OLD POST ALERT! This is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date. Please click on Start Here on the menu bar above to find links to my most useful articles, videos and podcast. Thanks and happy writing! – Joanna Penn
There's been much teeth-gnashing in the indie community in the last month with lots of posts about quitting, about income dropping with Kindle Unlimited and the new EU Tax Law, about this or that changing.
There's also been a rash of super blog posts, and in this article, I want to round a few things up and add my perspective to the mix.
On the end of the gold rush and the year of the quitter
Kris Rusch has restarted her excellent Business Rusch posts, so immediately go and read them and subscribe. In her musings on what indie authors learned in 2014, Kris names 2014 as the ‘year of the quitter,' when many authors discovered that writing is hard, publishing is hard and making a living with your writing is hard. Achieving real success is also difficult, the gold rush has ended and that there is definitely a mid-list indie.
My take on this is to nod my head in agreement.
I never thought writing was easy, and after 6 years of blogging and creating online, and 3 years of doing this full-time, I know that success is hard. I still haven't met my initial goal of matching my income from the day job. But then I was 13 years as a business consultant, and the first 5 years of any new business aren't exactly boom years!
I've never seen a gold rush on my own books, and I know most of you won't have either. It's certainly more common with romance writers, or those few who made the 99c jump before others. There will always be those who hit the zeitgeist, but you can't count on a lightning bolt or lottery win.
I self-published my first book in early 2008 – pre Kindle, pre mainstream print on demand. I've self-published fiction and non-fiction and I've seen a trickle of income that has slowly ticked up to an average $1500 – $2000 a month. My highest income month has been around $3500 from book sales. I think that makes me a mid-list indie and I'm pretty darn happy with that after only 6 years in the business. Many authors have been writing for many more years and make a lot less than that.
I'm grateful for every day I don't have to work in a cubicle [cue happy dance!]
All I have done since 2008 is write, put my work out there and build a business online by attempting to offer education, inspiration and entertainment consistently over time. It's what I intend to keep doing, because I love it!
Change is the only constant and all that. Luckily, I am a change junkie and surfing the stormy seas is fun for me. If it's not fun for you, then try traditional publishing, or stick to writing for fun. Otherwise, time to adapt.
Things will continue to change in 2015, there will be bumps and bruises, but some things never change for creative entrepreneurs. Here are some principles that will help you survive, whatever the conditions of the market.
(1) Write what you love for people who love to read that type of thing
I don't do rainbows and kittens and happy endings.
My books are filled with supernatural power, international locations, explosions and high body count. They are based on my own travels and in-depth research.
My fiction is about good vs evil – that's the theme that obsesses me. So I will continue to write what I love to read, and the fact that it doesn't sell as well as romance or sci-fi or fantasy isn't the point.
Russell Blake had a post on the new landscape of books where he talked about the cheaper price phase being over.
That means you need to up your game, that suddenly story and craft will matter more, and that simply being cheap, with a homemade cover and lackadaisical or no editing, won’t cut it.”
Again, this is not news. It's what many of us have always said and always practiced, eschewing the fast money for the long term quality product that will sell over time and make customers happy.
Blake also says, in his 2015 predictions:
“The importance of brand will increase … Authors who want to have careers doing something besides chasing the next fad will have to develop a brand in their readers’ minds that’s worth paying for.”
That's my aim. Grow a list of readers who love the books I love and want to read more books in a similar vein. When I find an author I love, I don't really care how much the book costs (within reason). I just pre-order immediately a new book is announced. That's what I want readers to do with my books. That's what you need to do as well.
You will get what you focus on.
If you focus on writing, improving your craft, on learning more about the best practices in the industry, in building relationships, on positive enthusiasm and helping others along the road, you will build a career as an author slowly but surely, and for the long term.
(2) Think global. Think multiple streams of income.
(2) Think global. Think multiple streams of income.For anyone concerned about income, this is for you.
