As you can see from the picture below I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I’ve published nearly ten books in the past two decades. You know what? After a lot of hard work more than half of those books didn’t even sell enough copies to cover the cost of creating them. I wanted to quit more times that I can count but I couldn't because writing is a part of me.
Why Do Books Fail?
I've contemplated this question for a long time. There were many reasons for failure -- bad cover design, poor marketing, subpar writing, but it's mostly due to the author writing the book for the wrong reasons.
When I was younger I made two of the biggest mistakes a writer can make:
- Imitating the style of other authors; and
- Writing what I thought the reader wanted instead of writing from the heart.
Both are fatal flaws.
"Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are." - Kurt Cobain
Despite all of the challenges involved in the publishing process, if you don’t quit or go crazy, you do keep learning. It eventually gets easier but it never gets less exciting. Each time you publish a book it feels like your own child is being born into the world. One of the reasons writing is so addictive is each book is a gigantic roll of the dice. Whether a book is a success or not each book you write changes your life in some way.
To be an author is to constantly surf the edge of chaos. Ushering a book from abstract concept to finished product is a lot like herding cats...lots of cats. It took me a long time to realize one thing, many hands make light work when it comes to self-publishing. To maximize your project’s success it’s best to hire professionals for editing, book cover design, and marketing.
Being able to work with a team of highly creative and talented people allows the author to focus on their core strengths. This is one reason I’m so excited about my next book, The Perfect Pause – Meditating Your Way to the Optimal You. Steemit has given me both the resources and the network to find and enlist the talent I need to maximize a book’s chance of success.
For the book cover and interior design I’ve hired the gifted artist and book designer, Lubosh Cech. Steemit’s very own @natureofbeing created a yantra that will grace the book’s cover. Also, I can't forget the many Steemit users who graciously volunteered their time to be beta readers and offered their editing feedback. Last but not least, Leon Logothetis, (best-selling author of The Kindness Diaries) wrote a beautiful endorsement of the book that will have a prominent place on the cover.
The Perfect Pause is a humble book but I hope it packs a meaningful and life-changing punch. My hope is that it helps as many people as possible. More than ever this world needs the peace and wisdom brought about by meditation. The book is meant to introduce meditation into the lives of each and every person who feels they might benefit physically, emotionally, and psychologically from a regular practice.
“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” ~Albert Einstein
What this project has taught me is it’s damned difficult to write a simple book on anything. In fact, it took me over twenty years of practice and three years of teaching to write this one. My wish is for the contents of this book to ripple out and expand into a lasting and positive legacy. I'll do everything within my power to make sure this happens. I spent the first half of my career having people preach to me about what I couldn't do as a self-published author. I intend on spending the second half of my career proving them wrong.
The Perfect Pause is in the design process now and I’ll be sharing updates with you periodically! I may even let Steemit users choose the final cover design.
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Eric Vance Walton - Media
More than anything, I want to say congratulations on your authentic enthusiasm for this project! Whether the book end up selling 100 or 100,000 copies, I have a feeling you will be happy with it.
I "recognize" some of what you say, except from an opposite angle. I have been told for a couple of decades that I "should write a book" and have resisted because others' assertions that I am "a good writer* was never reason for me to write a book. "Write a book? Why?"
So, in a sense, I find your words very encouraging. Wishing you the best!
Thanks! I highly recommend writing a book and publishing it. It's really a journey into yourself. I learn so much every time I do it!
Hello Eric, though my writing be not be as mighty as yours. I do take 20 mins daily candle meditation to steady the dendritic fireworks within and to allow my new ideas to come up from the deep subconscious mind. I do wish your new book all the success it deserves, and it's nice to pass by here as always :)
Thank you, @mindhunter! It's always great hearing from you, man.
It's up to us Steemit senior members to keep posting during this rewards pool refresh! A great place for you to bathe the soul during all your re-writes! Ha ha! Steem on old friend :)
Yes, @mindhunter, it's been very quiet around here during this refresh period, hasn't it? Steem on my friend!
Even the minnows are taking it easy ... and they are the lifeblood of this place! At least it'll give me time to read up on your new series for the aspiring novelist now :)
They are! Hopefully the stream of new content will pick up soon. There will be more posts on writing craft too after this series of four. I'm also working on a short story that I'll be posting in a week or so as well. My muse has been generous lately. I try to create as much as I can while it's flowing.
