"So, how are the book sales going?"

This week marks the one month anniversary (no, it’s not a thing…) of Highland Getaway being out in the world, which means my most frequently asked question right now is the one in the title… which, just in case you were wondering, is NOT a great question to ask an author, all things considered.

Reasons not to ask authors how their book sales are going:

1. Imagine how awkward it’ll be if the book totally flopped and you’ve basically just forced the author into either admitting it < record scratch> or straight-up lying about it to save face? Awwwwkkkkwarrrd.

2. Most non-publishing people assume books are only successful if they can buy them in the airport, or watch the movie version on Netflix, which makes them a tough crowd, really. Like, sorry my book’s not in Tesco, Frank…

3. A lot of the time we genuinely don’t know the answer, but you, as a non-publishing person, will find it hard to believe that, so you will react as if we’re trying to trick you in some way, and then we’re back to point one, with the ‘awkward’.

(Other questions not to ask authors include, “Does this mean you’re rich now?” and “Why don’t you just get it made into a movie?” You’re welcome…)

Of all of these, number 3 is my life right now. The fact is, I genuinely have no idea how many books I’ve sold so far. I mean, I’m assuming I could probably find out if I asked my publisher, but I haven’t done that, because … honestly, I don’t know why not. I think maybe it just feels easier not knowing an exact number at this point? Because if I don’t know the exact number, then I can’t be disappointed by it? Or something?

I’m not sure. What I do know, however, is that it’s definitely not lack of interest that’s stopping me asking about the sales figures, because instead of doing that, what I’ve chosen to do this month is restlessly hover over the book’s Amazon dashboard, tracking the book’s ranking, which now has a direct correlation to my mood at any given time. When the book hit the giddy heights of number 69 in Contemporary Romance, for instance, I felt quietly pleased with myself, and only slightly disappointed that it didn’t get to 67, so I could tell my eight-year-old I was at SIX SEVEN. But when it dropped out of the top 100 again a week later, I was so devastated I briefly considered giving up writing altogether, and going to work down the mine.

But then it came back, and went to 75! And then dropped again! What a rollercoaster ride, seriously.

From all of this, my overall impression is that the book isn’t a bestseller, but… possibly isn’t a complete flop, either? But, while none of my self-published books ever made it this high in the Amazon rankings (Well, not in the UK: I was quite big in France and Germany at one point, apparently…), I’m also finding it very hard not to compare myself to other authors whose books are in the top 10, so I don’t think it’s time to break out the bubbly just yet.

(Yes, there is an actual bottle of bubbly. Just like the one I saved for when I signed my book deal, there’s currently another bottle chilling in the fridge for … something. I don’t know what it is yet, but I’ll know it when it happens...)

(I was going to open it on the evening of release day, but we had an early start the next morning, then my parents had kindly bought us all a bottle to share the day after that, so I got to keep mine mine. Possibly forever, at this rate…)

There are, however, some other reasons to celebrate this month, albeit not with champagne, because let’s not get too crazy over here:

1. I handed in the manuscript for book two just a couple of days before Highland Getaway came out. I’m still waiting on my edit letter for that, so there’s still a long way to go with it, obviously, but at least the first hurdle has been crossed!
   

2. I’ve started drafting what I’m hoping will be book 3 (as in, my 3rd traditionally published book, which will be my 11th overall…). I’m only a couple of (very rough) chapters in at the moment, but I’ll be sending it to my agent soon to see what she thinks of it, so if you could please keep everything crossed for Potential Book 3, that would be fab.
   

3. We’re going on holiday next week! Which means my favourite two weeks of the entire year is about to begin and I will soon be adopting my ‘holiday personality’, which I like to think is secretly the ‘real’ me, but which I only get to inhabit for a couple of weeks every year when there’s sunshine and no stress. I can’t wait…

Finally, if you’ve bought, read, or reviewed Highland Getaway this month, a huge thank you: you honestly have no idea how much it means to me! And if you’re taking the book on a ‘getaway’ of your own this summer, could you do me a huge favour and send me a photo (or tag me on Instagram)?