Sorry, missed this in the shuffle.
-Fixed protagonists. If anyone asks “What’s in a name?” I think I will respond with “At least three-quarters of a point off your reviews on Google Play”. Not being able to name or otherwise edit the two MCs was such a big deal that I still have more negative reviews about that than all other aspects of the story put together, I think. Which likely means it was a drain on sales too. Guarantee I won’t do that again.
-Niche genre. Not that some sci-fi stories haven’t done well, but for both CoG and HG there is fantasy, there is superheroes, and there is romance. Everything else is basically Other. And being Other does leave you operating from a position of lower mass appeal.
-Comedy. Not everyone finds the same things funny. When you base your story heavily on making them chuckle, you’re more prone to failure than going straight-faced. This one didn’t teach me anything, though. I have to be comedic (or at least try) or I get too bored to continue.
-I can be honest and say I’m a stick in the kid who has long resistors any serious effort to get involved in social media beyond a few tweets and hanging around forums like this. I don’t much regret that, but more followers/friends does come in handy when you have something to shill.
However, @nauhziy is correct; it’s all a learning experience. NPT being a hit would have been cool, since I had more stories to tell with it. But its primary purpose was always as a proof to myself I could get published and do something long-form. So, mission accomplished in that regard.
My new WIP, Quite App-Parent: The Parenting Simulator, is fairly likely to sell at least moderately better and maybe even score better reviews too. Now to actually finish the blasted thing…