One Year Later: Seven Lessons Learned from Self-Publishing a Debut Novel

Introduction

Welcome, readers.

Last Thursday marked one year since the release of my debut YA dark Sci-fi/fantasy novel, Palingenesis. This post will explore the lessons I’ve learned from this experience, and I hope you find it helpful.

Those of you’ve who’ve followed me on Twitter (@silentbutcuddly) know I worked on this book for years, which leads me to my first lesson.

Lesson 1: Patience

 Like any activity, it takes time to hone your writing skills. Sure, it sucked seeing my feed filled with folks talking about their published works, but I wasn’t there yet. And if you aren’t either, that’s fine.

I got my start writing maudlin poems in middle school, then later wrote equally bad fan fiction.

My point being: take your time and allow yourself to write awful crap, break all the rules of storytelling, characterization, and world building. I know I did (lol).

Also, don’t fall into the trap I did of thinking your writing has to be perfect every time the first time or you suck. It’s a learning process, so be gentle with yourself. This assumes you actually write, which leads to my next point.

Lesson 2: Writers Write

One of the major reasons it took me so long to release my first book was because I didn’t write. I spent a good 3-5 years reading and watching everything I could about the various aspects of writing, but I never wrote. And when I did, it was only in spurts when I felt inspired.

The result?

 I didn’t cement the knowledge all the knowledge I learned, and for years I put off writing the story that was in my head because I feared I wasn’t good enough and no one would like it (fears I still have, but I’ve learned not to let them rule me.).

Then at 25 I had a turning point: I discovered Geoff Goins, his Tribe Writer Course, and the community that grew around him and his work. And it gave me the courage to stop playing at being a writer and actually write.

And while I wrote a ton in the ensuing years, I rarely showed my work to anyone, as my ego was too fragile to handle criticism, and my writing ultimately suffered for it.

Lesson 3: Don’t be Afraid of Putting Yourself and Your Work Out There

Like many writers, I’m an introvert and shy away from large crowds and meeting new people (sans my college days, when I frequented night clubs and got drunk on a weekly basis). But being a writer, especially an indie writer, requires you constantly pitch yourself and your work to people if you want to build buzz for your book.

I’m still working on this, but if I could do one thing over, it’s this. I’d reach out to more local media, book bloggers, and book influencers on social media.

I’d have also joined writing groups sooner to help me improve my writing.

 I didn’t work up the courage to seek one out until I approached thirty, when my therapist suggested I do so. They called themselves the Mad Hatters and met at Affirmation, a local LGBTQ+ center.

I was terrified the first time I went there, but everyone was kind, and over the next several meetings my confidence rose, and I started sharing my work and am still friends with some of the members to this day.

Unfortunately, this group fizzled out after a few years, so I drifted long, tinkering with my WIP, until I joined my current writing group a few years ago.

The group leader, Mychelle, welcomed me immediately and gave me tough love when needed to improve my luck. I credit her and the other members with giving me the final push to publish Palingenesis.

Lesson 4: Write, Revise, Release, Repeat

I used to marvel at writers who could work on multiple projects at once, as I could only focus on one story at a time. But I’ve since learned this was an excuse I used to stop myself from releasing my work.

My logic went something like this: if I only focused on one project at a time, I could make it perfect. But the truth is no story will ever be prefect, and this was just a stalling tactic on my part. I’ve now learned to juggle multiple projects and have set myself a publication schedule for the next few years. As of this writing, I have three WIPs in various stages with plans to start two more next year. But what changed?

COVID-19 happened.

Pandemic Panic

Like many of us, Covid turned my world upside down. For the first several months of the pandemic, I was a virtual hermit, only going out to buy groceries or refill my medications, and always masked up (which I continue doing today).

As I mentioned above, I’m an introvert, but after the first month or two or little human contact, my anxiety and depression skyrocketed to the point getting sick and possibly dying were constant thoughts, but as I wrote here, I had an epiphany.

I didn’t want to die without having published anything, so I redirected all that anxiety into finishing my WIP, and I contacted an editor friend on tweeter and submitted my manuscript to them.

My editor’s initial notes weren’t good and amounted to me needing to do a complete rewrite. And ya’ll, it devastated me.

Lesson 5: Dust Yourself Off and Try Again

After I received those editor’s notes, I was tempted to give up, but after I got over myself, I realized a rewrite was an opportunity to improve my book. And I’m glad I chose that route instead of being all butthurt and up in my feelings.

