That is a very good point. But how do you become a presence? I suppose that's what we are all trying to figure out.
What you do to generate "Buzz"?
- Thread starter Robert E. Parkin
- Start date
That is a very good point. But how do you become a presence? I suppose that's what we are all trying to figure out.
tinkerdan
∞<Q-Satis
If I had the answer to that I'd be a presence and I'd know what to say.
As it is there are many tools and agencies that you can sink time, money and resources into but you have to think before you leap.
In the business I work for we have a website that by many standards does not have a presence, but the models out there are all geared toward making something that looks like amazon--which is good in part for selling books-- but my company doesn't have the same type of market that amazon has and we've found that using their model costs a lot of money and puts us in front of many consumers who would never use our product and miss a majority of those that would; so we have to ignore all the cries and pleas that claim we are doing it wrong because of the analysis someone has preformed on our presence.
We have examples of people who already have a fan base and have a presence and then we also see those who have a fan base and avoid having a presence.
Personally I think the internet is overrated for most peoples purposes and that it works best for people who already have a presence that don't mind sharing more of it with the world wide web. It is not the best place to build the presence; although there are some who have done so, though I'm not sure that they could give definitive answers about how they obtained that success.
I could be wrong about that: and I challenge anyone out there who can prove me wrong to come enlighten us here.
As it is there are many tools and agencies that you can sink time, money and resources into but you have to think before you leap.
In the business I work for we have a website that by many standards does not have a presence, but the models out there are all geared toward making something that looks like amazon--which is good in part for selling books-- but my company doesn't have the same type of market that amazon has and we've found that using their model costs a lot of money and puts us in front of many consumers who would never use our product and miss a majority of those that would; so we have to ignore all the cries and pleas that claim we are doing it wrong because of the analysis someone has preformed on our presence.
We have examples of people who already have a fan base and have a presence and then we also see those who have a fan base and avoid having a presence.
Personally I think the internet is overrated for most peoples purposes and that it works best for people who already have a presence that don't mind sharing more of it with the world wide web. It is not the best place to build the presence; although there are some who have done so, though I'm not sure that they could give definitive answers about how they obtained that success.
I could be wrong about that: and I challenge anyone out there who can prove me wrong to come enlighten us here.
chopper
Steven Poore - Epic Fantasist & SFSF Socialist
I'm actually a little worried by this, Denise, sorry for saying so. Yes, everybody should self-promote, and yes the market has and is changing, especially in small-press/indieland but I don't think a publisher with that sort of attitude is helping you very much. Short answer for now because I'm off to work, is that the publisher should be as much a part of the marketing process as the author. And I say market yourself by being yourself and interacting with others just as you are here, and at conventions etc. It's a long, slow process. I would buy books published by Gary Compton, for example, or Teresa Edgerton, because i have "known" them since 2005 on here
Overread
Searching for a flower
In my view if its a serious publisher then part of their setup should be marketing the books they put up for sale. A publisher typically having more resources and income and established advertising channels (ever noticed how good selling authors for the same publishing house often cross-comment on the backs of other authors from the same publisher). If they are only publishing and you are having to do all the marketing then its going to be a slog - a really hard slog. Because the individual won't have those resources to hand - and trusting in social sites to advertise is slow, tricky and a very imprecise market if you're doing it for free (if you've money and resources you can rig things to work - but it takes skill, time and money because you generally have to combine it with other types of marketing - subtle ones often).
Building buzz before a release is very important (go look at Kickstarters - those that do well typically had a huge buzz generated before they launched - those that fail oft failed to advertise before and tried to cram all the advertising they needed into 30 days or so - or they straight up didn't advertise at all). However its also hard to build if you don't have fixed things like a release date. Buzz needs definite goalposts - you can work without a date early on, but once you start getting people interested you've got to have a delivery date - without that and with a "new thing coming "Soon"" people quickly lose interest. They also don't bother talking much about it nor spreading the info out - why bother when the thing might not appear for months if not years.
I'd say go back to your publisher and say that you need a date - a proper firm release date for which you can work to and build your buzz up for. It sounds a little like the publisher is afraid to publish anything that isn't already going to sell, which is honestly what most publisher do anyway, however most do it by picking the books before taking them on rather than taking on you and then holding you in limbo "till you'll sell".
