When we seek to support Black authors by buying their books, we feel a sense of accomplishment once we hold their words in our palms. This purchase feels like a meaningful way to support Black creators by amplifying their voices. But as their book sales go up, what portion of the proceeds actually makes it to the author we’re aiming to uplift?

In 2019, the US publishing industry brought in $25.93 billion in annual revenue—an increase from the previous year. The authors who wrote the stories from which companies are profiting, however, were left with a 42% downtick from 2009, averaging $6,080—a historical low hit in 2017.

Through traditional publishing, the royalty from each book that the writer receives is a percentage of the retail price and typically ranges from 10-15% for hardbacks, 5-7.5% for paperbacks, and 25% for eBooks. In addition, an advance is often provided by the publishing house, which gets paid in intervals and is deducted from book sales until their royalties surpass the advance.

In late 2020, there was a viral social media hashtag #Publishingpaidme bringing attention to the gross disparities that first-time white authors received as opposed to debut writers of color. This sparked the New York Times to analyze a selection of 8,004 English-language fiction books written by 4,010 authors published between 1950 and 2018. After determining the race or ethnicity of 3,471 of those authors, 95% of the books published were written by white people.

On top of there being a lower percentage of stories published by diverse authors, the publishing stakeholders also don’t reflect the world for which they’re publishing. Ever since Lee & Low Books released their first Diversity Baseline Survey in 2015, the publishing industry has remained around 80% white—from executives across the board to book reviewers—compared to 5% of Black individuals.

In the end, not only are a disproportionately small number of books by authors of color being published traditionally with smaller advances when they are, but the decision-makers on what stories are being told, how they’re being marketed, and the reviews they receive have minimal ownership by communities of color.

When seeking out lessons from esteemed authors such as James Baldwin and Maya Angelou or the imaginative new storytellers that are shedding light on a spectrum of experiences, we don’t usually factor in these stats when we click purchase for their books. But it can be hard to reconcile that the income from these books gets whittled away on its way to the author. When it comes to the culturally cherished works by African American authors, let’s take a look at who stands to gain the most off of their sales.

Penguin Random House

Penguin Random House, also referred to as Random House, has continued to extend its dominance of the publishing industry by acquiring many smaller and independent publishers—and even large printers such as Simon & Schuster. Many of those fallen publishing houses were home to some of the African American community’s most celebrated works. As it stands today, a significant number of books were originally or are currently published by Penguin Random House.

When looking at the management team of the publishing house—which is owned by the German conglomerate Bertelsmann—out of the 17 members listed below CEO Madeline McIntosh there are 3 people of color: Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Sanyu Dillon, President and Chief Operating Officer of Penguin Random House U.S. Nihar Malaviya, and President and Publisher of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and Board Member Maya Mavjee.

On Random House’s Our People page the company breaks down its complete staff demographics. There you can see that the percentage of staff who identify as white are not only higher than the industry average (76%), but also much higher than their proportion of the US population (60% vs 79%). On the other hand, Black individuals employed are less than industry standard (5%) and significantly less than their percentage of the population (13% vs 4%).

From authors to staff, the hefty percentage of Black book sales doesn’t directly reach the Black communities readers are often aiming to support. Their catalog represents some of the most significant stories from some of the most celebrated Black voices.

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Based on the true story of Margaret Garner who escaped slavery on a Kentucky plantation with her husband and children in 1856, Beloved examines of the destructive legacy of slavery and chronicles the life and trauma of a Black woman named Sethe. Beautifully told by Toni Morrison, it’s an emotional and deeply triggering topic for many in the African American community.

The first edition was printed by Alfred A. Knopf Inc., founded by Alfred A. Knopf Sr. and Blanche Knopf in 1915. While the agency was praised for publishing diverse stories from European, Asian, and Latin American writers, their leadership didn’t boast that same diversity. In 1960 it was acquired by Random House and currently operates as one of their imprints.

Beloved, the 1987 National Book Award finalist, went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988 and was also ranked as one of the best works of American fiction from 1981 to 2006 in a survey done by The New York Times. The title received the 1998 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Book Award, Melcher Book Award, Lyndhurst Foundation Award, and Elmer Holmes Bobst Award.

