Don’t lose sight of the bigger picture

Often as creatives, we want to stay in our creative worlds and not worry about the minutiae of the business side of things. It requires leaving our happy places and doing tedious things like accounting and spreadsheets. And worrying about money.

In some circles, I’ve heard people say that it’s “selling out” to worry about the money. We are artists not to be sullied by business.

I disagree. And if that’s been your thought, I ask you to consider the following:

Setting aside the obvious benefits of having more money – it is rather useful! – I’d like you to consider that sales and rankings are not just about money, but they are about the number of people who have been touched by your world, or influenced by your ideas and skills. It’s a number representing the change you are making on the earth – whether you write fiction or nonfiction.

So, even if your primary goal is other than making lots of cash, consider the business side of being an author to be one way of stewarding the gift you’ve been given and worked hard for so that it can make the biggest possible difference in the lives of others.

To do that, you’ll need to put on an administrative hat, and we have many articles in the pages that follow which will help you to do just that. Quickly and efficiently, so you can get back to creating the words that make the business possible.

And, if Mr. Impostor Syndrome rears his ugly head again, part two in our series will help you beat that negativity down once more.

We’re also hitting Preptober, so if you haven’t published yet, I hope you read Merri’s excellent article and consider getting ready for NaNoWriMo in November.

And, of course, snacks. What would we do without great snacks?

Celebrating your successes now and to come,

Picture of Alice Briggs

Alice Briggs

As the creative director of Indie Author Magazine, Alice Briggs utilizes her more than three decades of artistic exploration and expression, business startup adventures, and leadership skills. A serial entrepreneur, she has started several successful businesses. She brings her experience in creative direction, magazine layout and design, and graphic design in and outside of the indie author community to her role. With a masters of science in Occupational Therapy, she has a broad skill set and uses it to assist others in achieving their desired goals. As a writer, teacher, healer, and artist, she loves to see people accomplish all they desire. She’s excited to see how IAM will encourage many authors to succeed in whatever way they choose. She hopes to meet many of you in various places around the world once her passport is back in use.

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