Canelo / Arts Council England

Canelo / Arts Council England | 
13

Literature in the 21st Century: Understanding Models of Support for Literary Fiction
Hardback average selling prices
Genre fiction vs general hardback fiction ASP

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Canelo / Arts Council England | 
14

Literature in the 21st Century: Understanding Models of Support for Literary Fiction
Paperbacks: total market ASP and fiction ASP
These graphs show fiction of all kinds consistently has a lower price 
than non-fiction, and tracks well beneath the TCM average for the 
price of books sold. The real damage can be seen when adjusted for 
inflation. Despite a recent uptick, this shows just how far behind book 
prices for fiction have fallen since 2001. The pattern is consistent across 
paperback and hardback fiction, and although General Fiction has been 
hit less hard than Genre Fiction, in both categories there is substantial 
loss of value per sale, which directly impinges on publisher revenues 
and author incomes. A huge amount of value is hence ‘missing’ from 
the sector thanks to flatlining prices amidst general inflation.
Total print market ASPs: genre fiction vs general fiction

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Canelo / Arts Council England | 
15

Literature in the 21st Century: Understanding Models of Support for Literary Fiction
The true impact can be seen by comparing graphs of both the TCM 
value and the total fiction value against an inflation adjusted version. 
At one stage in 2014 almost £1bn of value had evaporated from the 
ecosystem of books thanks to stationary prices. For a sector that has 
long existed on thin margins, missed revenue of this scale is absolutely 
essential. Recent gains in value have started to improve the overall 
figure and the picture is getting healthier. Yet this isn’t following through 
for fiction, which remains flat in absolute terms and continues to decline 
in real terms as is clear from the following graph.