My book has been available for sale for 12 days now and I felt it was a good time to reflect on how it’s going, where it’s going, and what I’ve learned.
Formatting and uploading to the ‘zon was fairly easy. I did have to fiddle with it a bit to get the cover and margins to fit within the guidelines, but overall the process took me less than 2 hours. Waiting for the book to be approved and go live took about 3 days of nail-biting tension, but I didn’t have any issues that delayed the process, so it could have been a lot worse.
Getting your work up on a distribution platform can be daunting, but if you do your research beforehand, know what to expect, and can problem-solve on the fly, it’s not nearly so difficult. I expect the next book I put up will go even faster since I now know what kinks to look out for.
But did I sell anything?
First, I will say that I am far, far away from being a best seller, but I suspect most indie authors can say the same. Still, I have managed to sell a little over a book a day simply from tossing it out into the void. I could very likely sell a hell of a lot more if I promoted it, but this little cave goblin prefers gently leaving art offerings out in the open and then slinking away.
I suck at marketing; I am not charismatic, witty, or gimmicky. Social awkwardness oozes from my every pore and I am well aware my age bracket puts me out of trendy demographics. I have to lean on things like engaging prose, eye-catching covers, professional formatting, and the occasional post on some antique social media like Facebook and Instagram. Even the best written book doesn’t sell if no one sees it, of course, but having the best product I possibly can ensures the few who do tell others it’s worth a try.
I also lined up a number of live events in which to sell direct, only to fall into panic mode as I scramble to get prepped for a good turn-out. Unfortunately, 3 of the events either declined my application or canceled the event entirely, and then my printing service announced a delivery delay that means I’ll be attending my first event sans books.
They delay was partly my fault (I was a week behind schedule on getting uploaded), but I had originally been assured the books would arrive with moments to spare. But Murphy’s Law reared up and one little hitch threw it all off-balance. I am disappointed and feel a little silly to be an author without books at one of the biggest events for my area, but it is what it is and fixing problems is kinda my thing.
Doing a little out-of-the-box thinking, I whipped up a fantastic flyer using my book cover and a few snippets, with a QR code that links directly to my sales page so I can hopefully generate a few online sales in lieu of direct sales. We’ll see how it goes this weekend.
By the time my next event rolls around on September 7th, I’ll have plenty of copies of my book. Probably more than I’ll ever sell, if the estimations of my fellow vendor booth mates is to be considered. From their estimation, the average indie author sells only 8 copies of their book per event, making it not even worth the table fee. I’m getting a deal on the fees for my first 3 events, so that isn’t much of a worry for me. And if I only sell 8? Then I guess I won’t have to order more stock for a while.
I'll be sure to post pictures of my adventures, whether they be successful or not.
All in all, I am satisfied with my first couple weeks as an official publisher. I have a book I can be proud of, sales beyond my small circle of friends, and plans to grow my Grymveil setting into a full catalog.
Until next time, Stay Magical!
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