They say that publishing works on this basis, with the most successful books subsidising the disappointments.
Within the limits of publishing’s Rule Number One (“Remain solvent“), this is a useful mindset for other parts of life: stationary, socks, gadgets, software, tools, books.
The pleasure and use we get from the good ones repays our investment many times over, compensating us for the bad ones.
Perhaps we should show more appreciation for inferior purchases that were a) unavoidable at the time and b) a step on the journey of discovery towards something better. They are worth the risk, and probably worth a faster decision – at very least, we learnt from them, and they brought us here.