The Post-Launch Lull

Experienced novelists know what to expect shortly after a book release. But as a brand new author, I couldn’t be more out-of-the-loop. As Iris’s release date turns two weeks old today, sales have slowed down drastically, with only one book sold this past week alone.

It’s not all bad news. Facebook likes have gone up tremendously, which means more eyes are on the content. Now if only those eyes could translate to sales.

Despite the rise in likes, which would indicate an increased level of online visibility, I’m going to have to get creative in the next few days if I am to maintain my sales levels. Reaching new customers will be a challenge, but I have a few ideas in mind which may help in the process. I don’t want to give too much away right now though, as nothing has been fully solidified.

In other news, progress on the second book continues. I’m 55,220 words into it, which is good. Progress has been faster than anticipated. Consider that the average novel has between 80,000 – 90,000 words. That means book two is already over halfway what an average book should look like. With a vague deadline of releasing sometime in 2017, the second book seems to be right on track, if not ahead of schedule.

When writing the previous book, I recruited the assistance of a friend to read through the story as I wrote it. I am considering employing this technique again. It was helpful to have a second set of eyes on the pages as I wrote it. I got a lot of big-picture feedback from this process. If I decide to do this again, I first need to find someone willing to do it. I guess that’s the hard part.

In other, other news, I am thinking about being the T-800 for Halloween this year. That should be fun (and really easy to do with stuff I have lying around in the closet already).