Welcome back to another blog hop, with #OpenBook. Here’s this week’s prompt.
Don’t forget to click the purple button to see what everyone else has to say on this week’s subject. It’s at the end of my post.
What kind of support do you receive (or not receive) from family, friends, and your community?
Me and my big mouth. 😂 Apparently, this week’s topic is based on a comment in my post last week.
I’m sure I’m not the only author who writes stories that their immediate family aren’t interested in. Science fiction is not a subject that enthuses them in any way, and my forays into other genres have also left them decidedly underwhelmed.
And that’s fair enough, I’m certainly not annoyed about it. I’d rather that than have them pretend to like it or force themselves to read it, just out of some feeling of loyalty or duty.
I no longer bother telling them when I have a new book out. One of my sons-in-law asks occasionally but that’s about it.
Strangely, the family of my youngest daughter’s husband (in Australia) are big fans, it’s a shame they’re not closer.
Nobody where I live knows that I’m a writer. As far as they’re concerned, I’m just a retired Shipmaster and Pilot who keeps to himself.
I don’t have huge sales or a big fanbase, worse than that, I’m self-published. I’ve found that, in today’s materialistic world, it’s what people tend to judge you on, rather than the work itself. My local bookshops have told me that self-published books are inferior in quality and content and they won’t be stocking them.
So I keep quiet about it locally.
Social media is another thing that I’ve never managed to get much out of. I used to spend a lot of time and money trying to sell books and build a following on social media. I made a few sales but, apart from meeting a handful of people, mostly fellow writers, it never seemed that I was getting as much back as I was putting in.
Many of my posts and Facebook adverts have either been ignored or attracted unwelcome comments, forcing me to delete them. When one of my accounts was hacked and cloned, losing me a lot of friends and goodwill, it all became too much trouble.
I reluctantly concluded that I was wasting my time and gave up on writing and promoting novels at the end of last year. I’ve left all 22 of them live (along with their paperback and audio versions) but no longer bother checking for sales or reviews.
I might have given up altogether if it wasn’t for the few fellow writers I’ve met through social media. The ones that have stuck with me through it all. They are the people that keep me going.
I’m now more active on Medium, where I can post fiction and be anonymous.
That suits me just fine. I’m writing for me, because I want to, not for fame and fortune.
What do you think about this week’s subject?
Let me know below.
Then, please check out what my fellow writers have to say about this week’s topic.
Until next time.
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Stevie Turner
Your comments echo mine completely. It’s not worth trying to gain huge book sales, because it’s just not going to happen. As you say, bookstores won’t sell self-published books, and finding a literary agent is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Much better to write for your own pleasure and to hell with sales!
Richard Dee
I never wanted fame and fortune, but it would have been nice to develop a group of people who enjoyed what I wrote.
Steven Smith
I think you and I are very much on the same page here. I will still put my books on Amazon because it’s easy enough to do now I’ve started using Atticus and actually know what I’m doing (sort of). BUT – Medium feels more my home. It’s a nice cosy community there, and though not my reason for being a writer, I’m earning a little pocket money – so far this year it’s more than my book sales have netted me and that’s with 2 new releases! I am happy writing over there, and similar to you, I enjoy the sense of anonymity.
And also similarly, it’s those authors that turned friends that have kept me writing despite my failure to become a household name and live in an enormous mansion funded entirely off of royalties…
Richard Dee
The self-published community is great, very supportive and friendly. I write to get the thoughts out of my head, I guess they just don’t resonate with many people.
P.J. MacLayne
I keep hoping one of my books will make the big time. The money would be nice, but knowing that people enjoy my stories would be better.
Richard Dee
I’d settle for a few words from a happy reader.
Darlene Foster
I’m lucky in that my family and friends are big supporters and help spread the word. In Canada, I have been able to get my books into stores. I don’t make much money, but I know my books are being read and that teachers use them in their classes. That was what I really wanted to happen. Kids are perhaps easier to please as well. I agree, that writing for yourself is the best attitude.
Richard Dee
It’s the whole Sci-fi thing, as I said in this weeks post, it seems to put a lot of people off.