Why Distributors Are Still the Most Important Gatekeepers in Book Publishing
Understanding the dynamic relationship between Publisher, Author, Publicist, and Distributor
Back in 2016, I wrote an article for the Huffington Post called “Why Distributors Are Book Publishing’s New Gatekeepers” in which I made the case, as the article’s title suggests, that distributors (rather than editors and publishers) are the true determiner of a book’s potential future success. When I wrote that piece, my publishing imprint, She Writes Press, was just four years old. We’d been traditionally distributed by Ingram Publishing Services for just over two years, and I understood at face value what distribution offered us: access, the possibility to get our books out in greater numbers, the prospect of traditional reviews.
Seven years later, I understand things in a bit more nuanced way. Today, our distributor is Publishers Group West, and I know that a book’s success hinges on good communication between the key players—author, publisher, publicist (whether in-house or freelance), distributor. A traditional distributor opens the doors, sometimes the floodgates. They allow for books to enter into the marketplace in meaningful ways. As a publisher, if I insist, I could get my distributor to push out big numbers on a single title, but I’d be remiss to do so (irresponsible, even) if I don’t have faith in the author and the book to be able to sell that kind of quantity. I also wouldn’t do so if the author or book didn’t have strong potential or proven publicity.
All of the pieces work together as a whole—the publisher works to position the book well, to talk it up to the sales force, to provide sample materials, sometimes ARCs, as advance reading material. The publicist is responsible for getting the hits, and when those come in to then communicate that information to the publisher, who in turn passes the information along to the sales force. The sales force pushes those books that have a winning combination of good writing, a great presentation (mostly in the form of a great jacket, strong title, compelling author), and advance publicity. The author keeps all this moving by working their own publicity and staying in close communication with their publisher about any outside efforts, events, or publicity hits. I love that our sales force will oftentimes pull what they see as the books on our list that they think have the most potential, which doesn’t always align with my first instincts. It’s a conversation with a team, and seasoned sales reps know what they can sell—and they often champion books they love.
I still believe that distributors are the gatekeepers, as I did seven years ago, but I value the relationship and interdependence between the key players more now that I’m a more experienced publisher. She Writes Press couldn’t do what it does without distribution. Because we publish so much fiction and memoir, distribution gives our authors a fighting chance in a competitive marketplace. Our distribution and the support of our sales team means that our books funnel into the marketplace—not just Amazon, but Barnes & Nobel, independent bookstores, libraries, and special markets like REI and Target and Costco and elsewhere.
The past few years have witnessed so many changes in the book industry, ones that are confounding even to me, a person who pays attention to the goings-on and showcases book trends on my podcast. One of these changes is how companies label themselves. Countless companies have flooded the zone calling themselves traditional publishers even when they don’t have traditional distribution, hybrid publishing even when they only fit the bill of a service provider, and everything in between. I’ve written about the problem with labels elsewhere, but to me this labeling issue only reinforces the value of distribution. A publisher cannot get distribution if they don’t have a track record of selling books. It’s probably the sole remaining bright line in the sand that supports authors to know for sure whether their books will be not only sold in marketplaces beyond online retailers, but also that a dedicated sales force will be behind their book and at least effort to get it into brick and mortar stores and libraries.
For authors, understanding distribution and its ins and outs should be a top priority. If a publisher doesn’t have traditional distribution, make sure you understand how they sell their books, and make sure that there is a mechanism for getting the books into the world that extends beyond simply putting the books up for sale on Amazon KDP and IngramSpark. This is a good start, but not a sufficient publishing plan if an entity aspires to call themselves a publisher.