How to Become a Bestselling Author – Insider Tips from a Former Literary Agent

Black and white New York Times bestsellier seal, stamp, or logo with stars and wreath

This guide about how to become a bestselling author includes a detailed FAQ, with answers to the most common questions about becoming a bestselling author. It also includes the 197 Best Books for Writers and Authors. Writers of all backgrounds and genres (fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books) have used these strategies to become successful.

For many writers, the idea of becoming a bestselling author is the ultimate achievement—a place where creative passion meets tangible success. But what does it take to reach that milestone? Is it sheer talent, relentless dedication, or a bit of luck? Most bestselling authors will tell you it’s a bit of all three, combined with an understanding of the craft, the market, and the steps that transform a book into a bestseller.

Proven Techniques for Becoming a Bestselling Author

While there’s no one-size-fits-all formula, there are proven techniques and principles that have propelled countless writers to bestseller lists. This guide explores the roadmap to becoming a bestselling author, offering actionable insights and inspiration for every stage of your writing journey. Whether you’re just starting with an idea or polishing the final draft of your manuscript, you’ll discover practical strategies for crafting compelling books, navigating the publishing world, and building a loyal readership.

This guide was created by a former literary agent who’s helped 400+ authors get literary agents and/or traditional publishers. Mark Malatesta has worked with bestselling authors for decades—as a literary agent, author coach and consultant, and Marketing & Licensing Manager for the book and gift publisher Blue Mountain Arts. He’s also the creator of this list of Bestselling Authors of 2024. Here you can see Mark Malatesta reviews.

In this guide, you’ll find:

Become a Bestselling Author FAQ
7 Steps to Becoming a Bestselling Author
Bestselling Author Interviews
Best Selling Authors 2024

Become a Bestselling Author - FAQ

What Makes a Book a Bestseller?

Books on bestseller lists have significant sales and they often have significant cultural impact. Bestselling authors generally have more distribution, marketing and promotion, recognition, credibility, respect, income, and impact. See more here about what makes a book a bestseller.

How Do You Write a Bestselling Book?

Writing a bestselling book doesn’t always require excellent writing. You need an interesting and unique concept and/or a book that taps into cultural and/or publishing trends. A catchy title can also help, as well as a strong writing platform or profile, but an author platform isn’t always required. See more here about how to write a bestselling book.

What Is a Writing Platform or Profile?

A platform or profile in writing is the combination of credibility, connections, resources, and personal branding an author has. Literary agents and publishers almost always consider an author’s platform, but a strong platform is most important for nonfiction writers, who are expected to be experts in their field. See more here about what a platform or profile is in writing.

How Much Do Bestselling Authors Make?

Bestselling authors can make tens of thousands to many millions of dollars. They receive advances and royalties, and often payments for international editions; audio rights; movie, streaming, or TV adaptation; speaking and appearances; merchandise rights; gaming rights; and/or other licensing fees. See more here about how much bestselling authors make.

Who Are the Bestselling Authors of All Time?

The bestselling authors of all time are Agatha Christie (2 billion copies), William Shakespeare (4 billion), Danielle Steel (800 million), Barbara Cartland (750 million), Dr. Seuss (650 million), J.K. Rowling (600 million), Enid Blyton (600 million), Nora Roberts (500 million), James Patterson (425 million), Stephen King (400 million), J.R.R. Tolkien (300 million), and C.S. Lewis (200 million). See more here about the bestselling authors of all time.

How Do You Become a New York Times Bestseller?

Becoming a New York Times bestseller requires significant sales within a given week, from a diverse range of booksellers: large chains, online retailers, and independent bookstores. Self-published authors don’t usually have broad distribution or large promotion budgets, so traditionally published authors are more likely to become bestsellers. See more here about how to become a New York Times bestseller.

7 Steps to Becoming a Bestselling Author

Whether you want to become a New York Times bestselling author, or, simply, the bestselling author you can be, these seven steps will help. Some authors are born with a gift for writing; many aren’t. You don’t need to be an English major, get a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree, or have an official “writer education.” You need to understand what makes a bestselling book, and how others have become bestselling authors.

