Marketing Master Strokes Episode 5: Try Every New Thing

Five weeks ago, we started down this road: a road of positive thinking and proactive decision-making. A road upon which we agreed to stop thinking about the many ways we can mess up the marketing process (Marketing Missteps) and pivoted onto the front foot–to thinking, in short, about the many ways we can succeed instead. So far we’ve looked at four master strokes, and today we’ll add a fifth, but a word of warning: this one’s not for the faint of heart!

Our first four master strokes asked that we:

be all ears (listening to the stories of others, and keeping an open mind to actually changing your own approach),
be willing to reach our readers where they live (setting aside the ego in order to adapt our outreach methods to best suit our readers),
incentivize! (Or at least, find new ways to make your book look attractive.) And last but certainly not least, our penultimate master stroke requires us to …
play well with others.

But the fifth master stroke? Well, this is the hardest one of all. It’s the most difficult to (no pun intended … maybe) master because it requires the aspiring self-publishing author to let go a little. Okay, a lot. It requires a complete surrender of the ego, because the ego cannot survive the constant process of optimization, the acceptance that the self doesn’t have all the answers, and that the process of innovation and modification will endure as long as that author remains an author. Which we hope, of course, is forever.

So what is this mysterious fifth and final master stroke?

Climb Every Mountain, Ford Every Stream

Okay, okay. Just kidding. The real master stroke is:

Try Every New Thing. Try A New Thing Regularly. Daily. Always.

… and of course I might have summarized this as “optimize the crud out of your marketing process,” but that’s as clear as mud. What does it actually mean to “optimize”? It means to try new things. To try every new thing. To try a new thing regularly. To try it daily. To try it … always. And to observe, listen carefully to what the data is telling you, to use your intuition to sense when there’s a quantifiable trend and when the numbers are actually calling for a change in method. It requires us not to be afraid, to in point of fact be brave, and be brave often, to think creatively about every obstacle in our path. To push through self-doubt and disappointment. To see clearly amidst the blinding glitter of success.

To think about life and being an author and marketing as some kind of laboratory, where experimentation is the rule and not the exception–and where, like good scientists, we document our progress thoroughly so that we can track, exactly, which outcomes can be attributed to which changes in method.

Look, I realize I’m treading on unstable ground here. I don’t advocate authors give up on their own ideas altogether. Self-publishing is a safe-haven for those who want to hold true to their personal vision of what’s good and what’s right for them, in the face of a cynical world and the influences of a hostile traditional publishing institution. I think we need to protect and cultivate the ideas that are different, outside of the box, and unique to you. What I mean by “sacrificing the ego” and so on and so forth is that we give up on closing our minds off to the real heart of innovation. And the innovator’s approach, as you’ll already be well aware, is a joyful heart that embraces new approaches and new ideas–if they work. So let’s find out if they work! As your final master stroke, I challenge you to go out and try something new–whether it’s a new social media platform, a new promotional offer, a new collaboration, or any number of other ideas–every day of the week.

Go forth and innovate!

Thank you for reading! If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or contributions, please use the comment field below or drop us a line atselfpublishingadvice@gmail.com. And remember to check back each Wednesday for your weekly dose of marketing musings from one indie, hybrid, and self-published author to another. ♠

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com. 10:00 AM

from the archives, Jodee Speaks, Kelly Speaks, Uncategorized

From the Archives: “How Much Do Self-Publishing Authors Earn?”

Welcome back to our Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years. What’s stayed the same? And what’s changed? We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: August 18th, 2014 ]

How much do self-publishing authors earn?

There is no one size fits all answer.

What an author earns varies greatly. Income is based on a variety of factors, including the author’s goals, intended market, and marketing strategy.

