World's Oldest Profession- Salacious Sales in The TTRPG Space?

For folks who don't keep a close eye on my releases, I recently had an impressive showing with my new supplement. World's Oldest Profession: 100 Courtesans and Concubines managed to do something that very few of my supplements have managed, which was to hit Copper status on its first day of release! Not only that, but it also hit Silver status by the end of 48 hours, which is something that's only happened a handful of times in the past for something I've made.

Oddly enough, the last time this happened was with the original supplement that led to this project, World's Oldest Profession: A Baker's Dozen of Brothels... a supplement which is now sitting at Electrum status, and still rising!

If something happens one time, it could be a fluke. Twice could be a coincidence. But three times? Well that just might be a trend...

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Does Salacious Content Generate Sales?

We've all heard the phrase sex sells, and even if we haven't heard it before we've all seen those commercials filled with bikini-clad supermodels, and voice overs from sultry performers trying to reach in through your ear to your wallet. And we've had our share of questionable covers of Dragon magazine, and occasional tables, monsters, and even asides in adventure paths, but outside of tomes like The Book of Erotic Fantasy (yes it's real, don't try to check it out if you're not of age) we don't have a lot of major examples of books predicated entirely on the selling power of adult (or at least mature) content.

Don't get me wrong, we have a lot of examples of this kind of content (such as the entire catalog of Lewd Dungeon Adventures), but it's usually been something we keep in the background, and which only bubbles to the surface from time to time.

And I'll be the first one to say that neither of my World's Oldest Profession supplements is particularly lewd. The first installment details brothels, as well as those who staff them, but there's nothing explicit in that supplement. The second installment is also more suggestive than anything else, with a lot of nodding and winking among the list of 100 prostitutes, but there's nothing in it that would prompt more than a PG-13 rating. At best.

Despite that, though, both of these supplements have sold like gangbusters!

What conclusions can I draw from this? Well, first and foremost, the price point for NPC and locations lists continues to be important for supplements I write. Secondly, cover art is also pretty important, and this particular piece by Dara Williamson is definitely eye-catching. However, the content is definitely responsible for both the initial sales, as well as the long-term viability of the supplement. And even with the age restriction on these supplements, they still outsell well over 95% of the stuff I produce.

Are the folks who buy either A Baker's Dozen of Brothels or 100 Courtesans and Concubines suddenly going to have uniquely spicy locations and NPCs in their games once they buy them? Probably not... but they at least have the opportunity, if that's what they and their players want to do!

A Final Note

As I so often say when I talk about the business side of TTRPGs, you have to follow the money. And while are all kinds of things I could work on (and things I definitely want to work on), this pattern has definitely drawn both my attention, as well as my publisher's attention.

So I wanted to ask... would folks like to see this become a longer-running series? Whether it's making sci-fi versions of these two supplements, or adding to them with other, similarly bawdy titles (things like 100 Laws Regarding Prostitution, 100 Slang Terms For Sultry Activities, A Baker's Dozen of Flesh Trade Guilds, etc.)?

I've got ideas... the question is, what would you all like to see going forward?

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