Hello from Denver - self publishing success

[joanna]

Price matching is also called perma-free

It takes a while from my experience. The more people you can get to click on the link like Held for Ransom explained, the higher the chances Amazon will do it (and the quicker it might happen). Another thing to note is that apparently they are more likely to do it if you report the price being different on B&N or Kobo, rather than just Smashwords itself or some other random place. Lastly you will need to go through the process separately for US, UK, etc. as the Amazon sites are pretty much separate entities (annoying in so many ways...). This means that they can price match your US book, but several months later the UK one is still paid... - that's my sister's experience

 

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[garyfritz]

I finally caught up with this thread, *whew* ! HfR, kudos to you for creating and refining such a great system, and especially for generously sharing your wisdom with your fellow Fastlaners. (And "hi" from just up the road in Ft. Collins!) Could you shoot me the link to your Amazon tool, please?

Some questions that have come to mind...

I'm amazed that you crank out a book, drop it into Amazon's gaping maw, and never look back. Apparently Amazon does a good enough job of promoting new releases that it's working out for you, but wouldn't you get better results if you did a bit of promotion? I wouldn't bother with creating a Facebook page and tweeting & all that, but if you know of a large fan group of readers who might be interested in your book, wouldn't it make some sense to post a quick announcement or something like that?

How important is Good Writing? I savor reading books by certain authors, because they write such great prose. If your readers also really enjoy your writing style, aren't they more likely to buy more of your books, and won't your books have longer shelf life? But it takes a lot longer to find that perfect turn of phrasing that really makes writing sparkle. Is it worth it?

 

[Brad_7373]

WOW! Epic thread Held for Ransom! This is a gold mine of information. Congratulations on your success, you've inspired me to start writing short fiction novels. If you could pm me that research tool of yours when you have the time, that would be amazing! I would buy your system if you were to sell it. Thanks heaps

 

[garyfritz]

I'm trying to stumble my way through Amazon's navigation...

If I choose an established category (e.g. fantasy), it shows me the top 100. Cool, that lets me check on the strength of the top books in that category. But how many books are in that category?

If I search for a category by name (e.g. search for "fantasy"), it tells me there are over 121,000 books in that category. OK, but how can I sort them by Amazon sales rank to find which ones are strongest? N&P doesn't do that. I don't see how to get the top 100 listing except by choosing an established category.

Is there a better way to navigate, especially in non-"standard" sub-genres?

 

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[FiveOone]

Amazing thread HFR, just wow. I remember first reading this when it was a single page.

A few questions if you dont mind though.

You mentioned in your OP that you looked into writing due to a friend that was having some success writing e-books, how did you make the jump from not being a writer to producing a legible first title? I know you said that you did some research on Amazon, but Im having trouble imagining someone just sitting down and blasting out 20k words having never written before.

Also, did I read correctly when you said you design the covers and title before writing the story?

Another question, and this is open to anyone that writes in the Romance or Erotica genre. If you have a partner, how did you tell them what genre you were writing in? And do you let them read your work? The reason I ask is, if I was to spend the majority of my days writing about people getting their freak on, I imagine my girlfriend would either, A) Think some of the depraved things I'm writing about is what I wanted from her and think Im a freak. B) That I was cheating on her, or C) Suggest I seek professional help lol.

So how did they react to you telling them or you showing them your work? Or do you just not say anything?

Anyway, keep up the great work HFR, I truly hope this is just the beginning for you.

Also, if could you pm the link to the tool it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[COSenior]

Another question, and this is open to anyone that writes in the Romance or Erotica genre. If you have a partner, how did you tell them what genre you were writing in? And do you let them read your work?

I just told my husband I was going to write Erotica, and I told him I'd prefer he didn't read it, for exactly the reasons you mentioned--and I told him the reasons. We have a long-established trusting relationship, so that worked for me. Don't know if it would work for someone you refer to as a girlfriend. How long have you been together? How much do you want to stay with her? I would definitely answer those questions, if I were you, before jumping into this genre. If nothing else, writing this stuff revs your engine, so she's going to know something is up (pardon the pun). And if it doesn't do that for you, it won't do it for your readers, either.

