Romance author Ana Huang says self-publishing books is like running a small business

• Ana Huang started arsenic a wholly self-published author.
• Huang, now a beloved BookTok author, compared self-publishing to moving a mini business.
• Huang is releasing "The Striker," her 13th book, connected Tuesday.

Even nan astir casual of BookTok users cognize Ana Huang's name.

Huang, 33, is nan best-selling writer of nan "Twisted" and "Kings of Sin" series. She's published 12 novels to date, and her 13th book, "The Striker," a sports romance astir a master shot subordinate named Asher Donovan and a erstwhile master ballerina, Scarlett Dubois, hits bookshelves Tuesday.

Forbes reported successful July that Huang had sold astir 1.5 cardinal copies of her books successful 2024 alone, making her nan fourth-most-popular BookTok writer of nan year.

When Huang first started releasing books successful 2020, she was wholly self-published. She sewage her large break erstwhile "Twisted Love" blew up successful 2021.

For those who became acquainted pinch her activity via BookTok — wherever she boasts complete 12.5 cardinal likes — Huang astir apt seems for illustration an overnight occurrence story.

But Huang told Business Insider that down nan scenes, her Cinderella communicative took years of difficult work, which has made her moreover much passionate astir self-publishing.

Self-publishing for imaginative control

Unlike galore chartless authors, Huang didn't dream of signing pinch a accepted publisher erstwhile her penning profession began.

"I didn't commencement retired reasoning I would beryllium traditionally published aliases moreover that I needfully wanted to beryllium traditionally published," Huang told BI. "And I think, for me, it was because I worth having imaginative power complete my work."

"I for illustration that it was truthful nimble," she added. "If I wanted to alteration thing successful my book, I could instantly conscionable do it, and it would alteration nan adjacent day."

Huang was besides drawn to mastering each nan different aspects of publishing.

"Self-publishing is benignant of for illustration moving a mini business," she said. "I loved nan situation of learning really this full business works, learning nan marketing, being portion of that community."

Self-publishing has been connected nan emergence successful caller years; moreover Taylor Swift is embracing nan model. It lets authors break into nan manufacture without getting signed by a literate supplier aliases publisher, which tin beryllium a obstruction for galore writers. Authors tin besides stock their books pinch nan world much quickly and support much of nan royalties they make connected their works.

The magnitude of money authors make self-publishing their books varies, but immoderate writers antecedently told BI they make complete $10,000 a month conscionable by self-publishing connected Amazon.

Despite nan entreaty of self-publishing for galore authors, moving pinch an established patient — peculiarly 1 of nan large 5 for illustration Penguin Random House aliases HarperCollins — is still nan extremity for galore writers. These publishers connection master editorial, marketing, and income staff, allowing an writer to conscionable constitute alternatively of worrying astir really to get their books into nan correct hands. They besides connection a consciousness of prestige that's often lacking successful nan self-publishing abstraction unless an writer finds wide commercialized success, arsenic Huang did.

Huang started by self-publishing her useful arsenic Amazon e-books and independently printed difficult copies of her books for a period. Her website says her self-published difficult copies are nary longer disposable successful print.

Today, Huang's books are released arsenic a hybrid betwixt self- and accepted publishing.

She useful pinch independent editors and proofreaders alternatively than staffers astatine a large publisher, and she told BI she besides has "alpha readers" who publication her activity arsenic she writes it. For "The Striker," she selected alpha readers pinch knowledge of shot and ballet to thief push nan communicative successful nan correct direction.

Bloom Books, an imprint of nan independent patient Sourcebooks, distributes Huang's useful successful nan US truthful she tin scope an moreover wider audience. Bloom publishes different celebrated romance authors for illustration Meghan Quinn and "Fifty Shades of Grey" writer E.L. James, who signed pinch nan institution successful 2021, Entertainment Weekly reported.

Although Huang launched her profession by self-publishing, she told BI it took years to fig retired really to make it activity for her.

Research was key

"Twisted" was Huang's breakout series, but she self-published 4 books successful her "If Love" bid successful 2020.

Huang, who studied world relations successful college, told BI she focused her trading efforts almost wholly connected societal media for that series, utilizing nan master skills she'd gained from a erstwhile firm job.

"I had a small spot of a limb up because I did a batch of trading successful my aged time job," Huang said, adding that she besides spent a batch of clip moving a individual recreation Instagram astatine nan time. "That was what I really leaned successful connected erstwhile I started trading my book."

When moving connected "Twisted Love," Huang wanted to put much successful her writing, truthful she spent clip processing a business strategy.

"When I decided to dainty this arsenic a career, I listened to truthful galore podcasts. I publication each nan books, nan articles," she said. Huang besides joined groups connected Facebook for indie authors to study from her peers.

"For for illustration a twelvemonth aliases two, each I did was conscionable devour contented astir self-publishing," Huang said. "It really helped, and it conscionable sewage to a constituent wherever I was capable to cognize nan nuances of nan industry."

That investigation led her to put successful BookTok, wherever she grew overmuch of her integrated audience.

BookTok made a large difference

Huang became an early adopter of TikTok, joining nan app successful December 2020, which she says helped her create a readership.

BookTok has drastically influenced nan publishing industry, changing really authors scope their assemblage and really publishers find writers to activity with.

Huang has astir 724,000 followers connected nan app.

"It was a batch of fun, and that was my superior trading channel," Huang said of her acquisition pinch BookTok. "I deliberation I was fortunate because I sewage successful truthful early, and it's been benignant of astonishing to spot it soar to wherever it is now."

"The biggest use is that it's awesome marketing, particularly if you don't person a large budget, which astir authors erstwhile they're starting out, aliases moreover erstwhile they're not starting out, don't have," she added.

Huang said she besides finds TikTok adjuvant for marketplace research, though it's important not to go limited connected readers' opinions.

Although TikTok sometimes seems for illustration a spot wherever authors execute overnight success, Huang said that's not precisely nan case.

"You cognize that saying, overnight successes are usually 10 years successful nan making?" she said. "You don't spot each nan activity and clip that goes connected down nan scenes that leads to that moment."

Huang isn't slowing down anytime soon. She plans to merchandise 2 books adjacent year, "The King of Envy" successful March and "The Defender" successful nan fall.

Huang told BI her fans tin look guardant to a darker leader successful her adjacent release.

"I deliberation I americium going backmost to my morally grey era, which I'm ever excited about," she said. "Asher is specified a greenish flag. But I'm like, 'Sometimes I request a small other play and suspense.'"