Here’s what nobody tells you about self-publishing success: it’s not about writing the perfect book. It’s about showing up, learning, and evolving—relentlessly.
Master the Craft, But Don’t Wait for Mastery
Every book you publish is a lesson. Your first book teaches you formatting. Your third teaches you pricing strategy. Your tenth? That’s when you finally understand your readers. Book creation, cover design, blurb writing, keyword research—these aren’t talents you’re born with. They’re skills you build, one imperfect launch at a time.
Marketing Isn’t a Dirty Word—It’s Your Megaphone
You can write the most brilliant book in the world, but if nobody knows it exists, does it matter? Experiment with everything: Amazon ads, BookBub features, newsletter swaps, TikTok, Instagram reels. Some strategies will flop. Others will surprise you. The authors who win aren’t the ones who find the “one secret trick”—they’re the ones who keep testing until they find what works for their audience.
Resurrect Your Backlist
That book you published three years ago that fizzled? It’s not dead—it’s dormant. New cover. Fresh blurb. Better keywords. A promotional push. Sometimes your “old” books just needed better timing or smarter positioning. Don’t abandon them; give them a second life.
Keep Writing. Always Keep Writing.
New books are your best marketing tool. They feed your funnel, give readers more reasons to discover you, and prove you’re not a one-hit wonder. But here’s the balance: don’t just write more of the same. Experiment with genres, tropes, lengths. Try a standalone after a series. Test a pen name in a different niche.
The Real Secret? Outlasting Everyone Else
Most self-published authors quit after one or two books. If you can push past book five, book ten, you’re already ahead of 90% of the competition.
Success in self-publishing isn’t a sprint or even a marathon—it’s showing up every day, learning from what didn’t work, and having the audacity to try again.
Your Action Plan for Success
- Write the next book
- Run that ad campaign
- Redesign that cover
- Fall down, get up, adjust your strategy
- Keep going—no matter what
That’s The Game
And persistence? Persistence always wins.
The authors who succeed aren’t the most talented. They’re the ones who refuse to quit.