Christian A. Brown is the best-selling author of the critically acclaimed Feast of Fates (the first book in the genre bending Four Feasts until Darkness series.) It received a Kirkus Star Review in 2014. He’s appeared on AM 640, Daytime Rogers, and Get Bold Today with LeGrande Green. He actively writes a blog about his mother’s journey with cancer and gender issues in the media.
Originally, Christian was a personal trainer. When his mother was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma in 2010 he became her primary caregiver. Being a long-term caregiver gave Christian an abundance of free time and nothing to do with it. So he dug out the manuscript that he’d been working on for about a decade and decided to actually finish the thing. That manuscript eventually became Feast of Fates.
Christian’s self-publishing journey is fascinating. In this podcast we talk about working with an editor, getting a publicist, and some of the mistakes he has made on his journey.
Here are some of the takeaways:
Create a schedule for writing and do it every day.
Even if you only have a little bit of time be consistent and committed to your writing.
When in doubt just sit down and do the work.
Writing isn’t always creative and inspired. Sometimes you just have to force the prose out.
The importance of finding an editor.
As a professional writer, you need to get over your sensitivity to criticism.
You only have one chance to make a good first impression.
You have to believe in yourself.
When you self publish you have control over every aspect of your product.
It’s important to think of your novel as a product because that’s what it is.
Don’t run an advertising campaign unless you have more than one book, or you have money to burn. Advertising campaigns can get expensive really fast.
Build your platform. Have an email list. Choose your social media channels and attack them.
Every author should have a primary editor.
Another place to spend some money is to hire a visual artist.
If you’re not a web designer you should hire one to build your website.
It’s best to run an ad campaign when you’re book is selling well. Then your advertising will magnify its success.
The Kirkus review was a wise investment.
When you write a good book you’re going to get some bad reviews.
When you blog aim for consistency. You never know when people discover you. Over time your blog readership will increase.
Encourage other artists.
Every author is fighting for visibility. Try different things and see what works.
Try engaging on Facebook with images rather than just plain text.
Bookbub will probably reject you at least once before you get accepted. Keep trying. They are an extremely valuable resource to expand your audience.
Once you develop your brand a publicist can be valuable for getting you into media that you wouldn’t be able to get into yourself.
BookBub can help you outsell massively popular traditionally published authors.
Believe in yourself.
There’s enough success in the world for everyone.
Links and Resources Mentioned in the Interview
Get Bold Today — a wellness podcast with LeGrande Green.
Stephen King’s On Writing — a memoir with some important nuggets of writing advice from one of the most successful authors of all time.
Christian’s website — you can find the latest news on Christian, as well as his blog that’s updated every Sunday.
Feast of Fates — Christian’s first book
Feast of Dreams — the sequel to Feasts of Fate
Mary Sue — the premier destination for entertainment geeks, female or otherwise. Coverage includes movies, comics, TV/movie fandom, and other cool stuff.
Kirkus Reviews — this company has been reviewing books since 1933. It is a leading voice in the world of book discovery. They are a well-respected company that guarantees impartial reviews.
BookBub — the world’s biggest ebook promotion website with a mailing list of more than 5 million readers.
from 87: Hardcore Writing Wisdom with Self-Published Novelist Christian A. Brown