Will Wight Wins!

Yesterday I saw something amazing happen. Underlord, Will Wight's sixth book in his Cradle series was released.

Why is that so special? Well, it skyrocketed. Here's a screen grab I took when it hit #5, but I heard it got as high as #2.

Now fantasy books usually don't get that high in the rankings, but I've NEVER seen a self-published book do that. Not ever.

But here's the thing that's even more amazing me to me. Will doesn't have a huge social network (I went to congratulate him on his success today on Twitter and he only has 1,032 followers. Nor is he in the "rapid release" crowd with dozens of books all produced in a few years. Don't get me wrong, he's a steady producer (Overlord is his 13th book), but he's also proof that you don't have to put out a book every few weeks to sell well.  Here are his releases:

• 2013 - 2 books
• 2014 - 3 books
• 2015 - 3 books (and one bundle)
• 2016 - 2 books
• 2017 - 2 books (and one bundle)
• 2018 - 1 book

So what is Will Wight doing to win? Well, he's following the same secret to success that I have been doing.

1. Write a good book (defined as one that people will tell others to read)
2. Get it in front of a core group of people to get the pump primed.
3. Rinse and repeat.

Sounds easy, right? Well, I assure you it's not. Bullet #1 is hard, really hard. And I congratulate Will on all his success and wish him much more in the future...as if he needs my well-wishes, but hey, I'm thrilled for him, and I think he stands up as an shining example of what's possible with talent, determination, and hard work.