Building buzz before a release is very important (go look at Kickstarters - those that do well typically had a huge buzz generated before they launched - those that fail oft failed to advertise before and tried to cram all the advertising they needed into 30 days or so - or they straight up didn't advertise at all). However its also hard to build if you don't have fixed things like a release date. Buzz needs definite goalposts - you can work without a date early on, but once you start getting people interested you've got to have a delivery date - without that and with a "new thing coming "Soon"" people quickly lose interest. They also don't bother talking much about it nor spreading the info out - why bother when the thing might not appear for months if not years.
I'd say go back to your publisher and say that you need a date - a proper firm release date for which you can work to and build your buzz up for. It sounds a little like the publisher is afraid to publish anything that isn't already going to sell, which is honestly what most publisher do anyway, however most do it by picking the books before taking them on rather than taking on you and then holding you in limbo "till you'll sell".
@Denise Tanaka
Hi Denise, firstly, sorry, my post is not carrying good news. On the first instance I'd advise you to look at this thread:
http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266917
And as a codicil add to anyone signing with a publisher to look at Bewares and Recommendations first.
I think, before you think of any marketing needed I'd look at your contract if I were you and specifically if they are tying you down to them with your next book. You may not be able to do anything if so but, for the next book, negotiate out of that clause however you can. i'd also consider approaching them and asking if you can get out of the contract at this stage/do nothing effective marketing until you reach the contractual point of escape for non publication and then escape. In short, I'd try to get my book back from them and run. (But that's just me.)
I have to say I find their marketing approach odd. Genre readers buy genre books - they're who you need to market to.
Why not stick around here, get to know some genre readers and writers and expand from there?
Hi Denise, firstly, sorry, my post is not carrying good news. On the first instance I'd advise you to look at this thread:
http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266917
And as a codicil add to anyone signing with a publisher to look at Bewares and Recommendations first.
I think, before you think of any marketing needed I'd look at your contract if I were you and specifically if they are tying you down to them with your next book. You may not be able to do anything if so but, for the next book, negotiate out of that clause however you can. i'd also consider approaching them and asking if you can get out of the contract at this stage/do nothing effective marketing until you reach the contractual point of escape for non publication and then escape. In short, I'd try to get my book back from them and run. (But that's just me.)
I have to say I find their marketing approach odd. Genre readers buy genre books - they're who you need to market to.
Why not stick around here, get to know some genre readers and writers and expand from there?
Overread
Searching for a flower
Springs you remind me of a point I wished to make that I forgot to make.
Yes the idea that if you've an old car in the story that you'd market to old car enthusiasts is interesting, but indeed somewhat odd. I very much doubt that people read/watch Morse because they are die hard Jag enthusiasts and he drives a Jag. Because the Jag itself isn't core to the story - its part of him and his character, but its very far from the primary focus. Yes it could be part of marketing; but I'd not wager it would generate huge interest (and could even backlash very easily if you don't portray the item perfectly and in good light).
As Springs says your market isn't car enthusiasts (or any other market segment for that matter - just picking on cars cause its easy); its readers. Fantasy readers. People who will sit down for hours on end and enjoy reading a thick, weighty epic saga of fantasy. You'd get some connection in neighbouring markets like historical re-enactment (since its generally full of a good few fantasy fans - but also die-hard historians too so hit and miss) but otherwise it sounds like thier marketing strategy is going backwards somewhat - and also trying to tap into "untouched" markets. Ergo they don't think they (or their authors) can compete on the serious actual core markets - so they tell you to pitch to markets well outside. Likely in the hope that somehow they'll tap into a brand new, easy to work market (and very unlikely that it will work at all).
The only other consideration is that if you'd paid for any of these services or continue to do so - that their setup is focus on profit from the author not the market. So they specifically give you poorer advise knowing that they can keep a segment of authors on "drip" feed into their company without having to put much input in themselves. Whilst also knowing that if an author does reach their "buzz" quota that they can run with it and make big profit.
