Turning the publishing world into an open book
The dawn of the digital era means that authors can self-publish their books – and make a fortune. Laura Silverman asks three independent novelists to reveal the secrets of clicking with your readership
AUTHOR: Tracy Bloom BOOK: No-one Ever Has Sex on a Tuesday PRICE: R138 on Loot. co.za EBOOKS SOLD: 500 000
SELF-PUBLISHING SUCCESS: Tracy wrote her debut No-one Ever Has Sex on a Tuesday in 2007 after she gave up her job commissioning rollercoasters for theme parks to move to the US with her husband and new baby. She found an agent, but British publishers weren’t interested. After the family returned to the UK, Tracy self-published her novel in April 2013.
It overtook Dan Brown to top I Am Cait, the Kindle UK charts.
Her first three books have since been physically published but her digital sales lead the way (with 250 000 digital copies of her debut novel sold compared to 29 000 in paperback).
KEY ADVICE: Think commercial.
“It is misguided to think that you can just put up a book up on Amazon and people will buy it,” Bloom says. “You have to pretend you are on The Apprentice. You are not an author, you are the managing director of a start-up.
“I spent hours studying Amazon, trying to work out how people navigate the site and how I could stop them in their tracks.”
THE PAY-OFF: “I’d prefer not to talk about money, but I am prepared to say that I did very well financially out of self-publishing.” AUTHOR: Mel Sherratt BOOK: Taunting the Dead PRICE: R195 on Loot. co.za EBOOKS SOLD: 1 million
SELF-PUBLISHING SUCCESS: The former housing officer had spent 12 years trying to bag a traditional deal, but was continuously turned down for being “crossgenre” (her writing is a mix of women’s fiction, crime and thriller).
At the end of 2011 she self-released her debut Taunting the Dead which reached No 3 on the Kindle UK fiction chart, topped the police procedurals category and has been downloaded 200 000 times. Mel has written 12 more ebooks – six of which she has published herself.
KEY ADVICE: Get to grips with your marketing.
“I often review my backlist and produce a yearly marketing schedule to offer my books at different prices,” she says. “I can put the books on promotion whenever I want.”
THE PAY-OFF: “I started selfpublishing five years ago and have made a six-figure salary in each of the past three years.” AUTHOR: Rachael Lucas BOOK: The State of Grace PRICE: R134 on Loot.co.za EBOOKS SOLD: 150 000 for her debut
SELF-PUBLISHING SUCCESS: The social media consultant wrote her first novel between 2010 and 2011 over three months as a challenge and released it in February 2013 to see what might happen.
Six weeks later Sealed With a Kiss made the top 10 on the Amazon Bestsellers chart, while her next books Coming Up Roses and Wildflower Bay were also both Amazon best-sellers.
Lucas’s debut young adult novel The State of Grace is out now.
KEY ADVICE: Set yourself a writing target.
“Signing up to Nanowrimo – (National Novel Writing Month) a worldwide challenge where anyone is encouraged to write a novel in a month – gave me a time frame and daily word target, and made starting a book much less daunting.
“Having written 50 000 words in 30 days, it didn’t seem too much of a challenge to finish writing my first novel.”
THE PAY-OFF: Her initial self-publishing success won her a deal with Pan Macmillan. – Daily Mail