Independent Author Network urges more marketing

The Independent Author Network used a June 2 post on X to press a familiar point in self-publishing: finishing a book is only part of the job. The group told writers that many authors spend years writing a book and then devote little time to marketing and promotion, according to the post referenced in social-media monitoring supplied for this story. The message fits the organization’s role as a promotional network for self-published and small-press authors. Its website says the group promotes authors across major social platforms and has operated since 2010. ### Who is the Independent Author Network talking to? The Independent Author Network says it serves self-published authors and writers published by small or independent presses. On its website, the group describes itself as a community for indie authors and says membership is open across print, ebook and audiobook formats. The organization also presents itself as a marketing service as much as a community. (independentauthornetwork.com) Its homepage says it promotes authors to more than 650,000 followers across X, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Threads, while its About page says more than 5,000 readers visit the site each day. ### Why does the marketing message fit IAN’s business? (independentauthornetwork.com) IAN’s own materials put promotion at the center of its pitch to writers. The site says it offers “effective and affordable book promotion,” promotes member pages around the clock, and posts more than 100 member pages a day to X. Its paid tiers are also built around launch support and recurring social promotion. (independentauthornetwork.com) The About page says Bronze memberships come with a month of X posts, Silver with two months, and Platinum with more than 350 X posts a year. Gold membership is described as a service for authors who do not use social networking and want IAN to handle promotion for them. ### Is there evidence authors spend less time on marketing than writing? BookBub said in a survey of more than 500 authors that writing took the largest share of weekly time, while more than half of respondents spent fewer than five hours a week on marketing, administrative work and other tasks. The survey said only 15% of authors reported spending fewer than five hours a week writing. (independentauthornetwork.com) That does not measure the June 2 IAN post directly, but it supports the imbalance the group highlighted. Other author-service and publishing sites also continue to frame marketing as an ongoing part of an author’s workload rather than a one-time launch task. ### What kind of marketing work is IAN pushing authors to do? (insights.bookbub.com) The social-media briefing for this story said IAN’s June 2 update included practical tips and suggested timelines for pre-release and post-release promotion on social media and retail platforms. The post linked readers to additional resources, according to that briefing. (press.barnesandnoble.com) IAN’s broader site language points in the same direction. The group says members share pages on X, Instagram and Facebook, and it encourages use of the #IAN1 hashtag for reposting. Its services page also lists outside support for marketing, editing, formatting and audiobook creation. ### Where can authors look next? (independentauthornetwork.com) The Independent Author Network’s website says its 2026 contest is open and its join page remains active for new members. The site also links to author directories, book directories and blog posts that members can use for added visibility. As of June 3, the clearest next stop for readers looking for the original message and follow-up resources is IAN’s X account and its main website, where the group continues to advertise membership tiers tied to book promotion. (independentauthornetwork.com 1) (independentauthornetwork.com 2)