THE GAME OF INCHES!

You know how we say "Baseball is a game of inches"? (I'm a baseball expert now so I know these things). Well, I think poetry publishing is also a game of inches. To wit, I am having a promising first quarter with my Amazon sales as a publisher! Yes indeedy. Check out these Amazon sales stats for the first quarter of 2012:

January: 3 books sold
February: 4 books sold
March: 5 books sold

What recession! It's about momentum, baby. And the mo is with moi!

That's the great thing about being in the dumps -- one can only go up! So, speaking of the dumps, here's my 2011 Income Statement as a Poet.

TOTAL REVENUES $1,870.62
TOTAL COSTS $2,348.52

NET LOSS ($477.90)

I lost again! But anytime that loss is less than four figures, I figure, for poetry publishing, that's a win! (Nuthin' like "Poetry Economics" to upend your perspective and make toi a moron!)

Let's wallow in this topic, shall we, by comparing that 2011 revenue stream with prior years:

2011 REVENUES $1,870.62
2010 REVENUES $6,287.86
2009 REVENUES $2,754.42
2008 REVENUES $9,117.92
2007 REVENUES $7,721.88

The severe drop from 2010 Revenues is deceptive; 2010 showed me receiving unexpected revenues from being a judge of a poetry contest, from sharing poems on the Poetry Foundation Blog (spread those beaucooo bucks around, Harriet!) and sales from two new releases (most of a poetry book's sales occurs in the first year or so after a book's release). I didn't judge, sell poems for publication, or release a new poetry book in 2011. Shame on moi -- any one of those three factors would have allowed me to overcome a loss in 2011.

This is all quite fascinating, yah? I got so fascinated writing this post that I decided to look at the first quarter results so far for 2012. OH MOI GAWD. So far, my expenses as a poetry publisher is running a thousand bucks ahead of my revenues!!! Geeez Peeeps: I publish good ones: BUY MOI POETRY BOOKS, Pleeeeze!

Inch worm, inch worm ... Glow!