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Self-publishing by the Gutter
- Thread starter Norman D Gutter
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I bet everyone talked about it at Church today.
(Also, it was Father's day and they were pushing the Kindle as a Father's day present.)
Thanks Merri and Fins.
It was a wild ride on Sunday. I'm not sure if that's because it is a religious book, or because Sunday is a better day for downloads in general. The final tally was:
- 5039 dowloads, of which at least 3,500 were on Sunday
- #1 in its genre free list (eBooks>Fiction>Religious Fiction>Historical)
- #3 in the next broader free list (eBooks>Fiction>Religious)
- #56 in all free Fiction.
I checked this before I left the house this morning for the office. By the time I checked it again at the office (45 min later) it had already disappeared off the free lists.
Maybe it's still showing on someone's list somewhere; so far today I havefour five sales of it, none of my other works. But I'd had only one sale of it in almost three months, so that's a nice increase.
No one talked to me about it yesterday at my church, Fins, except for one lady who is in the writers group with me. But I try not to promote my work there.
NDG
It was a wild ride on Sunday. I'm not sure if that's because it is a religious book, or because Sunday is a better day for downloads in general. The final tally was:
- 5039 dowloads, of which at least 3,500 were on Sunday
- #1 in its genre free list (eBooks>Fiction>Religious Fiction>Historical)
- #3 in the next broader free list (eBooks>Fiction>Religious)
- #56 in all free Fiction.
I checked this before I left the house this morning for the office. By the time I checked it again at the office (45 min later) it had already disappeared off the free lists.
Maybe it's still showing on someone's list somewhere; so far today I have
No one talked to me about it yesterday at my church, Fins, except for one lady who is in the writers group with me. But I try not to promote my work there.
NDG
Wahoo... broke a top 100 list!
No, silly, I'm saying readers who downloaded it talked about it at THEIR Churches. That's the point of going free on Amazon to get the word-of-mouth out there... you silly boy.
Yes I'm silly, but it's because I'm giddy with my 15 minutes of fame! Need to come back down to earth. Current stats are 26 units sold and 1 borrowed today. I know those numbers probably won't be sustained, but I'll take 'em when I can. And it's in the top 100 paid bestseller list for its genre.
Two days later I have for Doctor Luke's Assistant:
52 sales
3 returns
49 net sales
1 borrow
at #66 & #92 in its two genre lists, so slowly sinking.
It's far and away my highest sales and revenue month. So I guess I have to say the free promo worked, at least in the short term.
Unfortunately, it hasn't yet translated to sales of anything else.
52 sales
3 returns
49 net sales
1 borrow
at #66 & #92 in its two genre lists, so slowly sinking.
It's far and away my highest sales and revenue month. So I guess I have to say the free promo worked, at least in the short term.
Unfortunately, it hasn't yet translated to sales of anything else.
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The first week after the free promotion of Doctor Luke's Assistant I sold 56 copies, all in the USA. That's 1.1% of the number of free downloads. It's fallen off all top 100 lists, and is now hanging on at 65,036 on the Kindle paid list. It has five reviews, four of them 5-stars and one 2-star. I had a nice exchange in the review thread with the 2-star reviewer.
Over the weekend I finished a round of edits in my political non-fiction book, The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing-up America. It's 41,200 words, slightly longer than expected. Today I'll send copies out to my three beta readers, and may try to find another one or two.
This week I'll be doing some marketing research on it, as well as trying to find some substitute figures for the poorer quality ones I have inserted as place-keepers.
And I might start reading it again, along with my beta readers, this time more of a proof-reading rather than a concept and completion edit. Plus it will be back on one or maybe two w-i-p's that I set aside to concentrate on this for the last week.
NDG
Over the weekend I finished a round of edits in my political non-fiction book, The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing-up America. It's 41,200 words, slightly longer than expected. Today I'll send copies out to my three beta readers, and may try to find another one or two.
This week I'll be doing some marketing research on it, as well as trying to find some substitute figures for the poorer quality ones I have inserted as place-keepers.
