Recently a publishing company I had inquired about 2 years ago called me and asked if I’d be interested in signing with them. Little did I know, that one phone call would make me think about the choices I had made in publishing the way I did. Self-publishing, that is.
To those wondering which avenue to go in, it’s really a personal choice. A ‘choose your own adventure’ kind of choice if you will. When it came to the first “Ultimate Agent”, everything was leading to the ‘for fun’ category. Just the fact that it would be published, in the flesh… ahem, paper! No doubt once you’ve got that hard earned wonder of words in your hands, it’ll be an exciting day! When it comes to self-publishing though, then there’s the learning curve of social media, marketing, advertising, platforms… do you really want the hassle of looking after all of that? You’ve already spent so much time slaving away at that novel. The company that called said that marketing was part of the lowest priced package. I will say, I almost jumped at it. But the humble-living carpenter in me kept me in my seat. Would it really be worth it to get a package worth $800? Is it crazy to invest that kind of money in something that may never even leave the shelf of bookstores? It’s true though, marketing isn’t easy. Especially when you’ve never done anything like it before. You need the website, Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram, Pinterest… when does it end? Is it all worth it? Sometimes it can get to the point of “why bother?” and you can lose your joy in doing something you once loved. Lately, that thought has entered my mind a few times. Do I want to be a NY Times Bestseller? It’d be nice! How would I feel about getting a movie deal? Hey, I can dream! But I don’t see myself getting there. That’s when you have to look around and realize good aspects of being an author. No doubt family and friends have been the biggest support, as is the case with myself. Thanks to them and other sales, the 2 UA novels so far have combined to sell almost 80 copies. Not too shabby at all! Huge thanks continues to go out to all that have shown their awesome support! Some say they liked it, some say they loved it. There’s even a friend younger than myself that can’t wait for the 3rd novel to be released next year. It’s those things that make it worthwhile. You have to focus on those aspects, the support, the true fans. These good things far outweigh the bad. You just have to keep on writing, and enjoy the ride. Please leave a comment on the ‘adventure’ you chose, and the good things that you’ve enjoyed on the way and now. Cheers D. R. J. Borne Mission Blog Complete
2 Comments
That's a tough place to be in, wanting to focus on the novel but having to be the marketer too. Self-publishing sounds like you have to be great at everything (marketing, social media, customer service rep, design, etc), not just the storytelling.
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Derek
10/19/2014 11:45:28 pm
Thank you for the comment Mandy. It definitely isn't easy, especially when social media keeps advancing the way it is.
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Derek BorneHere you can find my 'Mission Blogs' and news on upcoming novels... and stuff Archives
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