Who's the New "American Idol?" As Katharine McPhee and Taylor Hicks Battle for the Top Spot in the Season Finale, Americans Say: "Hey, I'm Amazing Too!"

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 23, 2006

Is America a nation of "American Idol-esque" egomaniacs -- or are we all just leading very, very, VERY interesting lives?

A new survey by Arielle Ford, founder of book advisory site Everythingyoushouldknow.com -- http://everythingyoushouldknow.com/ -- and the marketing force behind mind-body healer Deepak Chopra and the best-selling "Chicken Soup for the Soul" series, asks the question of whether Americans have indeed become legends in our own minds.

According to a random telephone survey of 1,019 Americans taken May 5 to May 8, 2006, 68% of Americans feel their life deserves a book -- and an astounding 47% of the country say they could fill two books. Are we full of ourselves, or what?

But the survey results don't shock Ford, who has written four top-selling books herself. "In America, with our long tradition of individualism and self-reliance -- not to mention self-promotion! -- everyone has long been his or her own 'American Idol,' and this new survey proves that," America's best-known book publicist says. "And now with now self-publishing technology available through single-copy publishers like http://www.lulu.com/ and others, everyone's desire to become a published author and tell their own story can now come true."

What would Americans fill those books with? Ford's new survey gives us a few clues.

According to the survey, 23% of Americans say they have some hot sex tips they'd like to tell the country about in a book. "No one can say we're a shy people," says Ford. "But I hope these potential authors aren't planning on also releasing a video!"

And 40% of Americans say they've got some great recipes to share. "Yum!" says Ford.

Overall, according to the survey, 44% of Americans have at least considered writing a book, and 34% of Americans are actually likely to sit down and write one -- even if they have to wait until retirement to do it.

But not everyone expects to get rich from it -- only 19% of Americans actually think that writing a book is a good way to get rich. "Tell that one to Dan Brown," jokes Ford.

What genre would Americans choose to write in? According to the survey, 42% of Americans would write a work of fiction, such as a mystery or romance, while 32% would write a self-help book and 49% would write a work of non-fiction, like a cookbook or textbook.

But another book industry study released simultaneously by R.R. Bowker casts some shadows on America's bright book-writing future. For the first time since 1999, says Bowker, the number of new books has actually dropped -- and by over 10%.

According to the new Bowker study, prepared in April in advance of the BookExpo America in Washington D.C., the number of new books and new editions of old works published last year dropped to 172,000, about 18,000 less than in 2004. Bowker is projecting declines in history, biography, children's books, technology and even religion, supposedly one of the industry's fastest growing categories.

"I don't believe all their predictions, but the market for books has certainly become an incredibly competitive one, and doubly so for new authors without a built-in platform or audience for their product," says Ford. "As the Bowker study notes, for years the strategy was to put out everything you could, like throwing spaghetti against the wall and hoping something would stick. But not any more." http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/22/books/22book.html

And the 10 percent drop in the number of books being published may be bad news for Kellie Pickler, Ace Young, Katharine McPhee, Taylor Hicks, Elliot Yamin, and the rest of this year's "American Idol" crop, says Ford. "Statistically speaking, their chances are lower."

What that means for all would-be authors is they need to plan the book they want to write in the same way they would write a plan to launch a new business. Ford's high-tech website, Everythingyoushouldknow.com, http://everythingyoushouldknow.com/ gives free tips on key facts potential authors should know -- and even a candid video message from Ford herself.

Overall, according to new figures released May 18 by the Book Industry Study Group, American publishers generated net revenues of $34.6 billion in 2005, up 5.9 percent over the previous year, according to the report. The industry sold about 3.1 billion books in 2005, up 3.8 percent over 2004.

The strongest growth niches were juvenile books, which sold $3.34 billion in 2005, up 9.6 percent from a year earlier, and religious books, which sold $2.29 billion, up 8.1 percent from 2004. http://www.startribune.com/384/story/445165.html

Ford's survey was taken with the assistance of Opinion Research Corp. of Princeton, N.J., and has a margin of error of 3 percent.

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