This ain’t no get-rich-quick scheme and chances are self-publishing isn’t the line of work for you. I’m not sure it’s the line of work for me.
We all hear about those fancy-pants authors that have a book take off for no fathomable reason whatsoever.
Well, that’s not me and that’s certainly not you. Instead we toil in obscurity day after day while those better than us look down and scoff.
You can see this on message boards and in blog comments and on the other websites. Sometimes these folks even get into arguments over royalties or Big Publishing or the correct way to market a book.
You know that’s rubbish. You know none of that talk helps you. And you know those people don’t have any conception of what you’re going through, if they ever did.
Sure, there are some authors out there that toiled in obscurity for a long time before finally hitting it big. They can now preach to the rooftops for all to hear on what works and what doesn’t.
But while they’re up there busily shouting away about author earnings and the glory of going it alone, you’re turning the corner into the dirty alley, wondering when you’ll ever get out.
Chances are you won’t. Chances are your books will never take off. Chances are you’re just wasting your time.
Maybe quitting isn’t the worst thing when you look at it like that. After all, if you had a real job you could contribute toward a 401(k) and save up for the kids’ college costs. Maybe the parents might even look up at you instead of down on you.
Those are all good reasons to throw in the towel. After all, if you’ve put out half a dozen titles and none of them has made a dent, has it been worth it? How many times do you want to read over that masterpiece, combing for typos just one last time in the hopes that this’ll be the time someone finally notices or this’ll be the time someone finally cares?
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results, and yet that’s the only thing that allows you to eventually succeed in self-publishing.
Or is it? Does anyone know what it takes to succeed, or just one way that worked for them?
I don’t know. I’m thinking of closing this website down because I don’t see the point in it. Maybe you do, but I don’t think so.
Someone made a comment on my eBook cover design article yesterday, suggesting I should go back to all those sites and update the information about them so it’s more factually accurate based on changes those sites have since made.
Who gives a fuck? Those sites don’t. If they were concerned about someone knowing their correct prices they’d contact me. They don’t give a fuck about whatever miniscule amount of traffic is coming from this site.
That’s the real handle – time and value. What value does this site provide to me? What value do my books provide to people? None that I can see.
These are questions you need to ask yourself about your attempts to make it big in self-publishing. Is it really worth it? Do you have what it takes? Are you just fooling yourself and wasting your time? Are they laughing behind your back?
Let’s be honest, maybe you should just quit. Maybe you should have a long time ago.
We all hear about those fancy-pants authors that have a book take off for no fathomable reason whatsoever.
Well, that’s not me and that’s certainly not you. Instead we toil in obscurity day after day while those better than us look down and scoff.
You can see this on message boards and in blog comments and on the other websites. Sometimes these folks even get into arguments over royalties or Big Publishing or the correct way to market a book.
You know that’s rubbish. You know none of that talk helps you. And you know those people don’t have any conception of what you’re going through, if they ever did.
Sure, there are some authors out there that toiled in obscurity for a long time before finally hitting it big. They can now preach to the rooftops for all to hear on what works and what doesn’t.
But while they’re up there busily shouting away about author earnings and the glory of going it alone, you’re turning the corner into the dirty alley, wondering when you’ll ever get out.
Chances are you won’t. Chances are your books will never take off. Chances are you’re just wasting your time.
Maybe quitting isn’t the worst thing when you look at it like that. After all, if you had a real job you could contribute toward a 401(k) and save up for the kids’ college costs. Maybe the parents might even look up at you instead of down on you.
Those are all good reasons to throw in the towel. After all, if you’ve put out half a dozen titles and none of them has made a dent, has it been worth it? How many times do you want to read over that masterpiece, combing for typos just one last time in the hopes that this’ll be the time someone finally notices or this’ll be the time someone finally cares?
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results, and yet that’s the only thing that allows you to eventually succeed in self-publishing.
Or is it? Does anyone know what it takes to succeed, or just one way that worked for them?
I don’t know. I’m thinking of closing this website down because I don’t see the point in it. Maybe you do, but I don’t think so.
Someone made a comment on my eBook cover design article yesterday, suggesting I should go back to all those sites and update the information about them so it’s more factually accurate based on changes those sites have since made.
Who gives a fuck? Those sites don’t. If they were concerned about someone knowing their correct prices they’d contact me. They don’t give a fuck about whatever miniscule amount of traffic is coming from this site.
That’s the real handle – time and value. What value does this site provide to me? What value do my books provide to people? None that I can see.
These are questions you need to ask yourself about your attempts to make it big in self-publishing. Is it really worth it? Do you have what it takes? Are you just fooling yourself and wasting your time? Are they laughing behind your back?
Let’s be honest, maybe you should just quit. Maybe you should have a long time ago.
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