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New Writers Shouldn’t Focus on Building an Audience (Yet)
Instead, do these 4 things first.
Ask yourself honestly: Are you subscribed to email lists from unpublished authors who only talk about writing?
The answer is most likely no. And if you do follow a few, it’s because you’re a writer yourself, not because you’re a reader.
Why is this? Because readers want finished work they can enjoy. They follow authors whose writing they’ve read and loved, not strangers who might someday publish something.
Think about it from your own perspective as a reader. You probably follow authors after experiencing their published work, not before. You want the book (or other significant writing) first, then the relationship.
This might sound harsh, but I find it liberating. No one cares, which means you don’t have to worry about audience-building or promoting your work right now.
You can just write.
1. Remember what you are
You are a writer.
Not a marketer who happens to write, not a book promoter who happens to write.
You are a writer. That’s what you do. Or at least that’s what you hope to do, which is why you’re trying to write in the first place!
