“Usually at least once in a person’s childhood we lose an object that at the time is invaluable and irreplaceable to us, although it is worthless to others. Many people remember that lost article for the rest of their lives. Whether it was a lucky pocketknife, a transparent plastic bracelet given to you by your father, a toy you had longed for and never expected to receive, but there it was under the tree on Christmas… it makes no difference what it was. If we describe it to others and explain why it was so important, even those who love us smile indulgently because to them it sounds like a trivial thing to lose. Kid stuff. But it is not. Those who forget about this object have lost a valuable, perhaps even crucial memory. Because something central to our younger self resided in that thing. When…
I have got a few e-books in Kindle Unlimited – but way more – (like about forty e-books) – that are available through Kobo, Nook, Apple, Smashwords, Tolino and several other markets – as WELL as Kindle.
We recently read, with significant interest, a series of articles that author Nick Stephenson began posting regarding experiments in pulling titles out of KDP Select (a program that Amazon runs which encourages authors to publish their titles to Kindle and make them unavailable anywhere else, whether that’s another retailer or selling directly from the author’s own website)
In a post entitled Income Report: Why Exclusivity is Bad (Unless You’re Amazon), Stephenson talks about how exclusivity can be a good thing, but then outlines an imaginary conversation between a breakfast cereal manufacturer and Walmart, in order to illustrate whether or not the supplier is getting a fair wholesale price and actual tangible benefits.
He goes on to make a few conclusions regarding going all in with a single retailer (we’ve captured some highlights below):
The bottom line: exclusivity is a terrible idea if you’re not getting anything in return for…
I thought I’d have a little fun today so I gave myself an hour to come up with as many different situations I could think of when you know you’re a writer. So, you know when you’re a writer when…
Every argument you have becomes fodder for your WIP, but smarter, snappier and with you winning.
You would rather spend time on your WIP than do work that pays more in a day than you book will likely earn in a month.
You love every part of your WIP.
You hate every part of your WIP.
You know what WIP means.
You stop a conversation mid-sentence to write down a plot point that’s just occurred to you.
You cannot stop thinking about your novel. Ever. Even in your dreams.
You know your main character better than your best friend.
You have conversations with your characters in your head.
As for myself – well, I spent absolutely NOTHING on the creation of my latest e-book, Tales From The Tangled Wood: Six Stories to SERIOUSLY Creep You Out.
You like that?
I am kind of pleased with how it turned out. I have moved a few copies through Kindle Unlimited so far, but I am saving my big push for next month. On February 5th – 7th the book will be available as a freebie on Kindle. If you are a member of Kindle Unlimited please free to grab a copy today – or, if you are a member of the work-a-day crowd, like myself – wait until that first week of February and grab a copy.
Just do me a favor and put it on your Amazon Wish List right now, so that Amazon will e-mail you a note to let you know when you grab it for free. Memory is such a trifler. Do not take a chance on missing your opportunity.
I am just putting together a collection of Weird Western stories that should be available around that same time – and I spent a whole five dollars on the cover for that one already. That’s right. Steve Vernon spares NO expense.
🙂
Seriously, I am always much happier when I can afford a cover artist to do up a proper cover – such as the cover that KERI KNUTSON put together for UNCLE BOB’S RED FLANNEL BIBLE CAMP: FROM EDEN TO THE ARK.
Like that?
You can see the difference that hiring an experienced cover artist can make in an e-book release.
UNCLE BOB moved almost FIVE HUNDRED free copies yesterday, and has gone on to sell a few more paid copies today.
A good cover makes a lot of difference.
SO…if you ARE just getting into indie e-publishing you REALLY ought too budget a little for covers, promoting and investing in an editor’s services.
And if you DO NOT think you need to hire an editor why don’t you read this whole blog entry again and tell me where I made my last spelling mistake?
So, all of you writer-types out there – how much do you budget for the release of an e-book?
I am ALWAYS looking for more reviews but I am afraid I feel the very same way about review swapping. No, no I do NOT want to swap book reviews, thank you very much!
🙂
I’ve never been sought after as a book reviewer until I began posting on some Facebook book promotion groups. I’ve written book reviews in the past, but I don’t mention that on my website, blog or Facebook page. I also joined some groups where readers gave reviews. Soon I learned that 99% of those readers were also authors who needed their books reviewed. I was sent requests to swap reviews several times a day.
“Hi, are you interested for a review exchange? My book is FREE on Kindle.”
“Hi Lisa, can we swap for your book? let me know. thanks”
“Hi Lisa, are you up for an honest review exchange? I have downloaded your book and if you’ll give me a go signal then ill leave a positive review for your book. I have two books for free right now and ill appreciate if you”ll choose one…
Creative Commons: Ninha Morandini
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