The Fame! The Glory! The Money! #OpenBook Blog Hop

September 12, 2022

If your book took off tomorrow with enormous worldwide interest and sales, are you prepared for all that entails?

We dream about it, amirite? One of our books skyrocketing into major success. NYT bestseller list, here we come. But are we ready?

I’m not. I just moved onto a new house in a new state and the new experience of being retired from my day job. Shoot, I only got my office pulled together last week. The concept of not having a daily schedule to follow has thrown me for a loop. But, slowly, I’m getting a handle on my changed life. Having it tossed off course so soon would stretch me in ways I’m not prepared to handle.

After all, I am a one-person show. There’s no one else to answer my emails, take phone calls, or keep up my social media pages. Sure, I could rope my husband into helping, but that would take a lot of coaching at first. When would I find time to write?

Then there’s the travel required. Once upon a time, I did a lot of travelling all over the US for my job (that was before I started writing fiction) but I haven’t been on a plane for several years. I could do interviews over the internet, but book signings would require in-person appearances.

I know an author or two who do personal assistant work to help support themselves, so as soon as money started coming in, I could hire them to help. (It takes 60-90 days to get what you’ve earned from Amazon.) There would be other business expenses to plan for, along with a separate bank account to handle them. And taxes. I’d have to restructure my financial setup to cover income taxes.

Could I make the changes needed? Not overnight. Truth is, while it’s a sweet dream, it’s nothing I expect to happen, so I don’t have to worry about it.

Some of the other authors on this hop have had more experience with writing success than me. Find out how they handled it by following the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

September 12, 2022

If your book took off tomorrow with enormous worldwide interest and sales, are you prepared for all that entails?

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1. Link your blog to this hop.
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5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

 

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Success! #IWSG

 
September 1 question – How do you define success as a writer? Is it holding your book in your hand? Having a short story published? Making a certain amount of income from your writing?
The awesome co-hosts for the September 1 posting of the IWSG are Rebecca Douglass, T. Powell Coltrin @Journaling Woman, Natalie Aguirre, Karen Lynn, and C. Lee McKenzie!
 
 
I’ve answered this question before, long ago, but I can’t find that post to copy! So, I’ll make the answer short and simple.

Success is writing a book I’m satisfied with. Sure, it would be wonderful to become a best-selling writer, but I have no great expectations of that ever happening. I try to be satisfied with the few sales I do make. When I get one of those rare reviews that lets me know that a reader loved my story, that’s icing on the cake.

But the joy is in writing. Find the right word that I need in a sentence. Putting on paper the thought that has been eluding me for weeks. Writing “The End” and knowing I’ve accomplished something.  That’s success. And that’s what I strive for.
 
Find out what other authors define as success by following the links below. And, as always, stay safe until next time!

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay