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| market 1 (Photo credit: tim caynes) |
Writer? Serious reader? By ‘serious’ I don’t mean academic but
interested, enthusiastic, passionate, even. As a writer, I read as much as I
can, though time is clearly limited and I need as much of that elusive
commodity as I can get to do the actual writing. And that’s the issue I’d like
to discuss today.
We write so that readers can read our words. That’s the primary function
of a writer. But, these days, we’re also encouraged to market our work.
Once, long ago, in a land of ideals and wonders unknown to mankind,
publishers used to take on the task of marketing and selling books for their
authors. They valued the creative nature of writers and understood that writing
and selling are two very different activities: so different, in fact, that they
can, and often do, act destructively on each other.
Creativity requires a degree of sensitivity far deeper than normal human perceptiveness
and sympathy. It can, under certain circumstances, become debilitating, as the
creator virtually lives through the experiences of characters he’s inventing,
describing and challenging for the sake of the story.
Selling, on the other hand, requires a skin so thick that it rivals rhino
hide. I know; I’ve worked in retail, been a travelling salesman, a telesales
operator and a team leader at a call centre selling holidays and the inevitable
insurance that goes with that product.
The two functions are so different, so opposite, that they inevitably
conflict with each other. In the end, the person has to decide whether to
create or to sell. I know there are individuals who seem able to do both. But
an examination of the work of many successful sellers will reveal that much of
their apparent creativity is a reworking of old material rather than the
production of anything new.
It then becomes essential to the mental health of the individual to make
a choice between these two activities. The alternative is to suffer the very
real danger of becoming schizophrenic; a mental condition not to be envied.
In the process of learning this simple fact of a writer’s life, I’ve
tried various strategies to get my name known, my work talked about, my books
in front of readers. The activity is generically referred to as ‘marketing’. And
I have nothing against the concept, or the legitimate practice of marketing. It
is, unfortunately, a necessary aspect of modern trade in any commodity. But
there are thousands of pseudo-marketers out there, ready to accept as much
money as any gullible writer is willing to pay them. Now, I’ve no reason for
personal animosity to this army of confidence tricksters: I’ve never paid more
than a sample amount (£3 or $5, at most, and only rarely) for any marketing
activity, usually as a way of ‘testing the water’. I’ve tried instead to do my
own thing in getting the necessary publicity. But I’m aware of the many confidence
tricksters out there who charge incredible amounts of money on the promise of
bringing sales to gullible writers. I don’t, however, know of a single writer
who has actually benefitted financially from a liaison with any of these
organisations. Not one.
There is a veritable industry in marketing, operating under various
different umbrellas, and often supporting one another by telling wannabees how
much their services are worth and how they’re bound to utter failure and
obscurity if they fail to engage one of their number. Some of these
organisations hide the reality of their operations under the banner of
publishing activity. Some offer services to ‘produce’ eBooks, usually for a
huge fee. I have to tell you that the most technophobic individual can learn
how to publish an eBook on their own, with little guidance other than that
supplied by reliable organisations such as Amazon (their tax avoidance is a different
matter, of course) and Smashwords. It requires a certain amount of patience and
determination, but very little actual technical knowledge. I know; I’ve done
it. And I’m far from being a techie wizard.
Then there are the vanity publishers, who advertise their skills and
expertise to produce print books, usually at colossal fees, but who actually
produce a mere handful of volumes for the £/$1000s they charge and then expect
the writer to do the actual selling. These organisations frequently do none of
the traditional work of publishers: editing, design, proof-reading and
marketing etc. And they have few overheads, as they almost always produce books
as print on demand (POD), a modern innovation that is wonderful when used
properly.
But, and these are my special targets, there is a great army of marketers
out there, all waiting to pounce on the unsuspecting with promises of great
sales without delivering. They offer press releases, blurb writing, exposure on
websites, tweets, and various other techniques supposedly designed to put the
writer’s work in front of the reading public. I have to tell you that, by and
large, they don’t do the job. The marketing market is primarily designed to
support the marketers, not writers.
My cynicism has spared me from entanglement with these vultures. But I
know of people who’ve been seriously stung, who’ve spent life-savings on a vain
chase of fame and fortune. Often, those who fall for the trap are lacking in
real talent and wouldn’t be published by normal means. But this isn’t always
the case. Some rare and real talent has been destroyed by unscrupulous
money-making confidence tricksters. So, beware my fellow writers. Never accept
the word of any organisation that advertises its services. Always trawl your
associates and colleagues in this difficult calling and ask for personal
recommendations before you spend a single penny or cent on any publishing or
marketing activity. There are more scoundrels and charlatans out there than
there are genuine experts.
And me? What will I do, after my sortie into self-promotion? Well, it’s
clear I’m no natural when it comes to selling. Far too honest for my own good, was
how I was described by my boss when I was a travelling salesman. So I’ll keep
up with Twitter, this blog, Pinterest, Facebook and Goodreads and I’ll probably
design a website to replace my old one, when I find the time. But I’ll spend
the vast bulk of my time in writing. I’ll hope that the quality of my output
will be enough to persuade readers to read and review my work and spread the
word. I’ll continue to self-publish eBooks via Smashwords and Amazon, and look
into publishing paperbacks via POD with one or two organisations I know I can
trust, and who charge sensible fees for their production and distribution
services.
In a few months, I retire from my part-time day job and will be able to
spend more time actually writing. I look forward to that opportunity and intend
to use it to the full. Watch this space. There’ll be more stories for you to
read, and they’ll be the best I can make them. Any writer who thinks it’s okay
to create work that ‘will do’ isn’t worthy of the name. I respect my readers
too much to take them for granted.
This turned out to be a longer piece than I envisaged when I sat at the
keyboard this morning, but sometimes it can be helpful to examine realities in
this fashion. I hope I’ve given writers and readers some food for thought. And,
as always, I welcome your input in the form of comments here.
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By the way, look out for a competition here on Saturday. The prize will be
some software I recently tried and will review on here. Anyone wanting an easy
way to produce personal albums and mementoes should find this of interest. Of
course, I’ll be marketing this product. And, no, the irony isn’t lost on me.
But, having used the product and found it more useful than expected, I’ve no
qualms in letting others know about it. As a result of any purchases made from
my site, where buyers will be given a useful discount, I may even earn a little
commission, which will help me continue with my writing. After all, even
writers have to earn a living.