And I might start reading it again, along with my beta readers, this time more of a proof-reading rather than a concept and completion edit. Plus it will be back on one or maybe two w-i-p's that I set aside to concentrate on this for the last week.
NDG
Thanks Rob. No, I did all my 5 days consectutive. It's getting near the end of the 90 day enrollment in Kindle Select, and I don't plan on renewing.
The final totals for June were 64 e-books sold—actually 2 were borrowed. All were at Kindle, and all but one were of Doctor Luke's Assistant. So it wasn't a super-sized result from the free promotion, but it was a positive result. It's certainly my best month to date for sales.
It's on to finish three projects and get them published, then on to two short stories after that. Some pre-promotion of my non-fiction book has paid off, as I'm off to the post office to mail an advance reader copy to a national radio network.
NDG
It's on to finish three projects and get them published, then on to two short stories after that. Some pre-promotion of my non-fiction book has paid off, as I'm off to the post office to mail an advance reader copy to a national radio network.
NDG
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Thanks, Merri. Yes, forward motion is good. And it's good to actually make payout in a single month. I've made it already in July as well. So I'll get checks in August and September.
For those who would like to see my sales graph, it's on my blog:
http://davidatodd.com/2012/07/03/book-sales-through-june-2012/
I still haven't figured out how to post a graphic here at AW, so the link will have to suffice.
For those who would like to see my sales graph, it's on my blog:
http://davidatodd.com/2012/07/03/book-sales-through-june-2012/
I still haven't figured out how to post a graphic here at AW, so the link will have to suffice.
Forward motion on Doctor Luke's Assistant has ended. It's now been four or five days without a sale or borrow.
The good news is that today I just finished the last round of edits on my next book, a non-fiction piece titled The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing Up America. I'll type them tomorrow, do e-book formatting on Monday and send it to my internal formatter. For some reason I can't seem to do a linked TOC that doesn't disappear in the e-book conversion process. I already have the e-book cover in hand, so I should be able to have that published perhaps as early as Wednesday, but certainly by the end of the week. As soon as I send it off to the formatter, I'll begin work on the CreateSpace print version. I hope to have that ready to send to CS by the end of next week, including the cover. I already have back cover copy written.
Then it will be type the final edits for the homeschool edition of Documenting America.
Lots to do when you self-publish.
The good news is that today I just finished the last round of edits on my next book, a non-fiction piece titled The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing Up America. I'll type them tomorrow, do e-book formatting on Monday and send it to my internal formatter. For some reason I can't seem to do a linked TOC that doesn't disappear in the e-book conversion process. I already have the e-book cover in hand, so I should be able to have that published perhaps as early as Wednesday, but certainly by the end of the week. As soon as I send it off to the formatter, I'll begin work on the CreateSpace print version. I hope to have that ready to send to CS by the end of next week, including the cover. I already have back cover copy written.
Then it will be type the final edits for the homeschool edition of Documenting America.
Lots to do when you self-publish.
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Sales can happen any time, and sometimes Amazon KDP reporting has a lag, so don't give up on that book yet. Forward motion may still occur.
Glad you're almost done with the second book, with a third on the way. When you get them done, I would suggest uploading the first book again with a link to your other books included to help build your readership.
Thanks for continuing to report on your journey. I really appreciate your updates.
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Looks like it's hard to keep momentum going. You've got some good reviews though, and I'm impressed with the way you handled the one negative review. Very professional and, if I may say so, very Christian. A good example set.
Thanks Merri and Rob. Rob, glad you liked what I did in that review thread. The conventional wisdom is never respond to any review, but I wanted to on that one.
I put the finishing touches on the next book today, The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing Up America. Since it has internal graphics I decided to use a book formatter to make sure I don't screw it up. With any luck I'll be able to upload it tomorrow and have it for sale Thursday or Friday. Then on to the print book version.
I put the finishing touches on the next book today, The Candy Store Generation: How the Baby Boomers are Screwing Up America. Since it has internal graphics I decided to use a book formatter to make sure I don't screw it up. With any luck I'll be able to upload it tomorrow and have it for sale Thursday or Friday. Then on to the print book version.