So much of writing, especially for indies, is fraught with setbacks and rejections. But like Aaliah sang, “If at first you don’t succeed, dust yourself off and try again.”

From personal experience, I know this can be hard to do when your timeline’s full of people talking about their book/TV/movie deals while you’re still an unknown writer.

I’m not gonna lie, I thought Palingenesis would be the next Harry Potter or Percy Jackson. But like I said, my sales reports determined that was a lie.

I had all these expectations, but after it released to no commercial or critical success, it crushed me. I thought about quitting writing.

However, don’t let this discourage you from dreaming big. Yes, keep your expectations for your first book low, but don’t let poor sales stop you from writing the next book and the one after that.

When I calmed down, I told myself one book won’t make or break me. And it won’t you either. Click here to read a post I wrote a while back on staying positive during your publication journey.  

So, I’m working on other stories, and it might take a while, but eventually I’ll find success. And I know you will too.

Lesson Six: Success Looks Different for Everyone

There’s a maxim that says writers need to have published at least twenty books to earn enough income to be full-time writers. But success is different for everyone. While books may be one writer’s only source of incomes, others might do speaking engagements, classroom visits, be writing coaches or editors on the side. And most writers have day jobs.

I know of indie authors who also make comics/manga and video games/board games based on their stories. My point being, don’t limit yourself to one medium. Define what success is for you, the means of achieving that, set goals, and take steps to achieve them.

One way I plan to build my readership and make extra money is by publishing short stories on Amazon for $1-2 each. I also plan to do book signings at local libraries once things with COVID-19 settle down and apply to book festivals and anime/comic cons to sell my books. I’m also planning to get certified as a copy editor and developmental editor in the next few years.

But all of this would be pointless if I didn’t have a greater reason for writing.

Lesson 7: Your Reason for Being a Writer Must be Greater than Yourself

 The starving artist is a cliché for a reason; most books only sell a few hundred copies in their lifetime and most writers, indie and traditionally published, earn less than $10,000 a year. So, if money is your sole motivation to become a writer, prepare yourself for a world of disappointment.

I learned this the hard way. The truth is people release hundreds of books every day, and even with marketing and a ton of luck it’s rare to make it big, especially as a debut indie author. So, your reason for writing must be bigger than financial gain, bigger than yourself, or like so many others, you’ll lose your passion and quit.

As I’ve previously mentioned, when sales of Palingenesis didn’t meet my expectations, I pondered quitting writing and doing something else with my life. But then I remembered why I started writing in the first place.

Coming of age in the late 90s/early 2000s, there were few positive depictions of LGBTQ+ folks and fewer still of geeky Black and brown queer people like me. So, I decided to change that by filling the world with all the stories I wished were around when I was a kid.

And I cling to this raison d’etre when things aren’t going well in my writing or personal life, because it’s not about me and getting my ego stroked.

 It’s about all the LGBTQ+ youths of color out there starving to see themselves and their narratives in the media they consume. It’s about affirming they are just as worthy of dignity, love, and respect, that they too can be heroes and heroines; and that, yes, their lives matter.

You too must also find your why and return to it again and again when the world knocks you on your ass, because trust me, it will.

Look within and honestly ask yourself what impact on the world do you want your books to have. And go from there.

 An excellent exercise for discovering your why is to craft a mission statement like businesses do. Start by listing all your hopes and goals, then drill down into what’s most important to you, and refine it until you’ve laser-focused on why you write.

This may take several tries, but once you’re done, print it out and post it somewhere you’ll see it often, so you can turn to it during those dark times in your life and remind yourself what you’re working towards.

Conclusion

  The advent of the internet, e-books and e-readers, and self-publishing platform like Amazon’s KDP and IngramSpark have allowed anyone to become a writer. But competition for readers has never been fiercer. Add in the ever-increasing myriad of other things vying for people’s attention and it’s a miracle books are as popular as they are.

It’s difficult being a writer, especially a debut indie author. And if I had it to do over again, I would have lowered my expectations, started much sooner, and reached out to more people.

I hope you learn from my mistakes and your debut goes better than mine did.

As for me? I plan to take the lessons I’ve learned and use them to help me streamline the process for my next book release.

Thanks for reading and have a great day.

Call to Action

If you’ve enjoyed this post and found it helpful, please share it on social media. And if you’re a seasoned writer, add any useful tips or lessons you’ve learned in the comments.

Also, personalized signed paperbacks of Palingenesis are still available here, while supplies last.