My Ridiculous Writing Career

I’m procrastinating from writing, and a bit strung up on caffeine, so I though I’d write another blog post instead! I’ve always wanted this blog to be about the act of writing and self-publishing, as well as about the results. I’m hoping this can help me stay focused on my goals, and perhaps inspire some other novice writer.

I started writing erotica because of a post by Delilah Fawkes on the Something Awful forums, back in January of 2012. I love to read, and I’d always had the idea in the back of my head that someday I’d write a novel, but its been too intimidating to try and bust out a 300K word epic from scratch! So when I saw that people could write short stories, and make money(!), I was all for it.

My first few stories just flew out, and I published them on-line, and waited for the money to roll in. Because it would! Obviously! At this point, I know everyone’s chuckling at my naivety. But then the weirdest thing happened…

It actually worked.

For some reason that I’ve been completely unable to replicate, my very first short story took off like a rocket. It climbed Amazon’s erotica charts, all the way into the top 20! And it stayed on the charts for over six weeks, while crazy sales figures poured in. Thousands and thousands of dollars, for just a few hours worth of work, with barely any editing and published with the ugliest cover imaginable.

It was bizarre, ridiculous… and amazing!

Unsurprisingly, this went straight to my head. I was delirious with joy. My day job started to seem like a hobby, and I daydreamed about quitting. With the money I was pulling in, I could afford to stay home and write full time. But I had to wait a few months to get paid, so I didn’t quit (fortunately for me!). I was so excited that I spent every spare moment writing more stories, and publishing them as fast as I could. Two stories a week, sometimes!

But as the time went by, I noticed a disturbing pattern.

None of the new stories made any money. At least, not compared to that first one and its sequels. And to my growing dismay, my best-seller was slowly losing ground! As the year went on, it got worse and worse. Every single month, I made less money than the month before. And nothing I did seemed to have any effect on my sales. Not publishing. Not not publishing.

Nothing.

That lack of control was incredibly depressing. I felt like my early success had been a fluke, just a random event. (It probably was!) Worse, I felt that any future success would be likewise by chance. Writing the stories began to feel like buying lottery tickets… if buying a lottery ticket took up to 20 hours each. It seemed pointless.

So I lost my motivation.  I barely wrote for months, maybe publishing a story every six weeks or so.  After declining for an abysmal nine months straight, my sales finally flat-lined at less than 10% of the giddy heights I’d reached. And they just hung there. For almost a  year now! Luckily for me, I still had my day job!

It’s weird, how early success can derail you. Everyone warns people not to give up from failure, that confidence and ability comes with practice.  But when an early, raw effort receives more attention than the later, more polished works, it’s hard to believe that. The sales from that first story have cast everything else into the shade, despite all my efforts.

Even now, almost two years into my writing career (if I can call it that), and with 39 published titles, I’m making fewer sales than I did in February of 2012, with just 12. And that’s sad.

So! Why didn’t I just quit? I’ll be honest, the thought has crossed my mind more than a few times. I’ve made myself a promise, though. I’m going to publish at least 50 titles, before I make any decisions. Because I know that I’m becoming a better writer with each story, and I’m sure that eventually I’ll be able to turn this losing streak around!

Because even though that early, poisoned success has long since faded away, people are still buying my books. Maybe not as quickly or as many, but still.  People are reading what I write! That’s pretty cool.

And I’m making money! Not a whole lot, not enough to even tempt me to quit my day job anymore, but… yeah. I’m a published author. That’s really damn cool.

Even if I can’t tell my family what I write! 🙂

Still Here!

Ok, so I’m really, really, really bad at blogging!  But I’ve decided to make writing blog posts part of my NaNoWriMo goals, so… yeah.  We’ll see.

 

Let’s catch up.  First, a huge thank you to everyone who ever sees this!  Self-publishing feels a lot like talking to yourself… you’re never sure if you actually have an audience, much less anyone who appreciates what you’re trying to say.  So, thank you.  Thank you for reading, thank you for reaching my blog and especially, thank you for your interest. It makes all the differences.

I had a bit of a slump over the summer, but I’ve been working hard, trying to publish at least two stories a month, for the last couple of months.  I know other writers are far more prolific, but I’ve worked out a pace that I think I can maintain for the long haul, and still write decent stories.  So 2-3 books  a month will probably be normal from now on. If you read something you like, please leave a review or drop me an e-mail!

So let’s see what I’ve been up to since May!

I published The Sacrifice in April, and followed it up with The Temptress and The Deceiver. These books were challenging to write, because they featured a virginal, innocent protagonist in a fairy tale setting.  But they were also great fun, and very sexy!