Good luck!

 

[joanna]

Another question, and this is open to anyone that writes in the Romance or Erotica genre. If you have a partner, how did you tell them what genre you were writing in? And do you let them read your work? The reason I ask is, if I was to spend the majority of my days writing about people getting their freak on, I imagine my girlfriend would either, A) Think some of the depraved things I'm writing about is what I wanted from her and think Im a freak. B) That I was cheating on her, or C) Suggest I seek professional help lol.

So how did they react to you telling them or you showing them your work? Or do you just not say anything?

Anyway, keep up the great work HFR, I truly hope this is just the beginning for you.

Also, if could you pm the link to the tool it would be greatly appreciated.

Well I guess you could use it as a girlfriend filter or a conversation starter... My fiance reads all my books including erotica - he's my proofreader, before I send them to the proper editor.

A) It's a good idea to talk with your partner so that they realize which books/kinks are just because of a market need and not your preference in bed. It is a good opportunity to have a discussion with your parter about what ARE your kinks and theirs... You might be surprised and get some inspiration

B) porn/erotica can be controversial, for some people no matter what you do/say it will be cheating/a sin/whatever - if you're comfortable with it and they aren't it's something YOU will need to consider

I was actually wondering, is it easier for the other half when the writer is male or female? Or about the same?

 

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[bensonj]

Just wanted to pass along this free (has a low cost premium option) writing tool that I found. I used it today and it caught my misspelled words, repeated words (one of my biggest problems) and much more. I am going to start using it as a pre-edit before I send to the person who does my final editing/proofreading. It should cut down editing time. You can use it online, download it into Word and/or use it in Wordpress.

I didn't see this posted in the Author's Forum or here - hope you all find it useful. After writing for hours, my eyes cross it has helped me tremendously.

Thanks HFR for all of your advice and help in this area. I've learned so much from this thread!

Pro Writing Aid - Writing Improvement & Editing Software

 

[Kencan98]

OK so after reading this thread I decided to give it a go. I wrote a 17,000 word novella in 3 days and it went live yesterday. I'm also about 2,000 words into part 2 and plan on finishing that over the weekend.

My question is that my categories are not showing for the book. Every other book I see says Kindle>Fiction>Thriller or whatever. Mine says nothing.

Does it take time for it to show up?

Right now I'm in the 40,000 range so my book would be on the first page for my category if it was showing up but it's not.

Thanks for all the great insight in this thread.

 

[COSenior]

My question is that my categories are not showing for the book. Every other book I see says Kindle>Fiction>Thriller or whatever. Mine says nothing.

Did you do the submission to Amazon yourself, or hire someone else to do it? If yourself, did you notice the Categories section on the first page? You have to supply them, it isn't automatic. If you hired someone else, they should have asked you in what categories you wanted to place it. But no worries. You can go back to your bookshelf, click on your title and scroll down to #3. There you can add categories and keywords. Then republish. Your title will remain live in the Kindle Store even though the Bookshelf status is showing Pending or Publishing. Your changes take a little while to take effect, but should be there when the status changes back to Live.

 

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[Kencan98]

Did you do the submission to Amazon yourself, or hire someone else to do it? If yourself, did you notice the Categories section on the first page? You have to supply them, it isn't automatic. If you hired someone else, they should have asked you in what categories you wanted to place it. But no worries. You can go back to your bookshelf, click on your title and scroll down to #3. There you can add categories and keywords. Then republish. Your title will remain live in the Kindle Store even though the Bookshelf status is showing Pending or Publishing. Your changes take a little while to take effect, but should be there when the status changes back to Live.

Hey, thanks for the advice. I did that when I published.

View attachment 5686

But they are not showing for my book.



Rank dropped off a bit but it is what it is. And I have no idea why my skitch is in pink..lol.

 

[FiveOone]

Thanks for the replies COSenior and Joanna. I think If I were to start writing in that genre It would be a similar scenario to what you have CO. Let her know what I'm doing yet also mention that I would prefer she didn't read it, although she has an excellent grasp on English and grammar and would come in very handy as a proofreader .
Partner is a more accurate term than girlfriend, bad choice of words on my part. We've been together a long time, even have a young son together so yeah, i'd like to keep her around. I think for the most part she would just be like, Really? This is what you're choosing to do? Out of everything, you want to do this? I dont know, this is all very new to me and I've found a bunch of different genres with what look like deep reader pools so before I settle on something I will be looking even closer at all of these before giving it a shot.

