The cover is the first thing a potential reader sees and if they are not inspired to pick the book up and check it out, then you've lost a sale so in my opinion that cover better be very good. The title can be catchy or thought provoking, but it's not nearly as important as the cover or even the short blurb or tag line that a potential reader checks out to see if it's something they might like.
I wrote IAIN'S PLAID based on a personal experience and it's one of my favorites, but when it was picked up by my publisher the editor they assigned to me wanted a prologue. I didn't agree with her thoughts but she had a lot more experience in the genre so I gave in and did it her way. But since then all the negative comments about that book were about that prologue. If I ever get the rights back I will definitely remove the prologue and scatter those back story details into the narrative the way it was originally written.
I've actually changed my genre - twice, or three times depending on how you cut it. My first book published was mainstream (THE CANDIDATE) then I had a contemporary romance series going (THE CAMERONS OF TIDES WAY) which I interrupted to publish IAIN'S PLAID which is a historical romance. Now I am working on a mystery (BULLSEYE) which I hope will be come a series.
The publishing industry today is changing so fast that every week there is a new challenge for an author whether they are multi-published or just have one book out there to promote, but the most unethical thing is pirating. Using the words an author spent months creating and throwing it out there for free when the author gets no royalties for their work. Next to that is the constant expectation from readers that a book should be free or next to it which means the author doesn't get paid for their work. That expectation just isn't fair and for all those readers who think books should be free, how would you like to go to work every day, put in 8 hours doing your best work and then getting no paycheck?
I read all the reviews of my books. For one thing, it's only fair to take the time to read what someone else took the time to write about my work, but mostly those reviews help me to become a better writer. When the reviews are positive, they give me enthusiasm and encouragement, when they are negative, I learn from what didn't work. The only reviews that are not helpful are those from trolls that just love to pan anyone and anything. I dismiss them figuring if that's all that person has to get enjoyment out of life, then I feel sorry for them because my life, both my real life and the life I spend with my imaginary friends is rich and fulfilling.
For two years in high school I had a teacher who not only inspired me to write, but to dig deeper than just the surface of whatever assignment he'd given us. His first assignment was daunting at first - 500 words on an odor. I'm like "YIKES! How is it possible to spend 500 words describing something I can smell?" But that was the beginning of my affair with writing. That was non-fiction to be sure (and there are several essays on my website about my personal experiences in the Peace Corps 2002-2004 that are also non-fiction) but once I'd gotten started there were stories in my head that needed telling. Although Marriage and motherhood took up most of my free time early on, eventually I returned to writing and can't imagine not having a book in progress these days.
