Random thoughts about writing (more meant for other writers) and some advice for readers

(I'm going to add this to Facebook, too.  I don't add most of my Patreon stuff to FB, but I felt maybe I should make this one public)

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Before becoming an author, I was not aware that some readers could get author names wrong (not misspellings, like the wrong author entirely) for different series so often.

After the last couple years, I've decided it's probably a product of KU reading culture.  This may be why I never really noticed before becoming an author.  Sure, I pay attention to things more and have a different perspective as an author, but it's possible things have just changed.  Reading on a subscription service online is a relatively new thing, after all.

I don't read on KU and I never will.  It's a great deal for readers I am just not a fan, and kind of wasn't even before becoming an author.  If you use the program, I totally get why.  I would never throw shade at readers for saving money or using tools that are presented to them by the largest ebook retailer and indie writing platform in the world.  (Unless you returned audio books en masse a while back.  If you did that, I think you likely knew it was wrong and took advantage.  Chances are you don't know what I'm talking about.  If not, great.  I don't want to discuss that whole debacle further either way).

Ahem.

So I've tried understanding why/how so many readers can get author names wrong, and after some thought, it doesn't seem a mystery.

If I buy a pair of Sony headphones, I don't get them confused for Klipsch, regardless of whether I like them or not.  After buying them, I've...paid attention.  I had to make a decision to keep them or return them.  (Although, being real here, I don't really return anything...but that's a personal thing).

But if I were checking out dozens of headphones a month for free, and just putting them back and checking them out and I didn't actually keep them past trying them out, I'd likely get some of them confused after time, too.

So with this in mind, I think I need of figure out some new ways to brand better, since writing just gets more and more competitive.  I wish I could spend more time on writing instead of thinking about things like this, but it is what it is.

And on an interesting note, conversations like this that I have with myself are part of why leaning more towards traditional publishing is becoming more attractive to me.

I'd like to keep writing for the rest of my life, but if my author job ever makes significantly less than I could be making in IT, I'd just get a day job again.  I like writing, but not enough to lose my house.

We aren't there right now, but I have to think about the future.  2020 was a wake up call for a lot of authors.  This gravy train can end.  It surprises some readers, but 2020 was a shitty year for authors along with everyone else. Yes, everyone was stuck at home, but they weren't trying out new books, they were watching The Office or reading Wheel of Time for the 10th time.

And as many other authors have told me, Amazon could very easily one day change our ebook royalties from 70% to 40%, or force us to sell books for $3, or come up with some new program like KU we have to be a part of or our books get lost in the shuffle.  This is a recurring nightmare for a bunch of indie authors.  Whenever one of us gets our account suspended and loses a week or two of pay before getting it back, or even worse, get banned, it just brings these concerns to the front of our minds again.

Amazon can do whatever they want...and they do.  On top of the pandemic, Amazon also changed their store in 2020, which has had a huge impact on a lot of authors, myself included.

This is why so many authors are selling direct, completely avoiding KU.  Only the largest authors are able to do this effectively right now, but I think in the future, more authors will go that direction.  The KU program seems to slowly pay us less and less over time.  Burnout is real, too.  Writing so many books a year is exhausting for a lot of us.  We only do it because this has been our dream.  But even so, it's only sustainable because we can still pay the bills.

Authors drop series, and sometimes even eventually leave writing because they can't pay the bills anymore.  Or they might go part time.  Either way, if we are a fan of their work, it's unfortunate.

What will the future hold?  I don't know.  But sometimes I wish I weren't right in the middle of all of this and I could watch the literature industry change from more of an academic perspective.

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TL:DR - I love my job and most other full time authors do, too, but it can be a stressful, tiring gig.

If I were starting out right now, I have no idea if I would be successful, much less enough to go full time, and that reality makes me very sad for future wannabe authors.  Like, I already missed the golden age of indie writing around 2015, but I was stil fortunate enough to get in the door.

The industry changes fast.  Authors are making less than they used to be.  Things are getting more competitive, especially as Amazon goes the way of Facebook, forcing authors to spend more money just to reach their hard-earned, pre-existing audience.

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READERS!

Was this post kind of depressing, and/or did you not really understand all of it?  Not a problem!  I can tell you exactly what you can do for all the authors you follow and the series you like to help avoid them disappearing one way or another.

1. If you use KU, and you would like to own a book, buy it a month after you've returned it.  That way the author gets the KU $ and the sale royalties. Otherwise, the author only gets the sale.  (authors, please let me know if this has changed)

2.  Leave reviews!  Seriously.  Reviews help a ton.  And also keep in mind that Amazon's review system is 1-5 stars:

5 - I like this

4 - I like it with some reservations or it had problems

3 - It wasn't complete trash but I didn't like this

2 - This book was hot garbage

1 - This book ruined my life

I didn't make this system, Amazon did.  So if you don't like it, please take it up with them, not me. To kind of put a point on this, if you leave a 3 star on a book you like because you think 3 stars should mean "good," you will be unintentionally screwing over the author.

3.  Tell other people if you like a book or an author.  Word of mouth is powerful.  If you are reading this, you have access to social media.  This doesn't mean you need to be an evangelical book zealot, but if you see a conversation about books, or about the author in question, maybe consider giving your .02.

4.  Don't wait for a series to be complete before trying it out.  Some authors are forced to drop series because the sales aren't high enough.  Faith in ourselves is necessary for this gig, but we also need to weigh everything we do aginst paying the bills.

5. (Probably most important next to leaving reviews): Help authors spread the word when they launch a new book that you have been looking forward to.  Social media sites and Amazon are really pushing /everything/ to be pay to win now, and most authors don't have deep pockets.  Something as simple as sharing a release announcement can make a big difference.

6. (And next in importance behind #2 and #5): If you like an author's work, spend a few seconds to find out if they have a mailing list and join it.  If they don't, maybe consider following their website or FB page and checking in every month.  The second option is more work, but to tell the truth, I do both because sometimes newsletters can get lost in the shuffle or go to my email spam box.

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That was a long post.

Back to work now.