I've just read your comments on the review and while it ended with the person who gave your book a negative review agreeing to give your book a second chance, I really don't think it was a good thing for you to have done.
The impression I got from the exchange was that the reviewer felt a little cowed by your comments, and was embarrassed when you responded. I don't think you meant any harm by responding in the way that you did: but if I were considering your book and came upon that discussion, your response would put me off buying and reading it.
If you have to explain to a reviewer what your book is about then your book hasn't done the job you'd hoped. The reviewer hasn't missed the point; your writing has.
I'm sorry to be so blunt, Norman, but there's a reason responding to reviews is called The Author's Big Mistake.
OH:
Remember that the first comment in that thread wasn't by me; it was by another reader. The original review included considerable erroneous information about the book, which confused me. The other commenter brought that up, and the reviewer edited the review.
I agree with you wholeheartedly that if the reader fails to understand what the author wrote, then the author failed to communicate. And I said I accepted the reviewers crit as valid. I didn't sense that the reviewer was cowed by anthing I said. Also, I felt that the original comment was a bit harsh toward the reviewer, and was trying to soften the discussion a little. And, had I been at a book reading event and a person spoke up with that kind of criticism, what should I have done, ignored it? Rather than saying I accepted it?
My purpose for responding wasn't to try to get the reviewer to change, but rather as a community building step. I figure if that reviewer, and future readers of that review, see the author as being accepting of negative criticism, as willing to engage readers—even readers who didn't care for the book, and not seeing themselves as on a pedestal simply because they are authors, well, I just can't see the downside of that kind of engagement.
The conventional wisdom is you have to build a platform, a tribe. How do you do that? Facebook hasn't worked for me. Occasionally I put a notice about my author page to my friends at large, and maybe get one or two "likes". My blogs generate as close to zero hits as you can get. I see Twitter mainly as a spamming platform and I'm not going to do that. So how the hell do you build a following without engaging your readers and potential readers? Nothing seems to be working for me, and I see this as one more venue to engage readers. I just don't see the downside in that.
I'm open to more platform building ideas.
Respectfully,
NDG
Remember that the first comment in that thread wasn't by me; it was by another reader. The original review included considerable erroneous information about the book, which confused me. The other commenter brought that up, and the reviewer edited the review.
I agree with you wholeheartedly that if the reader fails to understand what the author wrote, then the author failed to communicate. And I said I accepted the reviewers crit as valid. I didn't sense that the reviewer was cowed by anthing I said. Also, I felt that the original comment was a bit harsh toward the reviewer, and was trying to soften the discussion a little. And, had I been at a book reading event and a person spoke up with that kind of criticism, what should I have done, ignored it? Rather than saying I accepted it?
My purpose for responding wasn't to try to get the reviewer to change, but rather as a community building step. I figure if that reviewer, and future readers of that review, see the author as being accepting of negative criticism, as willing to engage readers—even readers who didn't care for the book, and not seeing themselves as on a pedestal simply because they are authors, well, I just can't see the downside of that kind of engagement.
The conventional wisdom is you have to build a platform, a tribe. How do you do that? Facebook hasn't worked for me. Occasionally I put a notice about my author page to my friends at large, and maybe get one or two "likes". My blogs generate as close to zero hits as you can get. I see Twitter mainly as a spamming platform and I'm not going to do that. So how the hell do you build a following without engaging your readers and potential readers? Nothing seems to be working for me, and I see this as one more venue to engage readers. I just don't see the downside in that.
I'm open to more platform building ideas.
Respectfully,
NDG
I disagree with you about how your response to the review came across, but I don't see much to be gained by nitpicking about that: and it's done, so any discussion other than "it's a really bad idea" isn't really going to get us anywhere.
But the platform thing--we can usefully talk about that.
Your response to the review isn't going to develop that platform, or help you build a community. Nor would using Twitter as a spamming tool.
