Thursday 18 August 2011

Indie Authors Epidemic


I am sure the title of this blog is on a memo, on a desk, within a big publishing house. It is no shock to Indie Authors just how many people write these days, more and more people seem to be coming out of the woodwork and telling their stories. This is fantastic, but also adds to the competition. I say competition because it is every authors dream to make a career out of telling stories and to do that you need to reach the top, which makes everyone else your competition.



Well, it would, but not so much in this line of work.



I think that is what fascinates me the most about Indie Authors. It is a really competitive market and it is pretty hard to separate yourself from other authors. The quality of books is amazing these days, but every Indie Author is willing to help another. What line of work would you get that in? I can think of several, but won’t say them, as it ruins the point I was trying to make!



I was a published author and I have taken some time out, come back with a new book. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy going under a new name, but I honestly didn’t think it would be this hard. I say it is hard as promotion tactics have become quite clever. It is difficult to do something that no one else is doing and stand out from the crowd.



I believe if I hadn’t been a published author I would be heartbroken and defeated, but I have had books in the best seller rankings and know a secret... that everyone else knows, which sort of doesn’t really make it a secret now that I think about it. That non-secret is that it takes... TIME.



Time is your biggest enemy. Writing is a very passionate thing and you want your book to do well quickly. You want people to read your story, your characters, and your creation and be sucked into this fantastic book. The problem is time. Nobody knows who you are, why should they care? It feels like a lifetime for you to get that first sale, first review and see the first person mentioning your book in a group or forum.



I think the one thing you should remember is that Indie Authors are in the same boat as you. They have been through what you are going through, they are aiming for that next level, be is a top 20 in their genre, top 10, number 1, first U.S top 100, but it is brilliant that Indie Authors  help each other so much. Since coming back with my new book I have been welcomed into groups and forums, people offered to have me on their blog, telling their friends about my books, so many people have just passed on my blog.



“Dogs, the forgotten heroes” had an insane amount of hits and that was due to people just being kind enough to tell their friends. So, it is hard being an Indie Author and telling your story, but it does get easier. Soon one sale will turn into two, two will turn into three and if I was any better at maths I would continue that on. Don’t give up and lose heart. There are thousands of Indie Authors that know what you are going through and are willing to help, advise or give you that boost to your confidence. We are lucky to be in such a great line of work filled with amazing people.



So, for all those that helped my old pen name (I am a man of mystery!), for those that have helped me today, I want to thank everyone on Twitter, Facebook, The Facebook Groups, Goodreads and the forums. I would especially like to thank everyone at the kindleboards forum, as they really are a source of motivation and inspiration, especially with my old pen name, as I struggled a lot under that name and that community was great support. So, thank you.



Simon

3 comments:

  1. Great post, Simon. Yes, we all struggle but struggling together and sharing information makes it a little easier. There is no profession like this one. Authors, writers are some of the kindest people I know. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. Glad to hear you're finding help along the way. I've met some really great people who have helped me in this business and I always try to repay the kindness. In a business when we could all be at each other's throats, it's great to have support from fellow author's. Keep at it, Simon!

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  3. Simon Smith-Wilson18 August 2011 at 05:51

    Hey Jean, Kellie, that is the thing really. It could really be a stab in the back situation, but people really do really go out of there way to help other authors. I see so many authors struggling, but then you see all the positives messages telling them to keep going and it just shows the great mentality of the community.

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