Chasing the Tumbleweed

It’s been a bad three months.

I haven’t been as proactive as normal in promoting my books because of other commitments and real-life issues that have cropped up. All of which has led to tumbleweed being the only thing moving on my sales dashboard. It is very depressing.

Facebook seems to have become a ghost town. Whether this is because no-one is posting, or FB’s ever-changing algorithms I don’t know. But the vast majority of posts I see are from groups I’ve never joined, people who I don’t know, and adverts for stuff I don’t want.

The rest are from fellow authors who, like me, are trying to get their name seen in a sea full of other authors.

And my email box is bombarded by scammers trying to make me believe my books are amazing and if I just hand over a heap of money, they will become a bestseller overnight.

Nowadays, because of rising prices, most people are struggling to buy food and pay bills. Buying a book is probably the last thing on their list

Add into that mix a boycott of anything from Amazon, and it sounds like the death knell pealing over all my hard work.

I don’t have any money to spare for advertising – not that I think it makes much difference. As for joining other social media platforms to drum up a few extra sales, no thanks. I see authors posting 3-5 times a day to boost their visibility. I can barely manage two or three posts a week. If I spent all my time trying to be seen, I would have no time to write, which kind of defeats the object.

It would be easy to get despondent and give up, but I won’t.

Firstly, I don’t need to live off my sales. Which is good, because I would be starving, destitute, and cold right now! Writing for me isn’t tainted with deadlines, impossible goals or the threat of homelessness. It means I can write what I want rather than trying to follow market trends or genres I’m not interested in. And that is because I have a wonderfully supportive husband who cheers me on and encourages me in my work. He also pays the bills and knows when to wave a glass of wine under my nose.

Secondly, I have stories that want to be told. Ignoring them would be nigh on impossible. Some of the characters won’t leave me alone until I give them another adventure to go on. (Maisie, that’s you, by the way.)

Thirdly, the people that have read my books love them, and I have a small but loyal bunch of readers who devour everything I write. I’m doing this for them as well as myself. Nothing feels better than someone coming up to me and telling me how much they enjoyed my book, or to read a review praising my work. It’s heady stuff! Of course I’d like more, but I’m a realist. Short of catching Peter Jackson’s eye (waves hopefully), my royalties will never reach the hundreds of pounds a week I’d need to live on my proceeds. I don’t mind. That my words mean so much to one other person in this world is payment enough.

Finally, I sincerely believe my words will reach the people that need them. Who yearn to see evil conquered. Who want to be transported to another world. Who need hope in their struggles and the promise of a happy ever after.

If, after reading this, you’d like to give me a helping hand, here are a few ways you can make a difference.

The most obvious is buy my books, but that might not be an option for you. If you have Kindle Unlimited, my Masters of Zelannor series is now available for you to download for free. I also periodically drop the price of my books as an incentive for people to buy. Keep an eye out for my announcements.

If you have read one of my stories and you enjoyed it, please leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads. It doesn’t have to be very long or detailed. “I loved it” is enough. It really helps increase my visibility on Amazon and pushes me up higher on the suggestions page when people search for a book.

Sign up to my newsletter. It comes out once a month and you get first looks at covers, free downloads, and behind the scenes information. The form can be found on my webpage (www.susanmansbridge.com ) or at the top of my Facebook author page.

Follow me on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/susanmansbridgewriter ) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-mansbridge-indie-author ) If you see any posts from me, like, comment, and/or share them. All of these small actions help make my posts visible to others.

Tell your friends about me. Share my books with them. I don’t mind if you want to pass them on. Add my books to a little library if there is one near you.

With Christmas fast approaching, consider buying a book as a gift for a loved one.

Thank you.