Signals to Persist
- Steady sales growth over 6–12 months
- Increasing review velocity and improving ratings
- Growing email list and community engagement
- Positive feedback from industry professionals
- Personal satisfaction with the creative process
Signals to Pivot
- Sales plateau after 12–18 months despite marketing
- Consistently negative feedback about specific aspects
- Better performance in different genres or formats
- Personal burnout with current approach
Signals to Stop
Avoid
- Avoid: No sales growth after 24 months of consistent effort
- Avoid: Negative ROI with no improvement trend
- Avoid: Personal financial or emotional distress from continued investment
Emotional Traps to Avoid
- Sunk Cost Fallacy — Continuing because you've already invested significantly. Past investment doesn't justify future investment if prospects haven't improved.
- Comparison Trap — Measuring against outliers rather than typical results. Most authors don't see Colleen Hoover results.
- Perfectionism Paralysis — Endless revision instead of moving on. Ship the book. Start the next one.
Decision Criteria — Quarterly Review
- Financial sustainability: can you continue without hardship?
- Emotional sustainability: does this work energise or drain you?
- Growth trajectory: are key metrics improving over time?
- Opportunity cost: what else could you accomplish with this time?