When I finally started to write books I was in my sixties. I don't have a thick skin, so after the first few submissions I decided I would simply publish my own books. The only book that sold was promoted by an organization for a specific health issue (was featured in their magazine). I did not pay for that promotion. That book, quite narrow in appeal, did make a bit of a splash in that small community for a very short time. It was on the top 10 Amazon list for a while, in that very small specialized area. Eventually I decided I didn't want to bother with the tax issues involved with the small amount of revenue, so I gave the book away free as a kindle and sold it without profit as a paperback. It's nice to know that literally thousands of people have read my book. I didn't make much money at all, but it was a life goal achieved.
I learned how to format for Amazon, and for Smashwords. After I got the process down pat, I offered my services (gratis) to a few friends and they put their books up for sale. I also started writing book reviews for Midwest Book Review. It's so hard to get reviews, that some people used my MBR piece to promote their books. This was an interesting phase in my book-writing/publishing adventure.
All history now :)
Very impressive @agmoore! It's no easy task to land in the top 10. That's was so nice of you to offer your books and services for free. Having people read your work is really the ultimate honor, much more than sales. It's certainly a tough profession and never gets easier.
I had some decent luck in the beginning, getting articles published, but when I waded into the book writing/publishing realm I discovered how difficult it really was. Winning the Thurber prize in 2005 helped a little but not enough to land a major publisher or literary agent, that's when I turned to self-publishing. I'm happy to be winding down the book publishing now. There are far too many authors and too few readers these days.
Wow! The Thurber Prize!! Congratulations. A great honor to be remembered for family and for yourself.
One of my most prized memories (and posessions)!
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