# What's a self pubber in 2015 to do



## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Anyone else out there feeling like this?
What, with all the great news about fb about to charge writers to do their business of fb in the new year (re: to promo their books in any way in 2015), and KU steadily deterring sales (at least in my still-struggling-to-make-my-mark-on-the-author-map case) and the KU payouts steadily declining (people are guessing $1.14 this month...omg...pulling out of there quick...) and Christmas sales softer than a marshmallow (again in my case). I almost landed a BookBub ad but got turn down because I stupidly switched my price, trying to bolster sales, and the price needs to stay HIGHER and consistent in order for BookBub to agree to list it for $1.99 with them (so what do I do...mark it up and suffer 90 days of no sales on the off chance they'll accept me?) and then there's the lovely FREE myth about click thru sales that yeah...don't happen anymore...(that's become a HUGE joke for struggling writers...and not just me, I'm hearing) and YES, through it all, I've kept writing, and YES, I've released more than one book, and YES, I even have two series on the go...(and if one more persons says, it's book FIVE baby, book FIVE is the money maker...after they used to say, it's book THREE baby, I'm gonna throw up)...and...and...and...wow...just WOW.

I'm coming up on a year here of self publishing, working like a dog (more hours than ever in any job) currently working like a crazy woman to get my newest release up for its release date...and looking at an editing bill I'll have to take a part time job to pay off, and I'm just thinking...WHAT AM I DOING WRONG HERE.

I don't feel any further ahead than I was churning in the trad pub hopeless bin, (for the last 6 years) though I love the freedom of self pub, and being able to make all my own decisions, ( I SO LOVE MAKING COVERS) but it's no good when your not making traction, no matter what you do.

Here is my list: I've done pay ads, free ads, free sales, .99 cent sales, played with categories, played with blurbs, sought reviews, played with CATEGORIES AGAIN and AGAIN, read all the how to books, employed all their tactics that fit, read them again, asked for reviews in the backs of my books, have a click through, begged for reviews, (gave books away that NEVER GOT REVIEWED) offered weekly prizes, did give aways, held contests, offered specialty products, prizes, fun [crap]!, bought more ads, ran highly CREATIVE MARKETING spots, have a newsletter, worked on building the newsletter list, SOLICITED my NEWSLETTER, entered sights to build the newsletter list, held fb parties, twitter parties, GAVE AWAY MORE BOOKS, PRIZES, HELD MORE PRIZES, asked for volunteers for a STREET TEAM, awarded the street team, applied for more ads...you name it and still...crickets...

A year ago, I had writers telling me to stay the course and I'd be ordering my new car for Christmas this year on my profits, and I'd be looking back wondering why I didn't self pub sooner... I just needed to find my readers. Yeah, that.

What's a beaten down self pubber to do looking forward into 2015? Hire a publicist? And take a part time job to pay that? Or start querying agents...again?

Anyone else working as hard out there as me for little reward?

Love to hear from you all...if any...tired, sigh. ( let me reiterate...I have 5 books available...two pre-sale at this point...both pre-sales due the end of Jan)


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

Do you just have the one book? I hate to be one of those people repeating the "publish often" mantra -- but the odds of making decent money on one book are slim. I mean, running promos on one book doesn't do you any good unless you have other work to funnel it to. This is a business, and you have to treat it as such. My last day at my day job is Jan. 10. I've worked 80 hours a week for the past six months to launch a new pen name. I already have seven books in various stages of edit -- and they're all coming out next year. My main name is my bread and butter -- and I'm making terrific money on it -- but I'm not resting either. I'm actively plotting a second series for the pen name. Right after Christmas I start work on my next book under my main name. I'll finish my last pen name book of the year -- a book that isn't slated to come out until June -- next week. You have to be constantly moving forward. Paying for endless ads if you only have one book -- and nowhere to funnel readers to is a fruitless endeavor. You need more books. Most people don't start seeing jumps until they hit their third book -- and then fifth book -- and then seventh book.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

YodaRead said:


> Do you just have the one book? I hate to be one of those people repeating the "publish often" mantra -- but the odds of making decent money on one book are slim. I mean, running promos on one book doesn't do you any good unless you have other work to funnel it to. This is a business, and you have to treat it as such. My last day at my day job is Jan. 10. I've worked 80 hours a week for the past six months to launch a new pen name. I already have seven books in various stages of edit -- and they're all coming out next year. My main name is my bread and butter -- and I'm making terrific money on it -- but I'm not resting either. I'm actively plotting a second series for the pen name. Right after Christmas I start work on my next book under my main name. I'll finish my last pen name book of the year -- a book that isn't slated to come out until June -- next week. You have to be constantly moving forward. Paying for endless ads if you only have one book -- and nowhere to funnel readers to is a fruitless endeavor. You need more books. Most people don't start seeing jumps until they hit their third book -- and then fifth book -- and then seventh book.


This. "...YES, I've released more than one book, and YES, I even have two series on the go..." Question: Once you had those series out, THEN you promoted...or how did people find you?


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

I think it's the same story for a lot of us. I don't do anything like as many marketing things as you do though. I can't seem to find the time. Like you, I work like a dog, 16+ hours a day, seven days a week. I feel if I try to do any more, my head might just explode. I've done a number of interviews recently and they take some time to put together so you come across as friendly, interesting, inspiring, blah, de blah, but I have no idea if they make the slightest diffference.

I decided against KU, as I'm starting to build some traction at the other sites and I really had no desire to start over at Kobo, etc, as it's taken months (years?!) to get anywhere at any of them. I'm glad I stayed out now with the way the monthly borrow amount keeps reducing.

I don't know what to suggest. My income has gone down and down. Admittedly, I need to finish a brand new novel (something I haven't done since 2011 owing to too many things to list), and I'm hoping that will make a difference. I had good downloads when I recently digitally published the last of the backlist in my main series, so I'm hopeful a brand new book in that series will also do me some good.

But you seem to have tried everything. I think this situation is down to numerous factors (KU, the number of indie authors now, all creating way too much competition, readers having way too many books on their ereaders to ever get the time to read half of them (me!) the way the stars are aligned, you name it).

Hopefully, someone here can suggest something to get you (and me!) out of the doldrums.

But hey, cheer up. It's nearly Christmas. Why not drown your sorrows? I intend to.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks hard nutt, nice to hear from you. I believe a lot of that is true...ku and too many authors all competing...not the world it used to be. I raise a glass of eggnog to you!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

This is off topic hardnutt but, how do you get all your books to show up as covers in your signature line? Mine were there, but then I tried to add new ones and I lost them?


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> This. "...YES, I've released more than one book, and YES, I even have two series on the go..." Question: Once you had those series out, THEN you promoted...or how did people find you?


I'm not going to lie, I kind of struck gold with one of my series. It was the third one I started. I had one book out in two other series. I made a decision to write multiple series at once so I wouldn't get "typecast" (for lack of a better word). I've seen so many authors get a solid series, and then they'll beat it to death for 12 or 15 books, and then fans get bored and leave, and then when the author tries to do something else their remaining fans only like the one series, etc. So, I played the long game. I have four viable series under my main name (one only has one book out -- the second comes in March) and the fourth finishes up with a fifth book in May. I will focus on the three series and put two installments of each out a year. My pen name is romantic suspense, and I'm releasing one book (55,000-60,000 words each installment) a month. That's a work in progress, but I'm already thinking ahead and starting a second series with that pen name so readers don't only expect the one set of books from that author. I'm in KU -- and it works for me. I'm getting more than 10,000 borrows a month, so I have no intention of leaving right now (especially given the fact that the new Kindles are coming with free KU for six months). After I have a sequel, I move the price of the first book in each series down to .99 as a loss leader. Then, once every three months, I do a free promotion for the first book. It's worked for me. Everyone has to plot their own course, though.


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## Guest (Dec 13, 2014)

This may sound harsh but the market chooses winners and losers. Not much us Indies can do about that. We can wear the latest Italian heels, attend every cocktail party about books, and spend eight hours a day on social media, but in the final result, the market may say my books or yours don't quite hack it. 

If I had it to do over again, I'd study to be an electrician. Those men & women clean up! Shocking, I know....


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## tiffanycherney (Feb 18, 2014)

First off, you're preaching to the choir with me, I published my debut novel almost a year ago, have three books out (two full length and one novella) in the same series and am just now feeling like I'm gaining ground since I'm selling books (though I'm currently on promotion for the holidays) without much prompting on my part.  I've done all that you've mentioned with the exception of a street team and had gotten pretty much the same results and actually just got over feeling that way myself. Unfortunately, you can do all that and still not gain any traction since it is a game of luck to some degree, but there are factors you can control and at least give yourself a boost.

First, as far a reviews- I've had a lot more review rate seeking out on Goodreads, though they can be a lot more harsh than normal readers, in review groups there. The only downside is they may or may not post on Amazon but the ones I go through I think you can request it, though I typically leave it to the reader. Most groups I am part of typically give up to a month at the most to leave a review, though this isn't always the case of course there's some you just never hear from. Giveaways for reviews are hit and miss in my opinion, often they seem to be in the same issue free sales are and it takes quite a while for readers to get to them, at the same time my first five star came from one so it's likely another luck thing. I don't do too many myself these days because in my opinion you risk getting too many who just come for just those to your various sites.

The way I look at paid ads now is that each one gives me exposure even if I don't make a ton of sales on it. What I've started to do with this last release though is go more genre specific ad seeking if I can while using the mainstream stuff, my current series is epic fantasy so this seems necessary in my eyes since it's not as hot as say romance. BTW-I'd toss out the advice on which book is the magic one that will make sales just take off, I don't think anyone can tell cause there's just too many factors that might impact it especially these days. As far as social media, Facebook's changes aren't the end, in my opinion; you simply do what you do for any thing like KU and adapt. With the rise of TSU and Ello there are not options in addition to just blogging or twitter etc. 

I realize this doesn't make you feel better and more than likely you're doing some, if not all of my advice already, but you're definitely not alone in the at least occasional feeling as though you're running a marathon and not making any ground.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

Hi Jacqueline! 

I just took a look at all four of your books. Here's what I think happened . . .

All of your covers are gorgeous! Super gorgeous. So I'm going to put myself in your reader's shoes.

Reader #1: OMG! I LOVE Lumiere! It was so wonderful, can't wait until the next book comes out.

April 2014
Reader #1: Yes! New book by Jacqueline Garlick! Whaaaa? This isn't another steampunk story! What is this? YA New Adult? What?
Reader #2: Like OMG, LOVE this new YA author! Let me see if she had any other books out. Steampunk? What is that? Oh, no, I like YA paranormal, I don't like this alternate historical stuff.

July 2014
Reader #1: Another YA book. Great, another steam punk author that left us. Good bye Jacqueline Garlick (Amazon emails out new releases and preorders to customers who have downloaded your freebies or bought your books, it's random, we can't control it). 
Reader #2 Yeah, I liked her last one, but there's soooo much good YA this summer, I'll get to it.

I notice that your YA series is not on ANY subcategory lists (scroll to the very bottom and you can see them, what lists and categories you're in). Look at this link on the left hand side, you need to put in keywords to get ON the right category on the left. http://www.amazon.com/Teen-Young-Adults-Kindle-eBooks/b/ref=dp_brlad_entry?ie=UTF8&node=3511261011 If your steampunk is YA too, try throwing it in Historic Fiction YA. Steampunk is one of those weird genre mashups between history and sci fi. 

