Finding The Books We Want

You might be interested to learn that in today’s bookselling world, authors have to take on many roles.

Publishing involves much more than thinking up a plot, writing about it, and editing it.

As with any business, potential buyers need to understand the benefits of a product (in this case, the reasons you will love reading a novel) and how to purchase it. This is especially important in the book world because there are a gazillion books to choose from.

Since I’m an Indie author, I keep up to date on the latest publishing trends through various newsletters, podcasts, or websites dedicated to the business side of this trade. I’ve discovered an entire universe dedicated to how books are promoted, or more precisely, how they should be promoted, depending on the expert. 

I will spare you the riveting details surrounding advertising optimization, keyword metadata, genre tropes, wide versus Amazon exclusivity versus direct sales, and pay-per-click methods.  Those issues are just the beginning of the various tactics authors need to keep top of mind. Another world exists around using social media to promote books.

As if that wasn’t enough, artificial Intelligence has spawned a brand new field of book-selling techniques and concerns.

Naturally, lots of people offer paid courses and programs that allow authors to learn the secret sauce of different approaches. Sometimes, I think the only ones making significant money in this field (besides the best-selling authors) are those selling paid training programs to writers.

I spend a lot of time learning about different publishing trends, and not just marketing and promotions. There’s a whole production process involved in taking a finished manuscript and turning it into a correctly formatted ebook or print book. It doesn’t happen automatically.

Bookselling practices are a vital part of our publishing business, but the most important thing for you to realize is that most writers like myself write because we have something to say. We have a story within us that’s dying to come out, and above all else, we love the craft of writing. And that’s the most essential skill we try to sharpen daily.

I am grateful to all of you who have read one or more of my books, even though I have spent only a small amount on advertising or other paid programs. Promotions are necessary, but in my mind, the real value lies in the writing process.

As always, thanks for sticking with me.

Until next time,

John

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AI-Generated Art