What They Don’t Tell You About Indie Authors

Indie Authors.
“Ew.”
“They just couldn’t cut it as a real author.”
“Oh, it’s only self-published, not a proper book.”
“Indie books aren’t at the same level as traditionally published books.”

Sound familiar? You’ve probably heard it all before. Maybe even said some of it yourself. I know I’ve seen it plastered across TV, social media, and every corner of the internet.

Here’s the truth: being an indie author is hard.

Sure, we dodge the endless cycles of rejection letters and agents saying, “This just isn’t what we’re looking for,” but that doesn’t mean we’re taking the easy road. Many of us choose indie publishing because we want to keep our creative control. Others simply don’t want to put ourselves through the grind of traditional publishing.

Traditionally published authors often face crazy demands like: “This is great, but rewrite it from a different POV.” Or they might never even see their book’s cover until launch day. But they do have a massive advantage: a whole team behind them. Editors, designers, marketers—they just write the book and let the machine do the rest.

Indie authors? We do everything ourselves. Editing, formatting, cover design, publishing, marketing… if it’s part of getting a book out there, it’s on us. So yeah, sometimes a typo sneaks in. Or a formatting glitch appears. We’re human. 🤷

But marketing—that’s the real beast.

For an introvert who can pump out 2,000 words in an afternoon but freezes at writing a five-word blurb… marketing is torture. And my brain loves to remind me how badly I’m doing compared to [insert author here with deep pockets and massive reach]. 🙄

I don’t have a team. I don’t have a PR budget. I just have me—and I do my best. It’s not always polished; sometimes it looks awkward as hell, but that’s kind of on brand for me. So it is what it is.

I know my book is good. I just hope people find it. My reach is small, but I’m out there trying.

So here’s a little favour to ask: help an indie out. Spread the word. Share a post. Recommend a book. For those of you who already do—thank you. You have no idea how much it helps.