“No man but a blockhead ever wrote a book except for money.”
~ Samuel Johnson
I’m the author of two books, never having formal training as a writer, but having a message I wanted to share. To take on such a task as authoring a book is mostly underappreciated. Despite the challenges of writing and publishing, a dedication to emphasizing the significance of family, motherhood, and fatherhood is a driving force. The results have been mixed.
Here are a few hard facts:
Here's the ‘blockhead’ part of my story. Although my first book achieved moderate success, I incurred substantial financial losses covering editing, marketing, and other expenses. Additionally, I invested countless hours in research and writing. I received less than $1.00 for each sale. But I don’t care! (Of course, I wish I made money!)
My second book, A Vagabond Life: A Memoir of Father Hunger, is the story of my growing up wanting more from my father, but something he was unable to do. This book explains why I wrote my first book, and why I continue to write hundreds of blogs on <MichaelByronSmith.com> to bring light to the importance of family and the need for loving fathers in the home. This book is self-published and is still below the average of 200 in sales. While not successful, at least yet, l will continue to market A Vagabond Life and The Power of Dadhood hoping it will help families.
I take my own advice; advice I’ve given my children. That advice was, “try like hell, but don’t give a damn.” I later saw a quote from T.S. Elliot that said the same thing, but more eloquently, “Teach us to care and not to care.” It means simply to do your best and do not fret over the results.
Summary
I wrote this post for three reasons.
#powerofdadhood
~ Samuel Johnson
I’m the author of two books, never having formal training as a writer, but having a message I wanted to share. To take on such a task as authoring a book is mostly underappreciated. Despite the challenges of writing and publishing, a dedication to emphasizing the significance of family, motherhood, and fatherhood is a driving force. The results have been mixed.
Here are a few hard facts:
- Few people aim to write a book, and only 3 out of 100 will complete it.
- Only 1% to 5% of completed manuscripts are accepted by publishers.
- Ninety-five percent of all published books sell less than 200 copies.
- Each author competes with the 3,000,000 books that are published each year.
- Less than 1% of published books make it to bookstores.
- Authors are responsible for marketing their own books, as publishers typically provide minimal or no marketing support.
- Only 1 in 10,000 authors earn their income from writing, and most do not rely solely on book sales.
Here's the ‘blockhead’ part of my story. Although my first book achieved moderate success, I incurred substantial financial losses covering editing, marketing, and other expenses. Additionally, I invested countless hours in research and writing. I received less than $1.00 for each sale. But I don’t care! (Of course, I wish I made money!)
My second book, A Vagabond Life: A Memoir of Father Hunger, is the story of my growing up wanting more from my father, but something he was unable to do. This book explains why I wrote my first book, and why I continue to write hundreds of blogs on <MichaelByronSmith.com> to bring light to the importance of family and the need for loving fathers in the home. This book is self-published and is still below the average of 200 in sales. While not successful, at least yet, l will continue to market A Vagabond Life and The Power of Dadhood hoping it will help families.
I take my own advice; advice I’ve given my children. That advice was, “try like hell, but don’t give a damn.” I later saw a quote from T.S. Elliot that said the same thing, but more eloquently, “Teach us to care and not to care.” It means simply to do your best and do not fret over the results.
Summary
I wrote this post for three reasons.
- I think it could be of interest to readers of books and those inspired to write them.
- It’s cathartic to me to express my desires and frustrations.
- I hope my books can help others - dads, moms, and especially their children.
#powerofdadhood
