I'm inquiring on behalf of a very shy friend. 
He's sold over 700 copies of his p.o.d. title, with minimal advertising (just his website and blog). I understand this isn't amazing success, but is nevertheless respectable by self-publishing standards.
When querying agents, should my friend include this mini-success? I realize self-publishing isn't a publishing credit on its own, but it seems to me that selling so many copies is a testament to his skill and his fan base (which is much larger than it appears, since if the book was commercially priced instead of $25 for a trade paperback from Lulu, it would sell even more quickly).
If so, how could it be phrased to be unobtrusive and make it clear that he knows this accomplishment doesn't make him the next Stephen King?
He's sold over 700 copies of his p.o.d. title, with minimal advertising (just his website and blog). I understand this isn't amazing success, but is nevertheless respectable by self-publishing standards.
When querying agents, should my friend include this mini-success? I realize self-publishing isn't a publishing credit on its own, but it seems to me that selling so many copies is a testament to his skill and his fan base (which is much larger than it appears, since if the book was commercially priced instead of $25 for a trade paperback from Lulu, it would sell even more quickly).
If so, how could it be phrased to be unobtrusive and make it clear that he knows this accomplishment doesn't make him the next Stephen King?
