2022 was a year that I spent writing a book. This book, as yet untitled, is best described as fantasy science fiction. Therein lies the problem. It is a bit of a mash-up. The last few chapters remain unwritten, and the cover art eludes me. As for anything resembling marketing ideas, I have no clue at all.
The funny thing is, I think the book is good. It has some original ideas and a few interesting characters. But it is an oddball, and I know with the wisdom of an established independent author, this book will be a nightmare to sell. Ideal reader? No idea. I have a horrible feeling it will sit in the dark depths of my computer’s memory and be discovered after I’m dead.
But let’s get back to the sentence about the wisdom of an established indie. What exactly do I mean?
New writers believe creating the actual book will be the biggest challenge of the process. It is no mean feat, that is for sure.
But selling it.
Getting it into the hands of readers in a saturated market is the BIG THING. Getting a book market-ready is expensive. Editing and proofreading require a financial outlay, and if the book covers and marketing assets need to be outsourced, that is another expense. I do my own art, yet the time it takes is considerable, and I will still need to pay for images I want to use within the artwork. In short, there is a lot of time and effort involved, and when I really consider this unnamed book, I know deep in my heart that I may not break even.
Optimistically I believe everything we write improves and teaches us something about our art. So I feel no resentment about this lost project. Rather, I will set it aside and move on.
And what am I doing now? Well, I must confess a new idea popped into my head, and when it did, I knew it would be easy to market. Tag lines, titles and book covers were clear in my mind right from the start, and this project has come together really well.
So my message, dear reader? Don’t be afraid to move on if you look at your project and know deep down it will never truly be successful. Set it aside and begin again on something you can believe in.
Watch this space.
This blog comes out on the first of every month. April's blog is all about my new project. Also, please do comment. You can find my social media links, comment here or email via the contacts page.