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<blockquote data-quote="Orcus" data-source="post: 499638" data-attributes="member: 1254"><p>You have to pay for the print runs up front and the art costs too. Before you even sell a single copy. That is the part that is hard for small companies. And print costs--on a hardback in particular--can be huge. Then add in art costs. For example, Tome of Horrors has over 400 b/w illos (thats a lot of art) and the book is over 300 pages in hardcover. That upfront print cost was HUGE! Thats why people think about trying PDF first, since the print cost is nearly nothing and there are no distributors taking any cuts.</p><p></p><p>As for the numbers I posted, I should clarify that those are a range based on my best guess. I dont have any real numbers from other companies, just anecdotal information based on things your hear at cons (which may or may not be reliable <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> ). I am also pretty new to this business. There are many people who know way more about this stuff than me: John Nephew, Chris Pramas, Monte Cook, Nik, et al; all of whom post here regularly. I noticed John's one liner that he posted previously on this thread, which is what prompted me to post...something about "where do you get your numbers." I hate to say it, but from my limited experience, the numbers are no where near what anyone would like them to be. I too figured there would be much greater volume because of the number of PHBs sold. But hey, what do I know! Maybe there are people out there selling 10,000 on a regular basis.</p><p></p><p>I should point out that people dont much like to discuss numbers and sales. I wouldnt hold my breath for much more info. Frankly, Hal has been more than forthcoming in providing his numbers, which is very helpful and very cool of him to do. As Hal mentioned, I am lucky and have pretty good distribution. So my numbers arent really comparable to someone who does not have my distribution. That means Hal's info is probably way more useful to you than mine.</p><p></p><p>Thanks Hal!</p><p></p><p>Clark</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Orcus, post: 499638, member: 1254"] You have to pay for the print runs up front and the art costs too. Before you even sell a single copy. That is the part that is hard for small companies. And print costs--on a hardback in particular--can be huge. Then add in art costs. For example, Tome of Horrors has over 400 b/w illos (thats a lot of art) and the book is over 300 pages in hardcover. That upfront print cost was HUGE! Thats why people think about trying PDF first, since the print cost is nearly nothing and there are no distributors taking any cuts. As for the numbers I posted, I should clarify that those are a range based on my best guess. I dont have any real numbers from other companies, just anecdotal information based on things your hear at cons (which may or may not be reliable :) ). I am also pretty new to this business. There are many people who know way more about this stuff than me: John Nephew, Chris Pramas, Monte Cook, Nik, et al; all of whom post here regularly. I noticed John's one liner that he posted previously on this thread, which is what prompted me to post...something about "where do you get your numbers." I hate to say it, but from my limited experience, the numbers are no where near what anyone would like them to be. I too figured there would be much greater volume because of the number of PHBs sold. But hey, what do I know! Maybe there are people out there selling 10,000 on a regular basis. I should point out that people dont much like to discuss numbers and sales. I wouldnt hold my breath for much more info. Frankly, Hal has been more than forthcoming in providing his numbers, which is very helpful and very cool of him to do. As Hal mentioned, I am lucky and have pretty good distribution. So my numbers arent really comparable to someone who does not have my distribution. That means Hal's info is probably way more useful to you than mine. Thanks Hal! Clark [/QUOTE]
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