Measuring Success...

I've discussed this topic before...how do I measure my success as an author? The answer is a multi-faceted one.

For my professional work on fire service training manuals, some of the important factors include:
- Did I complete the project on schedule?
- Did I adequately cover all of the necessary parts of the standard(s)?
- Did the manual help my customers achieves professional goals?
- Does it sell well?

For my personal writing, it's a little different. Some of the important measurements include:
- Was it something I really wanted/needed to write?
- Did it entertain someone?
- Did it invoke an emotional response in someone?
- Is it selling?
- How well is it selling?

I'll be the first to admit my first six novels had a political message to them; one that is not always popular with approximately half the population of the United States. I wrote them for the express purpose of generating emotional responses in a particular group of people. Now, the group of people for whom the books WEREN'T written are not likely to buy or read them. And, if they do, they won't like them! I'm okay with that. Really! Nothing will change their opinions anyway. 

I self-published them to ensure that I retained full editorial control of the content. If I had sought representation, an agent would have asked me to make changes to appeal to a broader audience...and changed the focus of the books. I was (and remain) opposed to doing that. I won't sacrifice or change my beliefs or my message to make someone else happy or simply to make a buck. (Maybe someday, an agent with a conservative publishing firm will come calling. Then again, maybe not.)

The books of my Camadin Station series are different. Death Haunts the Stars and Last Stand were written for purely commercial purposes. The first book was written as a murder mystery set in space, while the second is an attempt at space opera. Strangely enough, my more political books have outperformed my commercial books on a book-by-book basis!

So, while I'm not raking in the bucks with my e-books and print-on-demand paperbacks "flying off" the figurative shelve, I AM making more money FROM them than I have spent making them! People ARE buying them (or reading them through the Kindle Subscription Service). I've received positive reviews (both online and in person). So for now, I am content with the small measure of success I have while I pursue greater success in the future!

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For now, check out my Amazon Author page at www.amazon.com/author/jeffreyfortney.

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Well, Thanksgiving is already behind us, Christmas is just around the corner, and 2018 is only a few weeks away. Wow! Where has 2017 gone?

Be safe!

Jeffrey

Jeffrey M. Fortney - 2017