In response to Coragems opening post, I would say the most important things to have are.
a) Belief - You need to have an ironclad 100% belief in your work, write the best stories that you can, but also believe in them.
b) Patience - Only the very rare few ever write a novel that became a bestseller overnight, When I first published my first novel E.D.F chronicles : The Krenaran massacre. It took six months to acquire the kind of momentum it did, to attract readers, who, in turn talked about the novel with their friends, people who would be interested and so on. In the U.S. this is how it took off, not so much by blogging, or tweeting, but by simple word of mouth. It has grown to such an extent now, that it is in effect, doing its own marketing for me.
The popularity it has had in the U.S. has slowed a little due to spring break, but that popularity is now transferring into U.K. sales, and has seen my books shoot up the charts on amazon this month.
c) A willingness to be inventive - Try to break new ground, I know its a bit of a cliche' but don't be a sheep and simply write what everyone else is writing. Try to write something new, fresh, and different, and the readers will eventually respond. Don't do what a lot of other authors do, and write for the market, because the market is constantly shifting, write for yourself and enjoy what you write and it will show through in your work and ultimately in the reviews and sales you get.
I started out self published, my work has now made the top 100 lists in both U.S. and U.K. I am coming close to my first 1,000 downloads, which to some maybe not that many, to me though it is a huge achievement, especially without the resources other authors take for granted. Even still, I am only half way through my series.
