Something I’ve been talking about more and more is storytelling and being a self-published author. I know there are others that are on this same track and want to share some information that can cut down on the learning time to getting where you want to go as efficiently as possible. As well as address a misconception that I had when I started. I’ve been working as a copywriter for some time, but have also done ghost writing, something I’ve been doing more and more. It can be profitable when done right and is also lots of fun.
I’ve been doing more and more fiction ghost writing and in the last year have done a deep dive on the subject to learn all that I could about it. Don’t get me wrong it was something that I had studied before just not nearly as in depth as I have been in the past twelve or so months. During this process there is a lot that I’ve learned and want to share about becoming a successful (AKA make your living as) self-published author, especially of genre fiction books. Something that you can do if you work hard and smart enough at. And something that is desperately needed (masculine story tellers that is).
So first off let’s give a brief overview of the three disciplines. Now granted depending on how you divide things and what you name certain categories we can come up with more or less than three disciplines. After all successful writing could be called one discipline if we really wanted it to be. Likewise if we include time management, dedication, work ethic, and the like then we could end up with one hundred categories. We’re going to assume you have to will to work hard and work smart. For the categories we’re focusing on hard skills. Things that can be learned and improved on by anybody who’s willing to put in the effort.
Alright let’s get started.
Discipline #1 – Storytelling
What do I mean by this? Well this means writing good stories. It covers things like plot, character, scenes, description, dialogue, and the like. It’s what most think of when they think of being a good writer. Having good story concepts and developing those story concepts into novel or novella length works that flow right. Its putting all of the narrative elements together and in the right place. It’s understand how to best plan and outline your stories while also having a good enough grasp of the subject to free wheel it when needed.
Many think this is an ethereal thing but it’s far more nuts and bolts than any writer would ever dare admit. Now granted there are those that want it broken down into a science and nothing but a science and that’ll never work. But it’s got a lot more science to it then you would think. And you can learn these various parts and how to put them together to form the thing we humans call story. A complex topic but one you can get if you keep at it. To be frank I think screenwriters have a better grasp of this then most novelists anymore so that’s something to keep in mind.
But at the same time there are differences between screenplays and novels that should be taken into account, so understand both perspectives. As well as that of plays, oral traditions, and the like. Story is story in the many forms that it comes in. Learn and understand them all, it’ll only enrich whatever particularity form you create. Story telling is story telling and in many ways transfers across mediums to some extent. Learn the act structures, the hero journeys, the neurology of story, then forget it all and look at the art of story telling. It’s an essential skill.
Discipline #2 – Editing
Alright this is where the real talent lies. If you looked at the slop that most famous authors produce you’d quickly realize it’s the editors that are the actual talent. Which might explain why so many authors cloak their work in mystery and things like “following the muse”. Because it’s the editors that do the real work. And this is the truth. Now understand that as a self-publisher you are going to have to do your own editing, and lots of it, AND then send it off to another editor. Writing is rewriting, and the majority of your time is going to spent editing works that you have written. I read mine out loud, twice, with a month gap in between before sending them off to another editor.
Editing is making sure that everything lines up, that everything flows smoothly, and that all the rough edges (that aren’t supposed to be there) are smoothed out. Editing is what creates the first draft puke in polished prose and to me it’s where the real talent lies. But anyways it’s something you’re going to have work hard at. Don’t think “Oh I’m going to hire an editor so I really don’t have to worry about it.” Wrong, wrong, and wrong again. Ideally you would polish your work so much that you don’t even need an editor but that’ll never happen so you send it to one anyways.
You’ll need to understand grammar and syntax and while these can be boring to learn, at the same time they’ll help lift your prose to that next level. Don’t understand just the how of word, sentence, paragraph, etc. construction but also the why. Know and understand the rules of a deep, subconscious level, and then know when you should break them and why. But it’s more than grammar and syntax that’s just the start. Know what makes prose smooth, what makes it flow, what to cut out, what to keep in, and so on and so forth.
Like I said, the editing is where the magic happens and the editing is what you’ll spend most of your time doing (and you thought writing was the hard part) but like everything else here you’ll get better the more you do it. Start learning and editing whatever you can as soon as possible.
Discipline #3 – Marketing
Please don’t think you’ll ever anywhere in self-publishing (or any other business for that matter) without having an understanding of sales and marketing. Don’t buy the whole “starving artist” bullshit that’s just what talent-less nerds say to excuse making no money. As a matter of fact throw 80% of the whole “artist” bullshit out of your head, it’ll do you quite a few favors. So anyways you’ll have to learn marketing and not just marketing in general (though always a nice skill to have) but marketing specifically for self-published books (which is different than traditionally published books).
You’ll want to understand why you need a mailing list, how to run promotions (and get them) on sites like BookBub, understand how Amazon works, what descriptions sell books, why category selection is important, and so on and so forth. Understand all the ends and outs of having a great title and a great cover. Know how the different book selling companies works. The advantages and disadvantages of going Amazon-exclusive (Unlimited program) or going wide (publishing on sites like Kobo and the like), and so on and so forth.
Sounds complicated and that’s because initially it is, but every part of this has been so far. This isn’t bagging groceries, it’s not something you can learn from a five minute (or five hour) video and it’s not something you’re going to pick up in a week (or year). You have to keep at it, keep failing towards success, get a little better each and every time, get a little better each and every day. Take one bite at a time until you get there, sort of thing. Journey of a thousand miles and all of that. Take whatever analogy you want. This is a long and involved process, but you can get there if you’re just too damn stubborn to give up, to stop learning, and stop trying.
Keeping Learning & Trying & You’ll Get It
Becoming a successful self-published author is a more involved process then most think. Just because you can write a good book doesn’t mean you’ll make it. You have to master multiple disciplines and become an expert in them. To use a BJJ analogy a traditional published author has to be a black belt in story telling but can be a white belt in editing and marketing and be just fine (depending on your definition of that word as few are taking in big incomes). However as a self-published author things are different.
As a self-published author you have to be a purple belt in storytelling and at least a blue in editing and maybe a brown in marketing or just purple across the board (belt system for context). Meaning that your needs are going to be different. As a matter of fact to truly be successful it’s probably harder but at the same time you’ll have control and control is worth more than ever in this day and age. So there you have it a very broad based overview of what it takes to succeed as a self-published author. Both more and different than most think but something to get started on as soon as possible if you want to succeed.
If anything I said here interests you I’d highly recommend you check out The Ultimate Alpha Collection which is a compilation of 16 of my books for the price of 5. It covers everything from being a man to making money to getting the right mindset to getting girls to fighting and more and is a resource no man should be without. Pick up your copy today!
-Charles Sledge