One of the main reasons author income varies so greatly is because many authors don’t self-publish to make money. They never intend to market and promote their book, so they earn very little. For these authors, success is not defined by the amount of money they make or the number of books they sell. Instead, it is simply based on whether or not they accomplished their goals. Some common definitions of success among self-published authors include:

Sharing their story with family and friends

Reaching a niche market

Finishing and publishing their manuscript, regardless of how many books they sell

Gaining fame

Earning an income

Increasing their business

Building their following of readers

Adding to their resume

Getting picked up by a traditional publisher

And many, many more

I assume you ARE interested in earning money if you asked this question. For those of you who want to make a profit, here is what you need to know:

Depending on the trade discount set by you or your publisher, you can expect to earn royalties on average of $2-$7.

Some self-publishing companies offer more flexibility in setting pricing and royalties, so it is important to select a company that meets your needs.

Marketing is key to financial success! If you want to earn money from your book, be prepared to dedicate your time, money, and effort to marketing and promoting your self-published book.

Quality is also extremely important. You must offer readers a professional, well-written book.

A dynamic cover and professional editing are a must.

A great way to learn more about how much self-publishing authors earn and how they define success is studying other authors. Read interviews and books by successful authors. Network with writer’s in your area. Join professional writing groups. Talk to people who have self-published. Learn about the industry. All of this research will not only give you an idea of how much self-publishing authors earn, but will also offer excellent tips and advice for making your book successful.

– by Jodee Thayer

Jodee’s right, of course–it’s not necessarily useful to know the exact amounts that every self-publishing author makes, since so many aren’t in the game for the cash. But there is a certain benefit, I think, to knowing:

A. Some self-publishing authors are going to hit it big. And by “big” I mean BIG, with Hugh Howey’s Wool saga pulling in roughly $150,000 a month from ebook sales back in 2014, for example–and other authors like Amanda Hocking and John Locke doing very well indeed.

B. Many self-publishing authors are going to find the middle ground, becoming what in the traditional publishing industry might be considered “midlist”–but without the crippling disadvantages of traditionally published midlist authors, who are promised marketing assistance for example but very rarely ever receive it.

and C. Some self-publishing authors aren’t going to make much money, either because they choose not to put the time and energy or money into marketing it (for whatever, possibly legitimate reason) or because they have no idea where to begin. We at Self Publishing Advisor want to move as many authors from category C. to categories A. or B. as possible–assuming that the authors want this too!

I would also like to encourage you with some hard data. Hugh Howey (mentioned above) has done a lot of work to open up the self-publishing industry and render it transparent, and his industry watchdog company (AuthorEarnings.com) does some very necessary and useful work each year in publishing its Author Earnings Report. The latest one posted to the site is from May of this year (2016) and while the nature of the study itself has fundamentally changed (from a longitudinal study to a cross-sectional one), Howey is able to draw some inspiring conclusions.

By broadening the parameters of their search, he says, they appear “to have nearly doubled the count of authors currently earning in this $10K/year ‘tax bracket.'” And while “$10,000/year is hardly a living wage in the US,” he continues, “it’s a nontrivial supplementary income. Especially for doing something you love.” According to this May 2016 study, only 18% of authors make less than $10,000/year–and “almost half” of the remainder “also appear in the $25,000-or-better bracket above”–meaning that roughly 1 in 5 self-publishing authors on Amazon make very little money, 2 in 5 make “a nontrivial supplementary income,” and the remaining 2 in 5 are making a decent chunk of change (more than $25,000/year, at least).

This is good news. Aiming to eclipse the superstars like Hocking and Locke and Howey may not be an attainable goal, but earning good money from your books is. Now get writing!

Thanks for reading. If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them. Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can. ♠

barnes and noble, Kelly Speaks, news from the self publishing world, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing News: 7.4.2016

Happy Independence Day, Everyone!

Here in the United States, we’re busy celebrating the hard work done by many people all over the world to ensure our freedoms, and planning how best to continue that work in the years to come. Now, we know it’s not Independence Day for everyone–and that many still live in poverty and even in modern forms of slavery–but we hope that what we do here on this blog every day throughout the year contributes, in some small way, to building hope and cultivating the conviction that independent thought and action is something to be admired, and supported.

And now for the news!

