Most people, especially first-time authors, have the misconception that “being published” is the end of the road in an author’s journey—You’ve made it. You have arrived at your destination. Errr.. actually no, you have not arrived. In fact, being published is just one milestone. There are a lot more hurdles that you need to jump over. I have been a self-published author of two self-help books (Oh I thought I was the Only One and Oh I thought I was the Only One 2) and recently, my semi-biographical fiction, Looking After The Ashes, was published by Penguin SEA.
Each road has its own challenges. After publishing, I went through a period of almost going insane. Endless googling to find out where (other than Amazon, Book Depository, Shopee, MPH, Kinokuniya, Times) my books were “Available for purchase” and if they had ready stock. The publisher or distributor may provide you with a list of where they intend to send the books to but as the author you need to check if those books are actually available on those sites. If you don’t do this step and you send your readers to a site or bookstore that does not carry ready stock for your books, your readers may end up being extremely frustrated.
Then comes the media and social media part: if you don’t promote your own book it may not get the publicity it needs and it may eventually just die out. If you are someone who is not very tech-savvy and not active on social media, it’s time you buck up and learn. Yes, learn Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Goodreads as fast as you can because that’s where books get promoted a lot. Do your research, know who are the bookstagrammers/booktokkers/bloggers in your genre. Reach out to them via email asking if they would do a review for you in exchange for a free copy of the book.
Grow thicker skin and approach podcasters, bloggers, reporters, or journalists and ask if they would like to interview you and cover your book. Connect with other authors and be generous in your promotion of their books too. Your reach will be far greater if you work together and inter-promote. Do Giveaways if you can in return for Reviews. Approach libraries, universities, and schools offer to do book signings and talks.
Next comes the more insane part that you’ll find yourself doing (well maybe not you but certainly me). I find myself googling daily to see if there’s any media coverage, clicking on Goodreads and Amazon a dozen times a day to see if there are any new reviews, entering random bookstores and pretending to be a customer searching for my own book so that their system will detect that someone is looking for the book and hopefully the bookstores will put in an order, even re-shelving my books (a few copies) to a more prominent place in bookstores. Some authors even go as far as going into bookstores and start signing their own books. Please DO NOT do that—if you truly want to, at least ask permission from the Managers of the bookstores first. Yes, there is that temporary moment of insanity where just like a first-time parent, you wonder if you are doing everything you can to help your newborn thrive.
So what’s the solution? How did I stay sane? Well basically, I don’t think there is a solution; many of the things we need to do are necessary evils. I stay sane by pacing myself and taking short breaks from social media. One can easily get obsessive with commenting, posting, and replying to comments. What’s the point of this article? I am writing this to give you a heads up that this may happen to you, to let you know you are not alone, and you are not mad for doing some or perhaps all of the above.
Just remember to BREATHE and PACE yourself. Take a break if you need it.
Wishing you all the best in your publishing journey and always feel free to contact me (FB/Instagram) should you have any questions.
Kopi Soh is the pseudonym of a Malaysian author and illustrator best known for her book Oh, I Thought I Was The Only One. She founded the Facebook community “Stick It To Me“, a page centred around producing healing art for the sick and needy, and organises a group of volunteers to produce art for hospitals and charities. Her work with “Stick It To Me” was recognized in the Digi WWWOW Awards 2015, winning an award in the Social Gathering category. She also served as the official illustrator for TEDxWeldQuay 2013 and has worked with various nonprofit organizations such as AsPaCC Community Hospice, Pusat Perubatan Universiti Malaya (PPUM), Pusat Perubatan Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (PPUKM), Bukit Harapan Orphanage, and Cambodia Water Project.
Find out more about her latest release, Looking After the Ashes, on The Star, Free Malaysia Today, and The Sun Daily.