To have a platform, you have to be known for something. You have to have acknowledged expertise. You do that by being an expert at something, and helping others with it.
For your blog or a Twitter account to help you with this, you have to engage with your readers. Don't use every tweet or blog post to promote your services or your book: share, inform, entertain. Join in with discussions elsewhere. Ask people how they are. You know how friendships work: that's what you want to happen.
The one single promotional thing I do with Twitter is link to my blog posts about every three or four days. I've made heaps of friends there, many of whom I now see in real life; I've been given loads of work because of it, including radio work and writing jobs. I've been sent boxes full of ARCs because of it (I got three today). Treat it like a fun thing, and use it to make friends, and it might work for you.
But the platform thing--we can usefully talk about that.
Your response to the review isn't going to develop that platform, or help you build a community. Nor would using Twitter as a spamming tool.
To have a platform, you have to be known for something. You have to have acknowledged expertise. You do that by being an expert at something, and helping others with it.
For your blog or a Twitter account to help you with this, you have to engage with your readers. Don't use every tweet or blog post to promote your services or your book: share, inform, entertain. Join in with discussions elsewhere. Ask people how they are. You know how friendships work: that's what you want to happen.
The one single promotional thing I do with Twitter is link to my blog posts about every three or four days. I've made heaps of friends there, many of whom I now see in real life; I've been given loads of work because of it, including radio work and writing jobs. I've been sent boxes full of ARCs because of it (I got three today). Treat it like a fun thing, and use it to make friends, and it might work for you.
Thanks O.H. I respect what you say, and will mull it over.
I've spent hours being friends with people on FB, reconnecting with people I've crossed paths with somewhere in the past, never mentioning my books, just trying to be a friend. Possibly that will bear fruit one day. It sure isn't right now.
I've spent hours being friends with people on FB, reconnecting with people I've crossed paths with somewhere in the past, never mentioning my books, just trying to be a friend. Possibly that will bear fruit one day. It sure isn't right now.
Perhaps Facebook isn't the right place for you, then. Have you tried just chatting with people on Twitter, without expecting or even hoping that they'll buy your books? It's worth a go.
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I'm going to have to agree with Old Hack here.
The place to engage with reviewers isn't in the comment threads on the reviews at Amazon (really, authors shouldn't even read the reviews there), or in the comment threads on review blogs, or in comment threads on reviews at Goodreads. Let your other readers engage with their fellow readers there. (As you saw, the major misunderstanding was already addressed by one of your fans. This is good.)
The places to engage with your readers are on your own blog, Livejournal, Facebook page, Twitter stream or similar. And even then, while it's permissible to mention good reviews, avoid as the pomp of Satan that it is any mention of an unfavorable review, lest it be seen as a call for your friends and fans to go out and do battle on your behalf ("Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?"--and we all know how that one ended.)
This interaction seems to have gone as well as it possibly could. The next one, perhaps, won't go as well. I say this as someone who has been involved in writing for decades: the only response to an unfavorable review is none whatever, in any place. You can go into your bedroom, lock the door, put a pillow over your face and sob, but that's it, and make sure you've dried your tears before you emerge.
May I invite you to read our (lengthy) thread up in Roundtable, Authors should really stop telling readers how to give reviews
It's quite a bit to chew, but please read it from the beginning. See how quickly author/reader relationships can spiral into the ground. Remember that readers will be viewing your interactions through the lens of having seen some of the really toxic authors' interactions. (The phrase "Ruining it for everyone" comes to mind.)
The place to engage with reviewers isn't in the comment threads on the reviews at Amazon (really, authors shouldn't even read the reviews there), or in the comment threads on review blogs, or in comment threads on reviews at Goodreads. Let your other readers engage with their fellow readers there. (As you saw, the major misunderstanding was already addressed by one of your fans. This is good.)
The places to engage with your readers are on your own blog, Livejournal, Facebook page, Twitter stream or similar. And even then, while it's permissible to mention good reviews, avoid as the pomp of Satan that it is any mention of an unfavorable review, lest it be seen as a call for your friends and fans to go out and do battle on your behalf ("Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?"--and we all know how that one ended.)
