Maria Matthews asked Cheri Champagne:

A tricky question for you Cheri, how did your self published books sell? I ask as I have discovered finding reviewers is a tough job.

Cheri Champagne Good afternoon, Maria,

My sincere apologies. I did not see this question until now.

My self published books did pretty well, I believe, for an unknown author that was new to everything in the publishing world, though not nearly as well as others. Truthfully, I didn't really know what I was doing. I didn't hire a professional editor (which I definitely should have done), and I didn't do enough research on self-promotion, which would have helped a great deal.

I still need to seek out my own reviewers--as I'm sure most other authors published by small publishing houses can relate to--and I must say that I agree with you about finding them. It's a difficult and time-consuming task, and not all of our queries will be answered. It's still something that I struggle with.

I'm sorry that I couldn't be more help on this subject. The best advice that I can give, would be to 1. Join a professional writing group (for example, I'm a member of the RWA, and I'm part of my local chapter, which holds meetings every month). This will let you talk to real people, face to face, and get you connected. 2. Get help. This could be in the form of an editor, or the advice of writer friends, but help is important. And lastly, 3. Don't give up. Keep writing and keep querying!

I hope this helps! Again, I apologize for the lateness of my reply!

Kind Regards,
Cheri

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