In the same year it debuted, Oprah Winfrey purchased the rights to the manuscript and the film of the same name was released a decade later, bringing in over $22 million at the box office.

After Morrison’s passing in 2019, the publisher began reprinting some of her most popular prints due to a rise in demand. Beloved alone sold more than 12,000 copies in one week. Even in her death, her publishing house is reaping the financial benefits of her work.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Color Purple bravely addresses domestic and sexual abuse, explores the pain and struggle, and celebrates the resilience and bravery in the lives of African American women of rural Georgia in the early twentieth century. This honest exploration won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, making Alice Walker the first African American woman to win the prize. That same year it won the National Book Award for Fiction.

The original edition was published by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, at the time led by Chairman William Jovanovich. Houghton Mifflin acquired Harcourt in 2007 but now focuses solely on educational content and instructional technology materials. The most recent editions of The Color Purple have been released by Penguin Books.

The book was later adapted into a film and musical of the same name. The Color Purple musical, created by screenwriter Marsha Norman, originally ran on Broadway from 2005 to 2008, earning 11 Tony Award nominations in 2006. The doors opened for the play’s revival in 2015 and ran until 2017, earning two Tony Awards in 2016.

The Color Purple film, a screenplay written by Dutch screenwriter Menno Meyjes, was directed by Steven Spielberg and starred Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover, and Oprah Winfrey. At the box office, the film grossed over $142 million to which Walker rightfully lamented that, “She feels she didn't get quite the cut she should have.”

The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley and Malcolm X

The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley explores the legacy of Muslim leader, human rights activist, and anti-integrationist Malcolm X through interviews conducted from 1963 up until his assassination in 1965.

When the book was originally published in 1965 by Grove Press, the publishing house was under the leadership of Barney Rosset. The most recent editions have been published by Ballantine Books—acquired by Penguin Random House in 1973.

In 1992, the film Malcolm X was released and brought in $73 million at the box office. Directed by Spike Lee, Denzel Washington gave a praised performance as the title character. Lee shared the screenwriting duties with Arnold Perl. After being deemed "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant," the film was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

After the film’s release, Malcolm X’s widow sued late Alex Haley’s brother for at least half the money the author’s estate received for the sale of the original manuscript of The Autobiography of Malcolm X.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an autobiography detailing the early years of writer, activist, poet, and essayist Maya Angelou. By sharing the moments that shaped her, from racist encounters to rape, the influential manuscript earned the author accolades and acclaim. The title won the National Book Award in 1970 and held its place on The New York Times paperback bestseller list for two years.

The original print edition was published in 1969 by Random House. A decade later, a cable TV film version of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings aired on CBS. In this case, Angelou maintained ownership of the voice of the film by co-writing the screenplay with Leonora Thuna.

By 2014, this work alone had sold over 1 million copies, but after Angelou’s passing its sales soared, landing at #4 on the New York Times Bestseller list.

The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

James Baldwin was met with critical acclaim for his nonfiction collection of essays, which included a letter addressed to his nephew discussing race in America and commentary on his own childhood experience in relation to religion, in The Fire Next Time. The duo of essays won the George Polk Memorial Award and was a finalist in 1964 for the National Book of the Year for nonfiction. It was also the first essay in history to remain in the top five of the New York Times Bestseller List for 41 weeks.

The Fire Next Time essay was first published by the New Yorker, then printed as a book by Dial Press in 1963 and by the Britain division of Penguin Books in 1964. Dial Press was founded in 1923 by Lincoln MacVeagh and after several acquisitions its catalog now belongs to Penguin Random House.

In December 2016, musical artist Meshell Ndegeocello debuted her musical theatrical tribute to the author titled Can I Get a Witness? The Gospel of James Baldwin. The church service inspired production ran for one weekend in December 2016. After premiering at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse, it’s unclear how much of the ticket sales went to the author’s estate. What is clear is that Baldwin’s body of work has continued to influence writers, activists, and global citizens alike.

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Inspired by Baldwin's essay to his nephew in The Fire Next Time, Ta-Nehisi Coates poured out his concerns for his young, Black son and dissected the racially charged history of the US in Between the World and Me. The book quickly received overwhelming praise for its unrelenting honesty discussing the history of race and racism and the havok it has wreaked on communities of color.

