My first real month as an author is officially done. I published my debut novel at the start of July and gave it away for free to more than 600 readers. A handful of people purchased it afterward, and I’ve been getting about one new reader per day via Kindle Unlimited (KENP). Not exactly a bestseller success story—but it’s a start.
Here’s a breakdown of how everything went:
Free Book Giveaways
As I’ve mentioned before, my strategy is to give all my books away for free in order to build a readership. Being free is really the only “selling point” I have as an indie author trying to break into an oversaturated market where nobody knows who I am. So, free it is.
STORY52
This is my weekly short story project where I release a new short story ebook on Amazon which allows me to give it away from Monday until Saturday. Here are the download numbers so far:
- Book 1 | Black Market Dreams (US – DE): 18 German – 10 English downloads
- Book 2 | The Last Portrait (US – DE): 19 German – 16 English downloads
- Book 3 | The Companion (US – DE): 16 German – 6 English downloads
- Book 4 | Statues (US – DE): 8 German – 3 English downloads
Amazon’s KDP system allows me to offer books for free for 5 days every 3 months. After a year, I’ll have enough content to give away a new short story each week, every year—until I get old and wrinkly.
The goal is not to make money from short stories, but to create promotional material that gets readers interested in my other work at no cost. Frankly, I don’t think it’s even possible to earn anything substantial with short stories on Amazon.
My First Novel: Forever
From my perspective, this is a success. Forever was downloaded 630 times in German and 44 times in English, resulting in 13 ratings on Amazon. With an average rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, new readers can see that I don’t write complete trash—but actually offer some real entertainment.
As mentioned earlier, the book also brought in Kindle Unlimited readers—roughly one new reader per day—and led to a few purchases of the digital version.
To everyone who bought or reviewed one of my books: You’re awesome—thank you!
If you haven’t checked it out, grab it here: US – English | DE – German
My Website
Still very much a work in progress. I’m experimenting with scheduling and trying to figure out what kind of content would be interesting and helpful to you.
Newsletter
Short-term goal: Finish a novelette to give away to new newsletter subscribers.
Long-term goal: Once I reach 100 real subscribers, I’ll begin sending out weekly emails with updates, tips, behind-the-scenes content, and more—for readers, writers, and anyone curious about this author journey.
The website itself
Last month, website traffic increased even though I barely touched it, which is a good sign. That said, I haven’t received many comments yet—just the usual spam. The main purpose of the site is to become a central hub for the community I hope to build. So if you’re reading this: drop a comment and say hi. You might be the first to do so.
X/Twitter
I’m still figuring out a posting routine here. What I’ve already learned: You won’t gain traction unless you follow people first.
At first, I wanted to be “that cool guy” who follows no one but gets tons of followers anyway. After a month, I realized: if you don’t follow anyone, nobody even notices you exist.
Unless you bring an audience from somewhere else (which I don’t have), you’re essentially invisible. So, my new approach is to follow about 10 new people daily—mostly in certain communities—and get some traction with follow backs.
Content-wise, I post daily thoughts about movies, shows, and books—kind of like a mini review each day. I’m planning to write more about writing and the author life too, but only once I’ve built up an audience that actually engages (likes, comments, retweets).
Follow me here on Twitter if you’re interested: @michael_brig
I secured my handle and uploaded a few book covers. That’s it.
So far, I have absolutely no idea how to grow on Instagram or what to post there. I’ll focus on figuring that out later—after I’ve established a working system for the platforms that currently matter more to me: Twitter, my website, and Amazon.
You can follow me here and say hi: @michaelbrig
YouTube
My tutorial channel is holding steady at around 10,000 subscribers. But honestly, it feels like there’s not much growth potential left—I might never hit the 100K mark.
To be honest, I believe YouTube has placed my entire profile in a kind of sandbox. Creating videos often feels like I’m fighting windmills. My two author channels, OnPaper and StoryLines, barely get any impressions, even though I see brand-new channels pulling in 100 views per video with far worse thumbnails than mine.
There’s not much I can do about that. All I can do is evaluate whether YouTube is still worth my time and effort.
Writing
I’m super happy with how writing went in July. I’ve found a routine that really works for me—one that might even allow me to finish a new book each month in the near future.
Right now, I’m juggling:
- Two series
- One standalone novel
- A weekly short story for my STORY52 project
The 17 Series
I’m already writing Part 5, even though I haven’t published Part 1 yet. I’m about 15% into the newest isntallment.
D.E.A.D.
This is my second series—think Harry Potter, but in a secret school for spies and criminals. I’ve written about 25% of Book One.
Crowley
This is my next standalone project: a serial killer thriller with ties to Aleister Crowley. I’m roughly 10% into the first draft.
Editing / Translating / Publishing
AI tools have been a game-changer for me—they catch way more typos than I ever could. That’s helped me move much faster than before in the editing stage. Still, editing and translating remain the parts I enjoy the least about being an author.
I’ve made a commitment: until I earn money from my writing, I won’t spend money from my other projects on it. My author career has to stand on its own two feet or not stand at all.
Next Release – Endless
A novelette I plan to give away for free to anyone who signs up for my newsletter. I aim to put it out in August.
September Release – Part 1 of the 17 Series
A mix of James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, and Jack Reacher. I’m in the final editing phase, so this should go live in September 2025.
October Release – Therapy
I finished writing this one in July. Next up: the first editing round. If all goes well, it will be released in October 2025.
To Conclude
There’s still so much to learn, to test, and to figure out. But the most important part? It’s fun. And for the first time, with Forever, I feel like I’ve found a way to attract some readers.
I’m still a long way from being able to call myself a “real” author—but the journey has begun. And the good thing about starting from zero is that the only way from here is up.
Thanks to everyone who reads my stuff. Writing wouldn’t be nearly as fun without you.
See you next time,
Brig
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