How and Why Hugh Howey Became My Hero
It was long ago that I decided to become an author. In fact, I had my first book published when I was in 8th grade. A fun little book called, Penguins on Pluto. It was published in a national school book that I forgot the name of. The last time I saw that book, the one where Penguins on Pluto was published in, was in high school. A teacher opened up this giant, thick book that had a lot of published books in it, flipped to a certain page, pointed at it and asked, “Is that your book?” I looked at him, shy-eyed as I was, and said, “Yeah.”
That was the extent of our conversation and the last memory of that thick book.
Years later, when I was 19 and heading into my sophomore year of college, I prayed my ultimate prayer–hands together, closed eyes, chin pointed to heaven. “Dear God, please make me an author one day. I want to be an author. I will be an author.” Weird prayer, I know. But, that’s how I did it–if I’m remembering it correctly.
Fourteen years passed me like a train whizzing by a train station.
So, when I was 33, I decided to write my first novel. I sat down, wrote to my hearts content, and finished a book. I titled it, The PureLights of Ohm Totem.
Writing it was a blast. I was writing at the peak of the metaphorical imagination mountain and I wasn’t looking down. When I self-published The PureLights of Ohm Totem I was in front of my computer screen at 4 am in the morning, ready to click “Publish” (on Amazon), closing my eyes, imagining love, light, laughter, and a lot of readers finding my book, then I finally clicked “Publish”.
Then came the slide, the fall from the mountain, quicker than an avalanche.
A couple of days after I self published The PureLights of Ohm Totem I was waiting for my interview with Oprah or Ellen or both. When they didn’t call or even inquire about an interview, I was perplexed. Should I call them? They must be waiting for my call.
Apparently, most authors are as grandiose as I was when first publishing. Reality sets in later. So goes life.
Then my book sales. The problem with that was, where were they? Why wasn’t everyone stopping what they were doing, picking up their Kindle, and purchasing my book? Don’t they know how good it is? Where was everyone? All I could hear were crickets fading off in the distance and some wind blowing across the desert with tumbleweeds rolling on the ground in front of me. THERE WAS NO ONE AROUND! “Hellooo, oooout theeeere!”
All I heard was the echo of my own voice.
But, I knew why…
At least, I thought I knew.
The book wasn’t jumping off the digital Amazon shelves because I had clearly started a trilogy and no one wants to start a book and finish it, then wait for the next book in line. They’d rather purchase them all at once so they could devour them all at once. Again, that was my sudden, inspired thought. One, that I now know, isn’t true.
So, I wrote the second book and put it up on Amazon, and then wrote the third book, and sent it to my editor, where it sits today being edited.
After almost two years of writing books (I have several books that are awaiting the editor’s hand) and two years being a self-published author, I still haven’t sold much of anything. Well, I’ve sold just over 200 books and given away about 10,000 downloads. That’s good, right?
If it weren’t for all of the 5 star reviews and a prize that I received from a well known book contest, I’d think I was a dud at this writing thing.
Then came Hugh Howey, an author that knows some things about some things.
At first, I didn’t know much about him, other than he wrote the WOOL series which I also didn’t know much about. I was told to get his books by a fellow professional who told me that this guy, Hugh Howey, was a self-published author that made it big time. So, I purchased the WOOL Omnibus, read it in about three days, and have been sucked into his writing world ever since. I’m reading SAND–his latest book–right now.
Why is he my hero?
He’s a champion of the self-published world, along with a notable of others, such as, J.A. Konrath, Amanda Hocking, Ryk Brown, etc. Hugh is an author on the rise and seems to just get better and better. He’s THE self-published author I look up to. I go to his blog, www.hughhowey.com, every day, seeking out wisdom, advice, and the motivation he gives to us aspiring authors. He is one of the few authors, besides J.A. Konrath, who speaks highly of the opportunity of the self-published author, telling us authors that we have a chance at making money with this, at doing something we love, and that luck can hit anyone of us at any time, granting us a wonderful career such as his.
If you’re an author, go to Hugh’s website. If you’re a reader, go to his website as well and find his books there, purchase one or two of them (you won’t be disappointed) and start reading. His style and stories are unique and he draws you in like most only authors only dream of.
Most importantly, to all of us authors. He sticks up for you. He’s putting his chin on the line for you.
What most readers of books don’t know is that the publishing houses and the Writers Guild look the other way when treating us authors with any respect. They slap us around, stomp on us, then tell us to write more–to make more money for them. “Don’t worry,” they say,” here are some scraps. Eat up.”
There’s Hugh Howey, along with a myriad of others, like J.A. Konrath, sticking up for the little guys, showing us authors how to get where they are, hoping that some of us will listen and become best-sellers like them.
Here are a few of Howey’s posts where he is sticking his neck out for us, hoping to change an industry that is fighting change every step of the way. The problem for these industries is that change is the only real constant in our world. To fight it, rather than join it or accept it, is futile. It creates a down-spin so heavy that the ultimate end is nothing more than a sound. The sound is unmistakable, sounding somewhat like plates crashing to the floor and someone saying, “What was that?”
http://www.hughhowey.com/bread-and-roses/
