So you announced the release date and a) you got sick b) you broke up with your cat c) a meteor crashed in your backyard ---- bottom line: you can't meet your release date!!! What then???
This is the downside of e-publishing / indie publishing / self-publishing. Even - as it is in my case - if you're not self-publishing, an indie author still has to wear a lot of hats just to get a book out. If you're lucky, your publisher will hire a really good editor for you. But exceptionally good editors - the kind that can work for the Big 6 - is a rare breed, so most of the time even if you get your book published by X and Y, you still end up spotting a lot of mistakes. In the end, the whole lot still falls on your shoulders.
I don't earn a lot of money from publishing my books. You might think I do but no - really, I don't, and it mostly has to do with the fact that I'm from how my publishing contracts work, the fact that I'm from a Third World country, and really --- things just work differently here. So anyway, aside from writing full-time, I also have a day job - thankfully, it has to do with writing, too, which means it's NOT a crappy job at all but something I actually love.
Well, anyway, the thing is - I have a lot on my plate, and sometimes they just end up stressing me out - if I'm already sick (like now) I just get even sicker simply because I can't stop writing / working even though I should be resting. Case in point - NOW, it's 4am and I'm still up, wondering if today's the day I'll finally finish cleaning up PNV and SNF as best as I can. Fingers crossed that I do.
But I digress.
WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU DON'T MEET YOUR RELEASE DATE?
Honestly, my first instinct is to run away and just continue working, writing, and editing until I'm all done with it. I'll get the book out more quickly that way. BUT as I've learned - readers are very, very forgiving BUT they want - need - updates. Any update would do. Just to know that the books they want to read will be out. I learned this the hard way with A ROYAL HEARTBREAK. That book broke my heart - so many things went wrong before its publication that I'm just really relieved it's finally out there!
And now, here we go again with Park and Violet and Suit and Fangs - I was sooooo happy about these two, I'm on schedule with everything then bang! I had dysmenorrhea, then the flu, then I had to make time for my Dad's birthday last May 30, we got really busy at my day job, and it just all went downhill from there.
THE BOTTOM LINE ----
I don't earn a lot of money from publishing my books. You might think I do but no - really, I don't, and it mostly has to do with the fact that I'm from how my publishing contracts work, the fact that I'm from a Third World country, and really --- things just work differently here. So anyway, aside from writing full-time, I also have a day job - thankfully, it has to do with writing, too, which means it's NOT a crappy job at all but something I actually love.
Well, anyway, the thing is - I have a lot on my plate, and sometimes they just end up stressing me out - if I'm already sick (like now) I just get even sicker simply because I can't stop writing / working even though I should be resting. Case in point - NOW, it's 4am and I'm still up, wondering if today's the day I'll finally finish cleaning up PNV and SNF as best as I can. Fingers crossed that I do.
But I digress.
WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU DON'T MEET YOUR RELEASE DATE?
Honestly, my first instinct is to run away and just continue working, writing, and editing until I'm all done with it. I'll get the book out more quickly that way. BUT as I've learned - readers are very, very forgiving BUT they want - need - updates. Any update would do. Just to know that the books they want to read will be out. I learned this the hard way with A ROYAL HEARTBREAK. That book broke my heart - so many things went wrong before its publication that I'm just really relieved it's finally out there!
And now, here we go again with Park and Violet and Suit and Fangs - I was sooooo happy about these two, I'm on schedule with everything then bang! I had dysmenorrhea, then the flu, then I had to make time for my Dad's birthday last May 30, we got really busy at my day job, and it just all went downhill from there.
THE BOTTOM LINE ----
Authors - you know who you are. A lot of my fave indie authors have - had - the same problems I did - do - and I saw that their first instincts were not much different from mine.
You see, it hurts so much to have a reader disappointed in you. It's almost like having your crush reject you - so really the instinct to AVOID confrontation is understandable.
BUT it's not going to fix things.
In the end, you just have to man up (woman up?) and admit that you're late with your release date.
I'm sorry everyone!
You see, it hurts so much to have a reader disappointed in you. It's almost like having your crush reject you - so really the instinct to AVOID confrontation is understandable.
BUT it's not going to fix things.
In the end, you just have to man up (woman up?) and admit that you're late with your release date.
I'm sorry everyone!
But you should have good news to share, too!
It's the only way to make it up to your readers. Any good news would do.
So here's mine.
Once they're out, I'll of course send the ebook copies I promised to Elizabeth and LaKesha and I'll also choose 2 more from my subscription list!
Fair enough?
AAAAND for those who love Drawn: His Secret Toy, I'm currently negotiating as to which local publishing house would get to work on printing Drawn and have it available as paperbacks. I'll make sure you can order them online and keep delivery costs down!
P.S. I told my mom about Drawn getting published as a paperback. She saw the second cover of Drawn (the one with the couple) and she's like, naaah - she likes the illustrated cover better coz the other one's too...umm..."racy".
Pfft. If it isn't obvious yet, neither of my parents have any idea of what I'm writing. If Drawn's racy, what more (insert another title here)???
So here's mine.
Once they're out, I'll of course send the ebook copies I promised to Elizabeth and LaKesha and I'll also choose 2 more from my subscription list!
Fair enough?
AAAAND for those who love Drawn: His Secret Toy, I'm currently negotiating as to which local publishing house would get to work on printing Drawn and have it available as paperbacks. I'll make sure you can order them online and keep delivery costs down!
P.S. I told my mom about Drawn getting published as a paperback. She saw the second cover of Drawn (the one with the couple) and she's like, naaah - she likes the illustrated cover better coz the other one's too...umm..."racy".
Pfft. If it isn't obvious yet, neither of my parents have any idea of what I'm writing. If Drawn's racy, what more (insert another title here)???