2006 ROMStat Report

Simba Information reports U.S. book sales (net revenue from retail sources) at $6.31 billion for 2006, which is a slight decline over 2005. Contributing factors include the lack of a new Harry Potter book and religious blockbuster title. Also, Business of Consumer Book Publishing 2007 reports “myriad cultural and demographic changes were also at play…consumers are juggling an ever-growing number of demands on their time” (Agostino 2007, 5).

Romance Fiction in 2006

• Romance: $1.37 billion
• Religion/inspirational: $1.68 billion
• Science fiction/fantasy: $495 million
• Classic literary fiction: $448 million
• Mystery: $422 million
• Graphic novels: $128 million

(as per Simba Information estimates)

With these revenue numbers, romance fiction was a 26.4 percent share of all market categories in 2006. What accounts for the strong sales? Variety. Consumers of romance read it how, when, and where they wish. Readers have proven to be consumers of romance in a variety of formats, from traditional to digital.

Readers who want to listen to a romance in the car, bus, or train on the commute to work can purchase an audiobook on CD or download it onto an MP3 player. While audiobook sales as a whole were down 11.7 percent in 2006, Brilliance Audio increased its revenue with “the gain driven by continued success with suspense and romance audiobooks” (Agostino 2007, 12). Similarly, Audible’s revenue was up 20 percent, and Director of Communications Jonathan Korzen “said that romance…titles have done especially well” (Agostino 2007, 13).

Romance titles have “done especially well” in the electronic book format, too. According to the New York Times, “As the readers and the devices become more common, e-book publishers are noticing a shift in tastes.The early best-seller lists were dominated by science fiction novels and other titles favored by men….But lately, the lists are led by romance and women’s fiction”(Wayner 2007). The International Digital Publishing Forum (IDF) reported sales of trade e-books for 2006 at around $24 million, which is double the amount of sales for 2005. In what could be a breakthrough for the industry, the IDPF voted on an official e-book standard. “The IDPF adoption of OPS 2.0 along with the ‘.epub’ file format that goes with it…means that publishers can now create one digital book file instead of the 6 to 10 formats previously required” (Reid 2007). With the new e-book file format, debut of the Sony Reader, and new software from eBook Technologies, Mobipocket, eReader.com and others, sales will continue to rise.

Romance fiction sales should continue to benefit from these technologies, as new (and existing) readers embrace audiobook and e-book romance titles in addition to traditional print books.

The Readers

So, who are the readers? According to an Associated Press–Ipsos poll, among those who said they read books in the past year:

• One in five read romance novels,
• People from the South read slightly more, mostly religious books and romance novels,
• More women than men read every major category of books,
• Women read nine books per year, while men read five.

Best-Selling Authors and Publishers

Who sold the most romance fiction? The top five romance book publishers of 2006 (as per Simba Information estimates) were:

1. Harlequin ($418 million)
2. Random House ($81 million)
3. Penguin Group ($71 million)
4. HarperCollins (64.8 million)
5. Kensington ($37 million)

Harlequin signed a licensing agreement with NASCAR to publish women’s fiction titles in an effort to reach the approximately 30 million female NASCAR fans.

Avon sponsored a FanLit contest where the readers and writers collaborated on a novella, which was published as the e-book These Wicked Games.

The willingness of publishers to explore new avenues within romance fiction is good news for the future of the industry.

2007 Estimates

Sales of romance fiction are predicted to hold steady for 2007, with $1.375 billion in projected revenue. Overall, the U.S. trade book sales are expected to rise 2.6 percent in 2007, thanks to a new Harry Potter novel, to $6.47 billion. The popularity of romance audiobooks and e-books, publisher involvement in on-line communities and contests, and the expansion of subgenres spell a strong future for romance fiction.