•• Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton: Record Breaking book sales on Day 1••

First, the Clinton advance is simply too large–the largest ever except for that received by Pope John Paul II for world rights to his memoirs, a book that was subsequently published worldwide, in countless languages. Clinton’s $8 million is far more than Simon & Schuster would ever have to pay her in royalties. Publishers calculate advances on the basis of how much in royalties the author may ultimately earn. Under a usual and customary royalty deal, an $8-million advance would require sales of over two million copies of the Clinton book. No political book, no memoir, no autobiography has ever, ever sold that many copies.

Under a usual and customary royalty deal, an $8-million advance would require sales of over two million copies of the Clinton book. No political book, no memoir, no autobiography has ever, ever sold that many copies.

The outside sale, in fact, for Hillary’s book would be 200,000 copies, and even that is probably a stretch. [Emphasis added]

"For Mrs. Clinton, One Day, 200,000 Copies"

"Clinton's Memoir Sets Nonfiction Sales Record"

"Clinton memoir breaks sales record"