What it's like to be an author in 2026
This isn't anything helpful, just a dollop of solidarity.
Me: "OK so I'll sign with a publisher and they'll promote my book—"
Publisher: "NOPE"
Me: “OK so I’ll sign with a different publisher and they’ll promote my book—”
Publisher: “NOPE”
Me: “OK but surely this one’ll do basic things like upload Amazon A+ content pre-launch—”
Publisher: “NOPE”
Me: “OK so I managed to hustle for enough sales to hit a bestseller list—”
New York Times: *glances at print run* “NOPE”
Me: "OK so I'll self-publish with optimized metadata so the right readers find my book—"
Amazon: "NOPE"
Me: "OK so I'll send email newslette—"
Gmail's promotions tab: "NOPE"
Me: "OK so I'll spend hours making videos that surely won't get flagged as unoriginal—"
TikTok & Instagram, in chorus: "NOPE"
Me: "OK so I'll share witty POV threads to hook readers into my story—"
Book Threads: "NOPE"
Me: “OK so I’ll run some A/B-tested Meta ads using all the best practices—”
Meta’s AI infrastructure: *shows men romance ads, giggles* “NOPE”
Me: “OK so I’ll fly to some events with imported special edition copies—”
Tariffs/oil prices: “NOPE”
Me: “OK so screw it, nothing sells backlist like frontlist, so I’ll write new books fast—”
Attention span (due to all of the above): “NOPE”
Is it all bad all the time? No! I’ll give you an example to balance out the negativity: friends and former colleagues keep texting to let me know one of my books is featured in the game Tiny Bookshop on the Switch. How cool is that??
Moments like these—and in general, the writing itself and especially the readers—make it worth it. I write my stories for them, and the ones who find me mean everything to me.
But this post is for the days when it feels like nothing’s working despite doing everything “right.” You’re not alone.
