New Author Blues

Yes, I am a new author. Yes, I have only sold a few books in the two days since releasing my story on several vendor sites.

Does that mean I'm a failure? No, it does not. It doesn't mean you are a failure, either. We merely suffer from the "new kid on the block" syndrome. 

Sure, we may have hundreds of Facebook friends. Heck, we may have some real-life friends, too! That never really equates to sales. It would be nice to have all our friends buy our very first book, but is it realistic?

Think about your genre. Is it something that is popular across many groups? I mean, sure, vampires have taken off, as have zombies, but did you write a love story about teenagers? Who, of your friends, reads that kind of story?

When you are trying to sell your baby, think about who would read it. Go to where those people are. If you are reclusive, as I am, you would need to connect with social networking sites that cater to your readership. Post well-formulated advertising synopses or blurbs telling about your book. Make readers want to read your work.

It is great to have friends, but if you are an author, it is also great to have affiliations with people who are interested in your work more than they are interested in what you ate for dinner last night.

Keeping it in perspective will help you overcome your surprise that you are not an immediate best-seller in a world of authors wishing for the same thing.