This week in the world of self-publishing:

How to Prepare for Self-Publishing: Marketing

This June 30th article by Catherine Dunn for Digital Book World continues a series being published to that website regarding the ins and outs of the self-publishing experience. The whole series, as we mentioned last week, is worth checking out and exploring–it’s packed with insight and thoroughly researched–but this week’s is perhaps more pertinent than ever, given that the topic is marketing. (And we really like talking about Marketing here on Self-Publishing Advisor, if you haven’t noticed!) This week, Dunn taps into some of the fundamentals of the marketing process: getting reviews, getting creative, leveraging social media and giveaways to meet your needs, how to watch your budget while marketing, how to keep the momentum going, and what to do next once you launch your book into the “real world”. All in all, it’s a tightly packed little essay on the process of marketing for indie and self-publishing authors, with a good dollop of common sense and a large serving of innovative thought. But what else would we expect from Digital Book World? We love those guys. They’re awesome. You can read the original article here.

Self-published comics are changing an aging industry—for the better

This piece by Caitlin Rosberg went live on The A.V. Club on June 30th as well, and from its title you might have guessed that it has a little something to do with the world of self-published comics–a growing market niche we’ve commented on here and there at Self-Publishing Advisor in months past. According to Rosberg, our attention has been well-allocated, since changing the way comics are published (or at the very least, providing a viable “other way” for them to be published) benefits everyone involved in the self-publishing industry, from authors to illustrators to readers. Spurred by her dissatisfaction with this year’s Eisner list of award nominees–none of which were self-published, for reasons we’ve discussed elsewhere (*coughcoughSTIGMAcoughREPUTATIONcough*)–Rosberg unveils a few of her favorite self-published comics as well as the ways in which they’re changing the comic landscape. She drops a lot of names (Smut Peddler, anyone?) and her points hit home. To read the full article, drop on by The A.V. Club article here.

Barnes & Noble makes belated effort to attract self-publishers, launches NOOK Press

What we have here may be something less than an article and something more along the lines of a press release, but it’s big news nonetheless: on June 28th, Barnes & Noble declared several groundbreaking (and ground-shaking) changes to its lineup of products and services. The main event is the unveiling of NOOK Press, which B&N is launching in order “to provide NOOK Press authors with an easy-to-use, self-service program that enables them to create hardcover and paperback books for customer purchase.” The new platform will allow eligible NOOK Press authors (conditions apply) to “have the opportunity to sell their print books at Barnes & Noble stores across the country on a local, regional or national level, and online at BN.com. Authors can also qualify for the opportunity to participate at in-store events including book signings and discussions, where they will be able to sell their print books and meet fans.” There’s a lot to chew on here, but the moral of the story seems to be: if Amazon does something for half a decade and finds success, maybe it’s time to take note and jump on a similar train. To read the full press release, follow the link!

As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry.This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.

Alternative Marketing Methods, Book Marketing, Kelly Speaks, Marketing Your Self-Published Book, Uncategorized

Marketing Master Strokes Episode 4: Play Well With Others

We launched into a new series three weeks ago, the moment when we agreed to stop thinking about the many ways we can mess up the marketing process (Marketing Missteps) and pivoted instead to thinking about the many ways we can succeed instead (hence, this series: Marketing Master Strokes). Our first master stroke required us to be all ears (listening to the stories of others, and keeping an open mind to actually changing your own approach), and our second required us to be willing to reach our readers where they live (setting aside the ego in order to adapt our outreach methods to best suit our readers), and our third master stroke was all about the incentives! Or rather, why making your work look appealing as a product using special deals, discounts, and giveaways is a good idea.

But that’s all boilerplate. What you’re really here for–what you’re really interested in this week–is figuring out what our fourth master stroke will be. And no beating around the bush, here it is:

Playing Well With Others

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife,” wrote Jane Austen in the opening lines of Pride and Prejudice. But an even more pertinent truth, one that is in fact played out over the course of Austen’s novel and every other masterpiece of the global literary canon is this: Success, no matter how a person defines it, relies upon building human connections. Smart men and women, business leaders, and CEOs of major corporations know that this means playing well with others–even though this doesn’t mean pandering or compromising your vision and work ethic.