It honestly take a release every 60 days to stay in readers minds right now. A novella, a short story, a novel, something. And I think this past year while you have done AMAZING work in your writing, in your covers, etc. what readers are truly looking for right now are authors they can count on to feed them stories they love on a consistent basis.

Hope I helped . . .


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

jegarlick said:


> Thanks hard nutt, nice to hear from you. I believe a lot of that is true...ku and too many authors all competing...not the world it used to be. I raise a glass of eggnog to you!


Cheers!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

YodaRead said:


> I'm not going to lie, I kind of struck gold with one of my series. It was the third one I started. I had one book out in two other series. I made a decision to write multiple series at once so I wouldn't get "typecast" (for lack of a better word). I've seen so many authors get a solid series, and then they'll beat it to death for 12 or 15 books, and then fans get bored and leave, and then when the author tries to do something else their remaining fans only like the one series, etc. So, I played the long game. I have four viable series under my main name (one only has one book out -- the second comes in March) and the fourth finishes up with a fifth book in May. I will focus on the three series and put two installments of each out a year. My pen name is romantic suspense, and I'm releasing one book (55,000-60,000 words each installment) a month. That's a work in progress, but I'm already thinking ahead and starting a second series with that pen name so readers don't only expect the one set of books from that author. I'm in KU -- and it works for me. I'm getting more than 10,000 borrows a month, so I have no intention of leaving right now (especially given the fact that the new Kindles are coming with free KU for six months). After I have a sequel, I move the price of the first book in each series down to .99 as a loss leader. Then, once every three months, I do a free promotion for the first book. It's worked for me. Everyone has to plot their own course, though.


So just so I have this. You have two names. One main. One pen. With books under both...multiple series. And the new (Romance one) you are writing 50K-60K books MONTHLY? That might be my problem. I could never do that. I'm not that fast. That might be a lot of my problem.


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

jegarlick said:


> This is off topic hardnutt but, how do you get all your books to show up as covers in your signature line? Mine were there, but then I tried to add new ones and I lost them?


You can only add so many books. Nine or ten, I think, depending on what size you decide to make them. I haven't bothered trying to put my latest books up because of this limit. In fact, I've been considering taking the whole lot off my signature line and becoming a woman of mystery!

If you want to find the limits to the number/sizes of books in your sig, I imagine you'll find the answers in the Author Yellow Pages. Or ask Betty, which would probably be quicker. She'll likely also be able to tell you why all your books disappeared. She's sorted my books out a few times!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Hi Jacqueline!
> 
> I notice that your YA series is not on ANY subcategory lists (scroll to the very bottom and you can see them, what lists and categories you're in). Look at this link on the left hand side, you need to put in keywords to get ON the right category on the left. http://www.amazon.com/Teen-Young-Adults-Kindle-eBooks/b/ref=dp_brlad_entry?ie=UTF8&node=3511261011 If your steampunk is YA too, try throwing it in Historic Fiction YA. Steampunk is one of those weird genre mashups between history and sci fi.
> 
> ...


Yes, I tried to diversify...though they are all YA. And yes, I've been a long time writing the second Steampunk...my bad. As far as the key words on IF ONLY...never have understood what's up there. I have 21 key words listed ( not using comma on the last as many suggest) from the list...and it has NEVER had a category string after it. Sigh. Also, I've jumped between Historical and Steampunk throughout the year...and it stays about the same. Thanks so much for this though...will look at those cat strings again.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

Here are the official keywords from Amazon.

https://kdp.amazon.com/help?topicId=A1XEN0SRCO1KPB


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks for the response Tiffany...I do appreciate your words!


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> So just so I have this. You have two names. One main. One pen. With books under both...multiple series. And the new (Romance one) you are writing 50K-60K books MONTHLY? That might be my problem. I could never do that. I'm not that fast. That might be a lot of my problem.


I have two names. One is a chick lit/cozy mystery name. The second is romantic suspense. Once I'm done with the day job on Jan. 10, I'm adding a straight erotica name and a gay erotica name to the mix. Those will be shorter works, obviously. I guess you could say I'm diversifying.


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

> It honestly take a release every 60 days to stay in readers minds right now. A novella, a short story, a novel, something. And I think this past year while you have done AMAZING work in your writing, in your covers, etc. what readers are truly looking for right now are authors they can count on to feed them stories they love on a consistent basis.


I agree with everything Elizabeth says, up to this point. I don't believe you have to write that fast. If you try, but aren't a fast writer, you'll probably end up sacrificing quality. What sells, though, is inventory. People confuse the speed with which a writer gets to have decent inventory with the actual number of books in that inventory. Inventory sells. How long you take to get a decent inventory is up to you.

*edited because grrrr faulty mouse


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## Redacted1111 (Oct 26, 2013)

I have over forty-five titles and six pen names. Most are novella length and shorter. They are romance, erotic romance, and erotica. I started making a living wage once I picked up my production schedule and stopped worrying about perfection. Oddly, a serial that was under preforming for over a year (languishing in the 500,000+ range), I rebranded and republished under a new pen name and it is now one of my best sellers.  There are a lot of different ways to do this self publishing thing. My best advice is to loosen up, relax, have fun, and stop being a perfectionist. That and... publish more. A LOT more.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks Elizabeth Ann, just made some category and keywords changes to all three books...If only and Lumiere...I'll see if they list now.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

I agree Patty. I do write considerably slower than all the rest of you, by the sounds of it...and quality is a real hitch for me...I want it just so before releasing which leads to me going over material for months...just me. So yeah, I guess I just need to keep pumping things out there. But it feels like the housing market to me...by the time I have 6 books saved up...the statement is 8 books then you make money...then I'll have 8, and it will be 10...I can't seem to hit that curve. ugh.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Wow Half Pint...45 freakin' titles...omg...you're amazing girl!


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## C. Gockel (Jan 28, 2014)

> I agree with everything Elizabeth says, up to this point. I don't believe you have to write that fast. If you try, but aren't a fast writer, you'll probably end up sacrificing quality.


I agree, Patty. Although it might be our genres. I think that Fantasy and Sci-Fi may have a different time table than Contemporary or even Historical Romance. I think with Fantasy and Sci-Fi if you've created a unique world it will be hard to replace, and more fun to sink back into. I know I've waited years for Sci-fi and Fantasy sequels to come out. (Oh, Hyperion!)

Jacqueline, slow but steady wins the race might be the best outlook for you. I wasn't able to cut back on my hours at my "day gig" until my third in series came out. If you're looking for Noir to suddenly be your big breakout, you might find yourself not finishing your third in series.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

Politely, you DON'T HAVE to write that fast to release every 60 days. But in this case, we are talking about discoverability. And I learned this summer that the advantages of publish well, publish often are incredible. There is a very real 30 Day cliff UNLESS you have another book. 

I release a novella every 60 days. I'm moving to releases every month, and can with my Dragon. But I write full time. If I wasn't writing full time, knowing what I know now, I would definitely follow the advice that has been said for years, write multiple books, THEN release them on a schedule. 

An author with 3 books, releasing one each month will probably see a larger earning than an author with 3 books who spread them out over a year. The reason is sales rank is insane the lower you go. A book selling to be #2000 ish in the Paid kindle store has about 50 combined sales/borrows a day. #1,000 is nearing 100. But the book selling #3,000 in the Paid Kindle Store? It's selling very close to the 40-50 combined sales.borrow a day. So the curve as you go lower in overall sales rank is more exponential rate of change than straight linear.

What's the difference between a #65,000 in the Paid Kindle Store and #120,000 in the Paid Kindle Store on Amazon.com? A single sale. That's it. 

So when you set aside the idea that the book MUST release right this second because it's done, consider for a moment that if you have TWO or THREE books ready to release at opportune moment to keep you bouncing in the ranks for a subgenre list, it's worth it. Whatever it takes for you to make that happen, that's up to the individual author. But no, the chances of just releasing a single book and waiting four months to release another it's not going to get the same results as shortening the time between those release dates, even if the book has to sit and wait for a bit.


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

jegarlick said:


> I agree Patty. I do write considerably slower than all the rest of you, by the sounds of it...and quality is a real hitch for me...I want it just so before releasing which leads to me going over material for months...just me. So yeah, I guess I just need to keep pumping things out there. But it feels like the housing market to me...by the time I have 6 books saved up...the statement is 8 books then you make money...then I'll have 8, and it will be 10...I can't seem to hit that curve. ugh.


Whatever "they" say, just don't believe it. If anyone says "you need five books" or "you need two series" or... rah, rah, rah. Don't believe it. Whatever works will end up working for you. I have four series, two of which completed. Three books in one, four in another. I'm not a huge seller, but I've noticed that if you build your inventory according to a plan (I always work on multiple series at the same time, which makes publishing slower, but keeps you in the mind of more fans), you end up with a baseline level of sales that you can reliably reach each month. When I snag a Bookbub, that's blown out of the water, but sales will fall down to hopefully a little above the previous baseline. You do this by going wide (because sales will tank for unexplained reasons on one platform, and you'll need the others to keep you going) and by keeping control of who your readers are.

SF/F genre readers tend to have fairly long memories for authors and they don't mind waiting for a good book. As long as you know who they are (mailing list).


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Elizabeth Ann, thanks for this...what do you mean Dragon?


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

:: laughs maniacally::

Get a dragon, thank me in a week or two. 
I wrote 4600 words today in 2 hours today. (dictating and editing)

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,203713.0.html


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

Elizabeth, that may be true for romance, but I've never found any benefit whatsoever to being in the all-hallowed genre lists for SF/F. To me it seems that the readership of those genres is just let's say really cynical of these lists. 

I released seven books last year, to no continued benefit of any sales on Amazon that I didn't drive there myself. Amazon is not my best venue by a very long shot.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

What have you found to be your best venue Patty?


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

jegarlick said:


> What have you found to be your best venue Patty?


Kobo, but B&N is also surprisingly good, seeing as I'm not in the US and can't buy there or list with them directly. I never even go to the site. Apple is also decent.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

I'm not in the US either, and can't list with them directly B &N, what do you use? I hear Smashwords is a disaster lately. And Kobo has not been good to me. 3 months not one sale...don't know WHAT is up there...I've sort of given up on them.


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## gorvnice (Dec 29, 2010)

Would you rather get one chance to swing the bat, or would you rather get three swings, or maybe three hundred?

The truth is, it's up to you.  

You can't control whether any individual book sells, but you can try and set yourself up for success.

Genre is important.  I switched from writing horror/thrillers to romance for obvious reasons.  I want to sell more books, and I enjoy writing, no matter what type of books I write.

And then you have to decide on speed.  If I write 3k words a day I can get out one of my novella's every couple of weeks.  I've been at this for nearly four years and I've got dozens of titles under my pen names and so forth...

It makes a big difference.  

Some people say, don't worry, write what you love.  Write quality, write slow if you want to.  It will all be fine.

You came here asking what to do so I'm going to say that, in my experience, writing what you love if the genre isn't a popular one and writing slow doesn't make for a lot of book sales.  Yes, there are exceptions to any rule, but generally your best chance is to write in a hot genre and have a very high work rate.

So you ask what to do.  I and others (like Half Pint) have given good advice.  The question is, are you willing to put it into action?  When you say, "well, I don't feel comfortable writing fast" or "I really like writing x type of books though", you basically say that you want to sell books YOUR way.

That's fine, but so far it's not working.  My goal is to see how things work and then adjust to that reality.  I don't try and make reality adjust to my preferences because it never works.

So, I ask you again.  What do you want and how badly do you want it?

The advice is simple.  Write fast.  Write in a hot market.  Good covers, good blurbs.  Make it cheap as possible, streamlined as possible, and as good as possible without being a perfectionist.

