Being among the working class here in Southwest Florida actually puts me in the minority (or so they say). My neck of the woods is known for its transient, outlandish millionaires. It wouldn’t surprise me if I learned we had more Country Clubs and golf resorts than housing developments. Some days I think, one day I’ll return to this town on the other side of circumstance.
Amazon has been making millionaires since it opened its Kindle store to self-publishers such as John Locke and Amanda Hocking. With royalties ranging from 35% to 70%, these authors wouldn’t trade their self-publishing status for anything.
Let’s look at 3 of these self-made millionaires and how they got their start. Then we’ll look at what you and I can do to one day see the success they’ve already experienced.
Amanda Hocking became an ebook millionaire when she was 26 years old. She had been writing paranormal and vampire romance novels since her teens, but had no success with traditional publishers. When the Kindle store opened up, Amanda decided to put her first book up for $0.99, the lowest price a self-publisher can put their book out for. Subsequent books in her series are sold for $2.99 after the reader has been hooked. In her first year, Amanda made $2 million dollars in royalties after selling 900 thousand books.
John Locke was an insurance salesman when he first self-published his own book. John was the first self-published author to break 1 million books sales, which he actually accomplished in 5 months. According to John, he never intends to take on a book deal with a traditional publisher because it doesn’t make financial sense.
Stephen Leather was a British journalist and success novelist with a traditional publisher when he broke into e-books. When Amazon.co.uk opened its Kindle store, Stephen had 3 novels sitting on his shelf collecting dust because they had been rejected by his publisher. Stephen published the books in the UK Kindle store and promoted them on public forums. It wasn’t long before he was earning 6 figures a month and continues to self-publish on Kindle today.
What do you and I need to know if we choose to self-publish?
- Understand that the Amanda Hockings and John Lockes are the exceptions to the rule. The market is currently saturated with rejected authors so it’s not likely that you’ll become an instant success on Kindle or whatever ebook platform you choose.
- Quality counts when it comes to self-publishing and this includes grammar, artwork and spelling. Make sure you have a brutally honest friend who will review your work and not be afraid to break out the all-important red pin. Don’t have a friend who can edit your work? Try hiring a freelance editor. Seriously, this is important. Even though you may only sell your book for $0.99 your readers may not take you seriously if they see a lot of errors in the pages of your book.
- Quantity is key. Both Amanda Hocking and Stephen Leather released multiple books within a short period of time. Because the market is so saturated it’s recommended to publish a few times a year so that your readers won’t get swept away by another author while they’re waiting on your next release.
- Understands what’s selling. Currently romances, thrillers and mysteries are the best-selling genres. Also, it seems as if the niche of paranormal is also doing well. Another thing to keep in mind is Young Adult Fiction is really hot both online and in print. But next year could be different so make sure you understand what the audience wants.
- Self-publishing means self-marketing. Normally an author would have the resources of a publisher to market a new book or series. But self-publishers have to take on the task of marketing themselves. Luckily it doesn’t have to be too hard. Have a website for your book and let fans follow you on Facebook or Twitter and interact with you as an author. For good examples of authors who are taking advantage of social media see Melissa Luznicky Garrett and Anne Rice.
Did you learn a lot from this article? Did I miss any tips you think should be included? Feel free to leave a comment and keep the conversation going.
