The long wait

So after the tribulations of equipping a finished and (hopefully) edited  book with a cover and blurb as noted in my last missive, comes the dreaded two-fold wait: the first ice-breaking sale, and the first review.

I am fortunate to get quick ice-breaking sales these days, but I have experienced the soul-crippling days of a published first book which no one wants. That is an experience that ends more writing careers than carpal tunnel. Anyone can write a book, but not many can take that sort of rejection; fortunately I trained for this event by getting shot down by countless women in my early years, so I was able  to bear up under it and keep going forward.

Next is the wait for a review; reviews are the real motivation for many indie writers. The profits in writing are slender, and for purists like me the idea that someone read and enjoyed my work is the reward. Although I don’t tear up my royalty checks, I should note.

If you like a indie book, take the time to post a positive review; they are hard to come by (actual reviews) and mean a great deal to us small fry. Avoid negative reviews; if you don’t like something about a book, notify the author on his or her blog or Facebook page. We want to hear what was liked or disliked, but once posted a bad review will haunt an author for a long time. Tell him or her in a different format.

 

On a side note, as usual after publishing a book I made yet another search for marketing advice, and located a couple good leads. We’ll see how that plays out.