I’m with you, Mili. Your last point is golden. Send out content that’s relevant to the audience you want to attract.

Sandy

I’ve realised this with my own work. When I began my career in publishing I was focusing on children’s books and stories. However, after a while, my heart was not in them anymore. It took a while to figure out that I like ya fantasy books, and am also better positioned to connect with fantasy fans.

Ideally, I should have an agent or someone who can reach out to different audiences, allowing me to switch when working for one group of people becomes monotonous. Though I love both genres, I find that if I keep working on something exclusively, I get bored. I need to take a break, or switch genres, to keep my work fresh. However, selling one series at a time is good advice.

I also find it helps to focus all that you are posting on the audience you wish to attract. For example, if you wish to sell ya fantasy books, read ya fantasy books and post reviews about them.

Awesome, thank you Sandra for the encouragement! We will eat this “elephant” one bite at a time! By the time book number two, in the same genre goes live, the platform will be well established:-)

Thanks, Jane! I realize that many people who self-publish today can’t afford to pay for services, but, unfortunately, that can have an impact on their sales.

Sandy

Yup. totally agree.

Being a pro means making the investment in time, resources and money. It pays off over time!

Jane

You’re welcome, Abigail! In an ideal world, you’ll have your platform in place well before book comes out, but because so many authors don’t do this full time, it can be hard to do things at the “right” time. And yet, the world keeps spinning, right? You do what you can, when you can, and that will be enough!

Sandy

Thanks, Kathy. Authors have many different motives for writing a book. If one motive is to sell books (we can’t really do much to make sure they’re read once they’re purchased), you sometimes have to do things differently. Does this approach make it less fun? It might for some, but for others, this might be just what they want to hear. We’re all different (thank heavens).

Sandy