The First 90 Days After Publishing: What Actually Happens

I hit publish on my first book, 1 Lovelock Drive, on August 2nd, and by August 16th - exactly 90 days later - I'd sold ten copies.

Two were from the same person, my ex-husband, making two pity purchases, and another three were from friends who bought the book but never read it. 

The remaining five? I honestly don't know who bought them, and that uncertainty still stings.

Here's the thing about those first 90 days: they are critical for self-published books, determining whether your book lives or dies on Amazon. And from someone who experienced self-publishing death, I wish I knew about these 90 days beforehand. 

Here's what I hoped would happen, what actually happened, and what the first 90 days really look like when you do it right.

What I Hoped Would Happen After Self-Publishing

I had this whole fantasy mapped out in my head, week by week, like some kind of publishing fairy tale.

Week 1: I'd launch to friends and family purchases, getting maybe 20–30 sales from my network. Organic Amazon sales would start trickling in, and the first few reviews would appear. They would be glowing ones, naturally, because my book was good.

Week 2–4: Word-of-mouth would kick in because people couldn't help but tell their friends about this amazing book they'd discovered. Amazon's algorithm would notice the momentum, sales would grow steadily, and more reviews would accumulate like snowflakes in a storm.

Month 2: My book would rank well in categories, be featured in "customers also bought" sections, and generate consistent daily sales of 5–10 copies. I'd have 20–30 reviews total, and people would be talking about it.

Month 3: The book would have real momentum by this point, selling 100–200 copies per month with 50+ reviews. I'd be figuring out ads and scaling up, finally starting to see the path forward.

End of 90 days: I'd have a profitable book with steady sales, enough income to justify the investment, and a clear path to create the next books in the series. 

This was my fantasy, and it felt so reasonable, so achievable. As you've probably guessed, the 90 days didn't play out like that, not even close. 

What Actually Happened

Week 1 (August 2–9)

Day 1: Published. Posted on Facebook with a carefully crafted announcement I'd rewritten five times. Got 12 likes from people who probably didn't even click the link. Zero sales.

Day 2: Posted on Twitter, trying to sound excited but not desperate. 3 likes from bots and strangers. Zero sales.

Day 3: Sent a text to my family group chat because I was too nervous to call and ask directly. My mum asked how to buy it on Amazon, and I walked her through it step by step, feeling both grateful and pathetic. Still zero sales because she said she'd buy it "later."

Day 4: Refreshed my sales dashboard 47 times. I know because I counted, hoping that if I checked one more time, something would appear. Two sales, but these were my ex, who told me it was him.

Day 5–7: Stopped posting about the book because I felt like I was annoying people, like that person who won't shut up about their new business venture. Still zero sales.

Week 1 total: 2 sales, 0 reviews, and a growing pit in my stomach.

Week 2–4 (August 10–30)

Week 2: Tried to figure out Amazon ads in a desperate attempt to salvage this. Set up a campaign with a $5/day budget, feeling like a real businessperson. The campaign was promptly cancelled by Amazon after an internal review. I felt defeated and, with my self-pity at an all-time high, I told myself I wouldn't run another ad. 

Week 3: The brutal realisation hit me - nobody was buying because I had zero reviews. Of course, they weren't buying. Would I buy a book with no reviews? I started trying to figure out how to get reviews, but it was too late. The damage was done.

Week 4: A couple of sales, the remaining seven trickled in across the week. I thought my momentum might be shifting until I found out my ex had told some friends to buy it, before he bought a couple more to humour me. 

Weeks 2–4 total: 10 sales, 0 reviews, $105 wasted on ads, and a creeping sense of failure I couldn't shake.

Month 2 (September)

Week 5–6: Sent the book to five people I knew, trying to sound casual while asking for honest reviews. Three people enthusiastically said they'd read it, and I believed them because I desperately needed to. Nobody did.

Week 7–8: Considered running a free promotion to get downloads and maybe, just maybe, a few reviews. Decided against it because I didn't want to "cheapen" the book, which in retrospect was the stupidest reasoning imaginable. My pride was protecting a book nobody was reading.

Month 2 total: 10 sales, 0 reviews, 0 momentum, and the slow death of my publishing dream.

Month 3 (October)

Week 9: Ran a 3-day free promotion in complete desperation, abandoning all my earlier principles. Got 31 downloads, which felt like a victory for approximately six hours until I realised that maybe 2 people actually read it. Zero reviews resulted. The silence was deafening.

Week 10: Book returned to paid. Sales: still zero. I remember sitting there thinking, "Well, at least it can't get worse than this."

Week 11–12: Stopped checking the dashboard daily because it was too depressing. I started accepting that the book was dead, which felt like accepting the death of something I'd poured myself into for months.

Month 3 total: 31 free downloads, 10 sales, 0 reviews, and the bitter taste of failure.

End of 90 Days

Total sales: 10

 Total revenue: $81.69

 Total reviews: 0

 Total downloads (free promo): 31

 Money spent on ads: $105

At that point, I knew the book was completely dead. The critical 90-day window was gone, and I'd squandered it entirely through ignorance and unpreparedness.

What the First 90 Days Look Like When Done Right

I've studied successful indie author launches obsessively since my failure, trying to understand what I missed and what I would do differently next time. 

Here's what actually works - and what it feels like when you do it right.

Week 1: The Launch Sprint

Day 1 (launch day): Your email list gets immediate notification, and because you've spent months building that list, you're reaching 500–2,000 people who actually want to hear from you. 

Social media posts go out across all platforms, but you're not relying on them as they're supplementary. Your book already has 15–25 reviews from ARCs you sent 3–4 weeks prior, so new readers see social proof immediately. You're running special launch pricing ($0.99 or free for 24–48 hours) to build momentum.