Along with many others in 2008, I was laid off from my day job. 400 of us in my department were handed a piece of paper saying goodbye, two weeks pay and that was that.
I swore then that never again would I be dependent on ONE stream of income.
As much as I love Amazon, if sales on one platform is your only stream of income, be concerned. If you have a day job, by all means, stick with one distributor. But if this is your business, being dependent on one retailer means things will eventually get difficult.
But I take this even further for 2015.
If selling ebooks in the US is your only stream of income, be worried.
As a UK resident who has lived in many countries around the world, and with family members from Hungary, New Zealand, Nigeria and Canada, I always have an international viewpoint on things.
It makes me crazy when I read blog posts, tweets and comments that focus only on the US market.
Sure, it's the most mature digital market but there is a HUGE world out there that has barely discovered digital. The rest of the world is the next big growth industry for ebooks.
Stop being so short-sighted. Think 5 years ahead. 10 years ahead.
I was talking to someone recently about how many African nations have skipped desktop computers and have gone straight to mobile. The cellphone business is booming in some of the fastest growing economies in the world. Do you want to bet that these people read on their cellphones? I saw the same thing in India. People want to learn, they want to be inspired and entertained. They want to read.
On a more personal level, I spoke in Stockholm in September. They haven't even got Amazon yet, let alone
KDP or other ways to publish. The Swedish authors and book reading audience are raring to go!
A few weeks ago, I spoke in Auckland, New Zealand at the first cross-genre indie author event. The blog posts and tweets afterwards expressed excitement at finally finding a like-minded community in a country that still has $35 print book prices and a restricted literary culture.
I also gave my 9 year old nephew (also in NZ) some money for Christmas books. He said to me, “I love reading print, Auntie Jo, but I can get four times as many ebooks for the price of one print book so I will buy them on the tablet instead.” He also uses an iPad for school.
Yes, NZ is a small market but it's used as a test market for a lot of new technology for the English speaking world so it's worth watching.
My book royalty income 18 months ago was mainly concentrated on sales from the US, UK, Australia and Canadian stores. Now, my books sell in 62 countries and my income streams from smaller markets grow every month.
I am SO super-excited about the growth in the global market. I hope you can be too.
Create multiple streams of income from your books
I've gone into this model before, but read this post if you need a refresher. Your income streams can be:
- Print – print on demand through Createspace or IngramSpark
- Ebook – by distributor e.g. Amazon, iBooks, Kobo, NOOK, Google Play, Smashwords/Draft2Digital for subscription models and smaller vendors
- Audiobook – ACX.com for US and UK authors. Other options for authors in other countries – see Making Tracks by J Daniel Sawyer and Audiobooks for Indies by Simon Whistler
Multiply these formats by country. So I am selling in 62. How many are you selling in?
Multiple these formats by language if you are getting into translations. I have German, Spanish and Italian and the moment, for print and ebook, with my first German audiobook coming in 2015, along with Portuguese and more in Spanish and Italian. More on translation here.
Think wider. How can you create more income streams from your books?
I've recently read and highly recommend Tony Robbins' new book, Money: Master the Game. In it, Tony discusses the All-Season investing approach which anticipates the various market changes that inevitably occur in economic cycles. The idea to to have your investments in different quadrants so you can weather any type of market. The same approach can apply to our creative businesses.
If you only have one product (or one book) and one market (or one distributor), you won't be able to weather the changes will HAVE to occur, since status quo is never an option. I've always taken this approach to my business and will continue to diversify in 2015.
My business card and email signature say: Author Entrepreneur. I do not make a full-time income from books. It could be a full-time income if I lived somewhere else, but I live in central London! You can see my last income analysis here if you're interested in the split.
In my experience, unless you are one of the very few making hard core cash from writing alone, you either need a ‘day job,' or you need to make income from other sources. I love writing books, but I don't want to lose the love by forcing myself into a crazy production process.