I was actually wondering, is it easier for the other half when the writer is male or female? Or about the same?

I Imagine its totally dependant on the people and the relationship, I could imagine it destroying some relationships while strengthening others, hard to say.

I wrote a 17,000 word novella in 3 days and it went live yesterday.

And nice job Kencan, 17k words in 3 days and have already gone live, yikes. Talk about taking action, congrats!

 

[COSenior]

Hey, thanks for the advice. I did that when I published.

If I'm interpreting what's on my screen correctly, you published in CreateSpace, rather than Kindle? Sorry, Ken, missed that. I have no idea then. Been too busy writing to create covers for CreateSpace. So much to write! So little time!

Hopefully someone with more experience on here can guide you. Sorry to stick my oar in where I'm not qualified.

 

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[Kencan98]

Hey, thanks for the advice. I did that when I published.

If I'm interpreting what's on my screen correctly, you published in CreateSpace, rather than Kindle? Sorry, Ken, missed that. I have no idea then. Been too busy writing to create covers for CreateSpace. So much to write! So little time!

Hopefully someone with more experience on here can guide you. Sorry to stick my oar in where I'm not qualified.

Nevermind. I accidentally lied to all of you. I guess it just takes a little while for them to show because now they are there.

Thanks so much for the help.

I do have to work on my sentence structure and all that boring stuff though. My story is pretty good (I think) but I have no idea how to write dialogue. It seems like there is a new paragraph every line when there's a lot of talking.

Right now I'm right in the 40,000's. #92 in one category, #47 in the other, and #89 in the "books" category. Not bad for my first fiction try.

And I also submitted to Createspace because I figured it was one more category I could try and rank in. For those doing that here's a little cover tip I found out. When you download the template make sure you add a layer above the template and create your cover on that layer and above. I created my first cover on the template (without adding a layer above it) and it got kicked back because the guides were showing. Create layers over the template and get rid of the template layer before turning the image to a pdf.

 

[ChickenHawk]

An update, I now have three books out there. I uploaded book 3 within the last week and had just a couple of sales, but those were from family.

I'm running another two-day free promo. So far, I've "sold" 400 free books, compared to 300 for the last book in this genre. I don't know if this increase means anything, or if it will translate to any actual sales. I'm still having serious doubts about my genre, because the sales of my first two books have completely fallen off a cliff. I'm torn, wondering if I should try another genre or stick with my original plan of doing at least seven in this genre so I can get a real feel for it.

Two things disappoint me: (1) These free copies haven't translated to any reviews, and (2) the free copies for book 3 haven't led to any sales in book 2. It's not what I expected. I figured there'd be some crossover sales, but maybe free people aren't buyers or reviewers.

The Amazon stats indicate there are a few people doing well in this genre, but I'm having a bit of trouble cracking into it.

What to do, what to do...?

 

[Breaking Free]

An update, I now have three books out there. I uploaded book 3 within the last week and had just a couple of sales, but those were from family.

I'm running another two-day free promo. So far, I've "sold" 400 free books, compared to 300 for the last book in this genre. I don't know if this increase means anything, or if it will translate to any actual sales. I'm still having serious doubts about my genre, because the sales of my first two books have completely fallen off a cliff. I'm torn, wondering if I should try another genre or stick with my original plan of doing at least seven in this genre so I can get a real feel for it.

Two things disappoint me: (1) These free copies haven't translated to any reviews, and (2) the free copies for book 3 haven't led to any sales in book 2. It's not what I expected. I figured there'd be some crossover sales, but maybe free people aren't buyers or reviewers.

The Amazon stats indicate there are a few people doing well in this genre, but I'm having a bit of trouble cracking into it.

What to do, what to do...?

If you're not willing to share your genre (which I totally get), what are your lengths, price points, time between releases, and where did you publish it?

