FAQs: On Being an International Author
People often ask me what it means to be an international author. Here are some of the most common questions I get at events or while travelling:
Q. How did you decide to be an international author?
A. I did not decide this. It’s all unplanned. I keep writing for the British market, but I keep getting rejected. I have never been accepted by a British publisher apart from Unbound, and we all know how that went. I always aimed to write engaging stories which are universal yet specific. Even when I write about white characters or London characters, the big questions always hit me, the what ifs, the how comes, the unbearable.
Q. What about the jet lag?
A. There is no jet lag. Forget it. It’s all in your mind. If you are tired all year round, then you’re already jet-lagged every day.
Q. Does the publisher make you do this?
A. No, they don’t. However, there is pressure to perform. With the right campaign and PR, you can hit bestseller status (I’ve done it once). But you have to match the publisher’s effort.
Q. How do you hit bestseller status?
A. I don’t know as I am not in book PR or marketing. But for my case, there are 3 factors. YMMV.
- The book. It has to be a highly popular, marketable genre with memorable, larger-than-life characters written extremely well and in an accessible way to the majority of readers, and I will come to that in another post.
- The PR. I worked with a publicist who pitched me 7 days a week because he loves my book with an insane passion. If you have never had PR, you will know that this is the hardest step. Writing the book (no. 1, see above) is the easy bit.
- Magic. The bare minimum is 1 and 2. Without them, there is no 3. Sometimes it is both 1 and 2, but the 3 will still not appear, because there is an undeniable fact that books are magic (to paraphrase Stephen King).
Q. Do you have to do international literary festivals?
A. No. Nothing is mandatory. You can have no book launches, social media or public appearances. It’s all optional. Think of yourself as an intern forever, or a volunteer, for your own cause.
Q. Do they pay?
A. No, they usually don’t. Some gigs are all covered for food, accommodation and travel, such as the Jaipur Lit Fest, but most festivals have to be paid out of the author’s advance, i.e. pocket. That is why writing is a middle-class profession for those with a stable income or with a family fortune. No one can live indefinitely on low royalties while juggling writing, admin and promo. That’s already three jobs. Keep the day job.
Q. Do they make the snazzy tour merch/swag or do you?
A. They make the large value items, ie. the Penguin tote bag branded with my name, for In Safe Hands. I create small-value items, including stickers, cards, character art collectables, and bookmarks. For The American Boyfriend, I made Florida drink coasters, a Spotify playlist, collectable character cards and Ex Libris library pre-signed book plates.
Q. Where do you stay?
A. Hotels, Airbnb or friends’ homes.
Q. Do you sell a lot of books at festivals and events?
A. A lot is relative. I sell 15 to 40 per festival or event, but the big sales come from booksellers. Chain bookstores buy thousands of copies, and that is how you can reach the international audience further. I reached my bestseller status in USA and in India, not in Europe or SE Asia. The markets in the latter two are relatively smaller than the former two for English language books. That is why I use the word relative. It is not through any of my personal efforts, public appearances, social media or the quality of my writing. Nothing I do can change these figures. The market giveth, the market taketh away. All promo is futile and should only be for fun.
Q. Oh, that’s a pain. What is fun about it then?
A. I love designing my own posters, covers, merch, fan art. I love meeting big-name authors and readers at festivals. I love performing my work. It’s all showbiz. I do not see it as promo. I see it as a show. And most of all, I love writing, especially when I am on the international gig circuits and there is a lot of downtime. I don’t like to be disturbed or distracted.