“From little acorns do mighty oak trees grow.” That’s how it goes … plan well, and the plans will pay off. Let’s face it, that’s what most small entrepreneurs intend. I nearly said ‘hope’ just then, but I want this to be about positivity. When someone wishes me good luck, I wonder if they think I can achieve my goal, or do they really just think it is a pipe dream. How many authors are patronised by friends and family, who think their ‘little hobby’ won’t amount to much. I prefer to make my own ‘luck’, so this is as much about the concept of ‘paying it forward’ as anything.

Well, to my mind, there is a technique which is often cited in growing business. Again, this is my experience, but I will say that I am a third-generation salesperson. Ironically, my father didn’t want me to go into sales, but hey ho … Twenty-years later and I am still in sales, albeit medical sales as the day job and book sales in the evenings.

That technique is networking. There have been books written about the process, too many to count, but one things remains. Networking is more than making friends and just paying lip-service to the friendship. If networking is to succeed, then whilst a certain amount of ‘drive’ is needed, make it all about the sales and not about the friendship, and it will fail. People will go off you very quickly if all you do is sell your product/book/service. Therein lies the skill of networking.

The Hunter’s Arrow and the worlds of the Negrescu Cwn Annwn and Anghelescu Hellhounds started from three friends meeting online and realising that they could write stories together which people seemed to like. The start of a network perhaps? Each of us had our own networks of friends, but due to the nature of our writing, we couldn’t feel that we could share everything that we did with all our friends. For example, the first time I shared some stories about a very foul-mouthed character with my cousin, my comment to the other writers in the group was “I’m going to Hell!”.

But, going back to how those networks form. As an author, there are loads of suggestions. I joined the Rave Reviews Book Club (#RRBC), which works on the basis that for our membership we have to buy, read and review at least four books by fellow members each year. Why? It builds sales, it builds reviews, which builds sales etc etc. The whole purpose of networking.

However, sometimes networking is not just about the books, and sometimes it is worth branching out, if for no other reason than you might find the ‘impossible’ birthday present from a sole-trader artist. This was the case with one contact I made: Carly of Carly’s Creative Clay. Her work features as the image at the top of this post and here.

Perhaps it is by dint of enjoying good craftsmanship, and appreciating that if you want good quality work, then it costs. However, sometimes that isn’t always the case, and that’s where artists like Carly come into the equation. I am sure the next question will be “What’s in it for me, in mentioning her?”. Do you recall what I said earlier. Sometimes networks form because there is more than just selling. Sometimes they form because occasionally, even struggling authors like to buy themselves a treat. Sometimes they form because in the same way that I admire Carly’s work, someone else might admire my stories.

It won’t be an overnight thing. That was why I told another author I know that I have a three year plan regarding writing, publishing and selling my books, and I don’t expect to see a return on my investment for three years.

From little acorns do mighty oaks grow. Where there is one dragon, there are many. Carly is a very talented artist, as you can see.

If you love dragons, if you love designs which seem to have their own personality, then I suggest you take a look at her Etsy store.

Perhaps in time, someone else will feature my novels in the same way. Who knows? But that is how it works. Planning and making your own luck. And that concept of paying it forward? Perhaps by doing a favour to someone, whether it is giving an elderly American tourist in Edinburgh Airport a pound coin so he could exit the car-park, or whether it is mentioning a friend’s fantastic designs on my blog … Maybe one day, someone will do something similar, and hey presto! The gateway to sales of my book series might be there, just waiting for the right push.

And, by the way, no money exchanged hands for me to write this post … unless you count the little bowl in the bathroom, the dragon fridge magnet in the kitchen, the little collection of dragon charms on my desk … You get the picture. I like dragons and courtesy of PayPal and ‘clickety-itis’, I have several new additions to my collection. Thank you, Carly.

LINKS TO THE BOOKS BY JO PILSWORTH & THE HUNTER’S ARROW LTD

“Beta”, Volume 3 of The Diaries of the Cŵn Annwn
Amazon.co.uk: £3.05 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01KB20OL6
Amazon.com: $3.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KB20OL6#nav-subnav
Smashwords: $3.99 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/660156