And then do it better and better and faster and you WILL succeed.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

I honestly still don't get why everyone thinks advice only applies to ONE genre. People like to say "yeah, but ROMANCE readers buy a lot" Well. Why? Why do they buy a lot of books? Because long ago a publisher said  we're going to mass produce 45-60,000 word novels and pump them into the market and make it EASY for our readers to keep on buying and reading books. My mother received a postcard in the mail all the time how she could buy 6 romance novels for just $.01 and then be sent a monthly editor's selection each month for just $2.99 a book, she only has to buy 4 books in a year then she can quit her subscription. 

Where is the SciFi Harlequin? Scifi readers are just as voracious as romance readers. It's just a self-fulfilling prophecy. Every author writes long so every new author thinks they have to write long so all the readers get are . . . impossibly long books. How did WOOL do well? 

My books are not in Historical Romance. That's because they wouldn't sell there. There's no sex in my JAFF books and that's what historical romance readers want. My books are in historical fiction and Christian romance. My book is as much a "romance" as a scifi book that also has a love story in it. And being a subniche of a niche, I have a clear idea how big my audience is, about 5,000 sales probably over the lifetime of a book with 2,000 coming in the first 6 months and the rest a sale or two a day for years. The largest JAFF forum has about 7,000 active members.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> I honestly still don't get why everyone thinks advice only applies to ONE genre. People like to say "yeah, but ROMANCE readers buy a lot" Well. Why? Why do they buy a lot of books? Because long ago a publisher said we're going to mass produce 45-60,000 word novels and pump them into the market and make it EASY for our readers to keep on buying and reading books. My mother received a postcard in the mail all the time how she could buy 6 romance novels for just $.01 and then be sent a monthly editor's selection each month for just $2.99 a book, she only has to buy 4 books in a year then she can quit her subscription.
> 
> Where is the SciFi Harlequin? Scifi readers are just as voracious as romance readers. It's just a self-fulfilling prophecy. Every author writes long so every new author thinks they have to write long so all the readers get are . . . impossibly long books. How did WOOL do well?
> 
> My books are not in Historical Romance. That's because they wouldn't sell there. There's no sex in my JAFF books and that's what historical romance readers want. My books are in historical fiction and Christian romance. My book is as much a "romance" as a scifi book that also has a love story in it. And being a subniche of a niche, I have a clear idea how big my audience is, about 5,000 sales probably over the lifetime of a book with 2,000 coming in the first 6 months and the rest a sale or two a day for years. The largest JAFF forum has about 7,000 active members.


Quick side question for the uninformed: What's JAFF?


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks gorvnice! I started this series because it nearly got picked up by a publisher a big house and because of crazy reasons...didn't happen, so, since I loved the characters and spent so much time on the world and them, I decided to run with it. Steampunk is a tough market, no lie. And I hear what you are saying. I have written a romance, (need to go over it) it's not erotica...but a sweeter romance, that I'm hoping I can find readers with. Target Feb. With a few more in mind. Although my teen romance is not doing that great either, which has given me pause. I write 3K or more a day. I write a book in a month. I just spend 2 or 3 going over it, making it better. Guess I need to trim that time off.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

jegarlick said:


> This is off topic hardnutt but, how do you get all your books to show up as covers in your signature line? Mine were there, but then I tried to add new ones and I lost them?





hardnutt said:


> You can only add so many books. Nine or ten, I think, depending on what size you decide to make them. I haven't bothered trying to put my latest books up because of this limit. In fact, I've been considering taking the whole lot off my signature line and becoming a woman of mystery!
> 
> If you want to find the limits to the number/sizes of books in your sig, I imagine you'll find the answers in the Author Yellow Pages. Or ask Betty, which would probably be quicker. She'll likely also be able to tell you why all your books disappeared. She's sorted my books out a few times!


jegarlick, the easiest way is to use our Author Sig Tool; you can find it in the top menu under "Authors" or here:
http://www.kboards.com/authorsig

You can only have nine "standard" sized covers (125 pixels high) or you can make them smaller and have more. The author signature tool makes them 125 pixels high and has space for nine covers. If you need to have more, some authors switch out different books from time to time (you just put the ASINs in the author sig tool) or you can make the cover smaller by hand, which I can help with.

Betsy


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## gorvnice (Dec 29, 2010)

jegarlick said:


> Thanks gorvnice! I started this series because it nearly got picked up by a publisher a big house and because of crazy reasons...didn't happen, so, since I loved the characters and spent so much time on the world and them, I decided to run with it. Steampunk is a tough market, no lie. And I hear what you are saying. I have written a romance, (need to go over it) it's not erotica...but a sweeter romance, that I'm hoping I can find readers with. Target Feb. With a few more in mind. Although my teen romance is not doing that great either, which has given me pause. I write 3K or more a day. I write a book in a month. I just spend 2 or 3 going over it, making it better. Guess I need to trim that time off.


Nothing wrong with anything you said above, imo.

My first six or seven books were my unpublished "traditional" novels that I'd been trying to ram through the old system. When self publishing started, I put my old books up and they did OK, but I became frustrated as I saw other self pubbers zooming by me and I was standing relatively still.

So I looked around and said, what can I do differently?

This business is all about flexibility and adjusting to current markets.

Those who tell you otherwise are either the lucky exceptions or probably not selling all that great themselves. I can spot the people on kboards who do well at this business in under thirty seconds, whether they have their books in their sig lines or not.

Those who do well, such as Half Pint (have no idea who that is in real life, but based on what they say here, they sell well and I would put money on that)--people like Half Pint say things that are borne out of hard work and experience.

They don't talk about things with a sense of entitlement, or how things "should" be or why others are lowering the standards of decent taste or anything like that. They don't moan and whine about how Amazon should be this way or that way, or cry about other writers being too fast and pumping out garbage.

What the successful self publishers say (and do) is that you need to find what works and DO THAT. Find what works, watch what the successful authors are doing, and just freaking do it.

If you want this badly enough, it's possible. Me? I was willing to do absolutely anything, write anything, write as much or as fast as humanly possible to get there. And I did get there, and I'm darn glad I did.

Don't listen to the naysayers who talk about how things "should" be, that play into the fear of lowering quality or lowering standards or the shame of writing to make money. This is a business, and a damn tough one with no room for sentimentality.

Good luck!!!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks so much Betsy! All fixed. I think.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks gorvnice! I hear you. Guess I need to lurk more to find these people of whom you speak to follow. I really just want to write good stories. Ones that get read. By enough people to pay some bills. More would be awesome. But currently, that is my goal. Don't think I would do some genres justice if I wrote them cause my heart wouldn't be in it...but I do know that you need to sway with the markets that are selling.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

YodaRead said:


> Quick side question for the uninformed: What's JAFF?


I wanna know too!


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## Lionel&#039;s Mom (Aug 22, 2013)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Where is the SciFi Harlequin? Scifi readers are just as voracious as romance readers.


Please, someone make the SF Harlequin happen.

And Jacqueline, if you don't get in the subcats you want just by using keywords, I've found emailing support and asking worked for me. Good luck, and I agree you should stick with one series unless you can increase your output to keep both series in regular installments. 
I thought about pubbing a completely different romance genre in between books 1 and 2 of my series, but decided to let it rot unfinished at 30k because some people wanted book 2. 
I'm so glad I did that.


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## Wansit (Sep 27, 2012)

jegarlick said:


> and then there's the lovely FREE myth about click thru sales that yeah...don't happen anymore...(that's become a HUGE joke for struggling writers...and no just me, I'm hearing)


What does this mean? You ran a freebie promotion for Book One and saw no sell-through for Book Two?


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## Shayne Parkinson (Mar 19, 2010)

JAFF is Jane Austen fanfic. I had a peripheral involvement in it for a while, as alpha reader and volunteer proofreader for a lovely Canadian writer who tragically died while part-way through her third JA continuation.

Jacqueline, just to report a different experience: I'm a slow writer who's managing to make a comfortable living from my (so far) five novels, the first of which is perma-free. It takes me ages to finish a book, and I'm in awe of more productive writers, but a glacial rate of production doesn't mean it's not possible to make a living at this. It does take wonderfully patient readers and a healthy dose of luck, though! And it was only in my third year of publication that sales took off, so in my case it took quite some time, with slow growth through word-of-mouth.


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## Matthew Stott (Oct 22, 2014)

Hey Jegarlick, you've only been publishing a year? I'd say you're perhaps expecting too much for such a short span of time having heard all sorts of 'success' stories. You can do everything 'right' and still not get anywhere fast. I don't believe for one second that this Indie Publishing lark is ever a sure thing, regardless of book quality, just because you follow the 'right' steps. 

Rather than spending lots on marketing right off, might have been better just to get your head down and publish several (5) books in a series. Build a catalogue. Do some marketing, but concentrate on getting the work out there rather than spending lots of money, because obviously if you plough a lot of cash into it from the off and don't see an immediate impressive return, you're going to get disheartened. Build a catalogue, attempt to build an online platform and potential reader list you can engage.

So perhaps concentrate more on just building a series or two, and so building your funnels.

Beautiful covers by the way, I haven't seen many as good as those in the Indie world.


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## Charmaine (Jul 20, 2012)

Jegarlick, I think you're doing everything right. 
Steampunk isn't just a hard sell. It's a hard sell in an over-crowded, small niche. :-/
My best advice would be to gear your book more towards the YA audience for now. (It may be easier to focus on one group at a time)

Quick changes I might consider changing if it were my book:
I've always been nervous of titles that are too unique. So, I would change Lumiere to something else that would fit in the genre.
Maybe brighten the cover (green glowing) a bit?
Think of marketing in terms of YA Paranormal. Maybe change the categories, because of this as well. 
A blog tour may help.
-Good Luck


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## A.E. Williams (Jul 13, 2014)

Don't know if anyone mentioned it earlier (apologies if you did) but your Amazon Authors Page only lists Lumiere?

Hopefully you can get the rest added...email Amazon if you already did that and they might have dropped the ball.

The other thing is you can link to your blog (and Amazon even gives you a blog, if you don't have one already, I believe...)

Create updates, try author interviews on Steampunk based sites, etc.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I agree about those beautiful covers!

A.E. Williams


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## A.E. Williams (Jul 13, 2014)

Lionel's Mom said:


> Please, someone make the SF Harlequin happen.


Well, it used to be DAW and DelRey, I think...

A.E. Williams


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

Jegarlick...if I may be as bold to suggest a different strategy...

Lumiere (cover is gorgeous, btw), is way too long. 460 pages - you could easily break it into 2 or 3 smaller works and serialize it (if it makes sense). That will also give you the opportunity to release something 'new' every 4-6 weeks and you can work on your new stuff during that time, so you're always prepared. 

Just a thought.


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## gorvnice (Dec 29, 2010)

delly_xo said:


> Jegarlick...if I may be as bold to suggest a different strategy...
> 
> Lumiere (cover is gorgeous, btw), is way too long. 460 pages - you could easily break it into 2 or 3 smaller works and serialize it (if it makes sense). That will also give you the opportunity to release something 'new' every 4-6 weeks and you can work on your new stuff during that time, so you're always prepared.
> 
> Just a thought.


What you just recommended is the equivalent of taking the American flag and stomping on it, as far as some people around these parts are concerned.

I'm not one of those people. I didn't realize the book was so long, and if possible, serializing it or breaking it up might not be a bad idea.

But I will say, to me, spending too much time on old stuff is a bad idea. If you can get it done quickly and rebrand it (I'm talking days, not weeks) than maybe go for it.

