Audible’s New Royalty Model
Thomas Umstattd Jr. welcomes viewers to Author Update, joined by Jonathan Shuerger. Their lead story concerns significant changes to Audible’s royalty structure.
According to information from Robin Sullivan (wife of author Michael J. Sullivan), Audible has implemented a new royalty model in July 2024. While they’re advertising higher rates—50% for exclusive titles (up from 40%) and 30% for non-exclusive titles (up from 25%)—the actual amount authors receive has dramatically decreased.
Jonathan explains: “The percentage went up, but what they adjusted was the amount they’re pulling that percentage from.” The entire calculation model has changed because Audible is treating payments as a pool, similar to how Kindle Unlimited works.
Thomas clarifies: “You’re getting 50% of a grape compared to 40% of an orange, which is what you had before.” Authors previously earned about $5.20 per credit but could now make as little as $1.30 per credit under the new model.
This particularly impacts indie authors who don’t have access to Audible’s exclusive streaming catalog, giving them “the last bite of the apple” after bigger authors.
Traditional Publishing Sales Fall Again
The Association of American Publishers’ StatShot shows trade book sales have fallen 8.6% from the same month last year, totaling $671 million. The decline affects various categories:
- Adult books down 9.6%
- Fiction down 8.3%
- Nonfiction down 11.3%
- Hardcovers down 8.6%
- Paperbacks down 16.3%
Thomas notes this isn’t inflation-adjusted, making the real decline even worse. The year-to-date comparison shows a 3.1% drop.
Meanwhile, digital audio went up 9.8%, and indie sales are booming. The Kindle Unlimited fund increased by 14.1% year-over-year to $59.9 million.
AI Impact on Writing Careers
Microsoft published research about which jobs are most likely to be impacted by AI. Writers and authors rank fifth on the list of most vulnerable professions:
- Interpreters and translators
- Historians
- Passenger attendants
- Sales reps of services
- Writers and authors
Other writing-related professions on the vulnerability list include journalists (#16), technical writers (#18), proofreaders (#19), and editors (#21).
Thomas observes that AI is coming for “laptop people,” while jobs requiring manual skills (like plumbing or electrical work) are less threatened and often pay increasingly well.
Scammers Target Authors with Fake Marketing Services
Jonathan describes how scammers are using AI to create sophisticated fake book marketing pitches: “The Nigerian princes have evolved!” These scammers scrape details about authors’ books to craft personalized emails that appear knowledgeable about the content.
Thomas explains that Writer Beware recently reported on this trend. The scammers send flattering emails about authors’ books, then hand them off to questionable “marketing services” that charge $100-1000 monthly while delivering little value.
Red flags include:
- Unsolicited, overly flattering emails
- Gmail addresses with random numbers
- Claims they can take your book “to Hollywood”
- The sender can’t be found through Google searches
Books for Men: Traditional Publishing’s Blind Spot
Jonathan discusses a Fandom Pulse article highlighting how books rejected by traditional publishers are thriving in indie spaces. L. Jagi Lamplighter Wright suggests men aren’t buying fewer books—they’re just not finding what appeals to them in traditional publishing.
Thomas notes that traditional publishing’s editorial boards are predominantly female, creating an imbalance in the types of books being published. Meanwhile, authors writing books that appeal to men are quietly making “generational money” in the indie space.
The Return of First Turning Heroes
Thomas analyzes the renewed interest in Davy Crockett and similar archetypal heroes, connecting this to the zeitgeist shift from fourth turning to first turning. He describes Crockett as “ruthless and noble,” willing to fight but also a man of his word.
The hosts discuss various hero archetypes in modern media, including John Wick, Reacher, and characters from Dune and Equilibrium, analyzing which represent third/fourth turning heroes versus emerging first turning heroes.
Thomas suggests that understanding these shifts can help authors create characters that resonate with current cultural trends: “If you were gonna create a new character, creating a new John Wick isn’t the right character to build, because he’s a character who’s losing steam as opposed to Crockett.”
Closing Announcements
Thomas promotes:
- AuthorMedia.social – a social network specifically for authors
- Novel Marketing Conference – still offering early bird tickets
- Patreon Toolbox – including new classroom activity planners for authors visiting schools
“King” Richard Petty