Table of contents:
- What “Bestseller” Actually Means
- The Major Bestseller Lists Explained
- Why Other “Bestseller” Claims Don’t Count
- How to Talk About Your Success Honestly
Several years ago, a local author proudly proclaimed that she had written a bestseller.
I hadn’t heard of her book, so I was curious how she had made it onto the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or USA Today bestseller list, especially since she self-published. How many copies had she sold, I asked.
Her response? Around 100.
“A hundred thousand?” I asked.
No, 100.
Selling 100 copies does not come close to qualifying your book for any bestseller list. Perhaps she had hit an Amazon category bestseller for a few hours, but that’s very different from landing on an esteemed bestseller list.
If you claim to have written a bestseller, be sure you can back it up.
What “Bestseller” Actually Means
A bestseller is commonly understood to mean a book that has landed on a major national bestseller list. These specifically include the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today lists. (However, the Wall Street Journal discontinued its weekly bestseller list in 2023.)
These are the gold standards, and being named to them carries real weight with the media, publishers, authors, and readers.
Amazon has developed its own bestseller rankings based on relative sales at any point in time in each of its categories. A book could be the top-selling title in its category and win the #1 spot for an hour with two books sold, for example, because no other titles in its category sold during that window.
Sure, you can claim Amazon bestseller status if your book achieves that, but it’s important to clarify that it’s an “Amazon bestseller.”
The Major Bestseller Lists Explained
I would love to be able to break down exactly how many copies you need to sell, and for how long, to be named to one of the major bestseller lists. But as many news reports have found, qualifying is not at all simple. Making one of the lists is part science and part projection.
Some major publishers used to recommend that their authors work with ResultSource, a service provider that could help them improve the odds of becoming a bestseller. However, after a Wall Street Journal article (sorry, it’s behind a paywall) years ago, I haven’t heard much about them.
My understanding is that bookstores report numbers of copies sold weekly, and book buyers weigh in on how many copies they expect some titles to sell. This is akin to a budget versus actual numbers in your sales projections.
So, there is no instruction manual for how many copies will qualify you, though I have heard from multiple sources that the minimum count is 5,000 per week. To start.
Why Other “Bestseller” Claims Don’t Count
Despite how unclear the process is for selecting bestsellers, we all know the bar is set high.
Claiming to have written a bestseller when your book has not made it on one of the big lists only undermines your credibility when you speak to other authors and publishing professionals.
It’s a lot like claiming to be a Harvard graduate when you only attended a certificate program there. Yes, you attended a Harvard program, but no, you are not a member of the Harvard University Alumni Association alongside graduates who earned degrees (I verified this).
How to Talk About Your Success Honestly
Landing atop an Amazon category is worthy of celebration and pride. Even Amazon bestsellers don’t necessarily hit the top 10 or #1. So let everyone know if your book is selling well enough to earn that accolade, if it does.
But don’t overstate that accomplishment.
When you exaggerate, you lose credibility, which is why so many authors write books in the first place — to enhance their credibility. Claiming otherwise undermines your authority.
And if your book hasn’t yet landed on a bestseller list, it’s in the majority. So few ever do. Nothing to be ashamed of.
However, there are other ways you can attract attention to it, such as by entering publishing awards programs. If you win, you’ll then have an “award-winner,” and you would be an “award-winning writer.”
Ghostwriters can enter the annual Andy Awards program, sponsored by the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) and Gotham Ghostwriters. There are also plenty of independent publishing awards programs out there.
You could also think back to why you wrote your book in the first place. Your purpose probably wasn’t to make a bestseller list.
It was likely much more important than that.