I Published a Book! This is What Happened Next

Jenna Moreci
Dec 2
8 min read

HelloOoOo everybody!

If you guys weren't aware, I’ve released several books over the years, and this publishing thing is going pretty damn great. I think a lot of authors talk about book releases in a really negative manner. I've done it myself, and it's not hard to see why; the book release process is really difficult. And a lot of times it doesn't turn out the way people were hoping. But I don't see enough people talking about all the great things that can come from a book release, when done properly. And wouldn’t you know it? That’s what we're talking about today.

I am listing the top ten things that have happened as a result of the launch of my novel, The Savior's Champion. People don't talk about all the cool stuff that happens as a result of the book launch, and even worse, they don't share how they were able to achieve it, which is what I'm gonna do right now.

This video is sponsored by Skillshare. As always, all opinions are my own.

If you haven’t already, don’t forget to also subscribe to my YouTube channel for more writing tips, sarcasm, and of course, more of Princess Butters!

Number 1: Reviews

Most writers are scared of reviews because people can be mean as fuck. But if you've taken the time to write a quality story, the odds are you're gonna get a lot of amazing reviews. I was floored by how quickly reviews of TSC came in, and how great they were. And I still get comments, messages, and reviews on a daily basis. It's awesome.

Look, you're gonna get some negative reviews, that's inevitable. But that doesn't mean you won't also receive an outpouring of love and support, and the way to ensure that is to invest in the quality of your work. TSC had so many rounds of revisions. I had fifty beta readers of all different backgrounds. I had critique partners, proofreaders, and an editor with decades of experience. If you care about the quality of your work, readers will see it and appreciate it.

Number 2: Amazon Exposure

Amazon reviews are pivotal to the success of a novel because they generate greater exposure. The exact figure is debatable, but it seems like the magic number is about 50 reviews. Once you hit this estimate, Amazon will feature your book in the “also bought” section of their website. They'll also feature it in spotlight positions or in their newsletter, which is a huge boost.

When I released The Savior's Champion, my goal was to hit 50 reviews by the end of the launch date, and I ended up reaching that figure in two days. My next benchmark was 100 reviews, which I hit in about two to three weeks, and this boosted my visibility so much.

The way I achieved this was by focusing on ARC reviews during the presale process. I sent out a minimum of 50 advanced copies to readers of influence specifically so they could share their reviews, which made it much easier to achieve this goal.

Number 3: Amazon Bestseller Lists

I'm gonna keep it real. Most people don't give a shit about the Amazon Bestseller List. Amazon has a billion lists in the most obscure categories like children's mythology and dental assisting. Because of this, it's really easy to cheat the system, and many authors do just that. You label your book in an obscure category with no competition, you sell one copy, and bam, bestseller!

This is something I would not recommend. There's no pride in this; it limits your reach, plus, it's shady as fuck. When I listed TSC, I placed it in its actual genre, which is dark fantasy, and then I was informed by my street team that on the day of its release, TSC made the Amazon Bestseller List for dark fantasy. And although I don't put a lot of stock in the Amazon Bestseller List, it was still pretty cool to see.

The way I was able to do this without cheating the system was through a rigorous marketing schedule. I marketed every single day for the entire six months leading up to my book release.

Number 4: Bookstore Presence

There's a misconception that indie books can't be featured in bookstores, and that's bullshit. A couple of months after its release, TSC was poppin’ up in bookstores all over the place. It’s at Powell’s, it’s at Barnes & Noble, it’s at a bunch of independent bookstores. It's like a rash, it's everywhere.

I never placed a huge emphasis on a brick-and-mortar presence because the vast majority of books are purchased online, but it's still cool to see your book in stores, especially because so many people think it's impossible. It's very possible, and it wasn't hard. When you price your book on IngramSpark, it gives you the option to choose a wholesale discount, which is essentially the percentage of profits that a retailer will receive when they sell your book. IngramSpark also gives you a percentage guide. Basically, it says that if you give bookstores this large a cut, you have better odds of them stocking your book. If you give them a different cut, the outlook is not so good. Thus, if an indie author wants a brick-and-mortar presence, all they have to do is follow the guide.

But here's the kicker, I didn't follow the guide. In order to make a brick-and-mortar presence more likely, I would have had to price TSC a lot higher. I didn't think that was fair to my readers. So I gave TSC a lower price, knowing that my odds of a bookstore presence would be slim. And yet TSC is still in bookstores, and that's because there is a demand for it. Bookstores pay attention to sales trends. If a book is selling rapidly, they will stock it, bottom line.

