The Writing Harvest You Can’t Measure in Book Sales

by Elle E. Kay @ElleEKay777

Book sales and page reads are useful metrics to track. They help us determine what advertising is working and where we’re wasting our money. They can offer clues about whether a book or series is resonating with readers. They can also show our progress year over year when we might otherwise get discouraged.

Yet some things can’t be measured in dollars and cents. This year’s writing harvest may not include a healthy bank account, but that doesn’t mean nothing worthwhile has grown.

Galatians 6:9 reminds us: “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Paul’s encouragement to keep doing good isn’t a promise of financial success. As Christian writers, we can take heart in those words without assuming that the harvest will arrive as a bigger royalty check. What we reap may look different from what we expected.

Consider the time we’ve invested in learning. We read craft books, listen to podcasts, take courses, and watch YouTube videos. When we apply what we learn, we grow stronger as writers. Perhaps a scene we struggled to write last year comes more naturally now. Maybe we’re recognizing weaknesses in our manuscripts that we once would have missed. That growth is part of the harvest.

We also participate in social media groups, join online writing discussions, and attend retreats and conferences. Along the way, we develop friendships and network. I know networking can be a dreaded word, but it simply means making connections with people in our industry. Some of those connections become friendships with people who understand both the excitement of finishing a manuscript and the sting of a disappointing release.

Those relationships have value that a sales report can’t capture.

If we’re indie published, we’re learning the ropes and building entrepreneurial skills. If we’re querying agents or navigating traditional publishing, we’re learning patience. Whatever our publishing path, we have opportunities to become more resourceful, more teachable, and better able to handle setbacks.

Our stories may also encourage a reader during a difficult season or offer a reminder of hope. Sometimes we’re blessed to hear about that impact through a reader’s note or review. Other times, we may never know how our words have helped someone. The possibility of making a difference is worth remembering when we’re tempted to judge a book’s value entirely by its sales. 

Disappointment is almost a guarantee in this career, and, yes, it hurts. We don’t have to pretend otherwise. Celebrating a new friendship or an improvement in our writing doesn’t erase a financial struggle or make a rejection painless. But neither do those disappointments erase the good that has come from our efforts.

As we look back over this writing season, we can examine more than our income. What have we learned? Who has encouraged us—and whom have we encouraged? Where have we kept going when it would have been easier to quit?

Perhaps your reward this season is the satisfaction of knowing you were obedient to the calling of the Lord. You showed up, did the work, and trusted Him with results you couldn’t control.

That may not be a harvest you can measure in dollars and cents, but it is a harvest worth recognizing.

Elle E. Kay is an Angel Award-winning author with 27 Christian fiction titles and 16M+ page reads. Her 2025 release, Midnight Masquerade, a 2026 Carol finalist, delves into human trafficking. Elle lives on a North Central Pennsylvania hobby farm, serves in women’s, teen, and music ministries, and blogs at ElleEKay.com.