Why are paperbacks released later

Similarly, a hardback signifies to authors and agents that this is a book their publisher cares about, so much so that some agents and authors will insist upon it. Size also matters: hardbacks are bigger than paperbacks, they take up more space in bookshops and are more visible — whether in window displays or on bookshop tables. Hardbacks are also more profitable for publishers: they will often sell at twice the price of their paperback equivalent but do not cost twice as much to produce.

You are right to suggest that publishers have thought about how things can be done differently, and there is growing use of larger paperback formats such as a trade paperback or B-format that attempt to do the same job as the hardback at a reduced cost.

In some cases publishers will publish straight into a mass-market edition to maximise sales potential from the offset. It's a common practice among publishers to release new titles as hardcovers and publish the paperback edition about a year after the initial print run. People who do their reading at the beach or on the subway may not be happy about it, but the financial benefits of this model mean it likely isn't going away any time soon.

Hardcovers may be more expensive to produce than paperbacks, but they still cost just a few dollars to print. Cheaper paperbacks are more popular with consumers, accounting for roughly 80 percent of all print book sales, but when a book is still new, sellers can count on certain readers to pay more for the hardback.

The fact that it's the only print option for the first months of a book's life isn't the format's only appeal. The standard paperback is scheduled for release on June 30, according to bookselling giant Amazon. This means the time between hardcover to paperback for Eleanor and Park varies between one year up to over seven years! The hardcover was released on February 28, At the time of this writing, readers looking for a paperback copy of The Hate U Give must look to publishing companies outside of the United States.

The only formats available from HarperCollins are hardcover, ebook, and audiobook. The most obvious reason is money. There is still continued interest in the novel, and readers are still interested enough to pay top or slightly discounted dollar to get their hands on the book. The publisher is still raking in the hardcover dough, so there is no need parade the paperback just yet.

The situation is similar with Eleanor and Park. With Picturestart acquiring the film rights to Eleanor and Park , more book sales are to be expected since adaptations often boost sales of the original source materials.

Along with being two of the bestselling YA novels in the past several years, Eleanor and Park along with The Hate U Give enjoyed popularity among the general reading public as well as the literary critics.

Printz Award. While praise from readers and reviewers are good for selling books, we know what really gets the units moving: controversy. Although there is debate on whether challenges and bans harm or benefit authors , the success of these two books implies the fight to keep books that speak truth to power and that represent marginalized groups out of the hands of readers often has the opposite effect.

Joined Jun 16, Messages 6, TooNice said:. Hobbit Whatever I'm doing, I have to keep doing it Joined Jul 16, Messages 16, But it's already out in paperback, MMPB size too. Has been for about a month now, if my brain isn't failing me. Chrysippus Registered User. Joined Jun 1, Messages Hobbit said:. Think the US paperback is one page copy though.

Zappster Registered User. Joined Feb 1, Messages Cheerwell said:. I think Goliath by Scott Westerfeld actually had the paperback first, with the HC coming about a week after From what I remember, anyway. Zappster said:. Goliath hasn't been released yet, it's coming in September.

Last edited: Jun 15, They are doing a hardcover and trade paperback editions in conjunction for Goliath, which is not unusual in children's, which also involves school and school library sales. I'm not sure that they've done mass market paperback editions of that series yet.

I think that they may be waiting for the hardcover and trade paperback editions to fall off sales before going to mass market. It's done very well. They find that trade size useful, yes.