My muse loves research and travel and that adds to my creation time. I'm happy with that, but I don't want to go back to the day job, so while I write books at a reasonable clip, I also have other streams of income.
Multimedia courses, merchandise and affiliate income
Many non-fiction authors offer multi-media courses through sites like ClickBank or Udemy. The Self-Publishing Podcast guys are now doing this for Write, Publish, Repeat, as is J Thorn, with his Finishing a manuscript in 60 days course. I have been selling courses for the last 4 years but have recently moved away from them to focus on more evergreen products that don't need updating. I may revisit that decision at some point.
Some authors are also doing merchandise. My favorite example is comic creator and author, XKCD, since my husband has been a fan for years and has lots of his t-shirts. Hugh McLeod has a similar model at GapingVoid with Motivational Art for Smart People – brilliant branding!
Lawyer and indie commentary blog, The Passive Voice, now has a good selection of pithy t-shirts as well. I've had a look at Zazzle before and have thought about a ‘creative' range – this is something I am certainly considering but the quality needs to be good. [I'd love to hear about other merchandising examples or service providers that you think are good for authors. Please do leave a comment below.]
If you have a content-rich website with decent traffic, you can make an income stream through affiliate links, which is a commission payment on sales. I have a small income stream from this method, but I am scrupulous about only recommending things I both use and am happy to recommend.
Currently, I 
recommend the Learn Scrivener Fast training, Joel Friedlander's Book Design Templates, Jim Kukral's Author Marketing Club and I use Amazon affiliate links for books. If you want to look at the affiliate method in detail, I recommend Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income blog.
Professional speaking and audiobook narration
One of my other primary income streams is professional speaking, which also feeds my travel junkie soul. I've written extensively about this in my book, Public Speaking for Authors, Creatives and Other Introverts, if you want to look into that as an option.
In 2015, I will be adding another income stream from audiobook narration. I've been podcasting for 5 years now and after narrating my own non-fiction books, I'll be opening up for royalty share deals with other authors with decent platforms. Audiobook income has been a revelation for me in 2014, and I believe this is a growth market so I want to be involved. I also LOVE the royalty split deals as it means ongoing revenue for the long term, which is what we all want.
There is a technical barrier to entry with this, but if you fancy giving it a go, Audiobooks for Indies by Simon Whistler is a must. You can also listen to the interview with him here on this topic, including the moment I decided to become a narrator!
There are many other creative ways to make money from your skills, from your books and your knowledge. But in the end, it all comes down to creativity. I love all these other ways to make a living but I'm an author first, so I want to …
(3) Write something magnificent
This quote from Penelope Trunk caught my eye in a post about workplace revolution.
“I want to be writing the ideas people read late at night, with a glass of wine, to dull the searing impact of the life they’ve already chosen.”
Personally, I write for those people who are still stuck in the cubicle jobs that I once was. For those people who cry with frustration and unhappiness as I used to. For those who spend their commute plotting escape and their lunch hours reading escapist fiction to get out of their heads for an hour or two.
On my wall I have a sign that says, ‘Create a body of work I am proud of.‘
Yes, I want to make a good living but I don't want to write books that are a waste of my time and yours. I want you to wake up thinking about something I have written.
I want to keep you up all night.
I want you to remember me when I die.
I hope we can all do this in 2015! Happy writing and all the best for your creative business this year.
Please do join the conversation and let me know what you think about all this in the comments below.
Images: Flickr Creative Commons uphill climb by James Jordan, reader by Pedro Simoes, create by Jacob White
I’m amazed how I started this journey as a ‘writer’. Now almost a year later, ‘business woman’ seems a more appropriate title. I say this because, as you say, it’s not just about writing. It’s promoting your work, yourself, and constantly learning. I like your post’s take on diversifying. Now I know what I need to research next. Thanks as usual.
I know how you feel Aimee – although it was easier for me to embrace ‘entrepreneur’ than it was to embrace ‘author’ or ‘creative.’ We are all on the journey! All the best for 2015.
