Do you know about Rebecca Black? She is this young girl whose mother paid $4,000 to a vanity video/music producer so Rebecca could record and make a video for this song called “Friday.”
You can’t see the video anymore on YouTube, but it went viral because a lot of people think it’s the worst song ever and it got millions of hits with people going to see if they agreed. The song was even featured on Glee which blew me away.
My family was talking about this and I said, “Oh, yeah, cuz she’s getting rich off this. Crying all the way to the bank.” The single was released and according to Wikipedia sold 40,000 copies.
Then my husband asked a very interesting question. He asked how I would feel if Fabric of Faith (my inspirational romance which was published in 2004 and is still available although I haven’t seen any royalties for four or five years) sold a million copies because people thought it was the worst book ever written?
Well, at first I wanted to say, “Sure, cool, fine.” However, the more I think about it, the more I wonder if it’s not better the way things are now.
I mean, I want a publishing career, not just one bestseller. I want fans who wait breathlessly for my next book. I don’t know if that will ever happen, but if my book was a bestseller because people thought it was so terrible, wouldn’t that ruin my chances to actually sell something else?
I don’t know, but I wouldn’t want to risk it.
I don’t think I would.
But the checks would still cash, right?
Nancy,
If you haven’t received any royalties for several years on your book, you should see about getting your rights back and self-publishing it.
My sweet historical Westerns are selling like hotcakes. 2400 in just seven weeks. They aren’t inspirationals, but do have inspirational elements. So my guess is that appeals to a lot of people. I’m definitely having fun!
Hi Nancy! I don’t know, there are some God-awful movies out there selling sequels because they made a ton of money, good or bad.
Hey, Nancy, I saw reviews on a 99-cent read that said an 8-year old could write a better story. It was getting all 1’s and 2’s in the reviews. It was like #12 top seller for it’s category. Huh? It was bad. The blurb was bad. I didn’t buy the book. But readers were buying it to see if it was really as bad as everyone said it was. And it was, the new readers said. LOL
Okay, so sometimes it works!!!
But I don’t want to be known as a writer of an awful book. Even if it sold because readers want to know just how bad it was! I want readers to love what I write as much as I love creating the worlds and the plots and the characters. I want them to want to read that next book, and the next book and the next.
Will readers of a really bad book give the author a chance and read another of his/her books, with the possibility that the next one will be just as bad?
Maybe. But I wouldn’t want to be the one writing those books, either.
Hey, Debra, that’s terrific on your sales!!! You go, girl!
Hey Nancy,
I guess the old saying, “There’s something for everyone,” applies here. But lately, some of the movies and books out that are making it big, aren’t big on my list. Maybe we’ve grown to just “accept” what’s thrown to us. Stil, I believe success is not when everyone else knows it. Success is when you know it. Money and fame have nothing to do with it.
Crazy how either way, both give you a pain in the neck holding your head down so you’re not recognized.
Nancy, love this blog. I think you’ve hit on what people have been thinking for a long time.