Writers spend a lot of time alone writing their books, but the business of being an author is far from a solitary endeavor, even for indie authors. Your team may consist of your developmental editor, copy editor, cover artist, publicist, virtual assistant, and more. All of these people help you get your book into the hands of readers in top condition.

When you’re putting together your team, consider drafting one more member–your writer’s association.

Writers organizations, like Romance Writers of America (RWA), provide education, networking opportunities, discounts, conferences, and more. But one of the most crucial resources they can provide is Advocacy–a voice for their members when they are feeling powerless.

Advocacy can come in different forms. At RWA, three of our main forms of member advocacy include:

• Access to lists of publishers and agencies we have evaluated and have determined meet certain standards.
• A professional relations manager on staff who can work with member authors to navigate issues with publishers, agencies, retailers, social media sites, etc.
• A Policy Advisory Committee that monitors and advises our Board about courses of action to take on top-level matters within the industry and government that could have an impact on authors.

Within the past year, RWA has successfully assisted authors in regaining access to locked Facebook pages and having Amazon restore books that were erroneously taken down. We’ve participated in two copyright lawsuits to prevent infringement upon authors’ creative rights. We’ve provided our membership with critical information about ongoing legislation and joined with other organizations to support the interests of authors at the highest levels. And these are only a few examples of how we advocate for our members.

So if, as an indie author, you feel that your voice isn’t being heard, check out the national association for your genre and research the type of advocacy and support they can provide. As a member, your voice will become part of many, and, to paraphrase one of RWA’s core values, united, writers are a powerful community.