Rebelious rules by Kristina Gallo

Recently one author on Twitter says how he would be pleased to get 3 stars rating for his books. It is a rare statement and shows maturity because it is not easy to be objective about your books. Three obstacles to your success in writing are: Ego. You are persuaded that your books are good. Inability to receive critics. It is hard to digest critics, but it is a way to progress. Passivity. If you just sit and wait for someone to buy your books, you will not have success. There is a saying that an author must have thick nerves and a good stomach. I remember when a woman says to my book "sounds like a horrible book with a horrible title." I had no idea why she said this because she did not read it, she saw it in the group and I don't know who she was. That was my first test and I lost nerves and insulted her because I felt hurt. A professional writer must stay calm, even with trolls. We must know that some people are frustrated and they will do everything to spoil someone...

If you are an author, you have dreams about your books. Watching movies about famous authors in childhood results in fantasies. What would you do if you become famous? Let's see your potential bucket list. The book was adapted into a movie. Your book is a bestseller. Your fans are young girls (if you are a man) who adore you. You don't need to work, you are living from money earned from your books. You don't even need to write more, because offers for your work, public reading and interviews are everywhere. Now, let's wake up. An average indie author has a daily, regular job. He can only dream about a book adapted to a movie. The money author earns he will invest in the promotion. He must pay for interviews if he wants to have a public appearance on television or in a newspaper. You don't have fans, you have some readers or authors who also want their books to be read. You are surrounded by trolls who leave negative ratings on your books because the world is full of...

Let's sell the book. This is the dream of every indie author. Until now, you learned already about difficulties, and how to sell the book. One of the important things is collaboration between authors and readers. Also, authors should respect other authors. When I started writing, for four years, I had some experiences with other authors. I asked for opinions and got lessons. Sure, I did not like it. When the author asks for a review, he expects the review. You can always politely refuse and said you don't have time to read, or you don't want to leave a review because you don't like the book. Some authors are crossing the limits, by giving lectures. For example: "Oh, do you have an editor? I would read a book, but I would recommend you some editors, or I will edit this for a suitable fee." "Do you think you are ready to publish it? I have a book, let's take a look, and read it, so you can learn something from me. " When someone lectures you, he br...

Everyone wants to have a big number of followers. It is familiar how some famous persons bought followers, to increase their popularity. Having many followers doesn't mean that everyone will support you. If my 10.230 followers bought my book on Twitter, I would be very happy. To see beyond the surface, think about why people follow you: You have a nice profile photo. Guys want to flirt, and women might think you are popular, so they want to be in your crew. If you are a writer, book promoters, cover creators and editors want to earn money on you. Other authors want to offer you their books, to buy them. Trolls have interest too, in spamming your page, wanting to sell you lies, and spreading viruses on your computer. Desperate men who can't find a partner, in reality, try to get a connection with you. I know, it doesn't sound like a fairy tale. It sounds like a nightmare. Well, how to use your big number of followers in the best interest? Talk to them in public. Open a statu...

The average indie author doesn't earn much. He has a problem with selling books and usually, the sale is about 5 books per month.  On other hand, indie authors do many investments. You need to pay the editor, covers, and book promotion, and if you can't format the book alone, you will also pay for it. If you want to get a review, you will struggle to cooperate with other authors, read their books or talk mouth by mouth in the hope to sell something. The result is: you can't sell the book even to get small money, and especially, you can't earn from books enough to quit your regular job. The conclusion : You will spend more money than you earn. Most of your money will never get back. You will buy your own books. You will have a problem with selling paperback versions of books, these are the hardest to sell. What is the solution? You had a dream to sign your book in the local library, give autographs in public promotions, and people are standing in line to get your book. Y...

What are you reading? Why you chose this book? I can ask you this question because I want to know, did you pick a book by the cover.  If you want to watch a movie, you wish to know who are actors and what they look like. You wish to know the content and the plot. The same is with a book, to pick a book from Kindle or from the library, you wish to see the book. When the author wishes to sell the book, he must pay attention to the cover.  What do you need to avoid? Generic cover from Kindle. Templates that everyone uses because you will get lost in the crowd. Amateur cover. It means, covers with errors, gloomy, you can't see the title well and it looks like a kid draw it. Repeating. That cover looks familiar like something you saw before? Probably you did. If you pick a book by the cover, you are not a shallow person. Nice cover can promise, at least the author took the effort to his book to attract readers. What I don't like? Covers without photos, just with letters. Confusing ...

Indie authors are underestimated and our life is hard. When someone hears you are an independent author publishing on Amazon, a person will say: "Oh, well you are not a real author. You don't have a publisher, you have self-made covers and you are not famous." That could be partly true, but a real talent could be hidden under millions of books on Amazon. Why should not we give it a chance? Some authors on social media make the basic mistake of promoting books of famous authors on their pages. They will share, retweet, or brag about "Fifty shades of grey", "The Stand" or "1984." We all hear about these books. Their authors sold a million copies, movies are based on books, and extra promotion is unnecessary. Why do people do this? Remember high school. Girls wanted to date popular guys, to be seen with them. That guy needs to be more intelligent, but he has the fastest motorbike. He is not an intellectual type, but he is famous because he is a...