I will keep this article and read it over and over again to understand all the points you bring up Mehmet! I'm in the process of putting my "Alphabet Memoir" into book form and will try to publish before the end of the year! Thanks for all you do!
Thank you for your inspiring words, Martial. It is nice to meet you. I read your story about passive income barriers, which deeply resonated with me. For example, writing books required me significant up-front effort and time investment, but over the years, they turned out to be passive income. However, every passive income still requires some maintenance to survive and grow.
Thank you! I’m happy you read and enjoyed the article.
I’ve learned over the years that nothing in this universe remains a true constant. It is either improving or declining. Growing or dying. You are either creating on it or slowing destroying it.
Thus no matter what passive income one has established, it must be maintained.
Thank you, Mehmet, for this very interesting article. I share your views on most things, and absolutely when it comes to Medium and Substack.
Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to recover the earnings on Medium, which dropped to almost zero around the turn of the year, despite still being a Friend of Medium. And I also haven’t managed to generate any income on Substack.
But I do have a novel, which you are familiar with—The Man Who Stopped Aging, published on Amazon https://a.co/d/1INwtRE. I would love for you to include it in your project to promote books. It’s a fantastic idea, and I’m truly grateful that you’re doing this for us.
Thank you for your valuable feedback. Øivind. I am sorry to hear about your situation on Medium. It happened to many of us. I personally downgraded my FoM as it adds no value, although I adamantly embraced it for 12 months. Yes, I will help you promote your books as a member of our community.
I am not old Dr. Mehmet, I am only about 25 but I completely hate digital book.. I would rather a print book hundreds of them and an entire library in my house than dedicate the screen time I would use for other things to reading a book.
I I sincerely and greatly appreciate your work. I'm publishing my first book soon and it's a nom-fictional novel on Amazon. I would love to know if there is another good publishing recommendations you may have. And good marketing tools I could use Sir. Thanks so much.
Thank you for your valuable feedback, Ral. I am glad you also love print books like me for valid reasons. I will certainly share detailed guidance to aspiring book authors soon, so I created the book club on Substack. It will be a great information source with real-life experience, which I will also curate from established book authors.
Thank you Dr Yildiz for this comprehensive and very helpful article. I am glad you have pointed clearly to the fact that print books are still a very popular way for people to consume content. There is, as you have described, a lot of 'conventional wisdom' being continuously purveyed by many who may be well-meaning, but end up being misleading.
Someone told me recently that print books will be a thing of the past soon as everyone moves to digital and Audio books... I asked them what evidence they had for this and they said 'Well, I haven't bought a print book for years since I got my Kindle'.
As an author myself, I know (or rather have learned the hard way) the challenges of getting sales for your books. But I also know and take heart from these simple facts:
ONE, unless you have a huge following already, or you are a celebrated 'name', you cannot assume that your beautifully crafted book will become a best seller just because it is good. Selling books is ALL ABOUT discoverability and making people out there who would love to read it, aware that it exists. If you have only sold 100 copies of your book, it doesn't mean that only 100 people actually wanted to buy your book. It's a hugely valuable validation that your book sells! There could be 100,000+ people out there right now who would also buy it, but they simply haven't discovered it.
TWO, with books, price is not a barrier/issue for the buying public. People don't think, 'I'll buy that book because it's only $12 while that one there is $16. Books are incredibly good value. In fact, they are cheap! And they are incredibly easy to buy! Discover a book > Find it on Amazon > Spend a few dollars > Get it delivered to your door the next day! (Or instantly if one acquires the digital or audio version). Just think how much value and impact a book can have on someone for just a few dollars. Next time you sit down in a cafe for a latte and a slice of cake, or for an inexpensive (these days) lunch, it will probably cost you more than a good book. You will soon forget that coffee, but that book will be on your shelf for years and will deliver hours of pleasure in the meantime and value. In other words, nearly everyone out there can afford to buy your book.
THREE, best-selling books become bestsellers, not usually because the book is better than all of the other books out there, but because the author knew how to, and invested time in, effectively promoting their book through all the right channels. In other words, they did all the right things. Getting a book published and on Amazon doesn't mean that it is going to sell. But the exciting thing is this; if you get it right (which to be blunt, is a matter of outsmarting all the other authors out there who publish and then wait to see what might happen), and you promote yourself and your book well, then the upside can be huge. Selling (good) books is a very scalable opportunity. The market out there for your book is massive - one just needs to focus on discoverability. If we get it right, being an author can be very lucrative.
