I must admit that data analysis is not one of my favourite pastimes. It is however a useful skill and I remain thankful to my BSc Psychology degree which often forced me into the world of data analysis. Data really doesn’t float my boat but occasionally something crosses my radar and I sit up and take note.

Take a look at the table below. In May 2016, Indie authors had captured almost 50% of the Amazon eBook market. We live in exciting times according to the report; today it’s possible to be a full-time professional author, earning $50,000+ a year without ever sending a query letter. On Amazon alone, the data shows (in the USA) over a thousand indie authors earning a full-time living right now with their self-published titles.

Those stats speak volumes about how the various sub-sections of the industry are performing because after all, it is not only about the quality of the writing. Some weight has to be applied to the other sections of the publishing process. Ultimately, the readers are the “gatekeepers” but somebody has to get the words out there.

Here’s a 2016 breakdown of authors . . .

In October 2016 things changed . . .

During the five short months since May, it seems that Indies lost their market share gains of the preceding 18 months. This was counterbalanced to a limited extent by a slight uptick in traditionally published unit sales: both Big Five and Small/Medium Traditional Publishers each gained roughly 1% in market share. But most of the lost indie market share seems to have gone to Amazon Imprints, who gained a whopping 4% in market share.

But I wonder? Is this decrease in Indie sales due to authors being hard at work on their next novel? It’s a tough balancing act between doing what we do best, getting our work out to the world and staying at the top of the listings.

What do you think?

If you want to see the full report, go to the Source: http://authorearnings.com/report/may-2016-report/