Thank you for the reminder to write what you love. I write literary works that don’t have happy endings because that’s what I like to read. Sometimes I consider switching to genre stuff that sells better, but I can’t bring myself to write something just so it’ll make money. I don’t want to waste my readers’ time, and I don’t want to waste mine either. I’m trying to focus on building my brand and readership in the long term. It’s hard work, but I know I can do it if I consistently put out a good project. Thanks for the encouragement that I’m on the right path!
That’s great to hear ED, and we must honor what we want to write. We only have a short time on this earth so we’d better spend it well!
Joanna,
Great post! Pretty much everything you have said is at the heart of my focus for this year. I have been writing since 2011 with paltry results via a small, traditional press. In August of last year, I self-published my first fiction novel, and am making small, strategic steps to be a full time author in the next 2 years. Pretty much everything you have said has resonated, so thanks for taking the time to be so detailed.
Oh, and I am 100% with you on the good vs. evil theme. If a story can’t be epic, I can’t write it 🙂
Thanks for all you do.
-Nathan
Thanks Nathan – and glad you like the big themes too!
Hi Joanna, you have hit the nail on the head on so many points here. After reading many posts on the future for Indie Publishing in 2015, this post resonates closest to what I believe and have experienced in my own journey as a writer and ‘author entrepreneur’. In particular your point about the importance of international markets and audiences should be circled in red, twice. I’m very sorry I missed you in Auckland recently!
Super! Great to meet another globally focused author!
What an inspiring post. Thanks Joanna! This sort of back-to-the-basics advice (write books you are proud of; write books you want to read; never quit; pursue new income streams; enjoy the process!) is exactly what a lot of writers need to hear at the start of a new year. I appreciate you articulating it all so lucidly!
Hi Joanna. You asked about the quality of the products at Zazzle.com. I created a t-shirt design a couple of years ago, and bought just the one t-shirt for myself. The quality is very high. I suggest you do as I did. Make a design, and order one t-shirt with your design on it. It’ll cost you just under $20 US. I don’t know what they charge for shipping to England. Once you have the t-shirt in hand, you will see how good it is.
I have not marketed my t-shirt design at all. I think one other person somehow found it and bought one. But that’s not on Zazzle.com. If I want sales, I’ll have to promote it. I still wear the t-shirt from time to time.
Hah, just reading this after writing my own epic post about things to focus on in the new year. I guess audiobooks and translations will definitely be it, since you mentioned them too. 😀 I know you already have some translations done, so I’ll be listening to the show to hear how it goes!
I’d say that translations are bleeding edge right now – way too early in the market as the languages in digital are not mature yet – but those dabbling will be well placed when they do boom 🙂 I’ll be reporting on this next month
Joanna, thank you for being an inspiration to those of us still stuck in the day job! I’m reading this post on my lunch break, and dreading the moment I have to go back to writing about life insurance instead of more treasure hunts with my schizophrenic heroine, I may be stuck in the cubicle for now, but I know there’s hope and that’s largely because you’re showing the way. Thank you. 🙂
Hi Jenni – I empathize! I was a cubicle slave between 1997 – 2011, and especially in those latter years, I was SO frustrated and angry and beating my head against the doors trying to find a way out. I had a few false starts, but keep going, because I am proof you can make it out! If you hate your day job, you definitely need to make a plan to make it out! All the best for 2015!
I love the “Create a body of work I am proud of” slogan. The business side is such an integrated part of being an author these days, but it’s important to remember the writing! At the end of the day, no matter how a book is marketed, it’s the quality of work that the reader remembers.
Absolutely – and it’s a waste of life if you don’t create what you’re proud of 🙂 We need to honor our Muse!
