This is an excellent article. BUT (!) as difficult as writing is, marketing your work is more difficult, and it is absolutely essential. Otherwise, you are just whispering into the wind. It took me six very expensive and painful months to gain the first bit of traction in my book sales, find out who my customers might be, what kind of promotion worked and what kind was wasted cash. I just pubbed an article on Medium (https://medium.com/@DSKaneThriller/if-you-are-a-writer-looking-to-sell-your-books-read-this-5e53043dffb1#.90bt7mxyz) showing what I found out. Now, as a result of the knowledge I gained, I’ve had six consecutive Amazon bestsellers (DS Kane’s Spies Lie series; Bloodridge, DeathByte, Swiftshadow, GrayNet, Baksheesh (Bribes) and ProxyWar).

The most important thing I’ve learned about marketing is that knowledge of what works is transitory. The market is continuously changing. A successful writer must anticipate change and direct his or her budget toward what WILL work in the future.