So what does this look like for the self-publishing author? Building personal connections with fans and fellow authors and industry experts over social media is one thing, but that isn’t all a person can do, right? Partnership is more than just tweeting at each other occasionally and tagging each other on Facebook posts.

Partnership Means Collaboration–Real Collaboration

And most self-publishing authors, no matter where they’re at in their publishing journey, could benefit from strong, dynamic, and useful collaboration. It’s important not to neglect social media–it’s a vital and important step in reaching out to other authors and figuring out what your common interests are–and there’s a lot to be said for other surface-level inquiries to local bookstores, libraries, and event venues. (And don’t neglect nonprofits, PEO groups, and other passion/interest groups–they may not have a permanent physical address, but if they choose to back you as an author, there’s no one better to have in your corner than a set of really capable, really driven people–like those who run these groups!)

Collaboration can look like:

pairing up with another author or multiple authors to host a book discussion or workshop together;
gathering several other authors together and applying to run a booth at a local book fair, or a panel at a “con” (convention);
conducting interviews with other authors and sharing them on each other’s websites, providing insight into the authorial process; and
co-writing short stories or novellas together, to be distributed as giveaways or free to the public online.

I’m sure you can think of many other good ideas! The point is to think outside of the box, and to predict what your readers will want before they want it–and of course, to have a lot of fun while at it. There’s nothing more refreshing than discovering like-minded authors and building a community that supports and champions each others’ work. Trust me: even the most introverted and anti-social author needs people, and on terms that benefit everyone. Playing well with others isn’t just some buzzword or catchphrase to get your attention. Successful authors all point to collaboration and partnership as one of the hallmarks of their process, and that’s why it ranks as one of our master strokes.

Go play!

from the archives, Kelly Speaks, Uncategorized

From the Archives: “self-publishers raking it in…”

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[ Originally posted: January 30th, 2009 ]

That was the subject line of a recent email sent to me by my good friend and author currently writing and teaching writing at the University of Massachusetts.

I had yet to see the New York Times article he was referencing. Despite our professional inclinations, email conversations between Mr. Anderson and I generally involve topics like beer, music, or YouTube videos.

I was interested in what brought Mr. Anderson’s attention away from his highbrow academia to the world of self-publishing. His email read only one line – something like ‘looks like you’re in for a raise…’ followed by the link to Wednesday’s Times article, “Self-Publisher’s Flourish as Writers Pay the Tab.”

Good news for self-publishing authors…

The Article opens stating that booksellers, hobbled by the current economic situation, are struggling to lure readers. And with traditional publishers and brick and mortar retailers exercising cutbacks and layoffs, readers are still finding their way to books. And the fact that they are suggests that one aspect of the industry is, according to the Times, “…actually flourishing.”

Of course the article discusses some of those alleged downsides of self-publishing (there are some less attractive options out there), but concludes with a quote from Louise Barker, publisher of the traditional house, Pocket Books, “Self-Publishing is no longer a dirty word.”

Ms. Barker’s Pocket Books recently contracted Lisa Genova, an author profiled on this blog previously. Despite the suggestions from many industry professionals, including her agent, that self-publishing would destroy her chances at success, Genova’s book, Still Alice, saw considerable independent success prior to being picked up by Pocket Books on a 6 figure contract.

Barker goes on to comment that publishers now trawl for new material by looking at reader’s comments online about self-published books.

Self-publishing is truly changing the way we write, read, and retail books. That is good news for authors.

Have fun. Keep writing.

