Three Years of Self-Publishing and Still Going Strong!

 

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!

 

Cheers,

Deanna