#1. You Become A Cheerleader For Indie Books

You’re so passionate about your book and the fact that you’ve published it all on your own that you can’t help but want to support other indie authors, too! The thought of buying a popular book when there’s so many indie books that need to be seen doesn’t sit right with you, so you start buying and promoting indie books as much as humanly possible. If you’re like me, you’ll probably spend more on other’s indie books than you make from your own indie books! 😀

#2. Am I A Small Business Or An Authourprenuer?

You’ve published a book and a few people have bought it. Yay! You’re making an income off your writing (no matter how small) and you’re no longer a wanna-be published author. You’ve done it! You’re now selling books. Does that make your writing a small business or an authorprenuer? Yes, it sure does! You can call yourself both, if you want. It’s pretty nifty to realize that you’re now officially your own business even if you’re just starting out.

#3. Every New Review Or Book Sale Is A Source Of Joy

It’s a tough market out there. Amazon has been saturated with new books by traditionally published and self-published writers alike. The fact that someone not only chose your book out of the millions that are out there but also reviewed it is pretty amazing. Unless your book took off right away and you’re getting loads of readers already, chances are you’ll build an audience slowly and with that comes the opportunity to celebrate every small victory.

#4. You Realize How Much Marketing You Actually Need To Do

Promoting your book before it’s published (Making it available on pre-order, marketing it on social media, offering a release day giveaway, sign up for blog tours, etc.) will help you a lot with attracting readers for it. You’ll notice soon after the “new-ness” of it wears off that sales drop or cease completely. You’ll need to think of new ways to promote or market your work and sometimes, paying for ads is the way to go. Some authors get really creative with book marketing and audience building. However you do it, marketing is needed and it can feel overwhelming (or possibly, motivating) when you realize that you can’t stop promoting your book if you want people to keep reading it.

#5. Imposter Syndrome Might Kick In

After the initial excitement dies down and you didn’t get as much exposure as you hoped, you might feel a little bit like an imposter. “Is my writing good enough?” “Am I even a real writer if I’m not traditionally published?” “Am I just a narcissistic asshole who’s always promoting my work just to get a few sales?” The answers are yes, yes, and no! It’s natural to wonder if you’re good enough, especially in this type of business where it’s your intellectual work (and sometimes highly personal emotions) that you’re selling, so it can feel personal if people aren’t as interested in it as you hoped. Just know that it takes time and almost everyone can feel like an imposter in their field from time to time (Pssst! Most of us have no idea what we’re even doing, we’re just doing the best we can to make things work and have as much fun as we can while doing it). While you should be proud of your craft and your brand, it’s totally normal to feel awkward about promoting yourself sometimes or wonder if your writing could be better. We can always improve and fine-tune things, but that doesn’t mean you’re not a real writer. ❤

(Photo by Kaboompics .com from Pexels)

Hey indie authors, let me know in the comments if you have anything else you’d like to add! I’d be happy to hear from you. 🙂