Musings of a Fiction Writer (Vol. 3)
WHEN I INDEPENDENTLY published my first book (a short story collection) in 2019, I was initially disappointed when I failed to sell a significant number of copies. But I was satisfied with the consistent, positive feedback from readers, and I was also quite pleased to have my book sold in local bookstores and put into circulation at a few local libraries.
When I released my second book in 2020 and my third in 2021, I was neither disappointed nor surprised by the modest number of copies sold. I had initially assumed that I would become burnt out on the process of writing and publishing books after my first three books failed to sell in large numbers, but that never happened. Instead, I continued to enjoy the encouraging feedback from my small core of readers, and it was once again nice to have my new collections of tales sold in local bookstores and put into circulation at a few libraries around town. And it continues to be a rewarding experience to share my new books with friends and family.
My fourth book was a novella + short story collection for young readers. Even though I knew in advance that this treasured new book of mine would not exactly be a bestseller, I was still quite excited about its release. I guess my point is that I am continuing to write and publish books that are personally fulfilling to me, and even though in hindsight I would change a few things about the finished product here and there, I have never written a book that did not 100% come from me. Also, because I publish each of my books on a $0 budget, I don’t have any pressure to make money to recover expenses.
It appears that the era of the mid-level paperback author who makes a respectable living writing fiction is over. While there are a select few writers who have a knack for writing highly marketable fiction, those individuals are becoming a rare find. I find it difficult to believe that authors who have written dozens of bestsellers sit down at their computer and say to themselves Okay, here we go. It’s time to write another best-selling thriller now. My strong suspicion is that those fortunate individuals write those bestsellers because that is the type of work that comes naturally to them.
So, go easy on yourself out there, fellow fiction writer. Just go with the flow and write what comes naturally to you. Don’t worry about how many books you are going to sell or whether the intelligentsia will accept you into their tiny literary bubble. Just be you. And remember, if you are not having fun as a writer, you are doing it wrong. Best of luck!
J.S. Lender’s novellas and short story collections are on sale at REEF POINT PRESS! Copyright © J.S. Lender / Reef Point Press 2022
