/lit/ - Literature

Okay, I could do this. I need some advice, mainly how important is the cover art and how much should I expect to invest in a commission for it, and secondly what kind of self-promotion would I need to engage in to get word of my works out there (apart from shilling on /lit/)?

I ask the second question because this Jamie Hawke guy, who appears to be the leader in this genre, has a comics background so he obviously had contacts. Enough to push his shit to the forefront in under 2 years. Is it pointless to try and make money from this genre without being able to afford artists, and audiobook recordings of my works?