Otherwise, just write, write, write and start putting out NEW stuff.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

gorvnice said:


> What you just recommended is the equivalent of taking the American flag and stomping on it, as far as some people around these parts are concerned.
> 
> I'm not one of those people. I didn't realize the book was so long, and if possible, serializing it or breaking it up might not be a bad idea.
> 
> ...


Agree with your comments RE the time investment. 
Personally, I write contemporary romantic fiction and my stuff ranges from 215-300 pages. I price at 3.99. Technically, I could do that with my stuff too, but I feel like it's cheating the readers.

The reason I suggest breaking it down in the first place is because as a reader, looking at something 460 pages long is overwhelming. It's like watching a 3 or 4 hour movie. 
Breaking stuff up into parts makes it less overwhelming and easier to digest (only if it makes sense for the material though).


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## I&#039;m a Little Teapot (Apr 10, 2014)

YodaRead said:


> Quick side question for the uninformed: What's JAFF?


Jane Austen Fan Fiction!


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

You're looking for a magic formula, and there just isn't one. People can tell you what works for them, but there's no guarantee it will work for anyone else. Sometimes it doesn't even work for their next book!

Some things seem to hold pretty basic across all genres:  well-written, good stories with decent covers and blurbs, in the right categories with the right keywords, published fairly frequently.

Since I've been studying self-publishing, I've seen the process breaking down like this:

For some, it's a sprint. They hit it out the gate and sell well from the beginning. This is rare, but it does happen. Often, though, there's a back story that shows this happens to people who've been writing for years, even decades. They've often changed pen names and tried writing different stuff, sometimes more than once. You just don't see it, so it looks like Unknown Writer has won the lottery.

For others, it's a marathon. They get some books out, start selling okay. With more books and some properly placed ads, not to mention a bit of luck, these writers build their careers over a few years. These are often people who have been writing for a long time as well, but they didn't get the magic book out first. They may have many pen names that failed before they got decent sales.

Then there's the rest of us. We're doing the Senior Walk. We keep putting out books that get some interest, but never take off. Maybe it's genre, maybe we just don't tell stories that well, or we tell stories that fewer people want to read. Even here you'll find writers that have been doing it for a long time.

After a while, we start looking around and see that while it's very satisfying to tell the stories we love, if we want to make any money we need to regroup and find a market that gets better sales and start writing to that market. Or settle for doing what we're doing and getting what we get.

One thing I can tell you is you have to keep up with what's working for others, be willing to try something new, and be able to switch focus quickly. Writing faster, cleaner drafts is something you can learn to do. Writing in other genres is something you can learn to do. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Writers have been doing it since books came about, and probably since the cavemen started telling each other stories over the fire.


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## kathrynoh (Oct 17, 2012)

> The reason I suggest breaking it down in the first place is because as a reader, looking at something 460 pages long is overwhelming. It's like watching a 3 or 4 hour movie.


I don't think you can compare the two. I'd never watch a 3-4 hour movie at the cinema - no breaks for cigarettes, toilet trips or snacks! But if I find a book that interests me and it's a long one, I love it. Maybe I'm odd but I'd rather a 450 page book than 3 parts that are 150 pages long. I'd feel like there is more continuity.

To the OP, at least covers aren't something you have to worry about. They are simply gorgeous.

I had a big of success with a 3 book series (NA romance) on Amazon with the first book permafree. Then I put the entire up at other vendors three months ago and it has seem to really caught on at Apple. My sales there are more than 10x what I get from Amazon. Not massive 5 or 6 figure amounts per month but enough to live on.

Not saying you should do the same thing but that if you don't knew where or when you are going to take off unless you keep trying different things.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

kathrynoh said:


> I don't think you can compare the two. I'd never watch a 3-4 hour movie at the cinema - no breaks for cigarettes, toilet trips or snacks! But if I find a book that interests me and it's a long one, I love it. Maybe I'm odd but I'd rather a 450 page book than 3 parts that are 150 pages long. I'd feel like there is more continuity.
> 
> To the OP, at least covers aren't something you have to worry about. They are simply gorgeous.
> 
> ...


I think the comparison might seem like a stretch, but the whole point is perception. 460 pages seems as daunting as giving up 3 whole hours of your life to watch a movie. If you're a busy mom on the go or you only read during commutes, you know it will take you a longer amount of time to reach satisfaction compared to a shorter work that perhaps moved into something _else_ you could reasonably follow.

The other thing that prompts me into this line of thinking is look at how much success the short shorts are gaining on KU....readers are willing to sign up for less time invested.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

delly_xo said:


> I think the comparison might seem like a stretch, but the whole point is perception. 460 pages seems as daunting as giving up 3 whole hours of your life to watch a movie. If you're a busy mom on the go or you only read during commutes, you know it will take you a longer amount of time to reach satisfaction compared to a shorter work that perhaps moved into something _else_ you could reasonably follow.
> 
> The other thing that prompts me into this line of thinking is look at how much success the short shorts are gaining on KU....readers are willing to sign up for less time invested.
> [/quote
> ...


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## Alain Gomez (Nov 12, 2010)

YodaRead said:


> I have two names. One is a chick lit/cozy mystery name. The second is romantic suspense. Once I'm done with the day job on Jan. 10, I'm adding a straight erotica name and a gay erotica name to the mix. Those will be shorter works, obviously. I guess you could say I'm diversifying.


I'm not making anywhere close to a livable income. But I'll second the idea that diversifying is the key. I didn't really start making regular money until I branched out. And I do use different pen names to divide up genres.

The lesson: keep throwing spaghetti on the wall until something sticks.


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## Sheluvspink (May 14, 2014)

Your covers are beautiful. I'll start with that first lol. Have you tried Apple. It may take a little bit but I make 3x more at apple than Amazon. You never know where your book will take off. Also I'd only permafree if you have other books in the series up for sale.


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## Ronny K (Aug 2, 2011)

Hey Jacqueline. I remember your last thread on your unexpected struggles, and I'm sort of fascinated/horrified by your story. I think the reason both that thread and this one are getting so much attention is because you have done pretty much everything "by the book," and everyone is stumped. And more than that, your design work is as good as anyone in the world. There's not much I can do to help you, and not much most people can, because you've done your homework. I think you might just be an unfortunate testament to the fact that there is a luck factor--at least as far as determining WHEN you'll take off. I think anyone would be surprised if you don't find success at some point. My useless advice would just be to go back to enjoying your work and try less to force the success. If you keep writing from an honest place and enjoy your work, the success will come for you.


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## CJArcher (Jan 22, 2011)

Jacqueline, you're right in that Steampunk is a tough sell. My 1 steampunk novel is my lowest seller and it's been available the longest. But I'm a firm believer in writing what you love, even if your audience is relatively niche. My bestsellers are Victorian era historical paranormal romances. They're trilogies, so readers can't read 1 book and have a satisfying ending, they have to read all 3. I think this has been key. I link all the trilogies together too, and try to drag readers from 1 trilogy to the next by leaving some questions unanswered. 

As someone who tried writing in the more popular contemporary romance genre, and didn't do so well, I'll be narrowing my focus to my CJ Archer pen name in 2015. My sales are rarely off the chart, but I now have a lot of books (over 20) that I earn a decent income with more modest sales. I doubt I'll ever be a NYT bestseller with these books, but that's ok. Sales go up and down, and I'm never sure why some months one of my series will take off at one of the retailers and other months I can't seem to get traction anywhere. 

I think it's important to listen to readers. Do you get fan mail? Do people gush about your books to you? And I mean GUSH, not politely tell you how well written they are. I get the most wonderful emails & FB messages from people who are obsessed about the books. Again, these numbers are small in comparison to the big name authors, but when I compare how many messages I receive for my contemp romances, well, there is no comparison. It's 100 to 1 in favour of my Victorian paranormals. Even my straight historical romances don't get the same number of glowing reviews/messages. While my readers enjoy them, they're not obsessed about them. These reviews and messages have helped me make clearer decisions on what it is my readers like, and I can narrow my focus and spend my precious writing time writing a certain type of book rather than spreading myself too thin into a genre apparently I can't write very well  (Having said that, I will probably still experiment from time to time - it's in my nature).

Take Shayne's advice above. She's doing VERY well, writing slowly but steadily in a niche genre. You can't go wrong following her advice.

BTW, I've adored your Lumiere cover ever since I first saw it here. So much so that I've made a note of it and will tell my cover artist that I want my next series to look like THAT. You're very talented.

Best of luck to you. Don't stress. Enjoy the festive season. People aren't buying too many books right now with the craziness of Christmas in the air, but now is the time to schedule promos for immediately after Christmas. I always find the northern hemisphere winter is the best book-buying season.


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## Guest (Dec 14, 2014)

Hi, Jacqueline,
I love your covers just as everyone has said. However, you have not followed the techniques many have used on this board. I understand your frustration, but explore every avenue that has been presented to you. Here's what I believe many have said:

3 books - Not 3 random books, *3 books in a series*. You don't have 3. Period. You have 2 in two different series (and one is up for pre-order). And, they don't show up together on Amazon.

Only 1 of your books shows up on your author page, and I believe someone has already said this.

1 series has your middle initial. The other doesn't, so how will they show up all together?

I started a new pen name, and not until I had all three books in a single series did the books start selling better with the first one free. My second series seems like a dud, but I'm working on book 3. Get three books out in a single series and go from there.

If steampunk is really a hard sell then write steampunk AND something else that's easier to make yourself feel better. You wouldn't be frustrated if all you cared about was writing what you love.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

she-la-ti-da said:


> You're looking for a magic formula, and there just isn't one. People can tell you what works for them, but there's no guarantee it will work for anyone else. Sometimes it doesn't even work for their next book!


1,000 x this.


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## Michelle Lowery (Nov 22, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> What, with all the great news about fb about to charge writers to do their business of fb in the new year (re: to promo their books in any way in 2015)...


Jacqueline (or anyone), can you please elaborate on this? I can't seem to find anything about it. Thanks!

Also, keep your chin up and keep writing. I agree with everyone here saying that there's no magic formula, and that different tactics work differently for everyone. There are just so many variables. Have you read up on the Dean Wesley Smith method? Maybe that's a route to take? Good luck!


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## CoraBuhlert (Aug 7, 2011)

Here is an article that explains the Facebook changes: http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.de/2014/12/social-media-mondayhow-facebook-changes.html


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## Michelle Lowery (Nov 22, 2014)

CoraBuhlert said:


> Here is an article that explains the Facebook changes: http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.de/2014/12/social-media-mondayhow-facebook-changes.html


Thanks so much, Cora! Well, this answers my dilemma about whether to keep my FB author page, or just open up my personal profile to followers. That is, until FB takes away that feature, right?


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## Mark Tyson (Sep 22, 2014)

As far as the book being long. I don't know about Steampunk, but SF/F readers are somewhat use to longer books, especially epic fantasy and they would not balk at the page count at all. Of course steampunk is a kind of fantasy but granted I am not sure how interchangeable the readers are.


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

CoraBuhlert said:


> Here is an article that explains the Facebook changes: http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.de/2014/12/social-media-mondayhow-facebook-changes.html


I read this article, and I'm still confused. It said something about these changes affecting only "brick and mortar" businesses at the moment. So, does that include author pages or not? And no one has been able to specifically state just how much we're talking here.

And OP, you write well. Your cover is amazing (and I'm hard to please). But your book is too long for a first book. I tried reading the sample and stopped when I reached that big chunk of italicized text that seemed to be going nowhere. I like steampunk, and I'll probably be buying your book and will push through it in the hope that it'll turn out as awesome as the cover. But it'll be a time when I want to commit to a long read.