Number 5: Library Presence

As cool as it is to see my book in Barnes & Noble, it's actually more meaningful for me to see it in a library. Growing up, books were a luxury. We could not buy them; we checked them out at the library. I've seen TSC in a bunch of libraries, and it's so exciting. It warms my mechanical heart.

And it's actually super easy to get your book into libraries, all you have to do is request it or donate it—that’s it. Not only are you boosting your exposure, but you're also helping the community by giving them access to awesome free reading material.

Number 6: Income

One of the biggest complaints about this industry is that you can't make money. Writers are starving artists. That's not true. Yes. It's very hard to make money as a writer, but it's not impossible. There's also a misconception, especially among indie writers, that in order to be profitable, you have to pump out a ton of books each year, but this is shitty advice. What sustains an author's career is a dedicated audience, and if you're just whipping out crappy books every six months, your readers are not going to be loyal to you. At all.

That said, I am nowhere close to pumping out multiple books a year, but after the release of my second novel, I am now making more money through my author platform than I did in my finance career. The way I was able to achieve this was first by investing in the quality of my work. And second, by focusing on the growth of my platform. I put a lot of effort into my content, and I'm constantly branching out and trying new things that could potentially serve my readership.

Number 7: Platform Expansion

Because of the growth of my income, I have a much greater ability to grow my platform overall. I was able to get a new camera, lighting equipment, and backdrop, as you guys already know. We've been able to afford things like better health care for Cliff’s spinal injury and a cleaning service to focus on our home. And this gives us a lot more time and energy to focus on the business and on writing. That's why I was able to work on the TSC audiobook. That's why I was able to launch my Skillshare classes. When a book is launched well, it opens so many doors and allows you to grow your reach, and the easiest way to ensure this is to focus once again on a rigorous marketing plan.

Number 8: Fan Art

This is literally one of my favorite things about being an author. I fucking love fan art. I love it! And the fan art I've received for TSC is amazing. AMAZING.

First of all, my readers are hella talented, just saying. Second, it's just really cool to see how they visualize the characters and which scenes were meaningful to them. If you're an author and you wanna receive fan art, be sure to show some love to the artists out there. I share a lot of the fan art I receive because it's gorgeous, and believe it or not, people appreciate it. You want people to support your writing, and artists want people to support their art. It's the same thing.

Number 9: Opportunities

After the release of The Savior's Champion, I have been flooded with so many amazing opportunities. TSC was featured in my favorite monthly subscription box, The Bookie Box, which was so exciting. I participated in interviews with some really great people that I have a lot of respect for, and I've been contacted by publishers and agents.

Honestly, the key to finding opportunities as an author is simple. You just have to be visible. A lot of authors shy away from having a public presence, or a social media presence, and that’s stupid. Create a powerful, professional website, and create a contact page that is easy to locate. Make it easy for opportunities to come your way by plastering yourself all over the internet, basically.

Number 10: Pride

I'm proud of myself. I'm really happy with how the TSC release went. And, I'm thrilled with how TSC turned out. I've had such a positive experience, and I'm so touched that people love this story because I worked really hard on it. I think a lot of people get caught up in the craziness of the book launch that they forget to grasp the bigger picture, which is, you wrote a book! So many people try to do that and fail, but you did it. That's something to be immensely proud of.

So that's all I've got for you today!

There you have it, those are the ten best things that happened after I launched The Savior's Champion. I'm so grateful that I get to do what I love as a career. It's not easy to make happen, but despite the naysayers, the horror stories, and the doubts, the fact is, it can happen.

If you wanna learn everything about my book release process and how I was able to make all of this stuff happen in specific detail, definitely check out my class on Skillshare. I really think you're going to love it. Skillshare Premium is super cheap; an annual subscription is less than ten bucks a month.

But as a thank you for being so amazing, Skillshare is offering two months of Skillshare Premium for FREE to the first 500 people who click the activation link right here. That means not only can you take my book release class, but you can also take it for free! And you can take thousands of other classes for free, for two months, so why not? Click the link, save yourself some money, it's a good time.

*This post is sponsored by Skillshare. As always, all opinions are my own.

#selfpublishing #CyborgQueen #JennaMoreci

Follow Me!

Buy My Books!

SHUT UP AND WRITE THE BOOK

CHECK OUT THE SAVIOR’S SERIES