First, I want to thank everyone who purchased and has read Silence in the Wild. It means a lot to me that people are taking the time to read the novel.
I’ll get right to the point: self-publishing is hard work.
When self-publishing, the author does most of the work or hires out tasks to people who specialize in proofreading, marketing, or even preparing books to publish. Because of money constraints, I chose to do everything myself the best I could. If you’re lucky to secure both, traditional publishing and getting an agent takes a lot of the weight off your shoulders.
The marketing aspect of my novel Silence in the Wild is tricky because I needed to find the audience. I am not very good at marketing, so I researched solutions, knowing full well I may not have any success in my attempts to sell my book. I kept my expectations lower than a gopher’s hole after publishing the first edition in 2014.
Here are some marketing examples of my time spent: using Facebook ads for a week with no results, posting on social media (few results), and asking people to share my social media posts and spreading the word with minimal results.
Another method was mailing a well-designed and well-thought-out flyer to Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont bookstores. I sent it to nearly 100 bookstores, large and small. I could have emailed the flyer, but I wanted something physically in the buyer’s hands.
The results from the flyer campaign? Two bookstores ordered one copy via Ingram, a book distributor. Yes, only two (2) copies of Silence in the Wild have been sold or displayed in two of the ninety-eight bookstores. After the cost (flyers, envelope, postage) minus the two books’ royalty, this project yielded a loss of $198.40.
It is disappointing, but I understand that many independent bookstores are struggling this year due to the state governments’ pandemic restrictions. Some do not want the risk of stocking books from unknown self-published authors. And, again, I am just not very good at marketing.
So, how many books have I sold since releasing the 2nd edition of Silence in the Wild in June 2020? Eleven.
Yes, ten paperback copies and one digital copy.
I am at peace with this and have moved on from marketing this book, which will still be available for purchase. I have other projects and a managerial role as an accountant to focus my energy on.
For the last twelve or so years, I have learned to move forward (i.e., learn from an experience and move on). So, please, do not feel bad for me.
If I write another novel, I will use what I learned from the first book to improve. I believe practice makes progress, and nobody is perfect.