First of all, I am hugely flattered by all this attention to my little book. Thank you! And secondly, alas -- my publisher is a small one based in Calgary and distribution is not great, particularly since the book is not brand new.
Apologies for that.
I don't want any of you to be concerned about royalties. In Canada, a "literary" writer like me makes almost nothing from royalties. In fact, at the moment, I technically owe my publisher money....they paid out a tiny bit of royalties only to find that some of the books were returned by stores (you have to understand the strange workings of the bookselling business to understand this) and that meant they had overpaid me!
In other words, I don't even think about it. And this is why I have a day job.
If I were a bestselling novelist like Margaret Atwood, that would be a different story. But until I write that big novel I'm working on, no chance of real income from royalties.
BUT, for reference, royalties are a percentage of sales. The percentage varies depending on the author's clout, the publisher, etc. but for hard copies it is about 10 to 12% of sales.
For digital copies, it is a slightly higher percentage, about 20 to 25%. But digital books are about half to one third the price of trade paper or hard cover books. So it probably comes out about even....sort of.
Again, I hope that won't enter into your thoughts at all. Reading it in the form that is most convenient to you as a reader is what counts. And, for the record, as an author, I read and buy hard covers, softcovers, and digital books. I also borrow books from the library (even though writers get next to nothing in royalties from that) and borrow books from friends! And I gladly accept them as gifts.
Thanks again for your interest and for your incredibly kind responses to the book. Diana, I am thrilled that you liked it.
