Zoe Winters wrote a post last week on Prolific Writing and the Long Tail that struck a chord.She said that successful indie authors are the ones who write a lot, publish often and let time do its work. I believe this. In case you haven't heard the term "the long tail," it refers to a graph of (perhaps modest) sales over a long period of time (equaling good earnings).
The point being, the more titles you have out with a long tail, the more you make over an extended period of time.
This is something I believe. Since January I've added five titles to the one I had released in 2011. I'm now seeing respectable monthly earnings, greater than what I made at my part-time job last year thereby achieving my goal: Quit job and make as much selling books. Yay!
It's the beginning of summer and I'm thinking, I still have half of the year to go. My schedule is busier with travel and other things, but I think I can still get three more titles out. These are books that are already written, they just need editing, covers and marketing. So, my new goal is to get three more books out by Christmas. That will be a total of nine books all growing a long tail.
More on those books later. For now I want to let everyone know that Clockwise is finally Free on Barnes & Noble (better late than never) so if you're a nook person, go get your copy!
Also, I released SEAWEED last week. So exciting!
My books are all listed in the left-hand column on this blog, so feel free to check them out.
How about you? Are you growing a tail?
Being prolific works for me because I don't *want* to work on one book for years. Ugh! That would be torture. I love breaking new ground. High five for the long tail!
ReplyDeleteI agree. Even though I have ms's I've been working on and off for years, I don't just have that "one." I like mixing it up.
DeleteThanks for dropping by!
This is something that I suspected, but this is the first time I've seen it quantified. A catalog of modestly successful offerings can equal true success. A solid marketing plan!
ReplyDeleteAnd one you could implement, DL! :)
DeleteYey! That's so great (about your income). And a very doable and encouraging piece of advice.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThat sounds encouraging. I think it's great to be able to write full time.
ReplyDeleteIt is great to write full time, but the down side is the added pressure you feel to produce and succeed. Still, I'm glad I'm able to do it.
DeleteHow long does it generally take you to write a novel? Sometimes I feel like it's pulling potatoes out of my nose?
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Good question. Each novel is different as is each writer. One thing about e-books and indie pubbing is there's no pressure to make them a certain length. It's totally okay to write a shorter book if that's all it takes to tell the story. For me, if I have a really good idea of where the book is going to go before I start I can write it in 3 -4 months. Some books are more difficult, though, and require more research, so they will take longer.
DeleteGood answer. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm so impressed with your hard work in getting those titles out! I wish I had novels that I could polish up and get out! But I started writing too late in life to have accumulated much before indie publishing. I'll just have to be patient and write as I go. But the cool thing about the long tail is that I'll get those titles out eventually, and the "tail" will always be there.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Congratulations on your success! I'm a big Zoe Winters fan and I believe in the long tail. I haven't published yet but I am planning on it in the new year. I have about six books waitng to be polished up but lots of writing to do yet.
ReplyDelete