I find the hardest thing is to simplify my splurge of subconscious words on the page. My muse chatters incessantly. I've never had writers block or ran out of ideas in my life! I am very lucky :)
bunu bilen çok var artık yeter deseniz başka bir kitap iyi olurdu.soo brother write new unit new book HİTS HOTS OR LOVE STORY....much people checking maybe this for your great thinking
Teşekkür ederim, umarım birçok insan buna bayılır!
bende umarım kanka
Thank you!
bende sana teşekkür ediyorum arkadaş
Enjoyed reading your post! Thank your! I wish you good luck and inspiration:)
Thank you very much!
Your writing is great. Looking forward to this!
Thank you so much! I feel like a kid a few days before Christmas waiting for the cover designs to be done. 😊
great Cobain quote, I hadn't heard that one. Thanks for the shout out, it continues to be an honor to be a part of your project (and I'm loving your rich and beautiful chapbooks btw!). So glad the collaboration with Lubosh is working out, he is a great talent and an exemplary human - really the perfect person to help with this kind of book.
Congratulations on your book announcement! I, among many others, are so glad you have persevered in your writing because your writing is magnificent, generous, rich and I love your humor. Cheers!!
You're very kind, Ruth! I'm happy you guys are enjoying the books. The artist that puts those together for me is immensely talented. Lubosh is going to have cover samples for me soon!!! I really appreciate all of your support and kind words. I owe you dinner when we can finally meet in person.
Love to see the cover samples if you're willing to share before the "final"! Yes hopefully in person we can raise a glass to this project one day!
The cover samples should be coming soon. I can't wait. Lubosh is going to leave the yantra image in more of its original watercolor style. Yes, some day soon I hope!
I can't wait for this treasure, Eric!
Thank you! I'm excited to share it with you!
Eagerly awaiting the new book. So cool of you to use steemit to aid in its creation!
Thanks! Steemians have been more than generous with their time and suggestions! There are so many kind people here.
I'm attempting to write my very first book but I haven't worked on it in a very long time... I got pretty frustrated and scared. But this article has inspired me to keep trying so maybe I'll sit down at my desk tomorrow and give it another go... I'm excited to see how your book turns out! :)
It's is both frustrating and scary @lscottphotos. The great thing is you don't have to do it alone. Thank you for your comment!
So exciting! I just bookmarked your website and subscribed ;) Reading this brought me back to the first book I wrote, which was not very good for some of the very reasons you outlined, mainly writing for other people. At the beginning of each new project I do now I put "To Thine Own Self Be True".
It was actually Ikeda's character who reignited my interest in the subject of meditation. I definitely look forward to reading your book on the subject!
That's awesome that steemit brought you different talents to add to it, I recognized that potential when I was thinking about a book cover for Reborn, and I couldn't be happier with @therealpaul's creation.
Thank you so much for subscribing! Ikeda was definitely the guru of Alarm Clock Dawn. I'm glad the character resonated with you like that. Cheers to you on your collaboration on Reborn! It's fun isn't it? The creative process is amazing.
Congrats on the new the book. Hope it does well. It's also obvious this steemit post came from the heart.
You can follow the development of my new book at my steemit page as well.
Thanks! I'm looking forward to following your progress!
This is exciting news! I appreciated the wisdom of this article as you shared your experience as an author. There are a plethora of aspiring writers on Steemit, and reading your story could be a great encouragement to them. May your book be mightily blessed Eric.
Thank you @lydon.sipe! I really appreciate that. Hopefully I can offer a "short-cut" to other authors and keep them from making the same mistakes I did...that's always my aim.
You mentioned this to me awhile ago, so I just kept my mouth shut and was waiting for updates. I am actually excited and books do not really excite me LOL, so that is a plus.
-- that my friend, was a profound thought, I will be thinking about this for awhile, so thanks for that. Nite my friend
: ) Thank you much, @barrydutton! The publishing part is kind of a painfully slow process sometimes. I can't wait to share the potential cover designs with you. I think I'll do a bit of A/B testing on Steemit to determine which I use. Hope all is well!
I'm around LOL.
I minnow along doing my best dude. Check out my latest posts if you have a minute. Oh and my latest in the #TrumpTweets series will be out in a couple hours LOL
"To be an author is to constantly surf the edge of chaos." Love it!
Thank you! I'm always trying to "catch a wave". Lol
Congratulations thanks for tips
You're welcome! Thanks for reading!
Amazing news Eric! I'm looking forward to reading it, and I hope it has an awesome public reception because you're a great writer, a great guy and don't deserve any less.
If there's any thing I can do to help, let me know.
Congratulations Eric!
Thank you, my friend! I really appreciate the kind words, @the-alien. Sorry I've been scarce lately but we need to connect. I think I have another Steemit interview lined up. Hope all is well in your world!
Looking forward to reading your latest work, Eric! Congratulations!
Thank you, Kirk! : )
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