I think the market has slowed, and it'll probably take even longer now to really take off. But you still have 33 positive reviews, and that's nothing to turn your nose up at. Do a bookbub. Sell for 99 cents and see what happens.


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## Rae Scott Studio (Jan 26, 2014)

I think I am beginning to get some notice by word of mouth. I have recently been offered an extremely exciting opportunity for something (sorry can't talk about it really yet.) And another piece I am working on I have actually reached out to a community of people and am one by one receiving their blessing on based on concept. (That alone from just a few select members of that community should help move several hundred books) That will be solidified when they get ARC'S of course. I am slow building and while I don't do a ton of advertising I am making the most out of other avenues of social media. To date I have no fewer then 10 social media sites. Yes it's time consuming but it works. Networking outside of authors helps as well. The more connections you can make the better imo. 

Does it help if your connected to other authors in your genre? Yes it does but it also helps to branch out of just the author sphere as well. If you can meet and connect with other people who operate in your genre it works out. Say you write fantasy.. try connecting with fantasy artists and actors in fantasy movies, even people who do RPGS can help. If you write horror connect with horror actors (B list and down) Horror artists etc. Not every reader follows a favorite author. In the past month I got some amazing business advise from a friend. He told me to branch out and go beyond just my books when I was looking at my advertising or getting the word out that I write. I have. It is making a big difference I think. I am making those connections slowly and trying to turn them not just into connections but also friendships as well. I have connections in the music arena that are now starting to read my books and recommend them to people.

The more diverse you are in your connection and in your social media it seems the better you do. At least until you hit Stephen King or Anne Rice or James Brown status and then your gold no matter what it seems. Do these ten sites I have take time? Yes lord do they, but I find by only posting 2-3 times a week up to 1-2 times a day helps you to stay relevant and in people's minds. It also helps to stop you from over posting as well. As that can become a big turn off. I think also there is a 50/50 mix of luck and hard work. It sounds like your doing all the hard work, your just needing the luck component is all. Unfortunately I dont know how to make that happen. If I figure it out though I will get back to you and let you know.


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## Michelle Lowery (Nov 22, 2014)

CoraBuhlert said:


> Here is an article that explains the Facebook changes: http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.de/2014/12/social-media-mondayhow-facebook-changes.html





artofstu said:


> I read this article, and I'm still confused. It said something about these changes affecting only "brick and mortar" businesses at the moment. So, does that include author pages or not? And no one has been able to specifically state just how much we're talking here.


Upon reading that article a second time, it occurs to me that the author doesn't cite any reliable source for this information. "those in the know" isn't enough. This actually sounds a bit like the occasional alarmist posts on FB about boycotting if they start charging when there's been no actual announcement from FB about charging.

Either way, I still got rid of my FB page in favor of allowing followers on my personal profile. Less work than managing two profiles and a higher chance of visibility regardless of whether FB charges for promotion or not.


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## anniejocoby (Aug 11, 2013)

kathrynoh said:


> Then I put the entire up at other vendors three months ago and it has seem to really caught on at Apple. My sales there are more than 10x what I get from Amazon. Not massive 5 or 6 figure amounts per month but enough to live on.


Here's the beautiful thing about Apple, and I just now figured it out (because I'm slow). But they'll promote you, even if you aren't a big name. I found that out when I finally got my permafree there for Broken. The darn thing started going wild - 1000 downloads a day. Resulted in my making about $10,000 over there in just two months. I scratched my head and had zero idea how people found me there, but I was thrilled, to say the least.

Cut to now. My other permafree there, Beautiful Illusions, is doing the same darn thing. Going wild, after moving about 20 copies a day for months. It's moving around 1000 copies a day there, and increasing each day. My earnings there have gone through the roof again.

I have no idea what happened, but I can only assume that, somehow someway, Apple has promoted me. I've Googled it, and I can't seem to find what happened. But, needless to say, I'm thrilled.

My takeaway? You don't have to be a top name for Apple to promote you. Which separates that platform from Amazon right now, who generally picks people who are already winning and just makes them win more. Which makes me lurv them like nobody's business. If I could send them a dozen roses right now, I certainly would.


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## Michelle Lowery (Nov 22, 2014)

anniejocoby said:


> Here's the beautiful thing about Apple, and I just now figured it out (because I'm slow). But they'll promote you, even if you aren't a big name. I found that out when I finally got my permafree there for Broken. The darn thing started going wild - 1000 downloads a day. Resulted in my making about $10,000 over there in just two months.


That's fantastic, Annie! I'm a little confused, though. How did you make $10K with a book that was free? Please forgive me if this is a dumb question. I'm still learning how all this works!


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## anniejocoby (Aug 11, 2013)

Michelle Lowery said:


> That's fantastic, Annie! I'm a little confused, though. How did you make $10K with a book that was free? Please forgive me if this is a dumb question. I'm still learning how all this works!


Oh, sorry. The follow on sales over there for the subsequent books in the series are excellent. I mean, excellent. Much higher than at Amazon.  So, the Broken series went absolutely ape-poop gangbusters there fore months.

Love Apple. Love it, love it, love it.

Oh, and one more thing.

I love Apple.


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## Michelle Lowery (Nov 22, 2014)

anniejocoby said:


> Oh, sorry. The follow on sales over there for the subsequent books in the series are excellent. I mean, excellent. Much higher than at Amazon.  So, the Broken series went absolutely ape-poop gangbusters there fore months.
> 
> Love Apple. Love it, love it, love it.
> 
> ...


OH! Ok, gotcha. Man, I was about to say forget Amazon, I'll just make my book free on Apple! Haha!

By the way, something else that wasn't quite clear. Do you love Apple? I'm just curious.


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## Incognita (Apr 3, 2011)

anniejocoby said:


> Oh, sorry. The follow on sales over there for the subsequent books in the series are excellent. I mean, excellent. Much higher than at Amazon.  So, the Broken series went absolutely ape-poop gangbusters there fore months.
> 
> Love Apple. Love it, love it, love it.
> 
> ...


I wish Apple would show me some love like that. Lord knows I've spent enough money on their hardware.


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## Crystal_ (Aug 13, 2014)

kathrynoh said:


> I don't think you can compare the two. I'd never watch a 3-4 hour movie at the cinema - no breaks for cigarettes, toilet trips or snacks! But if I find a book that interests me and it's a long one, I love it. Maybe I'm odd but I'd rather a 450 page book than 3 parts that are 150 pages long. I'd feel like there is more continuity.
> 
> To the OP, at least covers aren't something you have to worry about. They are simply gorgeous.
> 
> ...


Is your NA series a trilogy or three stand alone books?


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## Crystal_ (Aug 13, 2014)

I know this isn't the direction the thread has gone, but this is* MY* plan for 2015:

*January*
Finish writing and editing my trilogy.

*February*
Okay, I admit it. I will still be polishing book two in February.
Rebrand Book 1 (new cover + blurb + editing) and permafree it. Release Book 2 at the same time.
Spend the month studying the romance market, specifically erotica romance and New Adult as I feel they're the best match for my talents and interests and my current trilogy is some bastardized combination that doesn't really fit either.
*March*
Release Book 3 and do everything in my power to buy effective ads (BookBub, ENT, All Romance Reads).
Spend about a month studying the romance market, specifically erotica romance and New Adult as I feel they're the best match for my talents and interests and my current trilogy is some bastardized combination that doesn't really fit either.

*The rest of the year:*
Plan two new series. One with shorter installments--a serial or a novella trilogy--and one longer--a typical romance series of stand alone novels.

One will be erotica romance. One will be NA. Honestly, I haven't decided which will be which. That's why I'm studying the market. To see what I can make work with my natural writing style (without drowning in angst).

Write these series. Either at once, or with the shorter series first. I should be able to write two novels and an entire serial. I don't have a specific release schedule, but I would like to release whatever my next thing is about three months after I release the last book in my trilogy.

So, I estimate I will end up publishing about 4 books (in two series) and a serial in 2015. I will release wide, use perma free on the first book in each series, and experiment with advertising. I have a mailing list. It's tiny at the moment, but I'm hoping it will grow as I release more.

I am in a unique position. I'm young (the last half of my 20s) and not established in any career. I've decided to take the year to write and publish full time, before I go about trying to establish a more traditional career. I'm also looking at "back up" options, mostly programming, teaching, and copywriting (though I'm not too fond of any). I have the savings and the support of my husband to be to make this possible.


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## anniejocoby (Aug 11, 2013)

Michelle Lowery said:


> OH! Ok, gotcha. Man, I was about to say forget Amazon, I'll just make my book free on Apple! Haha!
> 
> By the way, something else that wasn't quite clear. Do you love Apple? I'm just curious.


Just a teensy, tiny bit.


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

What's this about Facebook?


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## Guest (Dec 15, 2014)

anniejocoby said:


> Here's the beautiful thing about Apple, and I just now figured it out (because I'm slow). But they'll promote you, even if you aren't a big name. I found that out when I finally got my permafree there for Broken. The darn thing started going wild - 1000 downloads a day. Resulted in my making about $10,000 over there in just two months. I scratched my head and had zero idea how people found me there, but I was thrilled, to say the least.


Wow, thanks for sharing, Annie! So many people kept saying my sales at Apple and Kobo outdo my Amazon, and no one was saying specifics. Saying three times more could have meant instead $5 it was $15, so thanks a lot. I wonder if it has to do with you going direct. Well, I mean aside from awesome books and covers of course. Lol.

How long were you there before the books took off?


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## I&#039;m a Little Teapot (Apr 10, 2014)

Hooray! Awesome news, Annie! I was hoping you'd get a good kick up into the stratosphere again.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Wansit said:


> What does this mean? You ran a freebie promotion for Book One and saw no sell-through for Book Two?


Yep. On my If Only Series. Over 3K Free downloads...not one single download of book two. I seriously think people just download the free book, don't have time to read it. It sits on their kindle with good intentions, but for ME, Twice now...no click thru sales at all...(sad face) OH, and a not so nice one star review to spoil my record.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

A.E. Williams said:


> Don't know if anyone mentioned it earlier (apologies if you did) but your Amazon Authors Page only lists Lumiere?
> 
> Hopefully you can get the rest added...email Amazon if you already did that and they might have dropped the ball.
> 
> ...


Great thoughts A. E., contacted Amazon today! I did this a while ago and they said they'd fix it...then I didn't check! YIKES!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

kathrynoh said:


> I don't think you can compare the two. I'd never watch a 3-4 hour movie at the cinema - no breaks for cigarettes, toilet trips or snacks! But if I find a book that interests me and it's a long one, I love it. Maybe I'm odd but I'd rather a 450 page book than 3 parts that are 150 pages long. I'd feel like there is more continuity.
> 
> To the OP, at least covers aren't something you have to worry about. They are simply gorgeous.
> 
> ...


Hey kathrynoh, Thanks for the thoughts! I LOVE NA! What's the book, girl! I wanna look it up!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Sheluvspink said:


> Your covers are beautiful. I'll start with that first lol. Have you tried Apple. It may take a little bit but I make 3x more at apple than Amazon. You never know where your book will take off. Also I'd only permafree if you have other books in the series up for sale.


