I know what it's like to suck at marketing (self-publishing is not my first failure at this specialised skill).
There is something Vincent says in his article that I don't entirely agree with: "I was four books in before I started to actually learn the business. Not the best plan!"
I think his experience shows that inexperience in the beginning does not spell the end of all hope; it shows you can make mistakes and yet still recover from them. When read in combination with Hugh Howey's experience, you can see that it is possible to learn-on-the-job, so to speak, and still make a success out of it. Indeed, this may be the best - or at least the most common - way of making a success at self-publishing.
There are, of course, many readers out there that will cringe with the idea that I seem to be encouraging new writers to send out yet more unedited crap into the swamp. But reading the linked articles will show an emphasis on getting professional help. The point is to do the best you can (and can afford) at every stage, while being reassured that it is possible to recover from mistakes if you keep learning as you go. For obvious reasons, I take heart from this lesson.
