (to me, she looks Asian, so I don't know, WTF?). Maybe, but how many "black" books are given lead title status in order to test that theory?
Thanks for the heads-up on Marvelous World. I hadn't heard of that one yet. Is it a YA or adult fantasy title? (I'm putting together a booklist of YA and middle grade fantasy and science fiction featuring main characters or written by POC, so I'm always looking for titles I haven't heard of yet!)
@stacy Marvelous World is considered YA, I believe. I can't recall the age of the protags. It may have been one of those novels taht straddle YA and MG.
@CC - The difference often between a best-seller and a midlist book is the fact that the lead title was pushed, not that it was better
I think this is one of those "best kept secrets" sort of thing. At least a secret if you're not in the industry.
I know before I became a writer I certainly didn't understand how the NYT list worked.
It's a cycle that's tough to break - you need awareness to sell books, you need to sell books to get awareness! Sort of like when you're right out of college and need experience to get a job but need a job to get exeperience.
I learned long ago that I wasn't going to kill myself on promo. While I enjoy touching new readers and exposing them to my books, my limited budget and time means I can only do it 1-20 readers at a time via library visits. It's the publisher that has the reach into booksellers and libraries across the country and what they say to sell-in my books trumps my little library visit!
So for all the hoopla about LIAR, hell yeah I'd soak the visibility for all its worth. Like I said - talk good or bad about my book but talk about it, and talk about it alot! Hell ban it, that should ensure excellent sales!
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