Copyright 2020 Kate Hall
This edition published 2020
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permissions contact:
KateHallAuthor@gmail.com
Cover Design by Kate Hall
Interior Design by Kate Hall
Dedication
For my husband and my mom, the two people who always seemed to believe in me.
Introduction
Hi, Im Kate, and I wrote this book in less than a week.
After all, if Im going to tell you that you can write a book in a week, why wouldnt I make sure that the book in your hands was written in that same amount of time? That would just be hypocritical.
Now, I do understand that everyone is different. Some people type faster or slower, and some have less spare time on their hands. I can only draft a book in a week because Im not working a full-time job (or even a part-time job!), and I dont have responsibilities like children or home care. Most weeks, I dont even write a book! In fact, my normal publishing schedule is a book every month.
To some people, though, even that number sounds completely out of reach. Ill tell you that it is entirely possible. Ive had students whove written barely anything in a year who go on to write a book in a couple of weeks or less.
But first, a little about me.
Ive been publishing since 2019, but I only found success in self-publishing in 2020. For years, I have been struggling to move from job to job with long periods of unemployment due to my illnesses. Life seemed impossible, and the fact that my husband was stuck working terrible full-time jobs to support us whilst living with family (mainly my mom) was even worse.
Finding my niche and my writing rhythm was a huge step for me. In January, I saw that there was a light at the end of this horrible tunnel of poverty and reliance on others. As of the day Im starting this book, I am no longer trapped in a cycle where my husband and I are living paycheck-to-paycheck. In fact, he left his job months ago, and we just signed the lease on an expensive duplex in our area after travelling the country for fun for two months. We also bought a car without having to get a loan, all without having savings. Its still hard for me to comprehend what Ive accomplished in this period of time, but I want to make sure that others are able to do the same. I originally had no intention of writing a how-to book series on publishing, but when a hundred students ask for the same information, its hard to say no.
Part of the reason were able to do this is because I can reliably put out a book every single month. I know the cover says a book a week, and its true! Most of my books are written in a week! However, my health only allows me to put in one really good week of writing per month. Then, Im able to spend the rest of my time with easy (free!) marketing and other passions. (Not that Paranormal Romance Novels arent great, its just not the only thing I want from life).
Even if you cant write a book in a week for a variety of reasons, I am confident that this book can help you write faster and more efficiently. Many of my students are already finding that their writing lives are more organized, and their drafts are cleaner than before. Clean drafts lead to less editing, which leads toyou guessed it!more books.
I want you to be able to do the same. This isnt just something that works for me. I have several students on Facebook who have already seen results from my fast-drafting method, and I think you can, too!
So lets get started!
Why Rapid Release?
Before I go into the actual method of clean drafting, you may wonder why you would even want to write a book every month. This is a valid question! Many traditionally-published authors put out a book every year, if that, so why are self-published authors expected to write several?
In short, its because the algorithm hates us.
Okay, not really, but the algorithms on self-publishing sites like Amazon can be troublesome if youre publishing at a slower pace. Where traditional companies like Scholastic and Random can put tens of thousands of dollars into marketing a single book, most self-published authors dont have the money to throw away hoping that their book could be a success. If a big company doesnt get results in a year, it means they may not buy from that author again even though the books remain on shelves. If a self- published author doesnt get results in the first month, then our books can pretty much disappear from the public eye.
Rapid Release
The method of releasing a novel every 30 days (or less!) is known in the self-pub world as Rapid Release. The reason that writers do this is because Amazons algorithm lowers your books visibility after the first 30, 60, and 90 days, affectionately (or not so affectionately) known as the 30 Day Cliff. Therefore, you will have more visibility if you stay ahead of that 30 day cliff at all times.
Another reason for Rapid Release is so that your readers can get your full series a lot faster. I publish three to five books per series, and its easier to keep people invested in my books if theyre coming out regularly. Most of my readers are devourers of the genre, so making sure my name is always in front of their eyes is a great way to keep my books on the charts, including my blacklist.
Every time a book of mine comes out, I see a consistent increase in previous book sales. For example, when book two in my dragon series came out, royalties of book one DOUBLED. The same thing happened when book three came out. I knew Id see more money simply by adding another book, but I didnt expect the sales of earlier books to ALSO increase. Im not sure I would see those same results if I werent on a rapid release schedule, and I most certainly wouldnt have seen as much in royalties in my first six months if not for rapid release .
Many authors will spend six months to a year writing a series of three or four books with the intention of rapid releasing them, which is a fantastic idea if youre unable to complete a book every month. It tends to be more profitable to release books 30 days apart no matter how quickly you wrote them than to publish as you go if youre on a slower writing schedule. Again, this is due to that 30 day cliff. If you find yourself unable to write at the speed of a book per month, this is an option I recommend you consider.
My advice is, no matter how fast or slow you write, try to plan for 30 days or less between each book.
What is Write to Market?
Simply put, writing to market is when you write a book based on what sells well. This can mean a variety of things, several of which Ill go over in this chapter.
1. Pick a Genre
When writing to market, you want to know what genre your book will fit before you start writing it. For me, this is easy. I write Paranormal Romance, and I understand the beats of the genre, so I know that whatever concept I come up with will be paranormal romance. Think about the genres you like to read. If you dont do a lot of reading when it comes to self-published books, you need to start. In order to write well in any genre, you have to know the expectations in said genre .
2. Read in that Genre
I know the last point already mentioned this, but hear me out. If you havent written in the genre of your choosing, you will want to read some books in that genre with a critical eye. Reading for entertainment and reading for study are not the same thing, so youll want to make sure you have a critical understanding of your genre. What do these books have in common? What will your readers expect when they pick your book to read? These are some questions youll want answered before you even start your outline process. Making sure that you hit the correct plot beats is ridiculously important if you want to find success in any genre. The hardest part of any business is getting new customers, and this is the same for self-publishing. If you gain readers, then following these genre beats will ensure that you keep said readers.
