The Accidental Success Story
When I first started writing I had no intention of my stories ever being great works of art or great works of fiction. That was never on my mind.
What was on my mind was simply to have some sort of control of something in my life because at the time I felt like everything else was falling apart, and sitting there in front of my computer screen, tapping away, gave me a creative outlet and it gave me something that I was in charge of.
I had no idea that it would become something so big.
I had no idea that my books would sell all around the world.
This month alone, I've just received my Amazon notifications to let me know that I have sold books in all of these countries, and that's just phenomenal.
·Japan
·Australia
·UK
·US
·Sweden
·Germany
·Canada
I wrote these stories over a decade and a half ago and I'm still receiving payments for them. That’s without any marketing whatsoever. It just blows me away.
These days, I don't just do Amazon KDP. Now, everything is about going wide and giving our author clients a much fuller, far-reaching service.
Imagine if I'd have put all of those books everywhere instead of just on Amazon all of those years ago. Imagine if my books were available not just in more countries than Amazon KDP sells to, and more marketplaces within those countries, and imagine all of those months of remittance notices that I've missed out on.
My message to you in this blog is not to think narrowly. Not to think I can't write a book because I've got nothing to say / I can't write a book because I've got no reason to do it / I can't write a book because because because because… and all of those excuses.
I had one purpose when I was writing those 38 stories. It was not about I wanting to make money. It was not about reinventing myself as an author. It was not about wanting to get my name out there – in fact they're all hidden away under pen names that I'm never going to tell you. It was certainly never with any intention of turning it into a high-quality service for others. It was just about that creative release and having control over something I was sticking somewhere (no pun intended – if you giggle at this you know why!).
So, what would I have done differently?
Well, I would have published wide for a start. That's absolutely true. If I'd have known they were going to continue to bring me revenue I would have done what I could to build that revenue, of course.
The other reason that I don't want you to hold back is because the sooner you do it the sooner they're out there in the world; they start to sell, they're getting search engine optimization, they're getting passed from one person to another, they're getting recommended, they're getting reviews, they're getting recognition all of these things.
I didn't consider any of this. Did I want to be the next EL James? Well, I was writing them before E L James got started, I think, so no, that wasn’t part of the plan. Maybe more Jackie Collins… but it was never about that. It was always just about this this freedom, this doing something just for me.
I urge you to put pen to paper, put fingers to keyboard, if you feel like there's something you want to get down. Something you want to get out there.
It doesn't need to be War and Peace; it doesn't need to be Anna Karenina. It doesn't need to be this huge, weighty tome.
It could just be a short story. It could be a collection of stories. It could be a children’s book. It could be all sorts of things.
There is so much you can do celebrate this wonderful world of the Internet, this wonderful modern world, because we spend so much time moaning and whining about it and how intrusive and invasive it is, but it has its pros it has its benefits.
When I discovered that I had osteoarthritis and had to have both my hips replaced I did not have the ability, the physical energy, the strength really, to get out there selling anymore. I used to do 5 or 6 sales calls a day, and suddenly I could only do one and then I would fall over and have to come home. It was just not working – and by this time I was in a commission-only paid sales role – but online I can work as hard and as long, as fast and as effectively and with as much energy as I want to. There's no driving 100 miles to get to a customer.
Gosh this has ended up quite a personal piece, and I never really intended it to, but I think it's important to know that not everybody is always looking for the hustle. You’re not looking for it, and yet sometimes the hustle finds you.
Come and check out Jo Wildsmith Publishing at https://jowildsmith.com/
All our prices are on our website. No surprises, full transparency. We offer high-quality, wide publishing, and more. Well, except one, actually, I’m currently offering just TWO slots on our Opus I package – click here to read all about Opus I – at a vastly reduced rate. (The prices you see on the website are our full prices, by the way.) Contact me at [email protected] or sign up for our regular newsletter, the Contents Page for more details: https://jowildsmith.com/the-contents-page