Yes the idea that if you've an old car in the story that you'd market to old car enthusiasts is interesting, but indeed somewhat odd. I very much doubt that people read/watch Morse because they are die hard Jag enthusiasts and he drives a Jag. Because the Jag itself isn't core to the story - its part of him and his character, but its very far from the primary focus. Yes it could be part of marketing; but I'd not wager it would generate huge interest (and could even backlash very easily if you don't portray the item perfectly and in good light).
As Springs says your market isn't car enthusiasts (or any other market segment for that matter - just picking on cars cause its easy
); its readers. Fantasy readers. People who will sit down for hours on end and enjoy reading a thick, weighty epic saga of fantasy. You'd get some connection in neighbouring markets like historical re-enactment (since its generally full of a good few fantasy fans - but also die-hard historians too so hit and miss) but otherwise it sounds like thier marketing strategy is going backwards somewhat - and also trying to tap into "untouched" markets. Ergo they don't think they (or their authors) can compete on the serious actual core markets - so they tell you to pitch to markets well outside. Likely in the hope that somehow they'll tap into a brand new, easy to work market (and very unlikely that it will work at all). The only other consideration is that if you'd paid for any of these services or continue to do so - that their setup is focus on profit from the author not the market. So they specifically give you poorer advise knowing that they can keep a segment of authors on "drip" feed into their company without having to put much input in themselves. Whilst also knowing that if an author does reach their "buzz" quota that they can run with it and make big profit.
chopper
Steven Poore - Epic Fantasist & SFSF Socialist
Bolded: things i would have said had i not been on my way to work. good luck, and don't stop.
I'm with springs, Denise, I'd see about getting the hell out of there quick. I'm with two small presses and neither one of them has told me they won't publish my books unless I market them and generate buzz first, and both have provided me with marketing opportunities (setting up guest blogs for me, Twitter takeovers etc.) throughout.
That's not to say I'm not doing any marketing myself, I am, but your publisher should do it too!
Re. the classic car thing... interestingly, as one of my novels has a talking dog in it, I figured I'd have a go at plugging it on a dog group I'm a member of on FB. Now, I've been an active member of the group for four years, I have a dog myself, and I asked the admin of the group permission first. It worked though, because I got some sales out of it. (I'm also a member of a couple other dog groups on FB, but wouldn't even bother plugging on those two as I'm not an active member, so nobody knows me or will care that I've written a book).
That's not to say I'm not doing any marketing myself, I am, but your publisher should do it too!
Re. the classic car thing... interestingly, as one of my novels has a talking dog in it, I figured I'd have a go at plugging it on a dog group I'm a member of on FB. Now, I've been an active member of the group for four years, I have a dog myself, and I asked the admin of the group permission first. It worked though, because I got some sales out of it. (I'm also a member of a couple other dog groups on FB, but wouldn't even bother plugging on those two as I'm not an active member, so nobody knows me or will care that I've written a book).
Denise Tanaka
Denise RobargeTanaka
Yes! Very sensible advice. I understand that in today's world the social media platforms are necessary. I'm worried that I don't have a clear direction in my head for how to use these tools. I am spinning my wheels in the mud and wasting a lot of time being ineffective.
Denise Tanaka
Denise RobargeTanaka
Thanks, Springs, I have seen this particular thread in the Absolute Write forum after I took the plunge and signed on. It's my first experience with a book contract and a publisher of any kind, so I only have myself to blame for not doing my homework.
tinkerdan
∞<Q-Satis
Xlibris never put such limitations on the publication of my work.
They in fact always put it on the fast track and I sometimes have to slow them down, because I'm often still working on the editing phase.
But the biggest difficulty with POD is that they do take your money and rely heavily on that for the income which means any from sales of the book are just extra incidentals to them.
The next big focus is that they split out the promotion and advertisement into very expensive packages that are not that often inside the standard publishing package. And as I mentioned by my experience it seems they'd rather take your money and let you do the work and give no promise that there will be any success.
The one true thing they will say and that you as a writer should consider is that no amount of advertising that they do can make your book any better than it is and that needs to be one of your primary focus. Make the book as good as it can be because there is still a lot to be said for word of mouth and getting the right people to read your work.
They in fact always put it on the fast track and I sometimes have to slow them down, because I'm often still working on the editing phase.
