Hi all,
Three years ago today, I self-published my first novel, Widow, Virgin, Whore. Although I had
been writing novels for years, I had never had a platform to sell them on. After numerous rejection slips from agents
and publishers, I'd pretty much given up. And then I heard about
self-publishing on Amazon, and that opened up a whole new world for me.
When I self-published my first novel, I really had no
expectations. That first month, I sold two books. I was thrilled. At least two
people would read my book. Later that month, I published my middle- grade novel
Outlaw Heroes, and then in March of
2012 I published Memories. Sales grew, and so did the income. At the
time, I'd read that authors who self-published were lucky if they earned $500 a
year from their books. In only three months, I'd already surpassed that amount.
I ignored the naysayers and continued self-publishing.
Three years later, I've published nine books and I'm already
working on my tenth. I've sold approximately 150,000 books over that three year
span and that's just the ebooks. Sure, there are many authors earning a lot more
than I am, but I'm happy that I've been able to do something I love and share
it with readers. I've met so many nice people, including readers, reviewers,
bloggers, and of course, all my author friends. It's been such a rewarding
experience.
And the best news of
all – This past month I was approached by a publisher who purchased Maggie's Turn and will be republishing
it in the Summer of 2015. We will be working to polish Maggie up and get her
ready for her big reveal. I'm so excited to start this new phase of my writing
career. And of course, I'll still be writing and self-publishing other novels.
In 2015, I hope to self-publish at least three novels – maybe
four if I make myself sit down and write! I know authors who write a book a
month, but I can't even imagine that. Writing four books this year was enough
for me – I need to have a life as well. J
My three years of self-publishing has been amazing and I
look forward to many, many more. Thank you all for your support throughout my
writing journey. I couldn't have done this without all the kind words from
readers, my blogger friends, and my author friends. You are all amazing!
Deanna