Thanks for an excellent post! I was referred to your blog last night by a friend and fellow author. I read it, listened to an interview (very inspiring!) and downloaded your Author 2.0 Blueprint. I just finished reading it and clicked on your FB page. I have a LOT of work to do digesting what I have read today, but I can assure you you have changed my mind as to the direction I need to go. My first novel, a YA adventure is being considered by a publisher at the moment at the request of the acquisitions editor, whom I met at a conference. If they want to publish I will probably go with them, but if not I’ll be going the Indie route.
I have wavered back and forth as to the better way to go and have read extensively trying to decide. I appreciate they way you laid out everything in your blueprint, and then again in this excellent blog. My second novel, which is about 90% complete, is now slated for self-publishing along with a novella I’ve been shopping with little success because it is a novella. I also have some short stories I will put out there.
As a recently disabled man I finally have the opportunity to follow my own dream of writing, and I plan to do all I can to make it more than successful. I recognize it will take work, but what of value does not? Thank you again so much for what I have received from you today.
Hi JL, it’s great to hear that you are seeing the positive side of your life change, and I think the “can do” attitude of many people in your situation will also serve you well as an indie – or indeed in trad pub, if you go that way. Take time to think – and join the indie community if you have any more questions! Happy 2015 writing!
I’m conflicted at the moment about where to go next. I’ve spent the best part of the last two years inefficiently writing a relationship-heavy space opera series, which I’ve put a lot of thought and effort into and which I honestly believe is the kind of thing I would be delighted to discover as a reader. The series still only has three books in it and has sold… very little. I was poised to begin writing the fourth when I made the decision to see whether a short novel in a certain softcore erotica genre would do better commercially – and it did. I wrote a longer book than I’d intended, pretty much in a blaze of inspiration, published it under a different author name, and it sold close to 300 copies in the first month. These figures fell off a cliff after the first 30 days, but I have to imagine that if I follow it up with another along the same lines in a loosely-related series, sales could grow again.
Unfortunately, while it was a laugh writing the first erotica book, I feel almost no excitement about the second and I’m dragging my heels on it dreadfully. And yet I feel I can’t justify returning to the space opera series, which has so far totally failed to build up any kind of readership. Of course, it never will if I don’t persist… but can I really work for nothing, when I could force the other, and make a few hundred pounds at least? We’re in a precarious financial situation as a family, too.
My husband thinks that perhaps I should try a different series altogether, in a different genre again. (I’m not short of ideas!) But I don’t know whether chopping and changing is a good strategy either.
I don’t feel that I’m building towards success at the moment, and I’m not sure what to do!
Penelope, I totally understand your dilemma. I tried a couple of erotica books and after the first fun one, the next was just boring. I’m not a romantic and can’t write that kind of thing – or, I could, but it would be time spent doing something that doesn’t excite me. I prefer demons and death and destruction 🙂 I think that first and foremost you need to think about what you want to do long term and what you love to read – you can always get a ‘day job’ for the equivalent of 300 ebook copies that then drops off. Or you could check out freelance writing or other types of writing for hire. Your fiction time should be creating a body of work you are proud of, in my opinion. Maybe space opera isn’t selling well right now – hey, nor is religious thriller! – but its time will come. Anne Rice says that she has seen 3 ‘vampire’ peaks in her writing life already – and each time, people said it would never sell again … so try to think 10 years ahead, pay the immediate bills with something else and write what you love at the edges of the day. That would be my OPINION – but then I don’t know you or the details of the situation. I just know that chasing a market is dangerous, may not work out and you may end up hating writing – which would be sad 🙁 All the best with whatever you decide.
Thank you for this post and for paving the way! You are where I want to be in 2-5 years. I am editing my novel after having hired a great editor. Then onto readers and a proofreader. Then epub. I have many short stories and novel manuscripts to edit also. I love the business side. Getting an almost abandoned blog site transferred to self-host so I can have a store. Do you do your own website or hire it out? It takes a lot of time! Have a great day (or night)!