But the biggest difficulty with POD is that they do take your money and rely heavily on that for the income which means any from sales of the book are just extra incidentals to them.
The next big focus is that they split out the promotion and advertisement into very expensive packages that are not that often inside the standard publishing package. And as I mentioned by my experience it seems they'd rather take your money and let you do the work and give no promise that there will be any success.
The one true thing they will say and that you as a writer should consider is that no amount of advertising that they do can make your book any better than it is and that needs to be one of your primary focus. Make the book as good as it can be because there is still a lot to be said for word of mouth and getting the right people to read your work.
Ray McCarthy
Sentient Marmite: The Truth may make you fret.
Not anything like as important as BBC, RTE and users of Social media think. The Signal to Noise is very very poor. For every Twitter, Facebook, Youtube success there are a million failures. The other sites don't come close.
Overread
Searching for a flower
Aye, but most other forms of marketing that are effective are also very expensive. The costs themselves helps keep the numbers down significantly (social media being free is vastly over saturated); but also the number of people they can reach is far greater. TV adverts, billboards, reviews by key groups, online ads, boards at sports venues etc.. All great ways to advertise; all work; most very expensive and beyond most peoples budget - esp once you want to push beyond the local small scale and branch out national or international.
So social media marketing is a very over-used but recommended tool because its cheap and can work. Sure its not as reliable and not as easy in some ways but it does work and if you can do nothing else you can do that. In addition most big companies have some form of social media presence today - very few go without.
@tinkerdan - but xlibris are openly a vanity publisher *(and a good one) with a standard package that is up front in its expectations from writers. Assent have claimed to offer a traditional publishing contract which puts the expectation of money up front, including marketing money, from the publisher.
@Denise Tanaka - I've dealt with a not dissimilar publisher and, thankfully, ran in time. I think there is some stuff you can do, in terms of getting out of the contract (fail miserably...?) or in terms of renegotiating for your next book. But it is not your fault, it is a publisher who has taken advantage of a writer who wanted published. You don't have to meekly accept that it's their right now. But I'm feisty me and would have a fight in an empty room if my hackles are up....
* please correct if I'm wrong and if they funded your editing, promotion, cover, printing costs etc.
@Denise Tanaka - I've dealt with a not dissimilar publisher and, thankfully, ran in time. I think there is some stuff you can do, in terms of getting out of the contract (fail miserably...?) or in terms of renegotiating for your next book. But it is not your fault, it is a publisher who has taken advantage of a writer who wanted published. You don't have to meekly accept that it's their right now. But I'm feisty me and would have a fight in an empty room if my hackles are up....
* please correct if I'm wrong and if they funded your editing, promotion, cover, printing costs etc.
tinkerdan
∞<Q-Satis
They are POD the use of words 'vanity publishing' are yours.[And perhaps some few others] I don't have to pay to publish as long as I don't want to pick up hard copies and apparently now days i can get a paper copy for even less if I so chose. Somewhere along the line I have to pay for editing if I chose to self publish and even those who don't self publish are often urged to get some paid editing in; so what I pay Xlibris has never exceeded what I would pay for normal editing.
The point being that just because traditionally they presently don't ask for money in traditional publishing I'm not sure why everything else gets immediately labeled as vanity publishing.
The definition most people put on vanity publishing would place Giacomo Casanova in that category.
So I suppose that vanity publishing has been around almost as long as traditional and I'm not sure that it was called vanity publishing back then.
My point though was that they do charge much more for marketing than publishing and try really hard to push higher levels of marketing, especially when they think you might be getting desperate from lack of sales, and a contract contains no guarantees whatsoever; so one could truly be throwing good money after bad if an author has not invested enough into editing their work. If an author is confident that their work is the best anyone might do it might justify spending Ten thousand dollars for marketing. On the other hand I don't think many of those self published that have success have spent that much for marketing their first book.
Xlibris certainly don't demand that you promote yourself and your book to death prior to publishing. Their primary focus is to give the author a presences with the ability to have three media in the readers hands e-books Hardcover books and Trade paperbacks [You can chose to do all or any one you want within the various packages.]
