The article, which scared the bejeebers out of me, declared that the mid-list was an endangered species, in danger of being squeezed out by the Tom Clancys and Danielle Steeles of the world. Depending on whom you speak with, distributors either discovered the backlist bonanza on their own or were directed to it by certain publishers who realized that they could sell a larger percentage of a print run by focusing on their lead authors' backlists. If indeed certain publishers directed the change, it may well come back to haunt them. All publishers rank their authors in such a way as to determine the number of books printed and the publicity budget for their books. Lead authors became leads by working their way up the lists.
Many lead authors produce only one title per year.
Should the mid-list disappear, I am convinced there will come a time when the public will become so saturated by their backlists that a decline in sales will begin. I shopped in. Each declared that their mid-list was not in crisis and that they were committed to discovering and encouraging new authors in the genre. I learned about changes in the industry that have affected the distribution of books. A recent RWA report indicates that the independent distributors who stock those slots account for more than half of all romance sales.