Andrea M. Rotondo - Favorite Books

Resources — Returns

Many authors don’t realize what a problem returns are for publishers. When a bookstore makes its initial buy of your book, they estimate the number of copies they will sell (plus a buffer to maintain availability). They can then return any unsold copies.

It surprises many people to learn that books are returnable. After all, when a clothing store buys denim jeans, they buy them outright. They don’t have the option of returning them if they’ve ordered an outdated style and the jeans don’t sell. So, why can bookstores return books?!

Well, I’ve heard that the practice dates back to the Depression era. When booksellers started telling publishers that they couldn’t afford to stock their books, publishers came up with the nifty idea of “returnable product.” It was never meant to become a legacy policy, but it did. And, it’s doubtful the industry could overturn this decades-old standard.

This is why most publishing contracts include a clause regarding a “reserve against returns.” Basically, your publisher knows that some (maybe a lot) of your books that are sold to booksellers will be returned for credit. Therefore, your royalty account will need to be charged back for any returned books. Since returns come in months after the initial buy, a “reserve” percentage is used to account for future returns. You’ll see this reserve on your royalty statement.
http://www.pubconsultants.com/

According to Thomas Woll and Cross River Publishing Consultants, the average return rate for adult trade hardcover is 31.3%, adult trade paperback is 22.7%, juvenile trade hardcover is 18%, and juvenile trade paperback is 19%. University presses and small presses tend to have lower rates of return for the simple fact that they print fewer books and don’t have as wide entrée into mainstream accounts as the mainstream publishers do. Publishers that focus on direct-to-consumer sales have a much lower return rate.

Books are returned for many reasons, including:
Publisher’s expectations are too high and they overprint and, thus, oversell the book
Book buyers overestimate the initial buy
Promotion falls short
Books are delayed and arrive late to stores thus missing out on the pr campaign
Damaged goods
Initial positive sales trigger a premature reprint before the return rate can be gauged
The market for the book is smaller than expected or non-existent
The book, well, sucks

What Can An Author Do About Returns?
Unfortunately, I don’t think that an author can do much about returns. They are a reality of the book publishing business. Just accept that they occur and understand that the reserve is not a penalty being levied by your publisher. Rather, it’s an industry standard. Just concentrate on promotion and driving customers to stores to buy your book. A customer asking for your book by name in a store goes a long way to keeping your inventory on the shelf.

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