A (writing) fool and his money.

Welcome back to another blog hop, with #OpenBook. Here’s this week’s prompt.

Don’t forget to click the link to see what everyone else has to say on this week’s subject. It’s at the end of my post.

What is the best thing you’ve ever spent your money on in your writing endeavour? What is the worst?

There are three categories of things I’ve spent money on. All to further my dreams of being a more successful author.

The best. This has to be my editor. She is amazing and is not allowed to retire before I hang up my pen. Professional editing, getting the manuscript into a state that cannot be distinguished from any “trad” product. is vital. If the credibility of Indies is to be maintained, we must produce well-edited books.

She gets my style, is quick to point out my errors and has helped me develop as a writer in the ten years we’ve been working together.

The worst? That would have to be all the courses on how to sell books. When I was a wet-behind-the-ears newbie, I invested a lot of money, time and energy in trying to learn how to market and advertise on various platforms.

I found that the courses I purchased were all roughly the same. They draw you in with promises and testimonials, cost a fortune to buy (which you then need to recoup in sales), and take up a lot of time and more money to get working.

I’ve found an interesting part to this, common to all such courses. When you do what’s suggested and it doesn’t work, any enquiries are met with the stock reply, “You’re not doing it right.” And because there are so many variables, the course seller is never wrong.

I somewhat cynically suspect the only truly profitable way to self-publish is by offering a course in how to self-publish.

I’ve since found so much free marketing advice online, put out by many generous people. It doesn’t work either, but at least it hasn’t cost me anything.

The ones I like and use a lot. These are not essential, but they make my writing life run so much more smoothly. Things like my own web domain, where I’m not beholden to the whim of anyone. It’s my space, as long as I pay the hosting fee every year, nobody can suddenly decide to close me down or censor what I say (within reason!).

Then there’s the software I use for word processing, cloud storage, graphics, formatting, my newsletter, and so much more. Some are free; the ones that aren’t are all worth the expense, as they help me to produce a polished product and keep in touch with my legions of adoring fans (Sarcasm alert).

What do you think about this week’s subject?

Let me know by leaving me a comment.

While you’re here, please click the InLinkz link to check out what my fellow writers have to say about this week’s topic.

I’ll be back with another post on Thursday, see you then. Meanwhile, have a great week.

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