On my way home from the Romance Writers of America National Conference in San Antonio, Texas, I met a fellow writer in the airport. She was so dazzled by the success stories spotlighted at the conference, the growing number of indie and hybrid romance authors who reported earning substantial and even impressive income from their writing by taking advantage of self-publishing. After attending workshops with titles like “How to Make Six Figures Quietly as an Indie Author,” she was ready to jump in with both feet and try her luck. She planned to quit her day job to focus on her writing, even though she had not yet completed a manuscript. My stomach sank as I considered her prospects and the incredible risk she was taking based on the undeniable success of several select authors. Had she been given false hope, or were her chances as good as the hype suggested?