When it comes to the NYT Bestseller's list, there are many categories to choose from. Hardcover options, paperbacks, mass market, and even combined print and e-book categories exist. Each category yields different novels at the top of the list--some of which have been there for over two years. So, how do you get an accurate representation of not only what's popular but what's new? Because let's be honest: a Top 5 list in publishing trends isn't helpful if the novels on the list never change.
So we come to the question: Why hardcover novels?
Most publishing houses, especially when they believe in a novel's success, will recommend hardcovers for the first year of publication. Hardcovers are the pricier option compared to paperbacks, and if hardcovers and paperbacks were printed simultaneously, odds are most consumers would opt for the paperback. So, by choosing to only include hardcovers in a Monthly Top 5 Fiction Novel list (which you can have monthly by subscribing to my newsletter), you are more likely to weed out beloved but time-strengthened classics like War and Peace or the Harry Potter Series in favor of newer novels.
But there is another reason to choose only hardcovers in this race: an equal playing field for the novels.
Don't get me wrong; the NYT has a set of criteria for what makes the list. The novel must sell over 5,000 copies in a week and sell across a diverse set of retailers [1]. The NYT Bestseller list is also directly proportional to the sales a book receives. With that in mind, it would be neither fair nor accurate to compare a new novel that only has a more expensive hardcover print against a slightly older novel with paperback and e-book sales to bolster the numbers. By only choosing hardcover editions of a novel as the criteria for a list, it limits the unfair advantage novels may receive through other avenues of revenue.
Now, there will always be renowned novels that sell in hardcover editions for many years after publication. Especially in today's world, where book buyers love the look of hardcovers, and publishers are creating more and more specialty novel editions. However, specialty novels are not likely to skew the numbers surrounding thousands of purchases for newly published books, which is why--out of the many options and criteria to choose from--I base my Top 5 Fiction Novel list on the hardcover editions only.
1: Source
