It has been two months, give or take a few days, since I began this journey in self-publishing. I said it then and still maintain that this is a marathon and not a sprint. It goes without saying that any success is a great accomplishment, considering the competition and that I am new at this.
It’s early in the experience, but I want to track it here because I am learning as I go and hope that I can share my successes as well as my mistakes with those who also wish to take a plunge.
The numbers are not the most important thing, but it does allow for at least one kind of quantifying tool to value how well a book is doing. Let’s face it, if it doesn’t sell, it hardly matters whether it is brilliant or not. It is sales that drive more sales, reviews and word of mouth. Promotion helps and the price determines the willingness for readers to take a chance with your title.
Smashwords’ downloads seem stuck at 1498 for the cookbook, 43 for the novel and 18 for the short story. Over at the Nook Store, I’ve sold 3 copies of the novel. The Kindle Store has been the great revelation in the last couple of days. There I have sold a total 9000 units of the cookbook, 3 copies of the novel and 1 short story.
If these numbers are any indication, the idea to publish a second cookbook is the most rational. And at the end of the third quarter, I will actually get royalties paid out!
I just posted a “summer reading” entry in both the Nook and Kindle boards and we’ll see if there are any takers. It is time to release another promotional campaign, but I am probably doing too many things at once, especially since I have been feeling a little under the weather.
It is still too early to get numbers from the overseas distributors, but I am curious as to how well the books will do outside the U.S.
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