Thanks so so much! And YES, need to get on new platforms like Apple...plan to explore this as soon as I'm totally finished my final draft and submit NOIR to Amazon.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Ronny K said:


> Hey Jacqueline. I remember your last thread on your unexpected struggles, and I'm sort of fascinated/horrified by your story. I think the reason both that thread and this one are getting so much attention is because you have done pretty much everything "by the book," and everyone is stumped. And more than that, your design work is as good as anyone in the world. There's not much I can do to help you, and not much most people can, because you've done your homework. I think you might just be an unfortunate testament to the fact that there is a luck factor--at least as far as determining WHEN you'll take off. I think anyone would be surprised if you don't find success at some point. My useless advice would just be to go back to enjoying your work and try less to force the success. If you keep writing from an honest place and enjoy your work, the success will come for you.


Oh Wow Ronny...thanks so so much for what you're saying here. I think that's why I'm so at a loss too. I hear all this other authors (starting out like me, low like me...getting contacted for features or little promos from Amazon and such or having little bursts in sales and I'm like....omgosh, maybe this is just never gonna be in the cards for me...maybe I'm just going to write and write and I'm never going to find an audience...gulp.) I'm trying to stay positive and write what I want, but write what is logically saleable, too, and write it well, and put out a quality product...and it's very frustrating to see things stalled with little to no growth at all. I very much appreciate your kind words and thoughts. It helps very much that you understand that I'm not trying to find the 'get rich quick button' that some are misunderstanding me to be searching for, and more just sounding off about frustrations, and looking for others in my shoes. I think you are right about my luck factor. (Or the lack there of) Once, a long time ago, when I was a single mom left with 3 kids, trying to date for the first time after about 4 years on my own and not having great success finding more than frogs, the lovely secretary at my school said to me, "You know what the problem is, you're like a really great house in a really crummy market." I fear that may be my on-going CURSE! lol


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

artofstu said:


> I read this article, and I'm still confused. It said something about these changes affecting only "brick and mortar" businesses at the moment. So, does that include author pages or not? And no one has been able to specifically state just how much we're talking here.
> 
> And OP, you write well. Your cover is amazing (and I'm hard to please). But your book is too long for a first book. I tried reading the sample and stopped when I reached that big chunk of italicized text that seemed to be going nowhere. I like steampunk, and I'll probably be buying your book and will push through it in the hope that it'll turn out as awesome as the cover. But it'll be a time when I want to commit to a long read.
> 
> I think the market has slowed, and it'll probably take even longer now to really take off. But you still have 33 positive reviews, and that's nothing to turn your nose up at. Do a bookbub. Sell for 99 cents and see what happens.


Hi Thanks for this! And yes, do push through, the italics is a very important part! lol... all kidding aside, thanks for the purchase and I hope you enjoy! And yes, I've tried for a BookBub but they have refused 3 X said I need MORE reviews...and a higher price for the mark down to count...sigh. But I'm trying again...leaving it at 3.99 for the 90's and will try then! Again, thank you...just feeling really beaten. Nice to hear good thoughts from great people. J


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

anniejocoby said:


> Here's the beautiful thing about Apple, and I just now figured it out (because I'm slow). But they'll promote you, even if you aren't a big name. I found that out when I finally got my permafree there for Broken. The darn thing started going wild - 1000 downloads a day. Resulted in my making about $10,000 over there in just two months. I scratched my head and had zero idea how people found me there, but I was thrilled, to say the least.
> 
> Cut to now. My other permafree there, Beautiful Illusions, is doing the same darn thing. Going wild, after moving about 20 copies a day for months. It's moving around 1000 copies a day there, and increasing each day. My earnings there have gone through the roof again.
> 
> ...


Yes yes, must check into Apple! Thanks!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks so so much everyone! I love the advice and comrade and friendship and support I get on Kindleboards. Without sessions like this, I'd likely have given up by now. (smile) Thank you all for sharing! J


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## CherieMarks (Oct 10, 2011)

gorvnice said:


> Yes, there are exceptions to any rule, but generally your best chance is to write in a hot genre and have a very high work rate.


Sadly, I have to agree. I write both YA Sci Fi Dystopian (the books of my heart) and Hot Romance (contempory and paranormal). I pubbed the YA's first and was very discouraged with the results. Then I started pubbing the romance. In six months time, on one romance book, I'd made as much as both YA's (one of which had been pubbed for a year and half longer than the romance). Genre makes a difference. Don't know if it's because YA readers aren't the ones purchasing books for e-readers (parents have the credit cards) or if it's just the fact romance is a lucrative genre. Either way, my focus is on writing romance now, and the books of my heart are the ones I work on when I can.


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## [email protected] (Mar 20, 2014)

anniejocoby said:


> I have no idea what happened, but I can only assume that, somehow someway, Apple has promoted me. I've Googled it, and I can't seem to find what happened. But, needless to say, I'm thrilled.
> 
> My takeaway? You don't have to be a top name for Apple to promote you. Which separates that platform from Amazon right now, who generally picks people who are already winning and just makes them win more. Which makes me lurv them like nobody's business. If I could send them a dozen roses right now, I certainly would.


I highly recommend checking out www.appannie.com. They are an analytics site primarily aimed at apps for iOS and Android devices, but they have a beta analytic tool for free that checks things on Amazon and the iBookstore. For the iBookstore it can tell you the what countries you are ranked highly in and if you featured under any category in any country in the iBookstore. Using Appannie I found that Beautiful Illusions and Broken are currently number 6 and 7 top free downloads in the Australia iBookstore and show up on the front page there. You can look at any of the iBookstores for different countries in iTunes by going scrolling down to the very bottom and clicking on the flag icon, then choosing the country you'd like to check out. Apple is very strong in Australia.


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## RubyMadden (Jun 11, 2014)

Goodness! Let me just start by saying... {{HUGS}} That's all I got right now. More to come, I think? I do have *one* tiny tip that *might* help a bit. Right now, only one of your titles is associated with your Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/Jacqueline-E.-Garlick/e/B00H9N9WNC

I'd recommend logging into Author Central and associating ALL of your titles so that when a reader/browser clicks on your name, they can find all of your titles with ease.

And on that note, I'm about to go one-click one or two. 

And your covers are gorgeous, btw!!


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## kathrynoh (Oct 17, 2012)

Annie - did you put the complete series up at the same time? I wonder if that helps. I love Apple too. They have made me give up my half-hearted job search.


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## anniejocoby (Aug 11, 2013)

Ooops, I derailed the thread.

Anyhooo....Mizuki, I took off in Apple in June. Prior to my first huge month there, which was June, I was making $100-$200 a month. June was when I jumped to $6000. I wasn't sure how or why, but that was the month that Broken went free. Now I just think that I was promoted there. 

Seven Days, thanks so much for your kind words!

Dan, thanks so much for that! I'm going to check that out, it will be helpful.

Kathrynoh, I put up my Illusions series at the same time, because they were in KDP Select prior. With Broken, I put in the books as I wrote them, except Broken itself, because I stupidly enrolled that one KDP, so, by the time it came out, I had the other two written and already on Apple, but not doing anything (because there was no lead-in book for them there yet).

Anyways, what I also wanted to note is that the sell-through on Apple is so.much.higher than at Amazon, especially now. 

I apologize, Jackie, for derailing your thread. Anyhow, your covers are gorgeous, gorgeous gorgeous. I don't know about the steampunk genre, it sounds interesting, and you probably will be on the verge of taking off soon! You're doing everything right! But producing more and trying permafree might help, although I wouldn't want to permafree a 460 page book. Perhaps write a prequel to that book and permafree that? It could even be a novella. Just something to introduce readers to your books without them having to risk anything. 

I've seen posters around the board saying that permafree doesn't work anymore because the sell-through rate isn't what it used to be. I agree with that, on Amazon. I'm seeing about half of the sell-through that I used to for permafree series on the Zon. I think that Elizabeth West hit on why that is - KU readers really have a ton on their Kindle now, so the freebies get even more lost in the noise than before. That makes sense. Whatever the reason, permafree is definitely less effective than it was, in my estimation, but is still effective. And, as I indicated before, permafree is still awesome on Apple. 

So, yeah. Maybe write a prequel novella so that you can try the permafree strategy. 

And good luck!!!!!!


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## sarahdalton (Mar 15, 2011)

Hey, I'm kind of in the same boat. I write YA, and I'm a genre hopper. I release two full length novels in a year if I'm lucky, but also have some novellas and short stories on the side. 

A few things I've picked up along the way that might help. I've not read through the entire thread so apologies if someone else has mentioned these!

Finishing a series really helps. YA readers have been burned by trade publishing schedules. They read the first book in the series and then have to wait a year for the next release. I think it has made quite a few readers prefer to wait until the entire series has ended. I had a huge bump in sales after I finished my dystopian series. Now I'm part way through two others and the sales for them are limping along. I'm hoping the same will happen when they're finished. 

Novellas and short stories are a great way to increase your number of releases and gather more readers, plus it enriches the world you're writing in. I like to write novellas for secondary characters. They aren't huge sellers, but they are good for long waits between novels. It stops people forgetting who I am!

Make friends with other indie YA writers. There aren't that many of us but we're cool and friendly. Some of the best opportunities that have come my way have been because I keep in touch with a number of writers. I love being part of anthologies and boxed sets. They are a great way of picking up more readers. Cross-promotion is seriously awesome. And most of the time it's free. 

We're all struggling right now. My sales dropped dramatically from the end of the summer and even a pretty successful Bookbub with a free book hasn't sent my sales into the stratosphere. I'm not sure what is to blame, whether it's KU or bargain boxed sets or the fact that so many authors are successful now and there's more competition, but it's tough right now. 

I think your book cover is beautiful, I've actually seen it around and I thought you were a Harper Teen author it's that pretty. I also write YA fantasy and have been thinking of setting up some sort of cross promotion for indie YA fantasy authors. If you're interested let me know.


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## psychotick (Jan 26, 2012)

Hi,

Well it seems my 2015 strategy will be writing sequals. Don't know why but I now have three underway. I can honestly say though, returning to a book three or four years later to write a sequal is a major pain in the posterior. It's an endless continuity nightmare.

Cheers, Greg.


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## sarahdalton (Mar 15, 2011)

One thing I just spotted - I went to your Amazon author page and only Lumiere is listed, but I can see you've got three other books for sale on Amazon. If you go to your Amazon author central page, you can 'claim' those books so that they all appear. A strong Amazon author page can help with your marketing.


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## RM Prioleau (Mar 18, 2011)

You are among the 99% of us in the same situation. As others have said, there is no magic formula, and these days, it's all about luck, really. I've now come to accept this philosophy. I'm not going to stress out over declining sales, because it's happening to everyone. It's not my writing, it's the market, and a competitive one, at that. That's something I think we should all try and understand as writers.

Try genre-hopping and see what sticks. That's what many authors are doing now. You might find a new genre you enjoy that you just might find successful.


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## Ros_Jackson (Jan 11, 2014)

Lumiere is the title I look to when I want an example of how you can do everything right and still not catch a break. I also don't think you should change the title or split it into shorter instalments.

With regard to the FB charging issue, the Write Conversation article may be from unofficial sources, but it echoes some things I've found from FB itself about the way it wants to change its advertising and newsfeeds. https://www.facebook.com/business/news/update-to-facebook-news-feed

There's a Tsu thread on Kboards: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,198295.0.html


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## A Woman&#039;s Place Is In The Rebellion (Apr 28, 2011)

Annie, I really like your idea of writing a novella for the OP's series and making that permafree rather than the 460-page book. 

OP, I know it's been said many times, but your covers are excellent (no such thing as too many compliments!).  If I can echo what a few people have said, I would finish your current series and see how things shake out.  (And I'll be taking my own advice and finishing a YA trilogy next month that I've left hanging for about two years.)

