PITTSBURGH, Penn. – A local self-published author says she spends her entire day—from sunrise to sunset—watching her Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing sales dashboard, hopeful that today is the day she makes a sale.

It’s estimated that approximately 2.2 million books are published every year and, while holding a freshly printed copy of your novel can be one of the most exciting moments in an author’s life, the realization that your precious word baby will hit the bookshelves struggling to stay afloat in an oversaturated literary market is a daunting reality.

“I saw someone on TikTok say they were able to make $10,000 a month by selling books through Amazon,” said Megan Maroney, a first-time young adult author. “I’d always wanted to be an author and could use some extra cash, so I thought, ‘why not try’?”

Unfortunately for Maroney, the simple act of putting a book on Amazon, or any print-on-demand service, does not guarantee sales. For many authors, regardless of whether they self-publish, use an independent press, or manage to land a book deal through one of the large publishing houses, an active social media presence and the willingness to dish out some cash for advertising is a modern reality to sell a book.

“I didn’t realize I would not only have to write the book but have an advanced degree in marketing to find any hint of success,” said Maroney, a mother of three. “This is consuming so much more of my time than I was expecting. I don’t understand how anyone can work a fulltime job, have a family, and try to be an author at the same time. This is insane.”

The process hasn’t been all bad, however. Maroney said she built a fairly substantial following of fellow authors and other creatives on Twitter before Elon Musk transformed one of the world’s most identifiable brands into a cesspool for hate speech and a breeding ground for disinformation and porn bots.

“I met a lot of like-minded people there who I now call friends,” said Maroney. “Most of us have crossed over to Threads and love it there. I went into this looking to make some money, but I’ve come away from it with so much more. I love my little writing community and the positivity everyone tries to breath into each other’s lives.”

Despite the lack of sales, Maroney has continued to write, penning the next book in her young adult mystery series and has looked to other side hustles to make up for the much-needed cash flow her family needs.

“I sold a kidney last month,” said Maroney. “That may seem like a dramatic thing to do but the money I got for it will cover our bills for the next couple of months and the time I spent in the hospital gave me the time I needed to outline my next book. I think the girl math adds up here.”

You can look for Maroney’s books on Amazon, somewhere among the millions of other titles available.

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