Result: 50–200 first-day sales, and the rush of watching those numbers climb is intoxicating.

Days 2–7: You're posting daily on social media, engaging with early readers who are actually talking about your book, monitoring reviews and responding appropriately, and running targeted ads that actually convert because - critically - you have social proof. 

People see those reviews and trust that this book is worth their time.

Result: 100–500 week one sales, and you're riding high on validation and possibility.

Week 2–4: Building Momentum

Week 2: You send an email follow-up to your list, sharing early reviews and creating urgency around your launch pricing ending. 

Your ads are running with decent conversion rates because reviews exist, and your book is starting to appear in "customers also bought" sections. Your category ranking improves, and you can see the algorithm starting to work in your favour.

Result: 50–200 sales per week, and you're starting to believe this might actually work.

Week 3–4: You maintain ad spend, optimise what's working, continue engaging with readers who are genuinely excited about your book, share user-generated content and reviews that make you feel like a real author, and start planning month 2 promotions.

Result: Steady 40–100 sales per week, and you're building something sustainable.

Month 2: Sustaining and Scaling

Week 5–6: You run a small promotion - maybe a price drop or a BookBub feature if you're lucky enough to get accepted. 

You increase ad spend if your ROI is positive (and it should be by now), continue building your email list through the book itself (you included a signup link in the back matter, smart move), and watch your audience grow.

Result: 100–300 sales per week, and you're making actual money now.

Week 7–8: You maintain advertising at levels that make sense, start gathering testimonials for social proof, plan guest posts or podcast appearances to expand your reach, and feel like you're building a career, not just selling a book.

Result: 50–100 sales per week (slight dip after the promotion, but stable and sustainable).

Month 3: Long-Tail Strategy

Week 9–10: Your book settles into consistent daily sales of 5–20 copies without you having to push constantly. Your focus shifts to building your audience for book 2 because you're thinking long-term now. Ads continue at a profitable level, humming along in the background.

Result: 50–150 sales per week, and you're planning your next launch instead of mourning this one.

Week 11–12: You evaluate what's working, plan your series or next book, and maintain your presence without burning out. You've learned what works for you, and you're applying those lessons going forward.

Result: Consistent 40–100 sales per week, and you have a foundation to build on.

End of 90 Days (Success Scenario)

Total sales: 1,500–3,000 copies

Total revenue: $7,000–15,000 (depending on price and royalty)

Total reviews: 50–100 reviews

Email list growth: +500–1,000 new subscribers

Net result: Profitable book with momentum and a clear path forward

This is realistic for a well-executed launch in a decent-sized market, and it's everything I didn't have.

How To Set Yourself Up Right For The First 90 Days Of Self Publishing

We have two scenarios: what I did (which is what most unsuccessful self-published authors experience) and the ideal publishing scenario. 

As much as the ideal scenario seems like a pipe dream, it's achievable. We have many authors who can prove this is true. I know from being on the other side of the publishing journey what separates successful authors from the rest, and it's a very simple concept: control. 

They double down on what they can control before and after launching, and make the most of what is in their power. They: 

Build an email list before launch (even if it's small, even if it feels pointless)

Get ARC reviews (beg if you have to, trade reviews with other authors, do whatever it takes)

Create anticipation (make people excited before launch day)

Plan a marketing strategy (and they don't wing it as I did)

Drive early sales through email and your network (cash in every favor, reach out to everyone)

Monitor and optimise (watch what's working and do more of it)

Engage with early readers (make them feel seen and valued)

Create social proof (reviews, testimonials, anything that shows people are reading and enjoying)

Maintain visibility (keep showing up even when you're tired)

Run strategic promotions (timed, planned, purposeful)

Build on early momentum (double down on what's working)

Test and optimise ads (spend money wisely, not desperately)

Sustain what's working (consistency matters more than intensity)

Cut what's not (be ruthless about wasted effort)

These are all actionable and measurable aspects of publishing that are in the author's control. 

What these authors don't focus on is everything outside of their control. They don't obsess or concern themselves with: 

Amazon's algorithm changes (they tinker constantly, and you'll never know why)

Reader preferences (people like what they like, and you can't force it)

Timing (other books launching the same week, competing for attention)

External events affecting book sales (holidays, news cycles, random bad luck)

Reviews (people will review or they won't, and you can't make them)

I tried to control everything, panicking and pivoting constantly. But I couldn't control anything because I'd built nothing to control. I had no foundation, no audience, no strategy, just hope and desperation.

I could have controlled how I began, but I didn't. 

The Truth About the First 90 Days

The first 90 days determine whether your book lives or dies, and there's no getting around that harsh reality.

If you launch well, you build momentum. The algorithm helps you, rather than burying you. Readers find you organically. You make money, maybe not a fortune, but enough to justify continuing.

If you launch poorly, you get nothing. The algorithm ignores you completely. Nobody finds you because you're invisible. You lose money, confidence, and faith in yourself.

There's very little middle ground, and that's the part nobody tells you when you're dreaming about becoming an author.

I launched with nothing - no audience, no reviews, no strategy, just naive hope - and I got nothing in return. The math was brutally simple.

Next time, I'm launching with an audience I've intentionally built, reviews I've carefully cultivated, and a real strategy I've learned from people who've succeeded where I've failed.

Because you don't get a second chance at the first 90 days, and I'm not wasting that window again.

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I write about the emotional and practical reality of being a writer - drafting, doubt, discipline, and publishing while still figuring it out.

Mostly for people who write because they have to, need to, want to | https://linktr.ee/ellenfranceswrites