When We Don’t Sell

“The only time I feel alive is when I’m painting.” – Vincent Van Gogh. “I can’t change the fact that my paintings don’t sell. But the time will come when people will recognize that they are worth more than the value of the paints used in the picture.”

A current example of those discouraging times when our books don’t sell; I recall my experience during two years in art exhibitions of not selling—not one, not even a cheaper unframed painting. So, at the time, I could relate to Vincent Van Gogh.

As writers we too feel disheartened when our books don’t sell. We’ve spent hours, weeks, months, maybe years writing, refining and producing our “babies” just to see them sit there on the shelf, unloved, unwanted, buried under millions of competing books in the Amazon ranking list.

Perhaps you were one of those authors who attempted to take the traditional route, sending query letters to potential agents or big-name publishers, only to receive the rejection letter months down the track. And this happened over and over again.

Or maybe like me, you saw the writing on the wall, bypassed all that palaver; went straight to Amazon, Draft to Digital, (or some other online publishing service) and self-published. Whichever way, the result is the same, the product must be sold. Even in traditional publishing, we are selling our books to the publisher then, if we are successful, they expect us to promote our books at book launches, speeches and signings.

Advertising, it’s all about marketing and advertising.

So, here I was, I had my “baby”, (actually “babies” — five books now), and to advertise, I have my blog, my website and most recently, Indie Scriptorium Self-Publishing Collective. Week in, week out I blog and post. I try and keep up with my followers by reading, liking, and following their blogs. Sometimes I offer my books for free on Kindle. I’ve tried a bit of advertising too. Slowly my contingent of followers has grown.

Yet, I see my friends or associates on social media pumped up with successes and bestsellers to their name. There’s influencers who have monetised their websites and now own a portfolio of properties. Then there are the bloggers who have 100,000-plus followers.

How do they do it?

All the while, here’s you and me, the wallflowers, missing out.

Believe me, being a wallflower is discouraging.

But, fellow wallflowers, don’t be discouraged.

Don’t give up.

Persevere.

I keep reminding myself that those success-stories often start with struggle. The people who are successful in sales, most often put themselves and their products out there. They spread the net far and wide, so to speak. They don’t give up when faced rejection. They keep on going. They have goals. And when they fail, they pick themselves up and keep on running.

True, there are some for whom success falls in their laps. But for most of us, we need to make the effort to reap the rewards.

The comment Van Gogh makes resonates with me. Although he sold only one painting in his life, he believed in his work, and the timeless quality of his art, as one can see from his quote at the beginning of this post.

I believe that’s how it is for me when I am writing, and also painting. I feel alive. And echoing what so many of my fellow “creators” say, I would rather be creating than getting bogged down in all the marketing and advertising. Like Van Gogh, I can’t change the fact that my books or paintings don’t sell…

But one day, the time will come…

© Lee-Anne Marie Kling 2024

Feature Photo: The Sunflower; a Van Gogh icon © L.M. Kling 2018