Happy Saturday, one and all! And after days of rainy weather and thunderheads, I can honestly say it's wonderful to see the sun shining out here again. I've missed it. Rain is great, don't get me wrong! It makes everything so green and helps the new plants take root. Yet, the sunshine is why I love where I live, so it's nice to see it again.
Today I want to discuss something that I feel is paramount to the success of any author, and that's building a catalog. You've published your first book and exhale, both relieved and excited, because you're about to start rolling in the dough. And don't lie--every author has this expectation after their first work is released. And their second. And third. It's an expectation society has built up for us all, even if we know deep down that it's not likely, and actually, rather impossible.
And then the sales don't come.
I told everyone right before my first two books came out, "I don't expect much success," but deep down, I was hoping, and when that hope was shattered, I retreated to seriously reconsider my work and my career choice. I stopped writing entirely for a long time--almost six months. At one point, I decided to try again, and finished my third book. After my first two books flopped, and my third, and fourth, and well, my eBook catalog currently boasts more than 10 individual eBooks (8 titles overall), I'm still not seeing much success. Some days, the lack of interest in my work is truly disheartening.
But rather than give up--because if you know me, I'm stubborn and refuse to walk away from something I love so much--I resolved to try a few different things. The foremost was that I wouldn't walk away. I refused to stop writing. Once that choice was made, I developed a plan.
First, I wanted to grow my catalog beyond the seven books and short stories I had out. The more books I have of high quality, the more interest I'm going to garner. It's only a matter of time before something clicks and word spreads. To grow my catalog, though, I needed to do something crazy. I needed to write all the time. Before, I wrote a few thousand words a day, and would do other things, such as take care of the house and run errands. No more! Now I write from about 8 in the morning until my husband comes home around 5:30, and sometimes, I write later than that. I don't often take lunch breaks, or any breaks, for that matter. Writing isn't just a full-time job anymore. It has morphed into my sole reason for existing. If I don't meet my word count and editing goals for the week, I get angry with myself and figure out what I can do to make things better, to increase my focus, and to force those words out, even if they're terrible. These are, after all, the first drafts.
I think the important part here is that even after not earning more than a few dollars a quarter, I'm still writing. I'm still pushing and still fighting. I refuse to let the depression defeat me. This is a choice you need to make for yourself, but once you make it, things will change forever--both inside of you, and out.
Next in growing my catalog, I decided I needed to stay in front of readers all the time. So I began to work on my serial novel, Axis of the Soul. I initially planned to release one 3,000-word part a week. Because I'm writing so much, there's a good chance I'll be upping that to two parts released each week. I'm still deciding if that's something I can realistically do while maintaining quality on my other projects. True, I want to put out a lot of new work, but I also want to maintain high quality and consistency within each and every one of my works. This is super important to me, because each book and short story is part of a larger epic taking place. For my plan to work, everything has to make sense and be consistent with everything else.
Other than building my catalog by writing and releasing new works, I'm also constantly updating my blog and checking what posts do well and which ones don't. I've noticed that interviews get huge numbers while these more personal posts see far fewer. That's all right, though. The larger numbers during my interview posts means there's a substantial chance someone who has never read my blog before might like it enough to start following me. It's a dream one can aspire to, anyway. And because of that, I'll keep posting what I love discussing--which is writing, Inrugia, and the cultures I'm creating. ;)
I have also started pushing my newsletter more, though I'm seeing little return in that, since I just began a few days ago. When it comes to things outside of writing, I've learned I can really only focus on building one at a time and maintain quality in my work. First, it was Twitter and Facebook (which, I'm proud to say, after a few weeks of hard work and interaction, I've upped both by more than 20 followers each!). Next is the newsletter, and once I have a decent readership there, I'll be pushing my Patreon pretty hard, and then roll back to Twitter and Facebook, and so on.
Why do all of this? Well, because this is what I want to do for a living. Beyond building my catalog, I have to show people that I've built it. Readers don't know that I have so many titles out, simply because to the majority of them, I'm invisible. While having a large catalog and eventually gaining a following is inevitable, I can bring readers to my catalog as it grows while doing other things to actively build a following. Writing a lot of books and short stories isn't enough. It just isn't. You also have to work hard at bringing other aspects of your love for writing to readers.
I have a few more ideas simmering in the back of my mind, and will give those a try. Until then, though, this is what I'm doing. Writing all the time, and when I'm not writing, I'm blogging or tweeting or posting on Facebook or working on figuring out this newsletter business. I'm also pinning and planning and soon, maybe even Instagramming. Who knows? All I know is that this is what I want to do. I want to be a writer, so I'm putting in all of the hard work I can to make this career a reality.
What do you do to build your catalog, and eventually, your readership? Have you ever felt like giving up? I have, but I pushed through it. If you have, please don't quit! Remember--it's all about gaining someone's interest. Build a relationship with readers, and you'll do fine. :) Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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