– by Karl Schroeder

Is self-publishing “truly” changing the way we write, read, and retail books? Or is something else? Truth be told, Karl’s post made a lot of sense in the context of 2009 … and not so much in 2016. After all, seven years and innumerable things have happened–the world is a fundamentally different place, and the technologies we use to engage with that world are equally different. Two examples illustrate this fact perfectly:

Consider the Rise & Plateau of the Espresso Book Machine

There’s no greater way to mark the passage of time than to recount the stories of empires risen and gone, their vast empires now ruins eaten away by time and the elements. That’s perhaps a bit dramatic when we’re talking about emerging technologies on a seven-year span, but sometimes it kind of feels like it! And there’s no better illustration of the emergence of new technologies in the publishing world–the self-publishing world–than the Espresso Book Machine, a fabulous little engine of progress that allows authors to print physical copies of their books on demand while taking no more time than–you guessed it–drinking an espresso. Their fast, their effective, they’re a great addition to college libraries like the University of Arizona–in short, there aren’t a lot of downsides.

But the Espresso Book Machine hasn’t revolutionized self-publishing. Or rather, it hasn’t revolutionized the industry and then stayed a centerpoint of the process. Like so many new and wonderful things, it serves as a symbol of what’s possible for authors and readers alike–but is too clunky, too expensive to install, and too massive a physical object, to be widely adopted. In many ways, the evolution and miniaturization of hardware and the constant improvements to open-source software have outpaced any one technology’s relevance. And so the Espresso Book Machine–while still worth the expense and space issues to some institutions–is not likely to ever see as much interest again as when it premiered. Unless, of course, its manufacturers determine how to create 3D printers that can print physical books in the comfort of the average person’s home.

Consider, Too, the Rise & Fall of the Dedicated E-Reader

You know this story–we’ve been covering it here at Self-Publishing Advisor from the beginning, when e-readers were game-changers, bringing transportability and easy storage to entire libraries of books, putting the power of the internet in the hands of tech-savvy readers. Like the Espresso Book Machine, e-readers changed what we thought possible for books and self-publishing. You didn’t need to publish a physical book at all! You could collect hundred or even thousands of titles and take them all with you wherever you went! You could get rid of those bookshelves at last but still be a big reader! You could make literacy fun and accessible to kids! You could cure the income disparity anywhere by handing out free tablets!

The problem, if you want to call it that, is that technologies necessarily age. Even the really, really good ones–the ones that change the face of self-publishing. So e-readers filled a gap in peoples’ technology and literary needs for a while, but then they didn’t anymore because smartphones leveled up the playing field once again. Over the course of five years, e-readers went from “the next hot thing” to “old news, man.”

In short, yes, self-publishing changes things. But the technologies we associate most closely with self-publishing–these “great leaps forward” in our ability to reach new readers–may actually be the consequence of technology evolving. Many of the things we thought would fix our deepest problems–the stigma of not being traditionally published, the gap in marketing power between self-published and traditionally published authors–remain largely untouched. We have to face the fact that, despite our best attempts, self-publishing authors are not, by and large, “raking it in.” Sometimes, like Lisa Genova or Andy Weir, we find success–and are stolen away into the traditional publishing matrix. Luckily, we have staunch self-publishing advocates like Hugh Howey at our backs these days, and other authors who may dabble in traditional publishing but whose hearts remain firmly in the indie camp.

We have come a long way, but it wasn’t entirely our own work that got us here–it was the work of countless engineers and technicians, innovating technologies that may or may not serve us in the future. Self-publishing authors still remain at a disadvantage, and still must seize upon emerging technologies–remaking them or at least adapting them to fit our own needs.

What Will the Next Big Step Forward Be?

Thanks for reading. If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them. Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can. ♠

Our first four master strokes asked that we:

Climb Every Mountain, Ford Every Stream

Try Every New Thing. Try A New Thing Regularly. Daily. Always.

Go forth and innovate!

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Happy Independence Day, Everyone!

And now for the news!

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Playing Well With Others

Partnership Means Collaboration–Real Collaboration

Collaboration can look like:

Go play!

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Consider the Rise & Plateau of the Espresso Book Machine

Consider, Too, the Rise & Fall of the Dedicated E-Reader

What Will the Next Big Step Forward Be?

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