There's a lot of factors. Most e-publishers don't see much in results for the first several books. It took HfR some time to get some decent sales, if I recall.

Also, have you done any research off this board? There's a lot of opinion that low priced and "free" works come across as bargain bin, and people pass them up.

 

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[ChickenHawk]

If you're not willing to share your genre (which I totally get), what are your lengths, price points, time between releases, and where did you publish it?

There's a lot of factors. Most e-publishers don't see much in results for the first several books. It took HfR some time to get some decent sales, if I recall.

Also, have you done any research off this board? There's a lot of opinion that low priced and "free" works come across as bargain bin, and people pass them up.

Thanks for the response!

They're all on Amazon, exclusive because I did their KDP select program. The lengths are as follows:
Book #1: 18,000 words plus illustrations, released late July. $2.99
Book #2: 300 words (but heavy on the illustrations), released early August. $1.25
Book #3: 14,500 words plus illustrations, released mid-August. $2.99

On this thread and others, I've heard that it takes a few books before you see any results. So I might not give it much thought. But then I also hear of first books selling a couple hundred out of the gate, and this makes me wonder if I should be spending some time on a different genre(s).

You know what my main problem is? A lack of time. Ugh! I have a few genres I'd like to tackle, but the dreaded day job makes it hard to do all of them at once.

 

[Breaking Free]

I've had to make time. I cut out everything that didn't have to do with writing, and I still struggle for time, from just house and animal upkeep and the demands of my slowlane job. It's not easy, and takes sacrifice. So you have to stick with it, trusting in your research. Changing genres might be a good idea, or might dilute your work (can't say if yours was a good choice or not, only you can). Or find another path. It's not easy, but anything worth doing isn't easy.

But writing is a skill like any other. You'll get better and faster the more you do it. Take a few minutes during a slowlane break and write some ideas, map out a story. Make it your life, your obsession. You have to really, really want it.

That being said, I finished my third rough draft today, and going to start the editing here soon. I should have it ready for my girlfriend to read Sunday, and so far I'm ahead of schedule for my goal to start e-publishing.

 

[ChickenHawk]

I finished my third rough draft today, and going to start the editing here soon. I should have it ready for my girlfriend to read Sunday, and so far I'm ahead of schedule for my goal to start e-publishing.

Congrats! Please keep us posted on how it goes, and I'll do the same. For all my obsessing over the numbers, I should be encouraged. Book #3 is now on track for double the free downloads as book #2. If that translates to sales, I'll definitely be moving in the right direction.

As far as time, I've cut out everything but the essentials too. Work, family-time, and chores are pretty much the only things that pull me away. What I REALLY need to do is ditch the job.

 

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[Kencan98]

My categories disappeared again. Does anyone know why this is happening. They were not showing on the sales page when I first launched the book this morning. then they were there. now they are gone again.

 

[ChickenHawk]

My categories disappeared again. Does anyone know why this is happening. They were not showing on the sales page when I first launched the book this morning. then they were there. now they are gone again.

I've noticed categories disappearing too. But they always reappear. I wish I could say why. I'm still figuring out the whole category thing.

 

[Jonleehacker]

The Amazon stats indicate there are a few people doing well in this genre, but I'm having a bit of trouble cracking into it.

Producing a lot of books is definitely one of the keys that HfR has emphasized, but knowing exactly what your target audience wants is another. Not saying that you don't, but that may be an area to spend some time considering. Have you read the books of the ones who are doing well in your niche, and completely understood why they are successful including the actual book, the title, the cover, the description.

Reverse engineer and improve then add quantity.

note: this is a reminder for myself as much as you!

 

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[COSenior]

I do have to work on my sentence structure and all that boring stuff though. My story is pretty good (I think) but I have no idea how to write dialogue. It seems like there is a new paragraph every line when there's a lot of talking.

You've hit on one of my pet peeves. I think I can write dialog, but how to format it is driving me crazy. There's discussion somewhere above in this thread also about 'he said, she said' vs. just the back and forth without identifying the speaker. I've tried it both ways, and still haven't decided. Sometimes I mix it up. Must remember to notice what's going on in the next book I read that has sparkling dialog.

