How Do I Reconcile the Creative Process with My Brand?

Being an indie-author requires being a brand and business, too.

Photo by Hannah Olinger on Unsplash

Not so long ago, the only way to publish a book and make money was via traditional publishing. To get there, the main path was to get a literary agent, who would then get you past the gatekeepers and through the doors to the publishers.

Anyone who has tried to get an agent has likely received multiple rejections. Sometimes, now just two or three, but dozens. Even if you land an agent, it’s no guarantee that you will get your book to a publisher.

There are lots of stories of authors who got rejected time and again and again. Before they made it big, they were constantly rebuked and disregarded. It’s very hard not to take this personally.

This is especially true when you get a form letter from the agent you’ve queried. Hell, I’m pretty sure the top agents have admin assistants that screen you out early on and transmit those.

Once in a very great while, a major publishing house opens to submissions. While that can be amazing, it’s an even more challenging crapshoot than landing an agent.

I was fortunate to land an agent for a time. The trouble was that my genre — fantasy and sci-fi — wasn’t really in his wheelhouse. After…