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Literary Success Begins at 50: Best Age for Best
Sellers Says Study
Writers Mature Later Than Scientists Or Musicians,
Suggests Research
June 3, 2005 - Fifty years old may be a good age
for a mid–life crisis but it is also the perfect age to publish a novel
designed to become a best–seller, according to a study of best–selling
novels and their authors over the past half–century.
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Editor’s Note |
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 Remembering Terri Schiavo:
Reflections of a Health Care Warrior
We found the online publisher, LuLu,
through an email from Audrey Ignatoff telling us about her new
book on Terri Schiavo.
Ignatoff is the president of Senior Arts
and Systems, which provides consultation and materials on
preventing drug misuse in the aging. She has conducted seminars
and in-service training for hospitals, nursing homes, home
health care agencies, social service agencies, and businesses.
Audrey has been an ardent supporter of Terri Schiavo, and has
written numerous articles about her case, including, “Saving
Terri Schiavo” published in The Human Life Review, Winter, 2004.
She is also the co-author of a book dedicated to her entitled,
The New Underground Railroad: Health Care Warriors.
Ignatoff is the former Coordinator for The
New York State Division of Substance Abuse Services’ (now OASAS)
subcommittee on Drug Misuse and the Elderly where she designed a
statewide educational program on preventing drug misuse for
seniors for professionals, patients, and caregivers.
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The average age of writers in the year that their
novels topped the hardback fiction section of the New York Times
Bestseller List during the half-century from 1955–2004 was 50.5 years —
according to a study conducted by Lulu (www.lulu.com),
a website that lets authors publish and sell their own books.
Over 350 authors saw their novels reach #1 during
the 50 years studied, and Lulu researchers were able to establish the
age at publication of almost all of them.
"Authors of every
age use Lulu," says Bob Young, founder and CEO of Lulu, the world's
fastest–growing source of print–on–demand books. "But we wanted to
discover the optimum age to write a best–seller; especially since we
suspected that it was higher than many people assume. Unlike scientists
or musicians, say, writers tend to mature with age."
Francoise Sagan was the youngest author to top the
NYT list — only 20 when Bonjour Tristesse reached #1 in 1955; and just
19 when it first appeared in French. JK Rowling was the youngest solo
author to hit #1 in the latter 25 years, from 1980–2004 — only 34 when
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets hit #1 in 1999, and was soon
followed by her next two Potter books.
Agatha Christie was the oldest author to top the
list. She would have been 86 when her novel, Sleeping Murder, reached #1
in 1976, had she not died earlier that year. James Michener was the
oldest in the 25 years from 1980–2004. He was 81 in 1988 when his book,
Alaska, hit #1.
The most prolific bestsellers over the past 50
years have been Stephen King and Danielle Steel. Stephen King has had 27
#1s since 1979 (averaging 1.04 per year), while Danielle Steel has had
26 since 1984 (1.24/year).
Authors who were nearest to the mean age of 50.5 at
the time their book topped the list were Judith Krantz, 50 years 5
months when Scruples reached #1 in 1978, and Joe Klein, who was 50 years
7 months when Primary Colors (published anonymously) topped the list in
1996.
"A man past 50 should never write a novel," felt
William Thackeray, best–known as the author of Vanity Fair, the novel of
English high society from which today's glossy magazine takes its name.
Thackeray published Vanity Fair in 1847, the year he turned 36.
Charles Darwin was 50 when he published his seminal
book, The Origin Of Species, in 1859 — and all 1,250 copies printed were
sold on the first day. The Scottish author James Boswell was also 50
when he published his famous biography, Life Of Samuel Johnson, in 1791.
Another writer close to the optimum bestseller age
of 50.5 is
Bob Young, CEO of Lulu.com, who has just turned 51. Young is
currently writing a book called The Electric Golf–Cart Encylopedia, soon
to be published through Lulu.com. His slight age disadvantage, however,
plus the fact that his book will be non–fiction, may limit its chances
of becoming a New York Times fiction best–seller.
About Source: Lulu (www.lulu.com):
Lulu claims to be the world's fastest–growing provider of
print–on–demand books and an online marketplace for intellectual
property of all kinds. Founded by Bob Young, who previously co–founded
the open source software company, Red Hat, Lulu provides independent
publishers with free access to on–demand publishing tools for books,
e–books, music, images and calendars. Over 25,000 titles are available
through Lulu.
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