 

The Temptress (Book Two of Taming the Beast)

Book Two of Taming the Beast

“Shockingly, his finger drifted further back between my legs, brushing gently against the tight ring hidden there. I gasped, horrified at that forbidden touch. “N-no! Don’t…” I whispered, but the taboo exploration made my juices flow even faster and my protest ended in a pleading moan. His lapping tongue and gently probing finger made me squirm, and he groaned as my lusty scent rose around us.”

Continuing the Erotic Fairy Tale…

When Anna is given to the beast terrorizing her village (in The Sacrifice), she willingly sacrifices her virginity to free the man inside the monster. But her chastity alone was not enough to break his curse, and now time is running out. Will Anna lure two more innocents into the woods, more virgin sacrifices to his feral lust?

Warning: This sexy 6,000-word short story includes the anal training of a virgin, a young man’s first blowjob and a searing MMF menage a trois! Adults only.

 

The Deceiver (Book Three of Taming the Beast)

Book Three of Taming the Beast

“She began to chant, harsh syllables that resonated through me, dropping me to my knees. I gasped as wet heat bloomed between my thighs, pulses of pleasure crawling through my body. My empty sheath throbbed in time with her spell, need welling up from some bottomless pit, and I moaned as fiery lust consumed me. Magic loosened the ropes binding my arms, and they fell to the floor. I barely noticed my new freedom, as my eager fingers dove straight into my secret cleft, pinching and rubbing the swelling bud concealed there. Unconcerned with the men watching, I parted my thighs and sank a finger deeply into my aching well, desperate to satisfy the painful lust her spell had sown in me.”

The Final Chapter in an Erotic Fairy Tale…

Anna’s desperate efforts to save the cursed beast-man (in The Sacrifice and The Temptress) are foiled when they are captured by the same men who chained her as bait for the monster. The witch who cast the curse has returned, and her vengeance will be dire. What will Anna do under the searing influence of the witch’s punitive lust spell?

Warning: This 9,200-word short story includes a blazing hot MFM menage with a beast, and a soaking lesbian seduction! For adults only.

 

I bundled the three stories together in Taming the Beast! Save $2 by buying the bundle!

 

Taming the Beast (Series Bundle)

Taming the Beast Series Bundle

An Erotic Re-Telling of a Classic Fairy Tale: Beauty and the Beast

“He moved down my body, sniffing at my skin, until his face was even with my newly exposed mound. I struggled to press my thighs together, but the ankle shackles held my legs too far apart. I was completely exposed to him, my feminine garden open to the night air. His hot breath against my sensitive folds made mine catch in my throat. Then his warm tongue touched me, and my back arched off the smooth stone below me.”

3 Disturbingly Sexy Stories in One Money-Saving Bundle!

When her village is threatened by a legendary monster, Anna pulls the short straw, chosen by fate to make the ultimate sacrifice. Bound in chains, she’s left in the woods as a virgin offering to his feral lust. But what kind of night demon is the creature? And what dark hungers will she be forced to satisfy? This 20,000-word story collection includes The Sacrifice, The Temptress & The Deceiver.

Warning: These erotic short stories include a virgin’s encounter with a lustful beast, MMF and MFM menages, and a soaking hot lesbian seduction! For adults only.

 

I’ll save my new series for another blog post!

 

OK, So I Suck at This

I really, really, really suck at blogging.  No,no, don’t try to spare my feelings.  I know it’s true.  I never post, I don’t track statistics, I don’t brag about my sales or recommend other authors.  I don’t do anything.  

I’m just not here.

I set this blog up in a hurry.  This was a check-off point on a list I got from somewhere.  Let me dig that up… ok, here it is.

Wanna be an erotica writer?

1.  Write books.

2.  Publish books.

3.  Blog & Tweet books.

4. ?????

5.  Profit.

So I wrote a few books and published them, and then, astonishingly, I made a profit! 

But I totally neglected step 3.  Oh, I’ve included links to my blog and twitter in every book, but I never do anything here.  I think it’s mostly because deep down, I thought this was a hobby.  Or just a short-lived experiment, that would fall to the wayside soon. 

But it hasn’t.  Every month my income has been increasing, until in March I tripled my day-job income in book sales!  And I have my readers to thank for that…. the same people who might be interested in reading my blog or following me on twitter.  If they could.  If I did anything there.

So, a promise to my readers:  this isn’t a hobby.  This is a new, exciting career opportunity and I WILL take it seriously.  I’ll blog at least once a week, if not more, and do my best to figure out that new-fangled tweeting thing.  Because if you want to read what I write, then I’d damned well better write!

I still don’t know if anyone will read this, or care.  But I will try harder.