10 words. Yes, it’s that low, but mainly because I had some loose ends to tie up. Not a big deal.
I FINALLY got around to uploading my July sales, which took me about 45 minutes.
All retailers. All affiliate platforms.
No data entry.
45 minutes.
Add another 15 minutes of analysis, and that’s one of my biggest efficiencies of the year, friends. It’s not 100% perfect, and there are some things I need to tweak in my Excel and Access databases. But wow, this used to take me 4-5 hours per month, minimum.
I also did my expenses month-to-date.
Overall, I’m having a great year. Definitely profitable, and contingencies (basement flooding, pandemic-related expenses, etc.), I’m adhering pretty close to my budget for the year. I’ll be a little over, but I made a lot more money this year so that’s fine.
I also tweaked my 2021 budget in light of lessons learned from this year:
- My contingencies were higher than expected
- I’ll need to hire someone to make some minor performance changes to my sales database either at end of this year or in 2021.
- I will have more improvements to my studio planned next year, namely buying a standing desk and (wait for it) a bar cart (my reward for a profitable year this year……….)
- I stood up two new brands this year (Indie Author Confidential and 250+ Writing Tips), and I’ll be setting up a new fiction brand next year in urban fantasy. I’ll need to increase my advertising budget considerably in 2021 to account for a lot of advertising dollars I’ll be spending.
- I expect compliance-related expenses to tick upward next year. Seems like a lot of platforms are changing some of their guidelines and technical requirements. Amazon is now EPUB-only and have ditched MOBI. While that may not be a problem for existing titles published, that could spell trouble for my interactive ebooks. It shouldn’t, but I have a feeling I may to spend time reformatting them next year in order to keep them for sale, which will be very expensive time and/or money-wise.
Anyhoo, I reviewed a video that my editor did for the Escape the Plot Forest Summit. Sign up for FREE and get TONS of free advice here: https://forest.plotsummit.com/?sc=rmliHW9q&ac=TRlKwHjC
The video is AWESOME and has really bad Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonations. 🙂
Also, I started preparing my speech for the annual Writer’s Digest Conference. Materials are due by the 28th so I need to start working on it now. This is a paid gig so I’m fine sacrificing a word day or two to get this done. Did the first 5 slides, and everything looks good. The presentation won’t be more than 10-12.
Also, I published a book today and also got almost final drafts for Project Atlas. I asked the illustrator to do an additional map for me so it’ll take her one or two days.
Also discovered some issues with the print edition of 250+ Writing Tips so need to hire the designer to fix that.
Anyway, onto the book I published today…
Introducing: The Indie Author Bestiary: An Epic Quest Against the Beasts of the Writing World
Get it at: https://books2read.com/bestiary
YOUR GUIDE TO SLAYING THE BEASTS OF THE WRITING WORLD
Do the “beasts” of the writing life trouble you? Fear, self-doubt, overwhelm, the inferiority complex, and more?
If so, you’re not alone.
These “beasts” of the writing world want to destroy writers everywhere, but they can only hurt us if we let them.
This guide will teach you to do battle with the beasts that are sure to show up in your writing career. It will teach you to slay them once and for all.
- Fight fear with every ounce of your being
- Beat burnout at its own game
- Overcome feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt
- And more!
If you struggle with the “emotional” part of being a writer, The Indie Author Bestiary will be your sword.
This unique book takes the emotional challenges of writing, converts them into monsters, and teaches you how to defeat them.
Are you ready to conquer the beasts of the writing world?
Get your copy at https://books2read.com/bestiary
