J.K. Rowling’s “Robert Galbraith” trick reveals nothing of how publishers really treat unknown novelists

Is it okay for struggling authors to talk about promotion and marketing and how they are dealt with by publishers? Apparently so. 

The aspiring novelist Robert Galbraith knew rejection. His first novel, The Cuckoo’s Calling, was rejected by Orion and other publishers before it was printed in April by Sphere, a prestige imprint of Little Brown, one of the biggest names in fiction. He must have been beside himself when his little detective story was singled out for praise by Val McDermid, Mark Billingham and Alex Gray – all leading practitioners in the genre.

The icing on the cake probably came when The Times, the Mail and Publishers Weekly joined in the chorus of congratulation. Galbraith, a former army officer, had arrived with a bang. What a debut! What an achievement! Well done, that man.

But then reality dawned. Over the next three months, according to Nielsen Bookscan, the book sales rating company, The Cuckoo’s Calling sold a mere 449 copies through British retailers.