If I used these criteria to judge myself, I could call myself award winning and best selling, too. But I’m not, so I don’t; to do so would be crass indeed. To me, a ‘best seller’ is a book that has been in the Amazon top 100 (and not just genre charts) for a reasonable period of time. Not the few weeks I managed it, 5 years ago!

Just a though… Most ‘mainstream’ publishers spend close to a hundred thousand dollars to release a book by Nicholas Sparks, Nora Roberts, or Stephen King, so they are almost certainly going to hit the NYT or USA Today bestseller lists… Does that make their book a bestseller, or did they technically but their way there? I love those authors, but I’ve also read many books by Indie authors that were better than some of those authors’ books.

All we can do is hope that authors–and readers–will use their best judgment when selling–or choosing–a book based on a label.

There’s a very simple way to use “bestselling” without being slightly disingenuous (IMO), which is being more specific. If you were a bestselling author on Amazon, include “Amazon.”

It makes me sad that many authors use the term “bestseller” as though it’s essential, when they’ve sold relatively few copies. And I’ve worked with numerous PR companies and corporations who disregard an author if they appear to be exaggerating their accolades.

All of that said, I agree with you that celebrating as we see fit in whatever ways feels most genuine to us is to be embraced. 🙂

As for “bestseller”. That shouldn’t be used as an honorific either. To most consumers “bestseller” implies something that lots of people have bought. I’ve seen my very obscure works of fiction reach best seller/top 10 status numerous times on Amazon, sometimes after selling as little as 3 copies in a day. (fiction/fantasy and science fiction/techno thrillers/medical). Sorry, but calling yourself a “bestselling” author because three people bought your 99 cent novella ONCE on the same day is deceptive even if Amazon does it. People either know the scam and laugh at you for doing it, or they don’t know and you’re trying to fool them. When I see a blogger or anyone trying to sell me a service use it, I ALWAYS look up their books and check the rankings.

I get it. It’s frustrating, and most indie (or more accurately most self-published) authors don’t have the support of a publicist or really anyone, and traditional “authors” take short-cuts they aren’t even aware of because the publishing company is working behind the scenes. However, I wouldn’t call myself a “bestselling” author unless there was some way to justify it. You don’t need to reserve the title for books mentioned in the NY Times or USA today, but bear in mind that Amazon is just one store, and real bestsellers sell in the millions. If you’ve reached the top 100 in PAID Amazon (no sub-categories) that’s an awesome and inspiring achievement. but if you aren’t selling anywhere else, unless you’ve sold over a million copies, to me it’s still off-putting if you’re not putting “Kindle” or “Amazon” between “bestselling” and “author.”