Unknown Authors Need The Help, But Famous Authors Get The Help

There is an old story told by a celebrity (I want to say it was Michael Jordan, but I couldn't track down quotes to say for sure) that I'd like to paraphrase. When they first started their career, and they didn't have a lot of money or connections, nobody wanted to give them anything. They had to pay for everything out-of-pocket, they didn't get invitations to big events, none of that. When they were at the top of their game, and they had more money than they could ever spend, that was when everyone wanted to give them free stuff. Free seats in first class, front-row tickets to big events, VIP treatment for coming to gatherings, and more merch than they knew what to do with.

Hey, I know you've got a lot of this already, but have some more, huh?

Said celebrity remarked on this irony. Because when they were just starting out, that was when they could really have used someone paying for their drinks, comping a meal, or slipping them some tickets to something they couldn't normally go out to do. Once they were rich they had people tripping over themselves to give them presents, but this was all stuff they could actually afford for themselves now, if they so chose.

If you're an author, this is something you're going to see whichever level of the profession you're at. And it's probably going to make you mad. So let's talk about why it happens, and how we could start changing the game if we so choose.

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The Catch-22 of Being a Lesser-Known Author

In the interest of full and fair examinations, there is a very good reason that famous authors, famous athletes, famous movie stars, etc., get all the red carpet treatment. It is, simply put, because they have a high profile. They have fans who want to send them gifts, they have potential sponsors who want to get on their good side to make money, and they have a well-known name that's going to draw people to an event. Big names get this kind of treatment in the hopes that it will grant access, favor, or lead to a partnership where those giving them screen time, gifts, etc., can make more money. It's about talk show hosts and radio shows trying to get more viewers, podcasts to get a bigger audience, and so on, and so forth.

As a concrete example, most people have no idea who the hell I am. So if a convention were to make me the author guest of honor, I wouldn't be a draw for them. No one is going to hear that I'm showing up somewhere and think to themselves, "Shit, I got to get tickets to that!" But if it was Neil Gaiman instead of Neal Litherland as the head author? Tickets would be sold out in the snap of one's fingers, and the event would be packed.

That's the dream... by the by, check out The Rejects if you haven't yet.

The frustrating part of this scenario, of course, is that if you were to give a lesser-known author that kind of platform, they would have a chance at actually building their audience in a big way. They may not explode overnight, but if they got an interview slot on a YouTube channel with millions of followers, or their book was featured by a TikTok personality, or they were interviewed by a popular host, that spotlight might be all it takes to get people to pick up their books and become fans.

But the reason that doesn't happen is, of course, lesser-known authors aren't bringing a wake of fans with them to see their appearances. We aren't jackhammering a show's numbers by appearing as a guest, and our presence isn't selling tickets for events we show up to. So because we aren't well-known, we can't get the spotlight to actually let people know who we are and what we do so we can become well-known.

It is extraordinarily frustrating.

It's Why We Need Your Help

In the digital age the old kingmakers aren't gone, but they aren't as powerful as they used to be. It is entirely possible for authors to build a grassroots community and following through social media, smaller appearances in their local area, and through networking without ever once appearing on a mainstream show, getting on TV, or having a review of their work posted on a news site.

But possible isn't the same thing as easy.

If it was, Painted Cats would have WAY more than 6 ratings.

If enough individuals band together, they can send up a flare to get people to pay attention to the authors they love. 50 reviews on Amazon gets the algorithm turning, and starts broadcasting our signal to other people. I've been told the 10k follower mark on both Facebook and Twitter is when the sites start spitting your posts out to other people who might be interested in you. We cannot make those wheels turn on our own... but you can lend your voice to make them move for us.

Because you know something? I'm pretty sure that if I picked up 50k Twitter followers overnight (@nlitherl for those who are curious) that I'd have a lot of book sales that followed. Enough that I might go from that indie author nobody's heard of, to the guy who writes those cat mysteries everyone on social media won't shut up about.

Incidentally, grab a copy of Marked Territory and Painted Cats if you haven't done so yet. And if you're more of a military sci-fi kind of reader, then consider snatching up my post-apocalyptic noir thriller Old Soldiers about a small squad of defunct alien/human hybrid bio-weapons tracking down a conspiracy to wipe them out once and for all.

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned!

That's all for this week's Business of Writing! If you'd like to see more of my work, take a look at my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife as well as my recent collection The Rejects!

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!