Adventures in Epublishing: What I Really Really Want...

I've now been at publishing for over a year now. I've figured it all out (kinda, hehehehe) and I've become skilled in the arts of content editing, copy editing, picking covers, formatting books, marketing (at least as much as I've had time). I've also joined up with not one, but two super groups, DarkSide Publishing and The Indelibles. But now we're finding that at this stage, we have different wants and needs than before.

There are two things that I could use extra help with. Being an indie author is great, but if you're working full-time, it's hard to keep up with both working and marketing, so that's something that I usually have to let slide.

I know there are a few places offering marketing services now, but they also cost money and I'm trying to keep as profitable as possible. But I SO need help with marketing. What's crazy is the things that work pop up and fizzle out so fast. Wanna go free? Before Christmas, I did and had tens of thousands of downloads. Try to go free now and instant success is NOT guaranteed because now everyone is doing it. Get a great result from using one of those ebook promoting sites (Pixel of Ink, etc.)? Well, by the time you get a date and get your book on it, another's author's great success might not be able to be replicated.

One of our Indelible friends has hired an intern, which isn't a bad idea, but alas, with little money, I'd need an intern that would volunteer just to do it for the experience. Maybe I should recruit one of my social marketing-savvy high school students to do it. Hmmmm.

The other thing I feel I'm missing out on is foreign sales. And this is pretty much one of the reasons I wouldn't look down on having an agent. It would be awesome to have a proper business partner, one who could take my book and sell it in a bunch of markets. It's so frustrating because we've tried this approach...

HEY AGENT, TAKE YOUR 15% AND SELL MY BOOK OVERSEAS!

But they're not biting. I'm not sure if there really isn't money in it for them or if they still just have this stigma with working with us indies or what, but really, I don't have the time or energy to send queries all over the world. For agents, they have these connections already organized. With nary the touch of an email button, ZOOM, connect with foreign agents/publishers, and if they like the book, voila - MOOLAH.

Well, we'll see. Maybe someday, our universes, indie and trad pubbed, will merge and agents will be thrilled to help us look for those rights. A girl can dream, right!