One of the biggest challenges facing the would-be self-published author is: not getting overwhelmed. There are a lot of plates to keep in the air – with writing, publishing, marketing, online presence, sales, writing to market, and such, to keep under control. On the plus side, most of these are skills that can be learnt. (I tend to think the actual storytelling should be inherent. Some of us just need to tell stories and are, hopefully, good at it. That is not to say there aren’t lessons to be learnt: everyone can work on their grammar, structure, tone, etc. Thankfully, there are books and other people who can help with that.)

Every other writer out there has faced the challenges of marketing and making a name for themselves. I don’t mean to play down the difficulties. They are real, but the best thing about the camaraderie of the challenge is: there are often good guides that can teach you all manner of things about the various aspects of writing/publishing/promoting a book.

Of course, people are people and what I find difficult might be a walk in the park for you. Always worth noting that there are things you excel in that other people don’t even know about. Give yourself some credit. And maybe some cake.

So, here’s some recommended reading for you…

Write, Publish, Promote Your Novel with Amy and Ellie by Amy Sparling and Ellie Hall

First published, 2019

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

A nice, concise guide, written in approachable and friendly language. It’s good to hear from people who’ve made some mistakes and know what can go wrong. Many subjects are covered in this great little guide. It’s not just for newer authors, there are lessons for more established writers here, too.

There are plenty of questions to answer, to help the writer to recognise what they’re really writing for, what they’re trying to convey, etc.

The best thing was the motivational tone, the idea of treating challenges as experiences and reinterpreting the more tiring aspects of marketing as ’Things I get to do’ as opposed to ’Things I have to do.’

I didn’t much care for the fifty promotional tips in the last chapter. Some of them felt a little repetitious, and did anyone else notice that tips 13-16 were missing?

That said, this guide contains one of my favourite lines about writing: “Remember you’re your best-kept secret. There are thousands, if not millions of ways to tell a story, but only one of you.”
From In Closing, Write, Publish, Promote Your Novel with Amy and Ellie by Amy Sparling and Ellie Hall

https://amzn.to/2v0iQkd