For those of you who follow my page, you may have noticed a lot of silence lately. Some of you have even asked the question, why aren't you advertising your third book? There is a very good reason, and I would be happy to share that with you now.
There are several aspects of writing that I thoroughly enjoy. And there are a few small aspects that make me cringe.
Firstly, the writing. Honestly, when people think about writers I think for the most part that they would assume the writing and creating is the hardest part, but it's not. For a creative thinker who enjoys the writing process, it is very fun and often easy. Sure, there are a lot of difficult moments when a writer needs to do intense research or plan and develop characters, but it is all part of the fun of being creative.
Secondly, the publishing process. For a self-published author such as myself, there is a lot of work processing, editing, more editing, and design that goes into the publishing process. As a former administrative assistant, I thrive with these types of jobs. I enjoy the little quirks needed in order to complete a professional piece of work.
Thirdly, the advertising. Without a doubt, this is where I fall short. I do not like to promote myself or my book. I don't like telling people about it because I HATE spoilers and I am always sure I'll ruin it even by telling someone the character's names. I don't want to "toot my own horn," so to speak, because then people might ask more questions that I don't have the energy to answer. My dream would be to have someone else do the advertising for me.
With that being said, over the Christmas break I decided to look into publishing through an actual publishing house. I did a lot of research, and without going into too much detail, it was expensive. VERY expensive. So I looked into grants in order to cover the cost, but grants cover the work of writing and not the publishing, so that was a no go. I had an interview of sorts with a publishing company and fell very short of selling my book as I am not great at it, though in the end it was the cost that stopped me from following through on that plan. The idea was that if I could get a company to publish my work, the pressure of sales would be off my shoulders.
Therefore, I stopped advertising. Because if a publishing company were to publish my book, I would have to pull all my books from Amazon self-publishing anyway, and allow the company to print them instead. It seemed a waste to me to have to do double advertising, so I didn't bother.
This weekend I spoke to my friend, the artist I work closely with on my books, and complained that I have only sold 25 copies of the third book. I feel it is the best work of the series so far, and I want more people to enjoy the depth of content I worked into the third novel. It is the type of book I think can really make a difference in someone's life. She reminded me that for those 25 people who took the time to read the book, it did make a difference. And isn't that the point? The point isn't sales or numbers or covering my cost. The point, for me, is to bring joy to others, to allow myself a creative outlet, and to share my imagination with the world. Everything else is extra.
And so, after careful consideration, research, and speaking to other authors, I have decided to continue self-publishing for the very reason I initially chose this route. I don't want anyone putting me into a deadline, and I don't want my work controlled or owned by any other company. So now it's back to the drawing board on advertising. If anyone has any advertising advice, please feel free to let me know. Otherwise, I would be very grateful for anyone who advertises for me via word of mouth and shares my books with others.
