Musings on a book signing (part 1)

I completed my debut sci-fi novel last year. My 15-year old son told me it was the greatest time travel story ever told, and my wife agreed, so I set about self publishing this magnum opus, and waited for the book to go viral.

It didn’t yet.

That's why I’ll be standing outside in the cold at my local bookstore this Friday morning doing a book signing.

I, like the vast majority of self-published authors, are hobbyists with a book marketing team of one. We write because we love writing, but we have to earn our livelihoods elsewhere. We don’t have the know how, resources, or time to market and distribute our books effectively.

This year, I’ve been super busy building a wonderful platform that helps publishers discover new talent. While I’ve learned a great deal about publishing, I’ve basically neglected my own book, and they don’t sell themselves.

Traditionally published authors have a huge leg up on me, with dedicated marketing and PR teams, huge distribution networks and digital sales resources. Vanity presses will offer some of these services, but they cost a kidney or two, with many bad faith actors.

That’s all about to change. Some awesome author focused products are being released soon. 2025 is going to be a great year for us.

Until then though, it’s up to you and me and my stand outside the Yanshuf Book Store.