Sounds like you’re on your way, Bonnie. Yes, I own my own website and pay for hosting. Once you get the hang of things, it’s just a constant thing. I update both my websites pretty much everyday, with new content or comments or changing things around, adding new products etc, tweaking posts. I love that side of it too! A lot of the tools I use are on this page: http://www.thecreativepenn.com/tools/
I completely agree with going global. My question is, how do you promote in other countries? I live in the U.S. and have some traction in the UK, Canada, and Australia. What I’m trying to discover is a way to actually promote the books in those and other countries. Here I have a number of promot sites I use, but they focus on U.S. readers. They’ve worked great for getting the word out. What do you suggest to increase the reach on a global basis?
In my opinion, everything we do online is global. This website gets traffic from over 50 countries, my podcast has a global audience. Twitter can be used by anyone in the world. My books sell in 63 countries on Kobo and I don’t know how they found the books, but they did. Yes, it’s true that the big ebook promo sites are US based, and BookBub has only just moved into the UK, but all the usual channels are global – so just think that everything you do online IS global marketing.
I LOVE that you mention Africa ! I’ve lived in Kenya 14+ years, and it constantly amazes me how most Westerners and their media are oblivious to how much progress is happening over here, and they still view the continent as a poverty-stricken village. Kenya is bursting with cellphones and app development. People don’t have access to landlines, and they are just now discovering the digital world.
Joanna
And inspiration and a motivation!
As writers we can look outside our own world and learn. The music industry has radically changed because of digital content and this happened before the changes in publishing.
We have to adjust in similar ways as money per ebook sale will be low (reach is vital). So income from performance (book tours, workshops), mechandising and direct sales to your loyal fans is critcal.
It also means that we have to be brilliant and keep improving to stand out. Purple Cow to quote Seth Godin.
So 2015 for me means a lot of graft and a lot of improvement whilst keeping it fun.
I agree with much of that – but most authors are no good at performance 🙂 Perhaps audio books are one option – and I certainly use professional speaking as a way to make income. Exciting times ahead!
Hello there
As an author who is strapped for time, I’ve always gone for quality over quantity. It’s nice to see a suggestion that my long term strategy might pay off. The only thing that worries me is that technology will overtake my production abilities. I’d love to make an audio book of my work but I am unlikely to attain the slick production or quality levels I’d like.
Also with you at the frustration of the whole US centric thing. I’m always searching for ways into other English speaking markets and other sites than Amazon. I’m not doing very well there so far but at least I am shifting the odd copy and I hope that might improve over the next year.
Cheers
MTM
Hi MTM – the trickle does eventually start to expand into a larger trickle … and maybe one day will be a stream 🙂 We have to remember it’s early days for the rest of the world. Amazon.nl (Netherlands) only launched recently – India only mid 2013 – and many countries in the world have not even started to adopt digital yet. Global sales is a long game – but it will come 🙂
In terms of technology overtaking your abilities – don’t worry about that yet – when you’re ready to try audio, do some research (or ask me!) and there will be help, whatever has changed! We’re all in this together!
Thank you for some sound advice. I epubd a small book on journaling @Amazon and thought they had exclusive at least initially. I’ll be checking and spread it to other platforms. Thanks again.
Joanna, I love how honest you are in your posts. Thank you for sharing your income so openly – it’s so useful to read about real-life figures (rather than guessing what authors might earn!). Your ‘Write something magnificent’ point really struck a chord too. My first book has just been published and I can see how easy it would be to fall into the trap of quickly writing a follow-up, but I really want to create books that I put my heart and soul into, so I am letting my next book materialise in its own time. (Interestingly, once I’d taken the pressure off myself, the idea for my next book wafted gently into my mind!).
I’m glad you found it useful Katherine 🙂 and yes, I find emergence happens more easily when you relax a little!
Really, really loved this. Thank you. The way you set out your vision is something to be inspired by. As someone just starting out, it’s a good reminder that things are hard and they will always be hard, but that’s because it’s worth it.
Exactly – no one said anything was easy 🙂