Project Studio

Box Sets & Anthologies

A box set is one product on the stores and several books in your catalogue. Set one up and StorytellerOS shares its sales between the books inside it.

Why set one up

Without a box set, its sales count only for the box set itself, and the books inside it never see a cent. Once you tell StorytellerOS which books are in it:

  • its sales are shared between those books, so each book's sales figures include its share;
  • each book's share goes to that book's pen name, so an anthology with several authors credits every one of them;
  • its store links show on every book inside it, labelled Box set: <name>.

Your account's total sales don't change. Only how they're shared between books does.

Create a box set

  1. Go to Titles and choose Box sets & anthologies.
  2. Choose New box set, give it a name and pick Box set or Anthology.
  3. Add the books that are in it. You can pick books from any of your pen names; use the arrows to put them in reading order.
  4. Choose how sales are shared: Equally, or By weight if some books should get more (for example by word count or by their own price).
  5. Under Sold as, tell it how the stores sell the box set: its ebook, audiobook, paperback, signed paperback and so on, each with its own ASIN, ISBN or SKU.
    • Already have the box set as a title? (for example "Collection: Books 1–3") Find it under Find your box set's title. All of its formats come with it.
    • Not set up yet? Choose + Ebook, + Audiobook, + Paperback, + Signed paperback and so on, once for each format. They all go on one new title named after the box set. Leave a name blank and it's filled in for you, like "Collection: Books 1–3 - Ebook".
  6. Choose Save box set. A green note at the top of the page confirms it was saved.

A box set's formats share one title of their own

All of a box set's formats sit together on one title that belongs to the box set, never on one of the books inside it. That's why choosing one format of your box-set title brings in the others on that title too, and why the books inside the box set aren't offered here.

Titles that look like box sets are listed first. If you choose a title that looks like a single book (for example it's numbered in a series, or already has sales of its own), StorytellerOS asks first: its formats' sales would then be shared out across the box set's books.

A format that isn't on any title (some imported ones aren't) can be chosen too. It joins the box set on its own.

No format, nothing to share

A box set's sales are found through its format, exactly like any other book. Until you choose a format under Sold as, there are no sales for it to share.

Already set it up as an ordinary title?

If you added a box set or anthology as a title before box sets existed in StorytellerOS, you don't need to change that title or start again. The quickest way is from the title itself: open the title and choose Make this a box set or anthology at the top of the page. The box set form opens with that title already chosen under Sold as, so you only set Kind, add the books inside it, and choose Save box set. Nothing changes until you save. If the title already has sales, you're asked to confirm first, as below. Once it's set up, the title page shows which box set or anthology it is, with a link to edit it.

You can also do it from the box sets page. Make a new box set as above, set Kind to Anthology or Box set, add the books inside it, and under Sold as find that title with Find your box set's title. All of its formats come with it. If it already has sales, StorytellerOS asks you to confirm first; choose Yes, it's the anthology itself (or Yes, it's the box set itself). Then choose Save box set.

The title keeps its formats, store links, files and sales records exactly as they are. What changes is that its sales, past and future, are shared between the books inside it in your reports, and its own Sales card shows what it sold and each book's share instead of counting them again. Changed your mind? Delete the box set and its sales go back to the title.

Add a box set's store links to its format, as usual. Every book in the box set then shows those links on its own page, labelled Box set: <name> (or Anthology: <name>). They're read-only there, because they belong to the box set. To change one, open the box set's format.

Publishing a single book never overwrites a box set's link, even when both are sold in the same store.

Suggestions from your sales

If your connected sales show a product that looks like a box set, the catalogue comparison in Settings → Integrations and in Sales Studio lists it under Box sets and anthologies with a Set up this box set link. It fills in the name and any books it can recognise, such as "Books 1–3" of a series. Check the books before you save; nothing is created until you do.

Change or delete a box set

Choose Edit to rename it, change the books or weights, or change its format. Changes apply to all of its sales, past and future, the next time you open your reports.

Deleting a box set keeps its format and store links. Its sales stop being shared and go back to the title its format is filed under.

Who can change box sets

A box set can include books from every pen name, so changing one needs Project Studio edit access across all pen names. Teammates with less can still see box sets.

See Box Set Sales for how the shares are worked out.