Dr Y, I enjoyed this article I recently started my online writing and Amazon book writing a few months ago. I will be reaching out to you soon to gain more insight. Thank you for being such a strong advocate for all of us writers. You are truly amazing. Great informative article. :) :)_
Yes, i read print books for the same the reasons you mentioned possibly due to our similar ages. As a mental health professional I prescribed print book reading for insomnia and anxiety to countless of patients in the last half century. Everything you said in this story made sense to me. Having close to your books as an alpha and beta reader and also a line editor recently I am familiar with your work ethics and have huge respect for what you do for your readers and fellow book authors. Thank you for sharing your insights, wisdom, knowledge, and expertise so generously illuminating darkness so gracefully. 🌟
G'day Dr Yildiz. I am glad you wrote this excellent and timely piece. I will be a bit blunt with no intention of any offence as as those ignorant writers drive me crazy on Medium with tenuous understanding and recycling information. They are so lazy because Substack requires effort and Medium allows every junk to be published including AI craps which we have to return hundreds daily. There are over five million readers on Substack but only one million on Medium if it is true. As you say 7000 writers became best sellers on subsstack. I am not one of them yet. My earning on Medium dropped from $500 to $20 despite writing high quality stories and gaining 4K followers. And no print books will never die. I was one of your readers who asked a print book because I don't enjoy digital books as much as print ones. However I started enjoying your audio books very much. This is a great story giving the true picture but of course Medium will not distribute it because they might think you are criticizing them. They should learn from your strategy and make their platform better as Substack does before they totally lose great readers like us who are so tolerant because of great community on Medium. But you were fair giving credit to Medium. I hope they understand the nuances in this story and distribute to deserving book authors who can also honor their platform like you do. Thank you for this exceptional story which inspired me and made me feel better today. I hope many freelance writers read this story and learn from your experience. I haven't seen as a generous person on both Medium and Substack. Keep shining and illuminating us, mate.
I will keep this article and read it over and over again to understand all the points you bring up Mehmet! I'm in the process of putting my "Alphabet Memoir" into book form and will try to publish before the end of the year! Thanks for all you do!
Excellent insights shared, thank you very much.
Great article and thank you for all you’re doing to help others. Absolutely amazing!
Thank you for your inspiring words, Martial. It is nice to meet you. I read your story about passive income barriers, which deeply resonated with me. For example, writing books required me significant up-front effort and time investment, but over the years, they turned out to be passive income. However, every passive income still requires some maintenance to survive and grow.
Thank you! I’m happy you read and enjoyed the article.
I’ve learned over the years that nothing in this universe remains a true constant. It is either improving or declining. Growing or dying. You are either creating on it or slowing destroying it.
Thus no matter what passive income one has established, it must be maintained.
Spot on! You articulated universal rules beautifully. Understanding this nuanced perspective is vital. Thank you for sharing your insights.
Very good insights, Dr. Yildiz. Thanks!
Thank you for your valuable feedback, Mikel.
Thank you, Mehmet, for this very interesting article. I share your views on most things, and absolutely when it comes to Medium and Substack.
Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to recover the earnings on Medium, which dropped to almost zero around the turn of the year, despite still being a Friend of Medium. And I also haven’t managed to generate any income on Substack.
But I do have a novel, which you are familiar with—The Man Who Stopped Aging, published on Amazon https://a.co/d/1INwtRE. I would love for you to include it in your project to promote books. It’s a fantastic idea, and I’m truly grateful that you’re doing this for us.
Have a great day, Mehmet.
Thank you for your valuable feedback. Øivind. I am sorry to hear about your situation on Medium. It happened to many of us. I personally downgraded my FoM as it adds no value, although I adamantly embraced it for 12 months. Yes, I will help you promote your books as a member of our community.
I am not old Dr. Mehmet, I am only about 25 but I completely hate digital book.. I would rather a print book hundreds of them and an entire library in my house than dedicate the screen time I would use for other things to reading a book.
I I sincerely and greatly appreciate your work. I'm publishing my first book soon and it's a nom-fictional novel on Amazon. I would love to know if there is another good publishing recommendations you may have. And good marketing tools I could use Sir. Thanks so much.
Thank you for your valuable feedback, Ral. I am glad you also love print books like me for valid reasons. I will certainly share detailed guidance to aspiring book authors soon, so I created the book club on Substack. It will be a great information source with real-life experience, which I will also curate from established book authors.
Thank you Dr Yildiz for this comprehensive and very helpful article. I am glad you have pointed clearly to the fact that print books are still a very popular way for people to consume content. There is, as you have described, a lot of 'conventional wisdom' being continuously purveyed by many who may be well-meaning, but end up being misleading.
Someone told me recently that print books will be a thing of the past soon as everyone moves to digital and Audio books... I asked them what evidence they had for this and they said 'Well, I haven't bought a print book for years since I got my Kindle'.
