Many of my writing buddies
follow the trends.
They write whatever is hot,
crafting their books to be
as similar to the ‘hot book’
as possible.
They have a gazillion sales
(or, more specifically borrows
as they are in KU,
Amazon’s subscription service)
but they earn very little per ‘sale.’
With this model,
they HAVE to appeal to the masses.
They need volume to offset
their low ‘selling price.’
I target a different reader (prospect),
a reader who wants something unique,
something special,
something they are willing
to pay more for.
That market is MUCH smaller.
It isn’t the average reader.
But it is as profitable
as appealing to the masses.
Seth Godin
shares this
about offering a unique service/product
“The first problem is that
the typical client doesn’t want that.
The typical client wants cheap and reliable.
And you’re not going to
persuade the typical client
to change his or her mind.
Which means that
if you’re going to do
your best work,
you’ll need to send
the typical client to someone else.”
If you choose
to offer a unique service/product,
the masses,
the ‘typical’ customer/client
isn’t your market.
Let them go.