Hi all,
It’s been a while. Yeah. Turns out being a one man writer, marketer, advertiser, website admin, editor and CEO takes more time than I thought.
I just finished the second set of Project Threshold stories–they are edited and off to RedCape Publishing for inspection. It feels good to get those done but it was a tough pace this spring, writing as the stories came and still trying to maintain everything else.
Sooner or later I’m going to have to get some help. I just do not have time to do it all. Go figure 🙂
I’ve got lots of announcements, but I’ll start blogging more and get you up to speed. For this piece let’s discuss the Indie Author.
Complicated mess at best. In the “old days” a writer submitted their stories, if you had some talent you got short stories picked up by magazines and maneuvered your way into book deals with the prominent publishers. They took on the marketing, the advertising and even set up appearances, talks, signings and so on.
Welcome to the 21st century where the big 5 have been losing their edge–they don’t have the same power in the marketplace and it seems they’re offering less and less to their authors in terms of backing and support. Add to that the Amazon marketplace has set up an arena where absolutely anyone can publish their books and it’s flooded the markets.
For readers and consumers, it’s a mess. For my own self, I get most of my rec’s for book reading from friends I trust and have similar tastes. I can wade into the sea of books available, but even trying to refine a search, you get hit with an onslaught of books. The big 5 are still reeling against this. They’re relying on earlier clout, but they’re not really embracing the new age of publishing from what I’ve seen.
So, if you can’t get your foot in the door with the conglomerates, you’re going the Indie route. That can mean self publishing or hooking up with an intermediary or smaller press. I think all avenues are great–each has its upsides and downs but the bottom line is, as an Indie Author, you’re looking at lots of work.
It’s no longer about just the writing. You have to get your stories out there, and then whichever avenue you end up walking down, a lot of the marketing and advertising is up to you. Smaller presses and houses are great–I’ve been working with Mannison Press and RedCape and they are both fabulous and supportive. They’re just smaller presses and they don’t have a lot of time or resources to help with the marketing/advertising game.
I’m not complaining here, but if you’re a writer and are reading this, I want you to be prepared. The days of “woohoo I got a book published and my work is done” are over.
Most days I enjoy all the different sides of the publishing industry. It’s interesting and I like having some control on what’s happening with my stories. This spring, however, I got overloaded with writing and still trying to maintain two websites and submit more stories and work on the advertising side.
The writing went fine. Everything else back slid and basically it’s just the way it was, for good or ill. There are only so many hours in the day and I have been coming to terms with this reality. I got overwhelmed for a time until I realized I don’t have to conquer everything in a day, a week or even a month.
So, where does that leave us? I’m tackling what I can, when I can.
Project Threshold is getting most of my attention because it’s my thrust right now. I’m going to get back on schedule with this blog and then keep trying to stay organized. I’ll do what I can and keep poking at the advertising bear.
In the meantime, keep reading, whether it’s my stuff or not, and remember to leave reviews of the books you do read–those make a difference for authors. Really and truly. If nothing else it gives them a perk at a good review, and even gives them feedback on how to improve their next stories.
Alright…go have fun. I’m going to get a break too!
Craig