In my previous blog I talked about the freedom you have as an Indie publisher who self publishes your own work.
I have decided there are a few more things to put with this including a few words on marketing I am still learning. I want to make it clear, there is more than one approach to writing and it is based on your motivation and none are incorrect, they are just different. I have listened to pod casts and You Tube videos by very successful writers. One of these writers was the author Jack Canfield and his partner for the books that started with “Chicken Soup for the Soul”. He offered a free lecture, and I have been bombarded by spam ever since until I blocked it. These authors all say the same thing: Start thinking about marketing and how to make your book more saleable before you even start writing. I understand it is sort of important to have an idea about who your audience is, however these writers are all about sales and will do what it takes, in whatever way they can, to make it happen. They are a hungry bunch. They employ every idea they can think of to make sure those millions keep coming in. Just like any other business, they are always looking at marketing to boost their sales and increase their profits. They find a niche market (like compiling other people’s stories) and they milk it for all it is worth. I have noticed over the years of reading things on deliberate creating or The Secret, you need to have a clear intention and then follow it. I don’t know if you need to be such a go-getter that you focus all you writing on what the market wants, as well as being able to shovel it, however I do think, having a clear idea of your audience is very important when you are writing. For instance I wrote a few children’s picture books that don’t really follow the ideas of the age group however I chose the words and complexity to make it challenging for gifted kids as well as those with autism and are on the spectrum. That was a clear and deliberate choice based on years of reading books from those available in the school system. Even after years of dealing with kids of all ages on the spectrum, I still can’t figure out why so many of these kids get fixated to the point of obsession on the things they do. Why does a child become obsessed with trains or rainbow ponies or whatever it is? I have no idea even though I carried the same obsession with dogs however I designed my books to get them hooked on nature, ecology and preservation of the planet filling my books with not only beautiful pictures, but also interesting facts. Even my colouring books are designed for those who not only want to colour but improve and learn to draw their own images. Again, I had a specific group in mind! My point is, I chose my audience before I started. My books cannot be read by just any child, just as only gifted kids or adults will really benefit from my colouring book and colouring sketchbook. I accepted this and when you think of how many picture books there are with such limited text and ideas, I don’t mind if mine are not the same. In this regard I did think about marketing however only to the extent of the purpose and indeed, motivation behind my writing...and I can say now, it was not about profit or making a million. So, each of us as writers have to decide how far we shall go. Whether our Intent is to make huge amounts of money or to write something for the sake of writing it for the love of it, or if our intention will be tempered with both an understanding of our niche market so it will be able to reach that market but still be true to the personal intent that prompted us to write it to begin with. Also keep in mind, writing a book for self-help in a niche market or compiling other people’s stories is not the same thing. If you do low content books and "how to" books with every intention of making a solid living from this, then once again, choosing why you’re doing it can be very different than marketing for a readers market. I think in the end, there are a few things will likely sell your book:
I would rather be an unsuccessful and struggling artist who never knows success than the one who knows it and has it take over his creative life. After years of doing portraits for people, and commissions, doing as they want which left me with very little creative input, I decided when I took on this retirement project, my goal is not about the sales and profit margin, it is about doing what I love to do. It doesn't mean I won't work to market my work once I get more settled, because I shall, or find another who can do it. Either way, I know for myself, what my intentions are, and why; and they are not about making a million dollars or so many sales. This is my decision and as an indie writer, at some point, you will have to decide this also...what sort of energy you are going to put into making your work known, and what your expectations are. One thing I can be sure of, if you expect to knock something off, put it out there, and have it found in this sea of writers now, then you are likely going to be disappointed! Don't kid yourself, those writers who started getting found and selling and so on right away, especially now when there is so much competition, are few and far between! In the case of marketing, learn from others, find avenues to make your book known, and then find how to make some aspects of it work for you. Don't spread your energy too thin attempting to market in a million different ways, just what works for you. It won't happen over night, however that doesn't mean it won't happen. Best of luck!
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June 2024
AuthorArtist, Buddhist, Educator, Traveller, Cabinet Maker, kayaker, etc and now writer! |