As an author myself, I know (or rather have learned the hard way) the challenges of getting sales for your books. But I also know and take heart from these simple facts:
ONE, unless you have a huge following already, or you are a celebrated 'name', you cannot assume that your beautifully crafted book will become a best seller just because it is good. Selling books is ALL ABOUT discoverability and making people out there who would love to read it, aware that it exists. If you have only sold 100 copies of your book, it doesn't mean that only 100 people actually wanted to buy your book. It's a hugely valuable validation that your book sells! There could be 100,000+ people out there right now who would also buy it, but they simply haven't discovered it.
TWO, with books, price is not a barrier/issue for the buying public. People don't think, 'I'll buy that book because it's only $12 while that one there is $16. Books are incredibly good value. In fact, they are cheap! And they are incredibly easy to buy! Discover a book > Find it on Amazon > Spend a few dollars > Get it delivered to your door the next day! (Or instantly if one acquires the digital or audio version). Just think how much value and impact a book can have on someone for just a few dollars. Next time you sit down in a cafe for a latte and a slice of cake, or for an inexpensive (these days) lunch, it will probably cost you more than a good book. You will soon forget that coffee, but that book will be on your shelf for years and will deliver hours of pleasure in the meantime and value. In other words, nearly everyone out there can afford to buy your book.
THREE, best-selling books become bestsellers, not usually because the book is better than all of the other books out there, but because the author knew how to, and invested time in, effectively promoting their book through all the right channels. In other words, they did all the right things. Getting a book published and on Amazon doesn't mean that it is going to sell. But the exciting thing is this; if you get it right (which to be blunt, is a matter of outsmarting all the other authors out there who publish and then wait to see what might happen), and you promote yourself and your book well, then the upside can be huge. Selling (good) books is a very scalable opportunity. The market out there for your book is massive - one just needs to focus on discoverability. If we get it right, being an author can be very lucrative.
---------------------
Thank you very much once again! 😊
These are excellent observations, Peter. All your points made sense to me.
Dr Y, I enjoyed this article I recently started my online writing and Amazon book writing a few months ago. I will be reaching out to you soon to gain more insight. Thank you for being such a strong advocate for all of us writers. You are truly amazing. Great informative article. :) :)_
Thank you for your inspiring feedback, Bill.
Thanks for this value-packed piece Dr.
Thank you for reading and and commenting dear friend.
Yes, i read print books for the same the reasons you mentioned possibly due to our similar ages. As a mental health professional I prescribed print book reading for insomnia and anxiety to countless of patients in the last half century. Everything you said in this story made sense to me. Having close to your books as an alpha and beta reader and also a line editor recently I am familiar with your work ethics and have huge respect for what you do for your readers and fellow book authors. Thank you for sharing your insights, wisdom, knowledge, and expertise so generously illuminating darkness so gracefully. 🌟
Thank you for your wonderful words, Dr Jones.
G'day Dr Yildiz. I am glad you wrote this excellent and timely piece. I will be a bit blunt with no intention of any offence as as those ignorant writers drive me crazy on Medium with tenuous understanding and recycling information. They are so lazy because Substack requires effort and Medium allows every junk to be published including AI craps which we have to return hundreds daily. There are over five million readers on Substack but only one million on Medium if it is true. As you say 7000 writers became best sellers on subsstack. I am not one of them yet. My earning on Medium dropped from $500 to $20 despite writing high quality stories and gaining 4K followers. And no print books will never die. I was one of your readers who asked a print book because I don't enjoy digital books as much as print ones. However I started enjoying your audio books very much. This is a great story giving the true picture but of course Medium will not distribute it because they might think you are criticizing them. They should learn from your strategy and make their platform better as Substack does before they totally lose great readers like us who are so tolerant because of great community on Medium. But you were fair giving credit to Medium. I hope they understand the nuances in this story and distribute to deserving book authors who can also honor their platform like you do. Thank you for this exceptional story which inspired me and made me feel better today. I hope many freelance writers read this story and learn from your experience. I haven't seen as a generous person on both Medium and Substack. Keep shining and illuminating us, mate.
Thank you for your inspiring feedback, Dr Broadly.
@Dr Mehmet Yildiz - I thank you for another amazing post as you've been very helpful to me in the matters you write about in this post.
To those wishing to publish a book or better understand the publishing world itself Dr Yildiz is an invaluable resource to the Substack community.
Thank you for your uplifting and heartfelt feedback, Dr Rice. Your kind support means a lot to me. Your contributions to this community are admirable.
Thank you for sharing your data!
Thank you for reading and commenting. Nice to meet you and explore your content too.
You are really unstoppable dear Doc Chief. How to be you?
PS
This is a very informative post and I will restack this asap. Thanks a million Doc Chief!
Thank you for your kind words, dear Josh. You rock! I also want to be you from a different angle. 😊