This interaction seems to have gone as well as it possibly could. The next one, perhaps, won't go as well. I say this as someone who has been involved in writing for decades: the only response to an unfavorable review is none whatever, in any place. You can go into your bedroom, lock the door, put a pillow over your face and sob, but that's it, and make sure you've dried your tears before you emerge.
May I invite you to read our (lengthy) thread up in Roundtable, Authors should really stop telling readers how to give reviews
It's quite a bit to chew, but please read it from the beginning. See how quickly author/reader relationships can spiral into the ground. Remember that readers will be viewing your interactions through the lens of having seen some of the really toxic authors' interactions. (The phrase "Ruining it for everyone" comes to mind.)
I agree with Old Hack. Twitter is a better place for finding people to chat with. Facebook also has its values, but getting to know other people, join discussions, etc - much easier on Twitter. Just use the search function, start following other people who are talking about topics interesting to you, reply to one of their tweets... most of the time you get a conversation going. It's pretty simple.
Check out this thread for fellow AWers on Twitter
^This might be a good start for you if you consider creating your own account. Best of luck!
Check out this thread for fellow AWers on Twitter
^This might be a good start for you if you consider creating your own account. Best of luck!
Thanks, Jim and SkyDancer, for the comments.
Jim, I've been following that thread, and posted in it once last month. I don't discount anything you, Old Hack, S.D., or others say about that. But I note that all of this comes from publishing insiders, professionals, or semi-professionals. You, certainly, with your years of publishing experience, I would count as a publishing insider. I'd like to know what readers who aren't publishing insiders think of the issue. Is it possible they would have a different view than the conventional wisdom of publishing pros and insiders? And I think authors who disagree with readers might have a different experience than those who actually engage them in positive discussion. But what do I know? I'm just a semi-pro, barely removed from the ranks of readers to the ranks of wannabe authors.
So far blogs and FB are an absolute dud for me. Even trying to drum up a discussion on other blogs has led to nothing. I haven't much engaged Twitter yet, but your report is the first thing positive I've heard of it as far as book marketing goes. I'm not going to stand on the street corner and sell my paperbacks, so my options are limited.
Guess I'll try Twitter, with nothing to lose but time.
Best Regards,
NDG
Jim, I've been following that thread, and posted in it once last month. I don't discount anything you, Old Hack, S.D., or others say about that. But I note that all of this comes from publishing insiders, professionals, or semi-professionals. You, certainly, with your years of publishing experience, I would count as a publishing insider. I'd like to know what readers who aren't publishing insiders think of the issue. Is it possible they would have a different view than the conventional wisdom of publishing pros and insiders? And I think authors who disagree with readers might have a different experience than those who actually engage them in positive discussion. But what do I know? I'm just a semi-pro, barely removed from the ranks of readers to the ranks of wannabe authors.
So far blogs and FB are an absolute dud for me. Even trying to drum up a discussion on other blogs has led to nothing. I haven't much engaged Twitter yet, but your report is the first thing positive I've heard of it as far as book marketing goes. I'm not going to stand on the street corner and sell my paperbacks, so my options are limited.
Guess I'll try Twitter, with nothing to lose but time.
Best Regards,
NDG
Norman, few of the people who have commented on the thread Jim linked to are "publishing insiders". Most of them are aspiring writers who are also readers: they've made their feelings clear, and the overwhelming message is that authors responding to reviews in any way is a bad idea. I note that when you mentioned this in that thread, everyone who responded to you also felt that it wasn't a good idea.
If you engage in ongoing discussions in a thoughtful way on other people's blogs, on Facebook, or on Twitter, you'll soon find people responding to you. If you try to "drum up a discussion" anywhere you're likely to be ignored or worse.
If you're having no luck promoting your books in this way there are other ways you can go, like arranging giveaways, organising competitions, and so on. It could be that you're not a good fit for social media. But this is a really good example of one of the benefits of trade publishing: it's so nice to have someone else do a lot of marketing on your behalf, and all for free!