The prose won the 2015 National Book Award for Nonfiction and was a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. It was also named “The Best Book of the Year” by over a dozen periodicals including The Washington Post, Vogue, and the Chicago Tribune.

Between the World and Me was published in 2015 by Spiegel & Grau, a publishing imprint of Penguin Random House. Originally founded by Celina Spiegel and Julie Grau, the duo parted ways with Random House to revive their publishing brand as an independent entity. However, the rights to this manuscript will remain with the agency that previously acquired their titles.

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

Narrated by an unnamed Black man, Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison addresses a myriad of social, intellectual, and personal identity issues African Americans faced in the early 1900s. After being published by Random House in 1952, the thought-provoking tale led to Ralph Ellison becoming the first African American author to receive the National Book Award in 1953.

In addition to Modern Library ranking Invisible Man in the top 20 on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century, Time magazine also included it in its TIME 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005.

In 2017 it was reported that a series inspired by the title was in the works with Hulu, however, further details have yet to be released.

Waiting to Exhale by Terry McMillan

A majority of Black women have seen, adored, and frequently quoted the movie Waiting to Exhale, featuring timeless performances from Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett under the debut direction of Forest Whitaker. The film was inspired by the New York Times bestselling novel of the same name written by Terry McMillan.

The first edition of the book was published by Viking Press, which is now owned by Penguin Random House. Along with creating the original characters, McMillan expanded upon their stories as co-screenwriter for the film with Ronald Bass.

The box office hit and cultural treasure brought in $82 million at the box office. ABC is seeking to revive the storyline by developing a TV series adaptation of the film. Oscar-winning filmmaker Lee Daniels is set to serve as executive producer.

Addicted by Zane

Although the media often likes to describe her books as “the African American version of Fifty Shades of Grey,” serial bestselling author Zane has been writing erotica long before Mr. Grey picked up a tie. After sharing her writings online in 1997 to overwhelming praise, Zane self-published the book Addicted a year later under her own publishing company Strebor.

Addicted chronicles the life of Zoe, an African American family and business woman whose life is derailed by her sex addiction. Strebor, along with this New York Times bestseller, was eventually acquired by Simon and Schuster. However, the author’s catalog of books will soon be under Penguin Random House, which has recently acquired Simon and Schuster.

It’s too early to say how the leadership of both publishing houses will be combined, but hopefully Dana Canedy, current Senior Vice President and Publisher of the Simon & Schuster imprint and author of the bestselling memoir, A Journal For Jordan (which has been optioned for a film set to be directed by Denzel Washington and star Michael B. Jordan) will remain in a leadership role as there are already too few Black women represented in publishing.

While Zane’s catalog has recently been acquired through the merger, she has maintained strong ownership of her brand as creator and producer of two Cinemax television series, “Zane’s Sex Chronicles” and “Zane’s The Jump Off” and served as the executive producer of the 2014 film adaption of the book Addicted that starred Sharon Leal, Kat Graham, and Boris Kodjoe.

These books have been passed down from generation to generation, included in school curriculums across the world, and praised as timeless classics in the literary world. However, when it comes to these celebrated, prolific, and deeply personal stories told by African American authors and activists, it’s the publishing company that makes 75-95% of the profit based on the format of the book. In the case these tales are turned into films, oftentimes the owners of the manuscript will sell it to a film production company for a one-time fee or receive a percentage of the budget, regardless of how much money the film brings in.

With all of this knowledge, it may almost feel like we’re at a loss when we go to support Black books, plays, films, and other works. We still want to show that the stories which reflect multicultural characters and experiences are marketable, desired, profitable, and in demand.

As we continue to support these authors, the goal is to get to a place where individuals and communities of color directly benefit when their stories are told and sold.

That means increasing the production of books by diverse authors, creating opportunities for multicultural book reviewers, literary agents, literary leadership, and more, and investing in Black-owned publishing houses. Despite the disparaging reflection of the publishing industry as a whole, there are several Black-owned publishing companies looking to create a more inclusive industry from leadership to illustrators. By supporting these publishers, there’s an opportunity for a larger portion of book sales to be invested in the communities these stories reflect.

Who's Making the Money off of African American Stories?

Penguin Random House

Beloved by Toni Morrison

The Color Purple by Alice Walker