Good Day!
This post is somewhat random. A way of putting my thoughts on paper but not on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Although a great tool, social media can be tiresome and depressing, hence the reason for my blog today.
I started my writing career back in 2009-10. When I first started writing, things were a bit easier. Social media wasn't as toxic as it is today. I write serial romance and romantic suspense, as many of you may know. I do it because I love family dynamics. My books, in my humble opinion, were doing well. So much so that I was offered a contract with Harlequin Kimani Romance. I published my first book, Love Me Forever, with Harlequin in April 2017. Shortly after, the Kimani line closed, and I took a break from writing due to health and family issues.
In 2020 during the pandemic, I decided to start a murder mystery series under the pseudonym L.E. Gortman to take a break from writing romance. Although it was received well by some, the book didn't do great with sales. This brings me to this. During my break, I was asked many times if I would write again. Of course, I responded with a resounding yes. However, this process hasn't been easy. Since October 2021, I have released a long-awaited book and three shorter stories. When I say short...they are like 15k, and although the reviews are great, the few that I have, the ratings are horrible. I have no idea what the deal is with the ratings as I cannot address the issue with the stories of people only leaving a rating and not a review. Ratings of one and two stars. If you are going to rate a book so low, leave a review of it. Personally, I don't review one or two-star books. If it is not for me, it is just not for me. Someone else may love it. I will hit said author up about the book if I know the author. If I don't remember the author, I will still shoot the author an email or dm, but only if I find the editing horrific. The sad part is that some of the low ratings on my recent releases are from people I talk to on social media. This breaks my heart because there is always open communication, and said persons open the door to me. Instead of giving the book a low rating with no explanation whatsoever, hit me up and explain what didn't resonate with you. I can then work on fixing the issue if warranted.
As a self-published author, I cannot justify putting out twice as much money as I receive. Is this the readers' problem? No. However, low ratings do have an impact on sales. I don't care about ranking, nor have I ever watched reviews. I used to rarely even read reviews. However, since I have been out of the game for a few years, I look at reviews to understand where I stand in this writing life. This brings me to this. I am in a quandary as to whether or not I should continue to write in the genre or at all. I have stories finished and up for pre-order, but I am not sure if I will be releasing them.
As much as I love writing, I can no longer write and not make a profit. I am moving money from my household budget to give readers what I believe is a good book, but they aren't being received well. So it may be time to step back and reflect on where I want to go from here.
Anyway, thanks for reading my rant. May your Holiday be everything you wished for and more. Blessing abound.
Best,
~Serenity
FYI: My Kwanzaa story A Sensual Seduction is short. It was deemed a short story from day one. It is listed as a quick two-hour read. Go figure readers are saying it's short *facepalm*. If you don't like short stories, I suggest you look at the page count as well as the tags before you purchase or read. The problem is that people either read to complain or read yet don't read simultaneously. If you know what I mean.
