Update: and while we’re on the subject of Robin, his ongoing solo book has noticably dropped below 27,000 copies sold recently. With the way they’ve handled it lately, with almost no plausible or acceptable development, if at all, I can’t say I’m s…

If some want to get all pissy because they don’t like people’s commenting about DC being in the toilet, well, don’t shoot the messenger or the people discussing amongst themselves — look at the people responsible for putting DC in the toilet. It’s certainly not the readers. We only buy the books if we like them. Also — as seen by the numbers, since readers are jumping off the DC boat like passengers on the Titanic, its safe to say they’re not very liked.

So yes, the reign of Dan Didio and his bloodbath continues… killing characters and chasing away readers… monthly.

Well, sometimes monthly…

Generally, the farther down the chart you get, the less meaningful the sales estimates tend to get, due to a variety of factors. So any books from other publishers which didn’t make the Top 100 will remain the exception.

I’ll have a look, but no promises.

Is there any way you can add sales numbers for Mirages TMNT titles and mini series with the ‘extra publishers’ sometime?

Keep up the great work!!

Thanks.

I notice the big 2 seem to prefer shaking things up and rolling the dice which usually results in a late shipping books making no money month to month instead of a nice monthly groove from consistent talent even if the numbers dip ever so slightly month to month. I suppose that’s to be expected, but I think changing the creators and even the titles keeps series from having a nice long series of trades you can stack together on a book store shelf that result in real presence the way a series of 5-10 or more manga books can. There obviously are a few examples of books getting this right (Fables, obviously) and I’m sure it results in better bookstore sales just from taking up more shelf space and the increase in visibility when books are displayed spine out.

I would say that Fables sells as much — if not more — than Preacher in the trade market. Fables, in fact, has a much broader appeal (Sandman-esque) than Preacher. I would easily recommend Fables or Y to nearly anyone who enjoys fiction; Preacher, not so much.

I’ve let my Father-In-Law read Punisher tpbs and he loves them, but I’ll be damn if you’d find those alongside Don Pendleton’s The Executioner series in a bookstore.

Graphic Novels really get ghettoized in some places.

Well, in principle, I’d expect retailers to place more faith in their circle sheets and in the ordering behavior of their customers than in this column. But if the column helps someone to get a better understanding of how a title is selling in general and makes their job a little easier because of it, I consider that a good thing. After all, if a book is on its way out, I’d certainly want to know it if I were a retailer (or a reader, for that matter).

But, to stay with the example of JONAH HEX: We know that it’s a DC Universe book, we know that it sells below HAWKGIRL, which has been canceled, and we know that it’s been in a decline for a while. I don’t think I’m going out on a limb when I suggest that it may be in trouble.

I can see where you’re coming from, as a creator. But I question whether simply putting sales information out there and analyzing it can kill a book that’s healthy, anyway. There seems to be a logical leap.

Vertigo has as many (if not more) misses than hits, but you can say the same thing for every publishing company.

personally i think it hurts the sales because if they think its being canned, they order less…thats what 3 retailers i know personally have told me. the book is on the way out.

thanks for the corrections by the other posters by the way.

Another ray of light for Vertigo should be Diamond UK sales, since European readers are probably more interested in other genres than superhero books. My retailer (Berlin) told me a few months ago that most Vertigo books are doing better than Civil War in his store.

If they’re strong enough to make the Top 300 again, yes. Otherwise, there’s currently no way to track them through the data we have.

“these kinds of pieces do more damage to smaller books than they know and create a false panic for some titles that are not in any trouble at all because the cost to print ratio is not explored… as is the income gained by trade collections.”

The collection sales aspect is flagged up in the disclaimer, Jimmy, and sometimes it’s mentioned in the comments, as well.

As for doing damage to smaller books: Please define “damage.” And please define “smaller books.” I respect your experiences in the industry, but “you’re doing damage” is pretty vague; if there’s any hard data to support the notion, I’d appreciate it.

They do include re-orders, Jimmy. Those are the numbers on the right, in the square brackets.

Of course, they DON’T include sales outside the direct market, or to Diamond UK (which is a fair chunk), which is why a lot of creators are regularly able to claim that the true sales are higher than what we see here. They are.

But I’m inclined to believe that these numbers *are* a fair reflection of what is sold in North America through the direct market - certainly as good a reflection as you’re going to get so long as publishers insist on the current nonsensical system of only declaring how much a book sold as a proportion of that month’s BATMAN. The fact that ICV2 and CBG, working independently, come up with virtually identical figures each month tends to suggest that they’re getting it right.

And we sell a reasonable number of Fables single issues, so that’s a pretty good benchmark to hit.

Same is true of DMZ, American Virgin, Y The Last Man and (previous to their ending) Lucifer and Losers, among others.

So yep, Vertigo does gonzo trade business. And that’s just one store in the direct market, not taking into account success they’ve obviously gained in the bookstore market.

Reorders are generally added in in later months. Any books that saw reorders in May had them added in, and any that see them in June will have them likewise added next time around.

What about Bookscan numbers? Granted, they are sales to consumers, not stores, and do not include Baker & Taylor (which can be a sizable market for GNs) but it’s a good indicator in the trade bookstore world.

as a self publisher at one time, you have to take any comment made with a grain of salt because there are so many other things to take into consideration on these titles. its far from cut and dry as presented. these kinds of pieces do more damage to smaller books than they know and create a false panic for some titles that are not in any trouble at all because the cost to print ratio is not explored… as is the income gained by trade collections.
jimmy

Ladies and gentlemen, the legacy of Mr. Dan Didio.