Self-publishing craft book: The best part of self-publishing is the FREEDOM to write whatever you want however you want
Me: oh really! nice!
Craft book: Yes! But if you want to, like, make money, write a series of at least five short novels with a relatable protagonist who has a solid heroic journey character arc, integrate readers' favorite tropes in your chosen genre, and release two or, ideally, more books a year, along with a short, self-contained reader magnet for your newsletter
Me: oh...
@quartzen I feel like this formula gets followed too rigorously and, as I read more into the self-pub area, I find that this sort of thing leaves me profoundly unsatisfied. Especially the "your characters are not characters, your characters are tropes that pull numbers" part. For me, tropes should be the byproduct not the focus.
@lbrianwrites Yeah, definitely I think people can take it too much to heart?