I contributed to book projects that generated over $20 million for their authors. How is that even possible?

The second line in my bio is this: “He has contributed to more than 50 book projects that have generated over $20 million for their authors.” A recent reader of this blog seemed skeptical of whether such a statement could possibly be true. Given all the exaggerated claims out there from people about their supposed million-dollar successes, I thought I’d pull aside the curtain and reveal how I got that number — and in a more general sense, how books make money.

What does the $20 million claim mean?

Let’s look at a few words in the claim. First, what does “contributed” mean?

I contribute to books in various ways. I’ve written two books on writing and coauthored three others on technology trends. I’ve also ghostwritten four books. I’ve written edited or written book proposals for 30 more. I’ve also helped launch 24 book ideas by conducting idea development sessions with their authors. I’ve done author coaching on some of these books.

I certainly take credit for much of the success of the books I wrote, cowrote, or ghostwrote. The authors I’ve worked with deserve most of the credit for their books. But if you ask an author for whom I wrote a proposal, edited, or developed ideas, they’ll tell you that I was instrumental in helping making those books successful. So I think it’s fair to include them in books that I “contributed to.”

Second, what does “generated” mean?

All authors will tell you that book sales are just the beginning of how a book creates success. Traditionally published books usually include book advances, which are direct payments to the author in exchange for the publisher’s rights to the book. Traditionally published books that sell well also generate royalties, as do all hybrid-published and self-published books.

But books also spur speaking careers and consulting businesses. You may feel that such businesses are not “generated” by the book, but I certainly do. In some upcoming research I’ll be publishing, authors clearly state that the books they published were essential in generating revenue from speaking, consulting, and other businesses. So I think it’s fair to say these books generated those revenues for their authors.

Breaking down the revenues from the books I’ve worked on

I have exact information on the revenues and royalties from books I’ve authored. I also have information from authors I’ve worked on about the advances they’ve received. Finally, I have a solid idea of speaking, consulting, and corporate revenue from many other books I’ve been involved with. In cases where my information is not solid, I’ve made the most conservative possible assumptions, in some cases estimating zero revenue for books I knew had generated some revenue. Obviously, some of this information is confidential to the authors so I can’t share everyone’s names and revenues.

Based on the most conservative estimates I could make, books I’ve contributed to have generated $2 million in advances and royalties, $12.5 million in speaking fees, $24 million in consulting, and $1 million in other revenues. If you’re counting, that adds up to nearly $40 million. So why did I say “more than $20 million?” Because I estimated that $40 million would be hard for people to believe. But it’s true.

The average revenue per published book I worked on was $1.13 million. (Unpublished books may contribute more in the future, once they’re published.) Because extreme values distort averages, it may also help to know that the median published book I worked on generated $150,000 for its authors. In other words, half the books made more than $150,000, and half made less.

There were some humdingers in there.

Groundswell, the book I coauthored with Charlene Li, has generated almost a million dollars in advances and royalties. It also led to multiple millions of dollars in speeches and consulting for both Charlene and me. Charlene built a business in part of the reputation launched by the book, and then sold that business. I don’t know the financial details of the sale, but it was certainly quite lucrative.

Writing Without Bullshit, my book on writing, generated a six-figure advance and over a million dollars in consulting.

Outside In, the customer experience book by Harley Manning and Kerry Bodine that I edited, became the most successful book ever written about customer experience. In addition to a six-figure advance, it solidly established a multi-million dollar customer experience business for Forrester Research that is still going strong. Kerry left Forrester and has established her own successful customer experience business with the book as a springboard.

Other books I’ve edited have led to several multi-million dollar speaking careers for their authors. Remember, speaking careers span years. If you write a book and then are on the speaking circuit for ten years doing 20 speeches a year at $20K a speech, that’s $4 million in revenue — a career that would be unlikely without the book.

Some books I’ve worked on have generated next to nothing. But taken together, it’s hardly a stretch to see more than $20 million in total revenue.

Do books really lead to revenue, or is it hard work and talent?

You can easily point to a lot of the money these books have led to and say, “Hey, that happened because those authors were talented, hard-working people.” I’ll be the first to tell you that building a business takes a lot more than just publishing a book.

Would those speaking, consulting, or thought leadership firms have existed without the authors’ hard work? Nope.

Would they have existed without the book? Not likely — at least not as successfully as they are now.

A great book and a clever and hard-working author are a powerful combination. You need both. But when you have both, there’s an opportunity to generate a whole lot revenue.