In 2018, I decided to randomly publish a book. Even though I was running an online brand focused on publishing personal finance content, I decided to do something a little different. I used the same writing skills but applied them differently. I wrote a romance. I am a voracious reader of romance books so I thought it would be fun to write one. What was unexpected was the $514 dollars that I made the first month my book was published. I noticed that amount because it was basically my mortgage payment. That first month’s earnings fueled a writing addiction.
After that I wrote more books. Primarily romances, but I also wrote non-fiction books as well. Then the COVID Pandemic happened and I just didn’t have the creative energy or bandwidth to continue with the book publishing part of my creative business. It’s 5 years later and for the past couple of years I’ve tried to get this part of my business going again. Sometimes the creativity was there, other times the business focus was there-but, both weren’t occurring at the same time. Now my energy and focus is finally balanced. There are so many reasons why I’m focusing on rebuilding my book revenue. It’s my hope that those of you wanting to write and sell books will listen to this episode and you’ll also be encouraged and inspired to start (or, restart) your book publishing journey.
Disclaimer
*In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Please read my disclosure and privacy policy here.*
Listen to the Episode
Make Money with Ebooks
On Saturday, March 22, 2025 I’m hosting a live workshop called “Make Money with Ebooks” It takes the best parts of the Make Money with Ebooks course that I used to teach with the goal of helping attendees get focused on writing and publishing their books: https://creatorsgettingpaid.com/ebook-workshop
If you’re needing a more intensive writing experience, sign up for the Make Money with Ebooks Live Writing Cohort. This online experience will have writers spending 3 months in an encouraging, supportive space getting those books done. At the beginning of the cohort all participants will meet individually with Michelle to work on their book concepts. Before the end of the 3 month cohort, all participants will meet with Michelle to design a marketing strategy for their individual works. Go to: https://creatorsgettingpaid.com/cohort for more information.
Show Notes
There are several reasons why I’m excited to sell books again.
- Passive income-The potential for building passive income in the backend of my business is high. I will never forget how having that income coming in gave me a sense of security-especially during COVID.
- Fiction books-Are an opportunity to have a fun leaning into a different type of creative persona.
- Non-Fiction Books-When I finally got around to publishing my non-fiction books-COVID hit. That was so painful. However, now I’m seeing some opportunities to share wisdom via books that I would be a fool to ignore.
Book sales can be done from behind the scenes. One of the best lessons that I learned when I was actively selling romances, was that I didn’t have to be the face of my brand. I didn’t need a huge social media presence. But I did need a list. I accidentally stumbled upon list building for my books and I attribute my success to learning how to grow my list.
Why I’m So Bullish About Ebooks
The American Economy is dealing with some unexpected shocks to the system. It’s my view that a large portion of content consumers will begin to shift their spending habits. While I do believe that a large number of people have money to spend, we’re beginning to that people are changing some of their spending behaviors. People are being a little more thoughtful about their discretionary spending.
Books, especially ebooks, are a great low-cost way for creators to entertain, educate or inspire their audiences. Books are also a great way to assert your expertise if you’re publishing in the business space or lean into creativity as a poet or non-fiction writer.
There are several opportunities that can come from self-publishing e-books. Authors can also do a couple of often overlooked activities when publishing ebooks.
- Grow their lists-Direct people to an additional bonus resource, chapter or even video content depending on the type of book you’ve written and your creative muse.
- Backlink to Other Books-With digital books you can add a “live” hyperlink that directs you to the sales page of another book. **Caution, do not use a Amazon affiliate link** Violation of terms of service.
- Publish direct to consumer-There are a number of ways you can control the sales experience of your book(s) You don’t necessarily need an intermediary to sell digital books.
- Publish a book that covers a very specific topic related to what you discuss or are passionate about as a creator and person who serves a community.
- Upsell from your book-There are a number of ways you can upsell to a higher ticket product from a book. The upsell really depends on the type of book that you’ve written.
Finally, I do want to mention two other slightly uncomfortable points. During Recessions, romance sales go up. People want to lose themselves in a story and an expensive vacation might not be possible. An inexpensive book is accessible to all. Also, during Recessions books become a much more affordable way to learn from your favorite creators. And finally, books are a much lower risk introduction to someone who is new to you.
Avoid Making the Following Mistakes
I made a few mistakes as an author and I would like to share my biggest mistake with you now. I stopped marketing and selling my books. The most popular authors out there are often spending a significant amount of time marketing their previously published books. Even though I stopped writing books, I could have continued focusing on sales.
Painful.
I dropped the ball. Despite that, I’m very excited about selling the books that I’ve already written. For context, I’ve published more than 74 books. I was looking at the backend of my Amazon portal this week. I have a deep backlist of books that I can market and sell throughout the year. Remember, once a book is written you can sell it. You may need to rewrite it, tweak things, but the book is done.
There are two other mistakes that I made that I think are important to share. The first is that I let my email list “go cold” Basically, I stopped sending emails and they forgot who I was after awhile. The final mistake that I made was that I stopped growing my list. It was and is my most important resource related to book sales and I didn’t nurture it. Huge mistake.
Self-Publishing Could Change Your Business
(And Brand)
Self-publishing books and earning income from my creative works was so empowering. Because of that first book I learned how to market a product that I’d developed, how to grow and nurture email lists and how to grow and nurture a “faceless” brand. I’m still using those unexpected skillsets. I also learned how to build and deliver a course, customer service skills and how to launch a product.
My hope is that this episode will leave you inspired to complete your work-in-progress or publish that book that you’ve already completed. If you’re needing more support don’t forget that I’m hosting the Make Money with Ebooks live workshop on March 22, 2025 and running a live writing cohort from April 7-June 30, 2025.
This podcast episode is a Creators Getting Paid Production.
Creators Getting Paid
Helping Black, Brown and Allied Content Creators who’re creating spaces, services and communities that otherwise wouldn’t exist strategize how to earn money with their work. This is done through sharing case studies, conversations and tools developed by other creators who are earning money serving similar communities.
Start using the Creators Getting Paid resource today to build a better brand. Head to creatorsgettingpaid.com/newsletter to start learning from successful content creators how to better monetize your brand. I also go deeper in depth about paywalling your Substack in this week’s newsletter.
