Phew. So, by way of the traditional route, you managed to write the book, find a publisher and get it published. So all you have to do now is relax, sit back and bask in the acclaim and glowing reviews right? Not quite. Here are a few things you’ve probably haven’t thought of in your debut outing.
Be prepared to drive a lot of publicity yourself
Unless you’ve signed up with a big publisher with a generous marketing budget that’s slated to newbies (rare, many of them are reserved for household names), a lot of the publicity is expected to be done by you. This means that, even if you are assigned a publicist to help you navigate the publicity trail, you are still expected to initiate some cold-selling of your own.
Your publicist only has a limited contract with which to help, so now is the time to brainstorm any professional literary contacts you have to assist in spreading news about your work. For instance, do you know anyone who has a books podcast? Do you have any friends who are BookTokers who can feature your book? Maybe set up a Facebook account devoted to your book, so people can find out any information about your invitations to bookshops and festivals. If you want to expand the coverage of your book, it’s prudent to show initiative and do your own networking and not rely solely on your publisher to do all the legwork.
Be engaged in the literary community
Following on from the last tip, it’s also good to get out and about, and engage with those in your literary circle. It doesn’t matter if you are invited to do a reading at a library, bookstore or festival, you should support them and attend if you can anyway. Why? Because you will meet other writers, publishers and agents there, and find a sense of community and camaraderie that will buoy your spirits. Writing is such a lonely business; now that you have your book out in the world, it’s good to celebrate its arrival among people that understand the difficult and long journey to publication.
Sign up to PLR and ELR and, if applicable, DLR
We all know how difficult it is to make any money from books, particularly for the majority of (debut) writers. In fact, according to the 2022 National Survey of Australian Book Authors, the average income for authors is $18,200. But there’s a way you can add to your earnings: by making sure you sign up to PLR (Public Lending Rights) and Educational Lending Rights (ELR).
Administered by the Ministry for the Arts, PLR and ELR offer payments to eligible Australian creators and publishers in recognition that income is lost from the availability of their books in public and educational lending libraries. PLR makes payments for eligible books held in public lending libraries and ELR makes payments for eligible books held in educational lending libraries (schools, TAFEs and university libraries).
In other words, even if your book is not bought in stores or online, but is available to borrow in libraries, you are eligible to sign up for PLR and ELR and claim some payment as compensation for the loss of potential sales income.
Also, since 2023, authors, illustrators and editors will be compensated for ebook and audiobook library borrowings for the first time in Digital Lending Rights (DLR), an expansion of the annual lending rights scheme, so if your book is published electronically, make sure you sign up to DLR too.
Don’t get too hung up on reviews
Be prepared for your book to not garner critical attention by mainstream media literary editors (who are inundated by books sent in by publishers across the country). Your book may be reviewed in other outlets or on community forums like Goodreads. Even then, be wary of what’s been written about your work. Sure, to pique curiosity you may want to check out any critical reception and revel in the praises if any are forthcoming, but also don’t be disheartened if the responses are less than you think the book deserves. Concentrate on enjoying the achievement of having a work published, because it is an achievement, regardless of what any naysayers may believe.
Enjoy your moment in the sun
Head into any bricks and mortar book shop and you will be overwhelmed with the number of books decorously arrayed in tidy piles. Yours will probably be there too. You’ll only have a brief moment when your book is feted as a bright, shiny thing and possibly given maximum exposure on the shelf devoted to new books, before being moved to a less prominent spot, so enjoy the experience as much as you can.
Read: 5 ways to deal with a bad review
Take lots of pictures, show it off to your friends and family. Internalise and celebrate the fact that somehow you are now a published author whose work is displayed in an actual bookshop.
