WHY ISN’T MY BOOK SELLING by Sarah E. Boucher

Why Isn’t My Book Selling?!?

Authors are prone to what I like to call Extra Special Writer Freak Outs.

It’s understandable. People have only been LYING to us all of our lives. (Trust me, I’m a fairytale writer, I know all about carefully crafted falsehoods.) The problem is that few successful authors take the time to debunk the myths about book publishing.

So my darlings, that’s where I come in. I’m a second-time author and a full-time educator and it will be MY pleasure to share the Dirty Dark Secrets of the publishing process with you. The following is for a) newbie authors, or b) those who are completely delusional about the publishing process, like I was.

Dirty Dark Secret 1: Success is a direct result of hard work. Gone are the days when publishing ONE book resulted in instant popularity and millions of dollars. (Okay, unless you’re really, really lucky.) Most writers only become successful after they have produced and released a number of books. Much like childbirth, birthing your novel is just the beginning of the process.

Quite simply, if you’re not doing anything your novel probably isn’t either.

Dirty Dark Secret 2: Most of the marketing and promotion will fall to you. We’ve all heard of elaborate book tours and publishing houses using their immense influence to promote books. But big publishing houses are highly selective in the books they accept for publication. And if current trends continue, even traditionally published authors will be responsible for the lion’s share of marketing, sales, and book promotion.

If tackling marketing and promotion seems daunting, just remember than indie authors do all it the time. You will survive!

Dirty Dark Secret 3: The learning curve is pretty steep. Marketing isn’t easy. Add sales and book promotion to that and you may be ready to hug your laptop to your chest while rocking and crying at the same time. But no one’s book deserves to sit in the dark. (Okay, some people’s books deserve to sit in the dark. Possibly forever.) If you can afford it, there are people out there who will handle marketing and promotion for you. But if you’re like me, your marketing budget is pretty slim. However, if you’re brave enough (and/or stubborn enough) to educate yourself, you can conquer anything.

Whether you have lots, little, or no experience, there are plenty of resources out there to help you. Put those big brains to work!

Dirty Dark Secret 4: Connection is key. Most writers tend to be introverts. News flash, that won’t fly if you want people to know about your books. Pull up your big girl/boy pants, put on your best smile, and prep that book blurb, baby! Then kindly and respectfully connect with bloggers, readers, reviewers, shopkeepers, and librarians both online and in person.

Building a support group will take time. Be genuine and be prepared to swap favors.

The Dirty Dark Secrets revealed above may come as a blow to anyone who has big dreams of publishing. Especially if you have no solid plans to back them up.

This is the moment when I should tell you something inspirational, like:

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

—Eleanor Roosevelt

But I’m not going to do that. Because if dreaming what you want, you’d better go back to bed and let the rest of us get on with it.

Instead of reciting pleasant platitudes, I’m going to remind you of the following:

You are a WRITER. You make up entire worlds and paint them so vividly that others can live in them as well. And you’ll do it over and over and over again until your mind or your body grows too weak to continue. Don’t be afraid of hard work. There are as many amazing vistas before you as there are behind you.

And hey, I don’t know about you, but I’m in this for the long haul. If I can do it, you can too.

About the author:

Sarah E. Boucher is a lover of fairy stories, romance, anything BBC and Marvel, and really, really cute shoes. On weekdays she wears respectable shoes and serves as Miss B., the Queen of Kindergarten. On school holidays she writes stories about romance and adventure. And wears impractical super cute shoes.

Sarah is a graduate of Brigham Young University. She lives and works in northern Utah. Her novels include Becoming Beauty and Midnight Sisters. Visit Sarah at SarahEBoucher.com or connect with her on TwitterFacebook, or Instagram.

 

 

 

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