I had a drink last week with another self published author. She said ‘Jo I’m giving up writing. I’ve written 12 books. I can’t keep writing. They’re just not selling and there are too many books now on Amazon. I’ll take up knitting instead.’
Of course she won’t take up knitting. Writing is in her blood and if there is a story to be told she’ll keep writing. The problem is we as authors all want to be successful. We want to be like JK Rowling and Peter James. We want to make our fortune. We want fame. Don’t deny it. I know you do. You all do!
But is that really likely? Did you begin writing your book with the aim of making millions? No you didn’t. You write because you have passion. You love words. You love the sense of personal achievement. You like getting lost in your story. Your story takes you to another time and place in which you can immerse yourself. It’s a wonderful feeling isn’t it?
But that niggling voice at the back of your head isn’t satisfied. That voice tells you to check your sales report. You’ve only made 1 sale this week. Oh dear it’s all been a waste of time and money. But has it been a waste? How do you personally define success? What are your goals? Set some realistic goals. Don’t aim so high. Take each step as it comes and listen to the advice of other authors. Go on workshops to learn how to be a better writer and make sure your work is well edited.
Success is so arbitrary. But success comes in stages little by little. I hate to admit this but I failed my O Level English 4 times before passing! But I’ve now written three books and I obsess about grammar and spelling and sentence construction and getting it right. But the problem is in life we always want more. We’re never satisfied. If you get 20 sales a day you want to achieve 100 a day. You want to be the best. But make yourself the best you can be not by the same standards as the top authors. They are in a minority. 99.9% of us will never make much money. That’s a fact so stop being so competitive and praise yourself for what you are achieving.
Another self published author friend has the right approach. He says ‘treat your writing like a hobby. A very reasonably priced hobby (compared to membership of a golf club or camera equipment if you like photography or gym membership.) that you can offset against your tax bill.’ He has the right approach; a positive one.
Your first review should make you feel a success. You’ve inspired a reader. You’ve made them laugh, you’ve made them think, you’ve changed their opinion, you’ve made them cry, you’ve made them angry. They have emoted. You’ve made them feel human! That’s success.
I asked the first friend how many sales she’s actually making. Two or three a day she said. I was amazed. ‘That’s brilliant’ I told her but she can’t see it because she’s aiming to high and that’s making her unhappy. Don’t set your goals so high. Be pleased if you only get one sale today or one this week. Hopefully that one reader will love your book and feel inspired. It’s a wonderful thing when somebody reads and enjoys your book. They’ve given you time. They’ve taken you seriously. They’ve seen inside your soul. They’ve connected with you on a deep level. So have some determination to carry on. Don’t be downcast.
And here’s the links to my books if you want to feel emotion!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_17?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=joanna+warrington&sprefix=Joanna+Warrington%2Caps%2C154