2010 in Review

And not it's time for (old timey male announcer voice:) Year in Review.

2010 was eventful!
I launched my website (www.LeaRyan.com), released my first book, my second book, and three short stories. I did a bunch of illustrations.

My work was downloaded or read through various outlets over 1100 times, which barely registers as any attention at all in the grand world of pubishing. For underdog me, it's pretty awesome. The first book came out at the end of May, so that's really only 7 months worth of stats. I'm also not counting downloads (fiction freebies) from my blog or website because I don't have any way to track those.


And now for some lists:

I learned things this year:
1. Be completely in love with your title before you publish. I never loved the first title for my first book. I wasn't great with titles in the beginning. I am getting better though! Seriously, changing a title and/or cover art is a royal pain in the ass.
2. I learned to let go. My writing will never be perfect. No matter who a writer is, there is always room for improvement - more concise wording or a more poetic way to convey a message, whatever. The important thing is not to hold out for perfection because it doesn't exist. That way, madness lies.
3. People really like free stuff. Most of the downloads of my writing were the freebies, I will admit. I don't have an issue with that because I would rather have someone read what I write. I don't want to toil in obscurity holding out for that 80 cents royalty I might have made. I don't plan to give away everything though, FYI.
4. I should be more proactive about getting book reviews (and maybe some sort of publicity) before the books are published.
5. How to format ebooks and print books in a somewhat professional manner.
6. How long various publishing activities take.
7. Publishing through createspace is more cost effective for me and my readers than going through lulu.

Goals for 2011
1. Release the novella in January or February
2. Write and release 2 novels, maybe 3 if I really get moving.
3. Put 1 novel up on authonomy prior to publication to get some feedback.
4. Release 1 audiobook or maybe do a short reading for download. - this requires me to move past some insecurities. I've never read my work aloud for an audience. If it's a whole book, I will probably see if I can enlist someone else to do it.
5. Create at least 1 book trailer and release it on youtube.
6. Sell (or get people to download) twice as many books as they did this year. That shouldn't be too difficult, seeing as my writing was only released at the end of May.
7. Be better about announcing releases and maintaining the e-mail list. If you would like to subscribe to release announcements, send a blank message with the word 'subscribe' in the subject line to learyan@learyan.com. I will actually send some this year.
8. Get some better profile pics of me that a. are not cartoon and b. don't make me look ten years older than I actually am.
9. Get at least one copy of my book on a library shelf.
10. Non-book related- Change up the illustration gallery a bit to be more house decoration friendly. I like the weird stuff, but where would one hang it?

Ok, I think that's it. 2010 was awesome. Hopefully 2011 will be even better!

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Other places to find me:
http://www.LeaRyan.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/LeaRyan1