Writing a good book is not enough! Those days are passé. Today, the creator has to develop a compelling marketing strategy as well. Writers typically have two ways of selling their work – self-publishing or traditional publishing. In either case they need to market their products ( If a book could be called a product ) in a systematic, disciplined way, just like a professional would which keeps them away from pen and paper for a long time, especially those from the former category.
Whilst writing adheres to certain rules and literary norms, book marketing is an ever-evolving and a complex undertaking, free from such restrictions, and depends on several metrics on which a writer has no control.
Traditional publishers due to the carefully guarded selection algorithm reject almost 95% of the manuscripts. On the other hand Gurus of literature have blamed ‘poor quality’ of self-published books for their rejection/failure. How far that allegation is true can only be concluded after a detailed study. Meanwhile, a small percentage of collateral damage continues to rob avid readers of some amazing works.
Moreover, every genre and subgenre today boasts hundreds and thousands of books. In such a scenario, getting a particular book noticed whether it is positioned in a brick & mortar shop or online outlet, self-published or traditionally published is quite a daunting task. Writers with marketing flair generally rise to the top of the heap irrespective of the quality of their work; especially true in case of eBooks.
Diminishing number of readers and increasing number of writers makes it even more difficult to find success. Social marketing, SEO, Vlogs and Blogs are some of the crucial technologies a writer needs to learn and imbibe.
The ordeal doesn’t end here. After taming several incidences of ‘Writer’s Block’, edit the book to death ( if the writer is lucky enough to finish ) and spend a major part of the productive years researching, till every Google link and local librarians smile back it still doesn’t guarantee success.
As for financial gains – millionaire authors are exceptions and not a rule.
Whoever thought a writer’s life was fun and rewarding.
N. Lalit: I certainly agree with the essence of your comments regarding “Who ever thought writing was fun and rewarding?” Making a living from writing is hard . . . unless you are writing about things you are passionate about., That’s why I love working a ghostwriter doing autobiographies and memoirs. It is intriguing to learn of other’s lives and their life lessons learned. My first autobios years ago was of a grandmotherly lady who was kind enough to share insights from her long life of making difficult choices and developing wisdom. If you focus on writing about your passions, you will have fun and enjoy an abundant life. Health and happiness, MMB