Eva Pasco's Blog - Posts Tagged "persistence"

“More Guts than Glory”—the Indie Author Story!

Will I become a best seller?

Will I get rich?

Que será, sera

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not mine to see

(My spoof of “Que Sera Sera,” a song first published in 1956, written by the songwriting team of Jay Livingston and Ray Evans; sung by Doris Day)

With electronic self-publishing, it’s become easier to be an author. This has made it harder than ever to sell a book. While it takes guts to write and publish a novel, it takes even more guts to strategize a marketing plan in the hope of enticing potential readers to purchase an eBook generally retailing from $.99 - $4.99. For the time being, a sporadic sale here and there may feel glorious, but I aspire to more. So, I pound the cyber pavement on social media every single day in my quest for glory.

While there’s no substitute for determination and guts to gain a foothold in this vast arena, opposing forces place obstacles along an Indie’s untrodden path to glory:

Facebook changes in displaying content mean that fewer people are seeing organic posts. As pay-per-click ads become more expensive, most Indies won’t have the means to compete. Therefore, it behooves Indies to rethink 2018: author groups and genre co-ops.

Despite setbacks, I’ve got the guts to persevere. Besides my inner drive, I credit my close-knit, author support group—the Indie Fabs, for their unwavering support and encouragement (Aliya DalRae, R.M. Gauthier, JB Richards, Lyra Shanti, and Joanne VanLeerdam).

I also take to heart stories of former struggling authors whose guts helped them attain glory (“The Writer’s Odds of Success” by William Dietrich, published by 'The Huffington Post' and updated May 4, 2013):

Stephen King’s first big novel, 'Carrie,' was rejected 30 times. He tossed it in the wastebasket, but his wife fished it out.

John Grisham’s first novel, 'A Time to Kill,' was rejected 12 times, and he unsuccessfully tried to sell copies from the trunk of his car.

Judy Blume, who has sold 80 million books, got nothing but rejections for two straight years.

J.K. Rowling, the first author billionaire, had 'Harry Potter' rejected by a dozen British publishing houses, and reportedly got into print, for a £1,500 advance, only after the eight-year-old daughter of a publisher pleaded for it.

“No guts, no glory!”

What would you title your life story?

Indie Authors require the patience and persistence of fly-fishing!

In Reel/Real Time—literally and metaphorically—I’ve been hauling bass since January along my WIP, 'Aida’s Fishing Ground,' in the genre of Contemporary Women’s Fiction, set in Foster, Rhode Island. Consequently, my novel trademark for integrating the locale’s historic landmarks, geographic entities, and regional culture is front and center.

I recently completed drafting chapter 3 (1807 words) which is devoted to one of the characters angling for bass in the Ponaganset River. At least two rules of thumb can be applied to an Indie author’s approach to marketing:

1. While fishing, an angler must cross that fine line between spending too much time in one unproductive spot and moving on to another.

Comparably, an Indie author must evaluate strategies for their effectiveness in procuring book sales, staying the course with what works, and/or moving on to another strategy.

2. Prior to fishing in a designated area, it behooves the angler to check the “fatty factor”—the detailed seven-day fishing forecast based on a 1 to 5 rating calculated per hour for every stream, whereby a factor of 5 indicates the fattest prospects for hauling bass or any other stock fish.

No such luck for an Indie author who must work all the angles to find his/her elusive readership with no guarantees for lucrative prospects whatsoever.

Best wishes to all Indie authors as we wade through social media on a daily basis in the hope of catching a sale through patience and persistence.