As it feels with each year that passes on this publishing journey, 2018 felt like a pretty big year. I learned some very important things, made some great new author connections and am looking forward to what is coming up in 2019.
let’s take a quick jaunt back over the big highlights of 2018’s publishing journey. I started the year by running a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to help me publish my eleventh book, Spring’s Calling. You can read my thoughts on that whole process here. I was lucky enough to get my campaign funded and was able to put out a beautiful book that I am proud of. Speaking of Spring’s Calling, I had a highly successful release week for this book and had over 250 copies sold.
2018 also introduced me to several new groups of authors I am proud to call friends. I met two amazing authors, Dianne and Clay, through the Kickstarter project and I am so excited to see them continue their journeys with their books. It doesn’t hurt we have some cross-promotional opportunities given that we write in similar genres. I am also branching out into paranormal romance as a genre for both young adults and adults thanks to two multi-author boxed sets that are being released in February and June of this year. This has given me the opportunity to work with a co-author for the first time which has been a lot of fun and I’ve made friends in both sets that will last a lifetime..
So, what have I learned during 2018 about my publishing journey? I’m gotten a better understanding of how marketing plays into things and that especially in the indie publishing market, readers prefer books that are put out on what’s called a rapid release schedule. How does this affect what I’m doing in 2019? The short answer: A TON.
Aside from Muse Song and Seasons of Magic (they will be getting some special attention and treatment when i’m reading to publish books 2-3 and 2-4 respectively), going forward all of the series that I publish will be put out under the rapid release model. I have three different trilogies that I intend to publish in 2019 and all 3 will be complete by year end. The next aspect of publishing I intend to tackle is the ad part of marketing. I’m still learning about the different ways to market my books using ads to generate sales. It’s going to be a little complicated but I’m determined to figure it out. I’ll report back at the end of the year with how much progress I’ve made on that front.
Overall, I’m pleased with how 2018 ended and I’m stoked to see what 2019 holds.
