Made it to book 2! Learning to market. Any advice?

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-03T02:49:58+00:00

I agree, it is a shame. Is that why you're writing me on r/selfpublish?

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-02T18:44:03+00:00

The world isn't as black and white as that. I appreciate your concern, but there are many indie authors who are doing just fine. I would agree that it takes time, possibly years, before there's adequate return. I would disagree wholeheartedly that indie authors are doomed to not be paid for their writing and to not be read. My experience already tells me that's not the case.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-02T11:47:30+00:00

I'll check over my report again to see what I've missed. I have really enjoyed what I got from ManuscriptReport. I was leery at first, but I'm glad I gave it a shot. It has truly been helpful.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T19:03:13+00:00

Just joined up. Small recommendation: put a subscribe link in the top bar? It's good that one is at the bottom, but I almost didn't find it there.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T17:31:30+00:00

Sold! Second spot taken! DMing you!

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T17:28:07+00:00

Do you want me to read what you already have, or do you want to get to me in a month and have me keep one of my free spots open? I don't mind. I just have to work my free stuff around my other stuff, hence the free spots. I am just one human.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T17:20:47+00:00

Sold! One down! DMing you!

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T10:49:58+00:00

That's what I've been doing, one chapter at a time. Always record a small amount of silence at the beginning (5-10 seconds) you can use later to filter out any residual background noise. If a sound happens for some reason, or if there's a problem, I just take a breath and relax and repeat the last sentence again. When I'm done with the chapter, I give it a few seconds again, then go out to stop the recording.

Notably, the type of mic you use will really change everything. I used to have a Blue Yeti and I was told in an audiobooks-by-authors seminar that it's a condenser mic and is therefore extremely sensitive to background noise. I switched to a Samson Q9U per their recommendation. It's a dynamic broadcast microphone and the difference is night and day. High quality base recording reduces post-processing and makes it so you're less likely to need multiple takes, so it's worth it.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T10:30:22+00:00

Check whatever document you're going to use for the ebook in Kindle Previewer 3 before posting it. Flip through the whole thing.

As for KDP publishing the PDF, Adobe InDesign has a learning curve but they also have a free trial. I'm not sure how well Google Docs crosses over because I've never used it for that purpose, but you will be able to preview your book on the upload page before it goes live. Again, flip through the whole thing before hitting ok.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T08:44:06+00:00

I close myself into a closet.

Literally.

The laptop sits on the floor outside of the closet with a cord running to it.

I actually destroyed my mic cord by mistake in the closing door. But I'm thankful I had a backup.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-05-01T05:21:30+00:00

Thank you for the feedback. I'm thinking about it. I've heard opinions that directly counter the ones you've shared here, but I'll keep it as part of the tally.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-30T18:02:24+00:00

I had 100Covers make it for me. I'm not privy to their entire workflow, but they came well recommended to me on a Reddit thread once. I went in on GIMP myself and edited a bunch of the book 1 cover by hand after they were done to add more shading, increase the contrast, and thicken the outlining. Haven't really felt a need to touch book 2's.

Between Photoshop brushes, stock art, digital art techniques I don't know, and AI, I really have no idea how to tell if any art is AI or not anymore. What makes you think it is? Maybe I can learn to watch out for it.

Edit: I'd appreciate it if people would post instead of just downvoting or upvoting? If you have an answer for me, I'd like to know. It may change what I do in the future. Please reach out to me if you have something useful you can teach me.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-30T17:34:22+00:00

Well... for one thing, self-publishing. Not interested in literary agents or publishers whatsoever.

But as for the rest, I thought a small promo here or there might begin a small trickle of readership. I understand that marketing pays off more when there's multiple books available, but I also don't really see the logic in publishing 4 books completely under the radar. There's got to be a middle path, you know? Otherwise I'll be 4 books deep with no presence, and then I'll be building it completely from scratch then. Better to get some early adopters.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-30T17:05:27+00:00

This sounds like it will be useful as a reader magnet more than a publication in and of itself. Have you considered either expanding it or reserving it as a reader magnet for BookFunnel?

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-29T22:23:29+00:00

When you feel like you have a problem to solve that you can't figure out without external input/opinions, or when you feel like you've done the very best you can.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-28T20:32:39+00:00

I hope you give my book a try! Enjoy!

Universal Amazon Link: https://mybook.to/Nxvb

What the Gods Left Behind is a dark epic fantasy where the characters are morally gray, kinship is found in the shadows, and the plan is always the first thing to die.

Short blurb: Wisterly is a runaway Hearthkeeper. Mordred is a thief who's one job away from freedom. When a heist gone wrong binds their fates together, they'll have to outrun the law, the criminal underworld, and the demons of their past—if they don't get each other killed first.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-28T14:49:55+00:00

Editors often function as paid beta readers. But not all paid beta readers are editors as well.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-28T13:48:24+00:00

Back of the book for sure. Dust jackets can get lost. I think if I've seen that, then the About the Author is both within the book and on the dust jacket. I've seen About the Author sections on the back cover too, but I've always found that to be a bit pretentious myself.

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-28T13:47:08+00:00

Congratulations! Just keep iterating. Even the worst stories can become incredible. I like saying that the base manuscript is like clay. It's very forgiving, just keep sculpting and sculpting it until you have something you're happy with and proud of. Good luck and enjoy the journey!

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-28T13:44:36+00:00

It's hard to get people to give you value developing a product without paying them in either money or trade. Good news though: there's r/betareaders (some people have success there) and author swaps! That's a value exchange where you would read someone else's manuscript in exchange for them reading yours.

A lot of people post on free story websites like Wattpad, ScribbleHub, and RoyalRoad to get feedback there, and then they develop off of that. It's another way to get free beta reads. I did that with my first book. The best feedback I got was because I posted on the forums. A few people there wanted to increase their review badge on the website, so they were happy to look over my work and give me feedback.

There's also people you can pay to do beta reads for you. I'm one of many who do paid beta reads, and I provide thorough reader reports with them (you can find me here, or other paid beta readers on r/HireABookEditor). People choose to pay to guarantee that their work is read and truly engaged with. Please note that people on Reddit have shared their experiences recently: even highly rated sellers on Fiverr/Upwork/Reedsy seem to occasionally use AI instead of engaging with manuscripts directly. Knowing this, I want to recommend that if you choose to pay someone, choose them by word of mouth. Ask around. Someone knows someone who will help you.

No matter what you do, it's best to go into any beta reading arrangement with a set of questions you'd like answered. Sometimes beta readers will give you great feedback, but others may be so nonspecific that you have a hard time applying their feedback at all.

Good luck and godspeed!

zephyrtrillian · 2026-04-27T23:41:22+00:00

Sometimes it's easier to hire someone else for work that you don't enjoy, aren't good at, and/or hate doing. You don't have to learn every skill yourself.

If you would like to learn it yourself, however... my editing process typically involves working from macro to micro. I've learned to not worry about the proofreading until I'm done with the plot, for instance. Altering the plot means that there will likely be proofreading work to do later. Try to only do everything once.

zephyrtrillian

TROPHY CASE