How to Operate an International Publishing Empire From Your Pocket
With the power of your email list, you can sell your books from anywhere
I now serve readers in 75 different countries. Every time I look at that data it breaks my brain. Never in my lifetime did I imagine I could touch people so far away from me.
But I do it every day.
…and I run my international publishing empire from my pocket.
No, I don’t have small desks with assistants and fax machines heating my pants. I run 90% of the business from my phone. Once I set up a system on my laptop, it runs until it breaks.
All the maintenance and correspondence is done from my pocket.
Writers aren’t the only one who enjoy pocket-empires, but we’re in a unique place where we can also create our work from our pocket too.
I wrote my entire first novel on my phone.
Embrace the stolen moments
I get a lot of feedback from clients. One of the most-popular emails I receive is a rendition of “I can’t find time to write. How do you do it?”
My answer is almost always the same:
- I developed the permanent, daily habit of writing, so my publishing output dwarfs that of many other writers.
- I use my phone. I can steal writing moments unavailable to keyboard writers.
This twofold approach trickles into my entire business.
I don’t have to set-aside precious time from larger writing projects to answer email, brainstorm, take notes on podcasts, or respond to inquiries.
I use stolen moments that would normally disappear throughout my day: waiting in line, waiting at stop lights, attending stupid meetings, using the bathroom, sitting on a train, etc.
Design you publishing empire around your pocket
Use writing apps, email, and sales platforms that are conducive to mobile. Focus on digital goods that don’t require much (if any customer support). If there is customer support, can you outsource it?
This is called ‘knowing your alpha’ (or knowing the direction of your business before you start).
If you want to run a pocket publishing empire, it’s important you build the infrastructure to accomplish it. I use the writing app call Scrivenir, but you can also use Google Docs. Both of these platforms will back your writing to the cloud.
…so you can pick-up at your desk when you want to.
Back-up all your work to the cloud. You never know when you’ll drop your phone in a bucket, or off a cliff.
Redundancies are the name of the game, here.
If you want to be a pocket mogul you better not store all your important stuff only in your phone.
Use email like a champion
When you build your publishing empire around email, you can sell your books, courses, and other writings automatically. Through an automated email sequence you can address each subscriber in the same way.
There’s no more forgetting to write an email this week.
There are fewer broken links.
You take the time to set everything up in advance, and once you pull the cord, most of the selling is done on autopilot — giving you more time to do your best work.
Email is hard, but it’s not impossible. Once you set it up, beyond a few minor tweaks, much of the work is done forever. All you need is steady stream of new readers subscribing to your work.
I developed a free masterclass to help you get your first 1,000 subscribers (and your next thousand). Tap the link below to enroll.
We’re waiting for you.
Enroll in My Email Masterclass. Get Your First 1,000 Subscribers
August Birch (AKA the Book Mechanic) is both a fiction and non-fiction author from Michigan, USA. As a self-appointed guardian of writers and creators, August teaches indies how to create work that sells and how to sell more of that work once it’s created. When he’s not writing or thinking about writing, August carries a pocket knife and shaves his head with a safety razor.