Lastly, I really appreciate the tone of this thread.  It's been helpful and polite ~ when KB is good, it's very good...


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## JR. (Dec 10, 2014)

I'll start generally and get more specific. Take it as critique from someone trying to help, because that's what it is.

Serial SFF has been tried often, and has proven a failure. The short fantasy book on my desk is 580 pages, the longer one on my shelf is closing on 1000, the last sci-fi I read was well over that. The majority of SFF readers don't want what the majority of romance readers want. Take a look at the big names at the moment.

It may be worth writing a novella-length perma-free prequel, though. I'd be curious to see how that works out. I know of several SFF authors that have taken short stories (not serials) and turned them into successful full length series, using the short as marketing material rather than a sales item.

Your book covers are nice, but your price point is high for an unknown author. I see the Amazon ads promoting them for $3 and $4, but I click through and they are $5 and $6. First, there's that hint of anger over the lie - I have no idea what's causing the discrepancy - which may well be enough for the unknown name, but even without that, the price might be enough to tip the risk/reward scales from a potential customer perspective. The print edition of your opening title, which is supposed to drag people in, is $17!

Your reviews claim excellent writing, but the blurbs on those two books say they lie. They need some serious re-writing.

Then go into full-time marketing mode. You've only got the one book out in that series, then it verges off into another. I would be surprised with great success with that. Seeing that before the pre-order of Noir came up I would immediately think I was going to get burnt: "Ah, another GRRM in the works. I'll wait out those six years and see if she gets around to writing the series". *Getting through that point will help a lot.*

So not really the three books people talk about. One in a series that was abandoned (not really, but looking at it from someone browsing through Amazon), then off on a tangent.

This may be incidental, but if I received a letter as a blogger from an author that doesn't capitalise proper nouns or know the difference between '*ad*vertise' and '*add*ition' amongst a host of other errors in your writing, I wouldn't bother either. Treat your social media like another professional face, including forum boards if you intend on that profile being linked to your books.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> Yep. On my If Only Series. Over 3K Free downloads...not one single download of book two. I seriously think people just download the free book, don't have time to read it. It sits on their kindle with good intentions, but for ME, Twice now...no click thru sales at all...(sad face) OH, and a not so nice one star review to spoil my record.


Jegarlick, are your books linked to each other? Meaning, if you download one, at the back does it have a teaser chapter for your other work with a link to purchase?


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## Elizabeth Barone (May 6, 2013)

Hey Jacqueline. Hang in there! I've been at this for a little over 3 years now, and only recently cracked $100 in sales for the month. (October! Happy dance!)

Elizabeth Ann West hit the nail on the head. I made the same mistake. I wanted to build up a catalog, so released several series at once, alternating books. I think I confused and overwhelmed my readers. I also released a lot of shorter works. So, I picked the most popular series and started writing a series of novels with the same characters, due to debut in the first half of next year. 

I'm also releasing a new novel in February, with a new set of characters that ties directly into the series I'll be releasing later in 2015. I've been marketing the crap out of it, and pre-orders are doing better than any I've ever had. Here's a bit of what I've been doing to promote it:

- incentives for Goodreads adds; every X amount of adds unlocks a new reward for my readers (50 to get the first 5 chapters, 100 for a special short in secondary character's POV, etc)

- giveaway on Goodreads to help boost exposure and adds

- sharing unlocked rewards on Twitter and Facebook (read Chapter 1 here!, etc)

- creating and sharing quote graphics on social media

- keeping readers updated on progress—make them feel like they are a part of the book's success

- made a list of ~80 people to contact for reviews; will be contacting them when the release date is 8 weeks away

Another thing I've been doing with all of my books is enrolling them in the Kobo sitewide promotions. Kobo has been very good to me. I also advertise on the less expensive sites, like Bknights through Fiverr.

Keep trying, Jacqueline. It's a tough business, but don't give up!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

RubyMadden said:


> Goodness! Let me just start by saying... {{HUGS}} That's all I got right now. More to come, I think? I do have *one* tiny tip that *might* help a bit. Right now, only one of your titles is associated with your Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/Jacqueline-E.-Garlick/e/B00H9N9WNC
> 
> I'd recommend logging into Author Central and associating ALL of your titles so that when a reader/browser clicks on your name, they can find all of your titles with ease.
> 
> ...


Thanks Ruby! thanks so so much! I will look into that Author Central. I thought I was signed up to it...but likely something is wrong.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

JR. said:


> I'll start generally and get more specific. Take it as critique from someone trying to help, because that's what it is.
> 
> Serial SFF has been tried often, and has proven a failure. The short fantasy book on my desk is 580 pages, the longer one on my shelf is closing on 1000, the last sci-fi I read was well over that. The majority of SFF readers don't want what the majority of romance readers want. Take a look at the big names at the moment.
> 
> ...


I appreciate your input, but I'm not sure I know what you're talking about, my books have never been priced at $5 or $6? Ever. Anywhere. Runs to check...


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

SimonePond said:


> Loving this thread and the helpful suggestions and support. I was just on Goodreads and look what came up in my recommendations. I thought this might give you a glimmer of hope. I've added it to my wish list.


OH WOW!!! Cool!!! What you don't know is happening! WOW! Thanks for this! (smile)


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Yes delly they do have links to one another. Thanks though. I need to change them again, to add the upcoming one, so thanks...


delly_xo said:


> Jegarlick, are your books linked to each other? Meaning, if you download one, at the back does it have a teaser chapter for your other work with a link to purchase?


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## Sheluvspink (May 14, 2014)

I pulled up your If Only book and I think you're sitting on a money maker.

I have no experience with steampunk or ya so I didn't feel comfortable giving your advice on your other titles but If Only is a little more up my alley. What I would do if I were you is promote If Only as more of a NA novel instead of YA. Your covers though beautiful give a YA vibe. If I remember correctly you do graphic design? So it should be easy for you to experiment with your covers.

Look at the best selling NA/Coming of age titled covers on Amazon to see what I'm talking about. Also I'd slightly tweak your blurb so it doesn't give off such a high school vibe. Your reviews say it's steamy so I'm thinking your content can hold up in NA/Contemporary categories. Next thing I'd do as soon as soon as you can is  pull out of select. Make your first book in the series free and go wide. (I'd also go direct as many places as you can on your second book. You get paid faster and have more control over changes to your book.) I mentioned it in this thread before but I make more money at Apple than I do Amazon. Once you've gone wide start promoting your first free book. I wouldn't spend a lot of money on marketing until your series is done but there are a few places I've used that helped me stay in the top 20 in my categories on the freebie side since I went free in September.  Those are bk nights, ENT, Kindle Free books and tips.

None of those are over $50. Start a facebook author page. It's free and not hard to set up at all. Link it in the back of your books and add it to your author central page. It's really easy to build up your fanbase that way. You don't have to post much but it's a good way for readers to interact with you.

I know its scary to give up a piece of your work for free but if it's not selling or barely selling I think the risk is worth it. I went from selling a couple hundred copes a month at mostly at the  .99 cent price point to selling thousands of books a month, my second in the series is 1.99 and my third is  3.99 (well 3.82 thanks to google play)  and both are selling really well. (Also at apple I make more money on my Novella priced at 1.99 because they pay a higher royalty rate than Amazon's perecent being under 2.99) Enough where I've turned in notice at my day job.  If you have any questions feel free to PM me.


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## Drake (Apr 30, 2014)

This thread has been all over the place, so I'd like to make an observation to the OP.  All of the tips on here are helpful, and I try to read most of them and use the best ideas.  The one thing that seems to get overlooked is that everyone is trying to guess how to outsmart Amazon and the rest of the market, or bemoaning the loss of "The good old days", when it was easier to make a fortune here.

Every business changes.  Those who let the changes crush them don't make it.  Those who adapt to the new environment frequently do better than they did before.  It's business, and it's a part of life.  Adapt or die.  

In the meantime, I'm grateful to have the opportunity to make a living from writing.  I do hope for growth in my sales and improvement through experience in my writing abilities, but I'm also happy just to be here.  Good luck, and don't be discouraged.  All of the best writers suffered through years of rejection.


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## Guest (Dec 17, 2014)

One thing I want to add is that steampunk is a really tough market for an indie. I know, I'm sitting in that pool next to you and there's not a lot of water... I've had long chats with a couple of other steampunk authors and we're all in the same situation, low sales comparable to other genres. I really think you need to branch out and personally think your NA novels are your way forward. I'm switching genre and am plotting out a Regency romance series at the moment that I hope will give me some traction. As much as I love my steampunk worlds, they have a very narrow niche market. Without a large publishing deal behind you for added visibility, I simply don't think steampunk books have the scope to make a living wage - but I'm happy to be proven wrong!


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## thomaskcarpenter (May 17, 2011)

First, the covers are gorgeous.  

And you may not be doing anything wrong, per se.  You just have to stay persistent.  Indie publishing is well past the gold rush days.  Now we're reaching a mature market and you have to be thinking longer term.  Just keep writing and learning and publishing.


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## Michael La Ronn (Jun 17, 2013)

I'm posting here to commisserate with you, Jacqueline. I love your covers and I don't think you're doing anything bad. In fact, quite the opposite.  I myself could learn a thing or two from you.

I'm nowhere near where I want to be either. Things aren't going to get any easier in 2015. It wouldn't surprise me if next year forces a lot of indies out of the market because it's getting harder. But if you keep publishing and try new genres, you'll be able to weather the storm. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful, but I felt that I had to post because I was impressed by your cover, book, blurb, and marketing so far.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Tilly said:


> One thing I want to add is that steampunk is a really tough market for an indie. I know, I'm sitting in that pool next to you and there's not a lot of water... I've had long chats with a couple of other steampunk authors and we're all in the same situation, low sales comparable to other genres. I really think you need to branch out and personally think your NA novels are your way forward. I'm switching genre and am plotting out a Regency romance series at the moment that I hope will give me some traction. As much as I love my steampunk worlds, they have a very narrow niche market. Without a large publishing deal behind you for added visibility, I simply don't think steampunk books have the scope to make a living wage - but I'm happy to be proven wrong!


I agree wholeheartedly Tilly!!! And I LOVE YOUR COVERS...breathtaking...TO DIE FOR....(swoons, falls over...) SERIOUSLY...just had to say it. And thank for the information. I agree. I am branching out...just have to finish what I've started here.  But I'm with you!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Michael La Ronn said:


> I'm posting here to commisserate with you, Jacqueline. I love your covers and I don't think you're doing anything bad. In fact, quite the opposite.  I myself could learn a thing or two from you.
> 
> I'm nowhere near where I want to be either. Things aren't going to get any easier in 2015. It wouldn't surprise me if next year forces a lot of indies out of the market because it's getting harder. But if you keep publishing and try new genres, you'll be able to weather the storm. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful, but I felt that I had to post because I was impressed by your cover, book, blurb, and marketing so far.


Glad you posted Michael...so nice to know I'm not alone. Though I wish we were both in a better place.  I'm thrilled with the outpouring of advice and support and love on this thread...I really didn't post it to be complaining or seeking out a magic solution, I really just posted to see if anyone was feeling as downtrodden as I, and this has been lovely to hear from kindred spirits and from people who have so much wisdom to share, and I thank them all for sharing!


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Sheluvspink said:


> I pulled up your If Only book and I think you're sitting on a money maker.
> 
> I have no experience with steampunk or ya so I didn't feel comfortable giving your advice on your other titles but If Only is a little more up my alley. What I would do if I were you is promote If Only as more of a NA novel instead of YA. Your covers though beautiful give a YA vibe. If I remember correctly you do graphic design? So it should be easy for you to experiment with your covers.
> 
> ...


