Debbie Young is the commissioning editor of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) Author Advice Center and has written several of ALLi’s self-publishing guidebooks, including how to get self-published books into bookstores. She writes the Sophie Sayers Village Mysteries, a cozy crime series set in an English Cotswolds village — described by one reviewer as “Miss Marple meets Bridget Jones.” She has also published three short story collections and runs author meetup groups in Bristol and Cheltenham. She is the founder of the Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival.
Host: Richard Lowe | Guest: Debbie Young
Interview Transcript
Richard: Tell me about yourself.
Debbie: I’m writing a series of cozy mystery novels set in a little village very much like the English country village I live in, in the Cotswolds, about 100 miles from London. I’m writing seven of those and having great fun. I’ve also published short story collections and kind of acclimatized myself to self-publishing by starting with the short pieces.
I also work for the Alliance of Independent Authors. My role is managing the Author Advice Center, which is built around about 2,000 blog posts — an enormous archive of material for authors of all kinds, whatever genre you write in. We also have reference books. I’ve written a couple, including one about getting your books into bookstores and another about making the best of being an indie author.
Writing Prolifically
Richard: You’re very prolific. How do you write so much?
Debbie: By working very hard. There’s no magic solution other than throwing hours at it, and I’m able to do that because I love what I do. In my previous career, I worked in marketing, public relations, journalism, and for a charity promoting children’s reading. In each job, a large part of my responsibility was writing — website copy, brochures, newsletters, press releases. That was a terrific apprenticeship for writing fast, to order, to length, and to clear specification. It was also very good preparation for self-editing. I go through my drafts time and again to polish the prose and refine the plot and characters.
Why Cozy Mystery
Debbie: I’ve loved cozy mystery since I was a teen — Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers. I love them for their sense of place, characterization, playfulness, and fun. The crime is more of a riddle to me — the intellectual puzzle is what excites me. My series is partly set in a bookshop, so there are lots of opportunities for jokes about books and readers. Having fun creating those little worlds is part of the motivation. If I wasn’t having such fun in my creative world, I probably wouldn’t write so much.
My fondest memory about writing goes back to when I was about six. I’d spent time writing stories about a witch, and the teacher made me go around the whole school telling the story to each class, including children older than me. That’s where something clicked. I thought, “This is what I’m doing — I’m going to be a writer.” It took a long time after that to actually declare myself publicly as one, but I’m now finally doing what that six-year-old girl wanted.
Why Self-Publish
Debbie: First is creative control. As a self-publisher, you’re your publishing director as well as the writer. That gives you tremendous freedom — and responsibility. You have total say in the title, cover design, presentation, and how it’s sold. A trade-published author typically has very little say in any of that.
Things also move much faster. If I got a contract tomorrow from a big company, the book probably wouldn’t come out until end of next year. I’m editing a book now that will be out in September. I’ve got a terrific designer, Rachel Lawston, and a terrific editor, Alison Jack, already booked in.
The financial factor matters too. For a trade-published book, the author ends up with about 5 to 10 percent of the cover price. Self-publishing an ebook in the popular price ranges on Amazon, you get 70 percent.
A lot of people think a trade publisher will do all the marketing. Unless you’re a huge celebrity or already established, a publishing house won’t spend much time on it. Typically you might get a day or a day and a half of a PR person’s time. The marketing still largely falls to you.
Marketing Advice for Authors
Debbie: A lot of people are passionate about writing the book and then seize up at marketing. Some try to do everything and end up failing at everything or spreading too thin. A common question is “Can I pay somebody to do the marketing?” You can, but for a new author with no prior awareness, you’ll be wasting your money.
The best thing to do is learn the marketing environment yourself. Set up a good website — it doesn’t need to be fancy, a free WordPress site works. It should be the hub with all essential information about you, and all links should feed back to it. Have an email collection system so you can tell people when you have a new book out.
For social media, if you enjoy a particular platform, embrace that one. Don’t try to do something alien to you. Pick one or two and stick with them. I always say start small and local — do a local event, get a stand at a fair, get chatting to people, get known. That also helps you start thinking of yourself as an author.
There’s a balance between being apologetic about your book and being too aggressive. You have to earn your entitlement and prove your worth.
Tips for Writers
Debbie: Consider it a long game — a marathon, not a sprint. First step: write the damn book. So many people talk about writing without ever completing one.
Find a combination that works for you where you can regularly produce copy. When I’m in writing mode, I write a chapter a day. My books have about 36 chapters. I spend much more time editing than writing.
Remember that you write and edit with two different parts of your brain. Writing is the creative part, editing is the critical part. Don’t try to edit as you write. Get the basic shape first, then polish and hone it. It’s like carving wood — get the form, then whittle it down.
I don’t believe in the muse or inspiration or writer’s block. You just have to sit down and apply yourself and write.
Don’t just write one book. It’s much easier to be successful with more books. Every book should be the best you can make it. Engage professional services — editing, proofreading, cover design — as your budget permits. Nobody can do everything to a professional standard. Before you do any marketing at all, have the best product possible. You can market to kingdom come, but if the product is unpalatable, you won’t get repeat buyers.
I made a commercial decision to write in series. If Book One goes well, it’s much easier to sell Book Two to the same audience than to sell a completely new concept. My long-term plan over the next five years is to have three substantial series running.
Debbie: There has never been a better time to be an author. There is plenty of room for lots more good authors and good books. Books are never going to go out of style. Just go for it.
Learn more about Debbie Young at authordebbieyoung.com.
Find Richard Lowe at TheWritingKing.com.
Video edited by Bonnie Dillabough.