Most authors believe that once they're signed, the marketing is handled.
I believed it too. Before I started at HarperCollins, I was a self-published author offering publishing and marketing services to other indie authors. When I landed the job, I expected to support authors with customized book marketing plans to help them sell books and establish additional revenue streams.
I soon discovered that traditional publishing does not prioritize the development of long-term, author-owned marketing systems. The traditional publishing system is primarily focused on distribution and the development of its own infrastructure.
The retail infrastructure.
Publishers spend years building relationships with buyers at major retailers, independent bookstores, and online marketplaces. Those relationships determine which books get shelf placement, which titles get featured, and which releases receive promotional support. When your book benefits from that placement, it's because the publisher's sales team made it happen through their existing connections. You don't have a direct line to those buyers. You didn't build those relationships.
The distribution systems.
Getting a book into retail channels at scale requires infrastructure that most authors will never touch. Publishers have warehousing, fulfillment networks, metadata systems, and supply chain agreements that move thousands of titles simultaneously. Your book travels through that system, but you don't own any part of it. You can't redirect it, customize it, or keep it running once the publisher decides your title has run its course.
The audience data.
When a publisher sends a newsletter featuring your book, that audience belongs to the imprint. You don't receive the subscriber list. You don't see the analytics. You can't continue building a relationship with those readers once the campaign ends. After the launch window closes, the publisher introduces those readers to the next set of titles.
When the book launch ends, the publisher's attention shifts to the next list of titles.
On average, publishers spend four to six weeks promoting a title. After that window closes, the resources, the attention, and the promotional energy move to the next set of titles.
Visibility tends to slow down after the launch window closes because the author never built their marketing infrastructure. And to be clear, the problem isn't because publishers are malicious. Traditional publishing was built around distribution at scale, not long-term audience ownership for individual authors.
Authors don't receive a marketing strategy to support their efforts.
Imprints manage dozens of titles every four to six weeks. This is why publishers want authors who already have large platforms. The assumption used to be that a big following would naturally convert into book sales. The industry is now realizing that isn't always the case so they're looking for authors who can sell.
This is why so many authors are struggling to generate consistent revenue.
Many authors already have valuable assets: engaged social media audiences, email subscribers, professional networks, speaking invitations, podcast appearances, and community relationships.
What they were never taught was how to connect those assets to actual book revenue. That question became the foundation for The Author's Journey.