You’ve probably read books published by traditional publishers that didn’t deserve to be published. You’re also likely aware that, because of the daunting odds of getting a literary agent, many worthwhile books aren’t published. The positive part of that reality is that authors writing any and all book genres—writers of all backgrounds and abilites—can increase their chances of becoming bestselling authors by understanding and applying the following.

Step 1: Read (Consciously)

It’s difficult or impossible to become a bestselling author without reading. Not just bestselling books—all types of books. One of the requirements for writing a bestselling book is a concept and/or content that are unique. Reading books in and out of your genre will help you create a book that stands out to literary agents, publishers, and book browsers. And, don’t just read; do so consciously. If your goal is to become a bestselling author, you can’t just read for pleasure. Don’t lose yourself in an author’s style or story. As you read, try to deconstruct what the author did, how they did it, and why they did it.

Step 2: Study the Craft of Writing

Most writers who want to become bestselling authors don’t invest enough time studying the craft of writing. There’s only so much you can see, understand, and apply as a result of reading books like those you plan to publish. You should also learn via articles, books, courses, and classes about the craft of writing. Doing so will descrease the time it takes you to write your books, it will improve the quality of your first drafts, and it will improve the quality of your final drafts. You’ll also enjoy the writing journey more, as you’ll have more clarity, control, and confidence along the way. No matter what your genre is, there are resources related to your craft that will increase your odds of becoming a bestselling author.

Step 3: Write—and Rewrite

Many authors focus too much on the amount of writing they’ve done. It’s important to invest a lot of time producing content, but it’s equally mporant to invest a lot of time refining your content. Volume and quality aren’t the same. Many bestselling authors say they spend more time rewriting than writing, that their first drafts are usually fast and easy—compared to the time, patience, and persistence required to produce a polished final draft. Writing ten books in ten years won’t make you a bestselling author, if those ten books are all rough drafts, and you’re not improving from one book to the next. Writing is rewriting.

Step 4: Study the Business of Writing

Even if you’re a introverted writer or artist, fully committed to being authentic and “in your creative flow,” you can become a bestselling author. Just make room for your “inner CEO.” In other words, think of yourself as artist and entrepreneur: 49% creative, 51% CEO. Your goal might not be for your writing to support you financially (like a business), but it’s best to treat your writing like a business (at least in some respects). For example: be consistent, stick to deadlines, be open to suggestions for improvement, and invest in your writing financially to make it better and more impactful. Your writing might have started as a hobby, but if you continue to view it that way, it will stay a hobby.

Step 5: Improve Your Writer Platform or Profile

You don’t need to be a celebrity or have a million social media followers to become a bestselling author. However, writers of all genres should understand what a platform or profile in writing is. They should also have at least one social media acount before writing a query letter for literary agents. Nonfiction authors (ideally) should be somewhat recognized as experts in their niche with connections in their network. Other things that can help (also mainly for nonfiction authors) include: a website; an email list and/or postal mail list; speaking experience; articles or stories broadcast or published about you and/or your work; and commitments from influencers who’ve expressed a willingness to accept a review copy of your book, with an eye toward helping promote it somehow when it’s published.

Step 6: Case Studies

One of the best ways to expedite the process of becoming a bestselling author is to look at case studies for information and inspiration that will help you. In other words, you should look at successful authors—including those writing in your genre—talking about how they got a literary agent. This step, like all the others listed above, will help you avoid stress and mistakes, and be more efficient. Writing books, query letters, synopses, book proposals, takes a lot of time. So does building your writer platform or profile. Having a theoretical understanding of what it takes to become a bestselling author is empowering; seeing how writers have applied that understanding is equally empowering.

Step 7: Create a Team

Most bestselling authors say they did everything above—and got help. You might become successful doing all the steps above independently, but it’s less likely and will take longer. And, even if you could do everything yourself, wouldn’t you rather spend more time writing, and less time struggling to figure things out the hard way? There are coaches and consultants for everything you need: writing, editing, developing your platform, and getting a literary agent. Again, the more important your writing is to you, the more you should be willing to treat it like a business.

Bestselling Author Interviews

MARY HIGGINS CLARK is the #1 NYTimes bestselling author of 50+ novels, recognized and celebrated internationally for her 40+ years as the Queen of Suspense. Press the play button below for Mary’s advice (30 minutes) about how to become a bestselling author.