When you download the template make sure you add a layer above the template and create your cover on that layer and above. I created my first cover on the template (without adding a layer above it) and it got kicked back because the guides were showing. Create layers over the template and get rid of the template layer before turning the image to a pdf.

I wish I had a clue what you're talking about. Guess I'd better start paying someone to create my covers.

I can't imagine what's going on with your categories, but I have had great luck with contacting tech support on Amazon. That would be my next step if I were in your shoes.

 

[Rawr]

For dialogue I had the issue of paragraph blocks as well, more writing will help. After 15-20 hours of writing you will start to FEEL the flow a lot better and will be able to work it with more grace.

I approached it this way:

dialogue is stretching what can be said in a paragraph, where you just want to give the facts.

But women reading the book don't want a factbook, they want to feel, to flow through the lines. This is what dialogue is to me. It might sound silly to stretch out the dialogue but it is important to get the vibe, the connection, through it.

Saying "she was my best friend" vs writing out 10 lines that show THROUGH the dialogue that they are best friends.

The masterful dialogue is where the author can move the story along, and introduce new things in it. Making the reader's mind reach a bit, and take in more with each line, to understand the context. Now this I am not sure if women want, may be they want easy reading at all times, but for me, this is the art of writing.

Seriously, just keep writing... it will come, and then you will rewrite.

 

[Jonleehacker]

Inspired by this thread, I hit "publish" this morning.

Not taking the same route as most people here, as fiction writing would be like pulling teeth for me, and writing non-fiction allows me to better use my marketing skills and I have personal knowledge of this topic.

It was A LOT more work than I expected, but I am experiencing a very enjoyable sense of pride at seeing something up on Amazon with my name on it.

Any feedback from the experts on here would be really welcomed.

Thanks to Held for Ransom for this thread to get me going, I've actually had a secret dream of writing a book for many years!

Fart Free Vegan: Food Combining for Detox, Weight Loss and Energy. by Jon Symons

 

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[Cosmicgirl]

Love the book title Jon

 

[britnidanielle]

The first book by Jacinda Wilder is only 32 pages. Jacinda (actually a husband and wife writing team) was mentioned on a different thread because "her" combined books make $100,000 a month. The title of the first book is "Big Girls Do It Better." If you look at the one-star reviews, they're mostly complaints that the book is too short. But there are plenty of five-star reviews too. And besides, it sounds like reviews aren't the most important thing, but sales, which she has plenty.

This thread is giving me all kinds of LIFE!

I used to jokingly tell my friends I was going to start writing cheesy romance novels because that's where the money was. I LITERALLY just started writing creatively again and I've been toying with an idea that is on the contemporary romance side. Hmmm....

I may just give this a shot (I realize since joining the forum this weekend I've been saying that a lot. Brain on overload!). I have a series in mind, too.

You guys are AWESOME! Thanks for this thread Held4Ransom!

 

[COSenior]

In light of the discussion way up above somewhere about how to carry dialogue, check out these 10 Rules for Writing by Elmore Leonard (Get Shorty, et al). 10 Rules For Writing By Elmore Leonard

I'm devastated...I'm violating at least five of them. :sigh: Back to the drawing board.

 

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[Thriftypreneur]

In light of the discussion way up above somewhere about how to carry dialogue, check out these 10 Rules for Writing by Elmore Leonard (Get Shorty, et al). 10 Rules For Writing By Elmore Leonard

I'm devastated...I'm violating at least five of them. :sigh: Back to the drawing board.

Interesting list.

Not sure if I agree with: 4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb “said†…

"I love you," he said somberly.
"I love you," he said honestly.
"I love you!" he said excitedly.

All three seem to convey something fairly different to me.

Thankfully, there's no real rules for one's writing style. (Thanks self-publishing!)

 

[britnidanielle]

Not sure if I agree with: 4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb “said” …

"I love you," he said somberly.
"I love you," he said honestly.
"I love you!" he said excitedly.

Not sure what happened to my post....but...

In his book 'On Writing,' Stephen King basically said the same thing. He said he relentlessly cuts adverbs because he thinks they are lazy. He just uses "said" during dialogue with no modifiers.