McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Secret to Succes?
crystalphoenixhobbies1:
Not sure if Mr. Butcher reads all of the forums, and to be honest I'd be surprised if he had the time, so while my question is directed towards him, I'll take any answers I can get. There is no doubt that you are a brilliant author, and your books have been read by countless people across the globe. But at one point you were just like the rest of us. I recently self-published an ebook on Amazon (Just a 90 page short story to get my work out there for once), but out of the billions (with a B) of people out there, not a single one has decided that the $0.99 price tag is worth spending to take a look at it. So the question I have is: What did you do, when you first started writing, to get your name out there? Was it a bunch of self promotion, recommendations from your publishers, or just blind luck, the chance encounters of people who saw your book on the shelves, and decided not only to read it, but to recommend it to a friend? I'm not really sure if there is an answer, or if its all three (or more) of those at once.
Crystal Phoenix Hobbies
Griffyn612:
I'm not in the industry, but there was mention of how hard it is to get started just last night on The Colbert Report. There's a publisher that's being strong-armed by Amazon, and a lot of people are lashing out at Amazon for it.
The guest commentator on the show talked about how hard it is to get published, and how a book's sales are usually determined well before it's actually released. It has to do with promotion by the publisher and seller. Even published books can be D.O.A. without promotion. The commentator stated that its nearly impossible for new authors to get started now.
There's also a lot of videos on Youtube where JB talks about how hard it was for him to get published. Most authors I've read are very open about the process, and they all talk about numerous books, sometimes a handful, sometimes an entire series, that they write but never get published. Butcher has a tale of an unpublished story that was never deemed good enough. Kevin Hearne wrote an epic fantasy novel which didn't get published. With half a dozen books released in the Iron Druid Chronicles series, he's now looking at going back and polishing his original fantasy plot. Now he's one of the better known modern fantasy authors out there, but he still has a day job to support him and his family. Seanan McGuire writes urban fantasy, and I know the name but never read her stuff. She too apparently has had to keep a day job, despite having released a bunch of books.
I've also seen commentary that the self-publishing boom through Amazon is already fading. Most folks that have met with any success on self-publishing are now looking to get published, simply because there's almost no way to promote your work via self-publishing, you have to do it all yourself, and your target audience is limited. There's even talk about how the publishing industry is very demaning on the authors, requiring them to go out and promote their own works on social media, do book tours around the country for siginings and readings, and attend large panels at conventions with a bunch of other authors, all to spread the word of their work just a little bit more.
The Deposed King:
--- Quote from: crystalphoenixhobbies1 on June 05, 2014, 09:19:20 PM ---Not sure if Mr. Butcher reads all of the forums, and to be honest I'd be surprised if he had the time, so while my question is directed towards him, I'll take any answers I can get. There is no doubt that you are a brilliant author, and your books have been read by countless people across the globe. But at one point you were just like the rest of us. I recently self-published an ebook on Amazon (Just a 90 page short story to get my work out there for once), but out of the billions (with a B) of people out there, not a single one has decided that the $0.99 price tag is worth spending to take a look at it. So the question I have is: What did you do, when you first started writing, to get your name out there? Was it a bunch of self promotion, recommendations from your publishers, or just blind luck, the chance encounters of people who saw your book on the shelves, and decided not only to read it, but to recommend it to a friend? I'm not really sure if there is an answer, or if its all three (or more) of those at once.
Crystal Phoenix Hobbies
--- End quote ---
I would say that a 90 page story up on amazon with nothing else in your back list isn't going to sell. People on amazon, in my experience, don't care for short stories in general and the only time they'll buy one is if its part of an ongoing series.
Beyond that I would say that the bar for writing a book and shoving it out the door, self published, on amazon has risen. My best advise is action, action, action. Keep it exciting, keep it interesting and keep it focused on the story without infodumps on the world or anything else. If its not relevent to the story dump it.
Beyond that. You can do face book groups. You can put your story up on places like Baen's Bar, and get people to read it. If you're good enough, you'll get fans who will want to support you and they will buy it. Other than that I don't know what to tell you. Write a bigger book? And get a couple of them out the door?
I'd say sign up for amazon exclusive and give out a free offering with the hope of getting some reviews. But I'm not sure that's the best way to go for you, with only a 90 pager out there.
best of luck,
The Deposed King
crystalphoenixhobbies1:
To be honest, I wasn't even aware that there even was a time when self published books were huge. I did, however, know that it was becoming nearly impossible for the average person to get a book published these days. That was sort of the point of a short story. While yes, most people aren't interested in them, they still have the potential to get your name out there, without relying on a publisher to decide if you are good enough. Of course, that requires an actual purchase, which just goes back to how do you get people to buy?
Unlike most people here, I don't write because I think I'll someday be a huge success. I write because that's what I enjoy doing, more than anything else I've found. And since I'm going on 31, I've tried most things. (The Deposed King): The 90 page short story is the first in a series of at least seven, though likely they will all be less than 200 pages. That does not mean, however, that I don't have bigger books in the works. Two of my older ones are around 250 pages and only halfway done. But when you work 40 hours a week, are doing home renovations on a 100 year old house, and still need to find time to spend with your wife, it becomes harder to get longer books done. But I do see your point. lol.
Crystal Phoenix Hobbies
The Deposed King:
--- Quote from: crystalphoenixhobbies1 on June 06, 2014, 01:52:23 PM --- To be honest, I wasn't even aware that there even was a time when self published books were huge. I did, however, know that it was becoming nearly impossible for the average person to get a book published these days. That was sort of the point of a short story. While yes, most people aren't interested in them, they still have the potential to get your name out there, without relying on a publisher to decide if you are good enough. Of course, that requires an actual purchase, which just goes back to how do you get people to buy?
Unlike most people here, I don't write because I think I'll someday be a huge success. I write because that's what I enjoy doing, more than anything else I've found. And since I'm going on 31, I've tried most things. (The Deposed King): The 90 page short story is the first in a series of at least seven, though likely they will all be less than 200 pages. That does not mean, however, that I don't have bigger books in the works. Two of my older ones are around 250 pages and only halfway done. But when you work 40 hours a week, are doing home renovations on a 100 year old house, and still need to find time to spend with your wife, it becomes harder to get longer books done. But I do see your point. lol.
Crystal Phoenix Hobbies
--- End quote ---
70k+ for novel length is a minimum size. Anything else is novella territory which cut down on sales.
As for self-publishing, self-published books and reader base are more and larger than ever. But there are also more authors than ever before also so the competition is more fierce.
Also I don't think there are many of us here who write because we think we're the next tolkien or will be the next box office smasher. Life as a working author whose books are enjoyed by many are what I personally am shooting for and I think many others are as well.
As for family and others, life throws you curve balls.
Things to consider to help you book sell.
Story Length - too small is self limiting
Product Description - this is the back of the book, make it count
A good Cover - a picture says a thousand words
Reviews - they not only move you up on the search engine ranking much like sale but they also advertise to new readers, who can skim your reviews and help form and opinion
Worst case you can go to some place like Baen's bar put it in the slush and ask for people to read it. If they reade it and like it you could ask them to put up a review. The same goes for any of your beta readers. Ask them to go onto amazon, make an account if they don't already have one and pop up an honest review.
Those are the only things I can think of that could help you.
best of luck,
The Deposed King
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