Panning For Gold

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

Have you ever panned for gold? When I was a kid, on family vacations, sometimes we stopped at tourist attractions with a stream and some pans for gold. My sister and I would work to find some gold. It was fun but not real gold and only fools gold. We would use our pan in different places in the running water and move around to find the gold. Some places were better locations than others but eventually we found a few pieces of fools gold that we took home. 

From my many years in publishing, the process of finding the right author and right book is like panning for gold. You have to make the right connection at the right time and the right place. The process is not easy or simple but takes continued effort. For an editor to meet the right author, you have to go to different events and at times change up your pattern to locate the right author. At times current authors will introduce me to other authors looking for a publisher. I appreciate these introductions and follow each one because sometimes the introduction leads to a book that Morgan James Publishing will release into the world.

Like panning for gold, each experience is different and layered with author experiences. In this article, I want to give you some examples of my editor experiences and ultimately encouragement to continue search for the right connection.

Several weeks ago, an author that I’ve known for several years reached out to me and introduced me to a Christian author with a recently self-published book (only on Amazon). This particular author had a YouTube channel with millions of views and a large email list (over 100,000). After the introduction, I followed up and scheduled a call with this author about Morgan James. My colleagues liked what they heard about this author and offered him a publishing contract along with a series of suggestions for improvement of his manuscript. This author had a series of questions and I pulled my Morgan James founder, David Hancock, into the conversation with him. At this time of this writing, this author hasn't made a decision but I hope he will decide to work with us. 

A literary agent sent a book series for novels from a much published author. Through a call with this author, I learned he has written over 10 full manuscripts in this unpublished series. While this author is strong on the storytelling and writing elements, he struggles with the necessary marketing. For example, I went to his website and tried to sign up for his newsletter and couldn’t sign up because it wasn't working. After a number of exchanges, this author decided not to move forward with Morgan James. I wished him all the best and hope we can work together in the future. Authors have many choices and to move forward it has to be the right fit for the author and the publisher. Like panning for gold, the process involves a lot of searching and sharing information.

Another author has published a series of incredible books with Morgan James plus he has a big vision for future books. With his latest submission, I asked about his book sales on the previous books and learned they were minimal in the bookstores which is the critical area for the publisher to sell books.  Like panning for gold, for the books from this author to succeed, I need to move to a different area of the stream and suggest some additional actions. 

Repeatedly as I work with different authors, I try to suggest a route or method of selling books that will work for them and their audience. Like panning for gold, I encourage these authors to move to a different part of the stream to find their readers and sell books. 

On the surface, publishing may seem simple but in reality it is filled with different choicea and a rich variety of opportunities. For success and selling books, the author has to take action to find their readers (or their gold). 

As an editor, I’ve learned I can’t fix the results of decisions from others whether they are good or bad decisions. The only person where I have any control is my own actions. Through these articles, I can also give you the encouragement and ideas to move forward with your own dreams and aspirations--yet for movement or book sales to happen, the author has to do the work.

From my brief time panning for gold, I understood it was hard work. To find success in your book publishing will involve hard work. I encourage you not to avoid it but keep chipping away at it to find those readers. The journey is not easy or simple. If it were simple, every book would be a bestseller and without the author's actions it simply doesn't happen. You can be the exception but it takes action and consistently moving forward in the face of failure. You can do it and if I can help you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

What steps are you going to take to find new readers? Let me know in the comments below.

Tweetable:

To find the right publisher and connection is compared to panning for gold. This bestselling author and editor tells some stories and actions for authors. Read the details here.  (ClickToTweet)

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