The Indie Author Mindset

The Indie Author Mindset is a Facebook community created by UK crime fiction author Adam Croft, one of the most credentialed independently published authors in the world. Croft has sold over 2 million books in 138+ countries, achieved seven Amazon storewide #1 rankings across the UK, US, Canada, and Australia, and earned an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Bedfordshire for services to literature. His 2017 psychological thriller Only the Truth was simultaneously #1 at both Amazon US and Amazon UK — briefly the bestselling book in the world across all formats and genres.

Status notice (verified June 2026): The brand website (indieauthormindset.com) remains parked for sale (redirects to a GoDaddy domain-for-sale page). The associated podcast (~22 episodes, 2019–2020) is no longer active. Adam Croft himself is still an active author at adamcroft.net, but the Indie Author Mindset brand is defunct. Verify the Facebook group's current activity level before investing time in the community — admin activity in 2024–2026 has not been independently confirmed.

What the Community Offers#

The group focuses on the business and psychological side of indie publishing. Unlike craft communities (Scribophile, Critique Circle) or broad strategy communities (20BooksTo50K), IAM's original focus was narrower: the mindset and strategic thinking that separates authors who build sustainable careers from those who plateau on tactics alone.

• Founder credibility: Croft built a 2M+ book career without traditional publishing support and runs his business wide — distributing to all major retailers, not just Amazon.
• Wide-publishing perspective: A vocal advocate for non-exclusive distribution, Croft's advice runs counter to the KDP-centric default in most larger communities. Authors selling wide get grounded, practical context here.
• Intimate scale: At peak, approximately 1,500 members — far smaller than SPF Community or 20BooksTo50K. Smaller groups produce higher-quality discussion and genuine access to the community founder.
• Mindset framing: The community addresses the psychological patterns that cause indie authors to underperform — pricing anxiety, inconsistent output, platform dependency — not just the next marketing tactic to try.

Who It's For#

• Experienced indie authors who want strategic thinking beyond "run a 99-cent Countdown deal"
• Wide authors looking for a community that doesn't default to KDP-exclusive advice
• UK and European authors who want publishing perspective calibrated outside the US market

Pricing: Free to join on Facebook.

Strengths#

• Rare founder credibility: Very few indie community leaders have simultaneously topped all four English-language Amazon storefronts. Croft's advice is evidence-based, not theoretical.
• Counterpoint perspective: The wide-publishing, UK-based viewpoint fills a genuine gap in a community landscape that skews heavily US/Amazon-exclusive.
• Adam Croft's nonfiction books remain available: The Indie Author Mindset (2018) and The Indie Author Checklist (2019) are still on Amazon and Audible and extend the community's core thinking.

Limitations#

• Website is defunct: The brand URL shows a domain-for-sale page — no resources, courses, or podcast are accessible.
• Activity unverified: No independent evidence of regular new content or moderation in 2024–2026. The group may have become dormant.
• Small network: ~1,500 members (unverified 2019 figure) limits the breadth of experience compared to much larger communities.
• Narrow focus: Mindset and business strategy only — no craft critique, no marketing tools, no distribution guidance.

Alternatives#

For active wide-publishing discussion, the SPF Community (54,000+ members) or the 20BooksTo50K group cover overlapping strategic ground with far more current activity.