And it’s a wrap!
Not just for the week, but also Master Liam’s first birthday, which was as exhausting as it was rewarding (especially when you consider we also had my mother’s 60th celebrations later that evening, too).
I usually groan when birthdays swing around.
They always have a knack of throwing off my routine, straining my mind (and wallet) for gift ideas, and guilting me into consuming enough cake to give my doctor a sleepless night, but as Lady Laura likes to remind me during times like these:
“You’ve got plenty of time to be a crotchety git in retirement.”
😅
I suppose she isn’t wrong.
Alas, it was a great day.
Lots of memories were made, photos taken, and old faces brought together under one roof.
I may also be suffering from a mild hangover, but let’s not give that too much attention.
Rather, let’s point our noses to #AskWatson’s only question.
(Alright, perhaps “mild hangover” was a slight understatement.)
Re: your email about being on retailers. I get the control thing with your Storehouse, totally. But you also said you're getting new readers from Amazon etc. Is there a point where the everyday hassle of dealing with retailers (typos, their changing rules, all that stuff you mentioned) just isn't WORTH those new readers anymore? Like what's the tipping point for you to consider going 100% Storehouse exclusive again? Thnx.
There is always a chance the effort might outdo the rewards of retailers.
A lot of my author peers will yell from the rooftops that selling exclusively through my own store will only serve to cannibalise sales overall, which may or may not be true.
It depends on what one’s motivation is.
Many authors dream of making millions and having Hollywood grovel for movie rights, and I’d be lying if I did not share this ambition once. However, the older I get, the more I enjoy occupying my own little corner of the industry and serving fans the way in which I want to serve them.
That means in a way that is free of creative constraints…
Free from attracting the attention of crazies that want to bring you down…
Free of Big Retailer royalty cuts…
And free of the anxieties that come from being beholden to retailers.
This is why i only plug my storehouse 99% of the time.
I cut 3/4 of my stress just by doing so.
Does that mean I am immune from chaos and crisis?
Absolutely not.
Security is a fallacy, but stacking odds in your favour is not.
Who knows, perhaps one day when the Legion grows large enough, I might desire to crack the bestseller charts to prove my peers wrong. I am quite petty like that.
Until then?
I am happy to let the retailers hum in the background while my Storefront takes centre stage, for it allows me to not only have creative control over my work…
But to get creative with my offers, too.
Like bunching all four of my The Divided Region books into a single Starter Bundle, which you can oh-so-coincidentally get right here:
https://djjwatsonstore.com/products/TDR-Bundle
DJJW