I’ve heard it said more than once, by people who know the publishing business inside and out: You can’t get by with just one book. Why not?
FIrst off, you don’t have much of anything to give away. Sure, you could offer a few chapters free; and Amazon can help you with that, using their “Look Inside” feature.
At the very least, you might want to pull out a short story from your novel’s larger scope. Something with a beginning and an ending, and maybe a cliffhanger to lure readers into your full-length work.
it wouldn’t hurt to keep writing, fast as you can
Here’s the problem: Once you’ve gathered a brand new reader, now a lovely fresh fan of your writing, where can you send them after they reach “The End“? So two books is better. Most publishers agree that three is your best first number.
This infographic, based on the amazing publishing guide, Write. Publish. Repeat. (The No-Luck-Required Guide to Self-Publishing Success)*, shows how you can leverage multiple books and book series to keep your fans begging for more.
Do you have to have this many books to make the system work? Probably not, but it wouldn’t hurt to keep writing, fast as you can. A loyal reader is a treasure to be gathered and guarded. Once you have fans who love you, keep on rewarding them for their attention. How? Just follow the green arrows.
[If you have trouble seeing the image clearly, increase your browser’s zoom, usually by pressing Ctrl plus “+”. Or save the image to your hard drive using “Save Image As…” — then enlarge it.]
*Affiliate Link. If you click that and decide to buy, I might make some money, okay? Thanks!
Freebie sidebar sign-up code
<!– Begin MailChimp Signup Form –>
<style type=”text/css”><!– #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; } /* Add your own MailChimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */ –></style>
<div id=”mc_embed_signup”><form id=”mc-embedded-subscribe-form” class=”validate” style=”border: 1px solid #ccc; background-color: #f5c253; padding: 12px; text-align: center;” action=”http://sowrite.us5.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=14341a849d6956cddf880ff76&id=89520a40fd” method=”post” name=”mc-embedded-subscribe-form” novalidate=”” target=”_blank”>
<p style=”text-align: center; font-size: 110%;”><strong>Want to turn your books into bucks?</strong>
<img class=”aligncenter wp-image-1634″ src=”https://sowrite.us.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Fiction-Formula-color-bkgrd.jpg” alt=”Fiction Formula infographic offer” width=”231″ height=”160″ /></p>
<div class=”mc-field-group”><label for=”mce-EMAIL”><em>Enter your email in this box:</em></label><input id=”mce-EMAIL” class=”required email” style=”width: 205px; text-align: right;” name=”EMAIL” type=”text” value=”” /></div>
<div id=”mce-responses”></div>
<div class=”clear”><input style=”width: 180px;” name=”subscribe” type=”submit” value=”Ready? CLICK here!” /></div>
<!–<em>Email-safe -</em> I value your <a title=”Privacy Policy” href=”https://sowrite.us.com/privacy-policy/” target=”_blank”><span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Privacy</span></a>–>
</form></div>
<!–End mc_embed_signup–>