This is so interesting. Thank YOU! It's interesting because I original did launch IF ONLY as an NA title, worried about the more racy content, (with an older looking cover) and was quickly slapped down that it was clearly YA and not NA material (the story really is about a high school couple and an incident at a barn party) and was hit with complaints...so I changed the covers and listed under YA with an advanced material warning, instead. I've been considering putting it just in regular fiction, coming of age...I dunno? I will PM you to discuss further, thank you for the invitation!


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

Have you tried just putting your steam punk into Victorian historical fiction or British historical fiction? I think steam punk suffers from that not a lot of people really know it exists. I'd say it's heyday was about 4-5 years ago when trad pub was putting out major contracts left and right for it, but even then, most readers didn't GET what it was. It gets marketed as scifi so often, but I'm NOT a huge scifi reader, I'm a historical fiction reader and I LOVE steampunk. I with the historical aspect of it was pushed more than the speculative fiction aspect of it.


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## RubyMadden (Jun 11, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> Thanks Ruby! thanks so so much! I will look into that Author Central. I thought I was signed up to it...but likely something is wrong.


You're welcome, sometimes it's the 'little' things. My background in web development/ecommerce taught me that all the 'little' things start to add up. Especially if you find yourself asking/wondering; _why can't they find me?!_

It's up to you, the author/producer of the work to make it super easy to find you. Another tip for _AuthorCentral_, you have to associate each new publication with your author profile. So add that to your checklist for each new book you launch. One might think that Amazon would do so automatically, but they don't. They have so many separate server systems that sometimes the 'monkey' (my humorous term for human employees) have to prime the machine a bit.

Okay, that's what I got for ya today. Will come back with more tips.


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## Guest (Dec 19, 2014)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Have you tried just putting your steam punk into Victorian historical fiction or British historical fiction? I think steam punk suffers from that not a lot of people really know it exists.


Unfortunately if you do that, what follows are a slew of negative reviews for "historical inaccuracies." People who want to pick up Victorian/British historical fiction expect accuracy and, unfortunately, some miss the airships, pirates and mechanical creations that give it away that it's actually steampunk. Readers then salivate at the mouth about how you used the wrong fork in your description of the dinner setting. If you're looking for a wider category it's better to aim for one of the fantasy ones in my experience, or I have enjoyed some success in the Action & Adventure>Romance sub-category.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

Thanks Tilly. Agreed. But thanks Elizabeth for caring and commenting...and you too, Ruby. I feel blessed to be getting so much wonderful help! (smiling inside)


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## RubyMadden (Jun 11, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> Thanks Tilly. Agreed. But thanks Elizabeth for caring and commenting...and you too, Ruby. I feel blessed to be getting so much wonderful help! (smiling inside)


You're welcome!


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## deedawning (Aug 31, 2013)

Tilly said:


> One thing I want to add is that steampunk is a really tough market for an indie. I know, I'm sitting in that pool next to you and there's not a lot of water... I've had long chats with a couple of other steampunk authors and we're all in the same situation, low sales comparable to other genres. I really think you need to branch out and personally think your NA novels are your way forward. I'm switching genre and am plotting out a Regency romance series at the moment that I hope will give me some traction. As much as I love my steampunk worlds, they have a very narrow niche market. Without a large publishing deal behind you for added visibility, I simply don't think steampunk books have the scope to make a living wage - but I'm happy to be proven wrong!


I agree with you Tilly. I just remarked to someone the other day that Steampunk never took off the way way everyone touted it would 2 years ago. If I had steampunk stories (which I don't) what I would do is republish them in the closest genre that fits, whether it be paranormal, fantasy, horror, mystery or whatever they have to be close to some other genre. It can't hurt


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## deedawning (Aug 31, 2013)

Half Pint said:


> I have over forty-five titles and six pen names. Most are novella length and shorter. They are romance, erotic romance, and erotica. I started making a living wage once I picked up my production schedule and stopped worrying about perfection. Oddly, a serial that was under preforming for over a year (languishing in the 500,000+ range), I rebranded and republished under a new pen name and it is now one of my best sellers. There are a lot of different ways to do this self publishing thing. My best advice is to loosen up, relax, have fun, and stop being a perfectionist. That and... publish more. A LOT more.


What happenes if someone who read the old version by author A buys the new version by Author B?


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> Thanks Tilly. Agreed. But thanks Elizabeth for caring and commenting...and you too, Ruby. I feel blessed to be getting so much wonderful help! (smiling inside)


You know, Jim Butcher is coming out with a steampunk series. Maybe there'll be a renewed interest in the genre after that.


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## deedawning (Aug 31, 2013)

Do I feel like you? Afraid so. My first post on KBoards some 18 months ago highlighted a Blog I wrote titled Is Amazon my Friend? and it predicted some of the things happening to you, me and some of the other posters on your thread. From the response to my thread you'd think I was some kind of troublemaker. How dare anyone say anything bad about God Amazon? Some of the respondents were fairly rude.

At that time my earnings had fallen from $3000 a month 33 months ago to about $1200, with about twenty new books added. But now it's even worse. Someone said they now put in 16 hours a day 7 days a week. I'm not quite there, but unless something takes me away from my computer, I'm there ten to twelve hours, seven days a week and I have to do that to keep from going below $500-600, again with another twenty books added to the catalog. I understand that some do well, even great. Good for them. I'm not ready to give up yet. Thankfully, I make money from other vendors, but overall I'd say I'm working for half of minimum wage per hour. Like I joked on Twitter the other day, if you work 24/7 at minimum wage it adds up to a sizable sum.

I don't think Amazon really cares about it's authors, but I think Amazon realizes it made some mistakes. They're cutting down on free books and will probably. eventually do away with them altogether. There were no free books before Amazon unveiled Select three years ago and since that time ten thousand free books came on line every day. Is it any wonder that much of the public refrains from paying for anything. Many readers would tell their friends "Don't buy any books. Wait until they're free." Maybe when there are no or limited free books we can get some sanity in this marketplace. I look for 99 cents to become the new free.


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## deedawning (Aug 31, 2013)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> I honestly still don't get why everyone thinks advice only applies to ONE genre. People like to say "yeah, but ROMANCE readers buy a lot" Well. Why? Why do they buy a lot of books? Because long ago a publisher said we're going to mass produce 45-60,000 word novels and pump them into the market and make it EASY for our readers to keep on buying and reading books. My mother received a postcard in the mail all the time how she could buy 6 romance novels for just $.01 and then be sent a monthly editor's selection each month for just $2.99 a book, she only has to buy 4 books in a year then she can quit her subscription.
> 
> Where is the SciFi Harlequin? Scifi readers are just as voracious as romance readers. It's just a self-fulfilling prophecy. Every author writes long so every new author thinks they have to write long so all the readers get are . . . impossibly long books. How did WOOL do well?
> 
> My books are not in Historical Romance. That's because they wouldn't sell there. There's no sex in my JAFF books and that's what historical romance readers want. My books are in historical fiction and Christian romance. My book is as much a "romance" as a scifi book that also has a love story in it. And being a subniche of a niche, I have a clear idea how big my audience is, about 5,000 sales probably over the lifetime of a book with 2,000 coming in the first 6 months and the rest a sale or two a day for years. The largest JAFF forum has about 7,000 active members.


The actual biggest seller by far is Mystery. That's why it's the most expensive on BookBub. Nevertheless I don't think just anyone can switch back and forth between genres. There has to be a comfort level to what you write. And in the case of mysteries some law enforcement/justice dept experience is almost requisite.


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## deedawning (Aug 31, 2013)

anniejocoby said:


> Oh, sorry. The follow on sales over there for the subsequent books in the series are excellent. I mean, excellent. Much higher than at Amazon.  So, the Broken series went absolutely ape-poop gangbusters there fore months.
> 
> Love Apple. Love it, love it, love it.
> 
> ...





anniejocoby said:


> Oh, sorry. The follow on sales over there for the subsequent books in the series are excellent. I mean, excellent. Much higher than at Amazon.  So, the Broken series went absolutely ape-poop gangbusters there fore months.
> 
> Love Apple. Love it, love it, love it.
> 
> ...


Hi Annie, I have a couple of questions. I have a couple perma-frees on Apple and I don't get one percent of what you're talking about. Maybe it's your books vs mine, but maybe not. Did you put your books up directly? Mine went through Smashwords. And if you put your's up directly did you make any requests to have it perma-free or did you just price it free. Did you have any conversations about putting it free and lastly did you do anything special to promote your perma-free book.


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## jegarlick (Jun 23, 2013)

artofstu said:


> You know, Jim Butcher is coming out with a steampunk series. Maybe there'll be a renewed interest in the genre after that.


Here's hoping! I love the genre...love writing it...but the readers need to be there to make it work!


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

jegarlick said:


> Here's hoping! I love the genre...love writing it...but the readers need to be there to make it work!


Well, it is a niche genre. When I think of steampunk, I can't help but think of those fringe (for lack of a better word) cosplayer types. And I'm sure they're reading the fiction because that's what started it all. But how many are there, total? Certainly thousands. I think you should start hitting the sci-fi/fantasy convention circuit, if you haven't already done so.


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## Kirkee (Apr 2, 2014)

Self-Pubber: Someone who prefers to stagger from pub to pub
without any help from anyone else.

Hope this helps.


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## anniejocoby (Aug 11, 2013)

deedawning said:


> Hi Annie, I have a couple of questions. I have a couple perma-frees on Apple and I don't get one percent of what you're talking about. Maybe it's your books vs mine, but maybe not. Did you put your books up directly? Mine went through Smashwords. And if you put your's up directly did you make any requests to have it perma-free or did you just price it free. Did you have any conversations about putting it free and lastly did you do anything special to promote your perma-free book.


I upload everywhere directly. There's no requesting to go free on other platforms - you just price it free from the get-go. The exception is Nook - you cannot go free there unless you use Smashwords or D2D. I would suggest, highly suggest, D2D for that purpose, just because when I tried to distribute a free book to Nook through Smashwords it never did get it to Nook. I waited a month and uploaded to D2D, and D2D got it to Nook within days. So...

I haven't done anything special to promote the permafree book on other channels. I wish I knew how to promote effectively on other platforms. I will say that when you do free promotions your downloads on all channels are helped slightly. If you do BB, it helps Nook a whole lot, and Kobo somewhat. BB didn't affect Apple hardly at all, and on Google, not at all.

Apple, I think, has promoted my free titles twice now, and, both times, it has been remarkable how much it has helped. I'm still in the afterglow of an Apple promotion right now that went through towards the first of last month. Again, though, you can't really schedule promotions with Apple or anybody else with any kind of certainty, which is frustrating. You kinda just have to wait and see if Apple "picks" your book to promote. If they do, hoo boy, it's awesome.

Like anybody else, I would like a better way of promoting on Nook and everywhere else, but, so far, my success on other channels has been due to dumb luck.


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## Davout73 (Feb 20, 2014)

artofstu said:


> Well, it is a niche genre. When I think of steampunk, I can't help but think of those fringe (for lack of a better word) cosplayer types. And I'm sure they're reading the fiction because that's what started it all. But how many are there, total? Certainly thousands. I think you should start hitting the sci-fi/fantasy convention circuit, if you haven't already done so.


Cherie Priest and Scott Westerfeld have had a lot of recent success in the steampunk genre. It's always been a well served niche, but count me among those who think Butcher's foray into it may put it closer to "mainstream".

Dav


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