When I read Marie Force’s recent blog post celebrating four years as a self-published author, it occurred to me that I should celebrate my own anniversary since I self-published Maids of Misfortune, the first book in my Victorian San Francisco Mystery series, on November 28, 2009––FIVE YEARS AGO.
While Force’s success as one of the most prolific and high selling hybrid authors of today is truly remarkable––it struck me that I should honor the fact that when I self-published (with no traditionally published books under my belt, no fan base) I was doing something a little risky––a little ahead of the curve. In 2009, the pundits were still saying ebooks and self-published books were the route to failure, and J.A Konrath and April Hamilton were voices in the wilderness. So, when I clicked publish on that first ebook edition, I was taking a leap of faith. The first of many. And some of the most gratifying lessons I’ve learned from self-publishing have been to continue to take risks, not take no for an answer, and to enjoy controlling my own destiny.
Not that the success was over night. I just looked back and saw that at the end of six months I had sold 284 books copies of Maids of Misfortune in ebook and print, vastly more than I expected but certainly not something that promised an end to my day-job. I also had four very nice reviews on Amazon (three from complete strangers) that pleased me no end.
Yet, today, five years later, I have sold over 120,000 books (which includes just Maids of Misfortune, Uneasy Spirits, and Bloody Lessons, a boxed set of those novels, and a recent collection of my short stories––a far cry from Force’s 27 self-published books), and the first book, Maids of Misfortune, has over 740 reviews and has recently been issued in German by AmazonCrossing.
And I have also gained innumerable friends in the writing community and discovered fans of my series who love my characters as much as I do, perhaps the greatest reason to celebrate there is!
So in celebration, I am doing my first Raffle Copter Giveaway, just one more experiment in this world of self-publishing, offering copies of my boxed set, and collection of short stories and $25 Amazon gift cards to five winners. I hope you will enter, help me celebrate, and get some new books to read for the upcoming holidays! Just click here for a Rafflecopter giveaway starting Thursday, 11/20-2014.
Maybe for the better, I never thought of self-publishing as taking a risk. 🙂 Congratulations on taking a chance and turning it into a success story.
This is an awesome milestone!! I am a great fan of your books and past that I have appreciated so much all your insight into the world of self-publishing. As an aspiring writer who has been considering self-publishing you have really given a lot of guidance. I sincerely appreciate all you share with us.
Thank you! Joshua
Cool. Shared!
Congratulations on five years! Thanks for being as open with your journey as you have been. 🙂
I have a Nook and though I have all your books on e-books, I was unable to buy Bloody Lessons on e-book. So I bought the paper version and enjoyed it very much. Maids of Misfortune remains my favorite because I understand now the difficulties of being a young girl in service. My grandmother was a young girl in service. She never talked about that part of her life. Thank you for helping me understand how maids lived. Please keep writing. Your books are among my favorites. I hope Nook realizes what good books they no longer offer their customers.
I was so excited to stumble across this giveaway in my email box! As a fellow author and lover of historical fiction, I’ve been a secret fan of yours for a while. I hope I win because I really want to read these books.
I enjoyed these books and am looking forward to reading more. I like reading historical fiction and cozy mysteries.
I have Maids of Misfortune and it’s great! I don’t have the rest – yet! Congratulations on your books and your five years of success! Someday I hope to be able to say the same about my own novels!
Congratulations on five years of self-publishing!
My personal favorite mysteries are cozies, although I also like classic noir. (I have a soft spot for Dashiell Hammett.)
I love your stories
Rafflecopter is not kind to those of us who don’t tweet
Love these books, ready for another
I have enjoyed reading your novels and had no idea they were self published. I can only say” good for you” to believe in yourself. I am a Rotarian one of my favorite quotes is “Believe in what you do, Do what you believe in”
Looking forward to future novels.
Congratulations!!
I prefer cozies for relaxation. I especially like those with really good character development over a series and your’s certainly fits the bill!
Congratulations!! I prefer cozies for relaxation, especially those that have really goos character development of the series, and your’s certainly fits the bill.
Congratulations on your success–richly deserved!
Congratulations! The story of your self-publishing journey will be an inspiration to many others, and I was very glad to discover and enjoy your first book not long ago. I’m really looking forward to working my way through the rest of them – and may there be many more to come!
Congratulations on your five-year anniversary of self-publishing! 🙂 I do enjoy a good historical mystery, and I’m intrigued by mysteries with a supernatural twist…
my favorite type of mysteries are what I call girls and guys with guns (meaning they are private detectives or police). I like the professional detectives vs the amateur ones the most. But I enjoy all types of mysteries.
Thanks for sharing about your journey with self publishing.
Always enjoy your books!
I certainly love your books! They are all the best rolled into one….cozy, historical, mysterious, great characters! I feel like I know the characters and live in the books while I read them.
I was just checking my email, and discovered that I was one of the lucky winners in your Raffle Copter giveaway — this made my day, and I couldn’t be more excited! Thank you so much; I’ve already downloaded the books, and can’t wait to dive into them. 🙂 Thanks again, from one very happy reader!