They leave all the rights to the author so when a traditional publisher picks them up everyone can happily make and break all ties as efficiently as possible.
If there are POD's with some of the problems as have been mentioned I would definitely recommend anyone looking into POD to do a bit of research before they make the leap.
Ideally the POD should be a stepping stone into traditional publishing[who knows some day that might happen] and it also serves as a means of reissuing works [that the traditional no longer hold rights to] of known authors who have traditionally published in the past.
But if this other scenario is more to the tune of a small publisher using traditional models, then it seems that they may be falling short of understanding the model.[Also there is something scary here that suggest they are a POD in disguise.]
The point being that just because traditionally they presently don't ask for money in traditional publishing I'm not sure why everything else gets immediately labeled as vanity publishing.
The definition most people put on vanity publishing would place Giacomo Casanova in that category.
So I suppose that vanity publishing has been around almost as long as traditional and I'm not sure that it was called vanity publishing back then.
My point though was that they do charge much more for marketing than publishing and try really hard to push higher levels of marketing, especially when they think you might be getting desperate from lack of sales, and a contract contains no guarantees whatsoever; so one could truly be throwing good money after bad if an author has not invested enough into editing their work. If an author is confident that their work is the best anyone might do it might justify spending Ten thousand dollars for marketing. On the other hand I don't think many of those self published that have success have spent that much for marketing their first book.
Xlibris certainly don't demand that you promote yourself and your book to death prior to publishing. Their primary focus is to give the author a presences with the ability to have three media in the readers hands e-books Hardcover books and Trade paperbacks [You can chose to do all or any one you want within the various packages.]
They leave all the rights to the author so when a traditional publisher picks them up everyone can happily make and break all ties as efficiently as possible.
If there are POD's with some of the problems as have been mentioned I would definitely recommend anyone looking into POD to do a bit of research before they make the leap.
Ideally the POD should be a stepping stone into traditional publishing[who knows some day that might happen] and it also serves as a means of reissuing works [that the traditional no longer hold rights to] of known authors who have traditionally published in the past.
But if this other scenario is more to the tune of a small publisher using traditional models, then it seems that they may be falling short of understanding the model.[Also there is something scary here that suggest they are a POD in disguise.]
Last edited:
Ray McCarthy
Sentient Marmite: The Truth may make you fret.
All publishers should of course now be doing POD and eBooks from their own sites, nothing should "go out of print" or be rejected because they can't justify a print run. Otherwise traditional publishers are doomed to be replaced by companies like Amazon and direct sale printing companies.
There is now a grey area between true vanity publishing (as old as Publishing houses), self publishing (which has existed in a sense before Publish houses arose, because initially only printers existed) and POD.
There is now a grey area between true vanity publishing (as old as Publishing houses), self publishing (which has existed in a sense before Publish houses arose, because initially only printers existed) and POD.
tinkerdan
∞<Q-Satis
Well, I'm certain POD and traditional publishing will somehow eventually reach a point of merger. To get back to the OP::
I have yet to hear any definitive proofs that social media are going to be all that useful and effective in marketing; certainly not enough to demand that an author have a presence. In fact there are some traditionally published authors who I would guess the publishers would prefer not to have a lot of interaction with their fanatic readers[except under some controllable circumstance.].
I have not yet worked directly with Amazon and Barnes and Nobel because I've place Xlibris between myself and them. [Barnes and Nobel might not be as accessible as Amazon without some sort of middle man.] I have also used Smashwords. This means that I don't really know if dealing directly with Amazon in one of their exclusive programs will push you into some of their marketing.
What I do know is that whichever way your work hits Amazon you need to hit the ground running with some form of marketing to generate sales immediately. The bottom line is that very quickly you will be buried by the massive number of new books coming out. In my case, using Xlibris, what happens with my books is tantamount to this strange analogy I've built in my mind.
Imagine having your books all packaged and sent out worldwide to the brick and mortars where they are received and promptly placed in the back of the warehouse or storage area and left that way: unopened and safely packaged. Then the store waits until customers come in and ask for the book.
This is what happens if you don't do marketing. So honestly speaking, whatever you do for marketing is better than nothing and I would think that taking advantage of all the free avenues available within the internet would do no more harm than steal time from you.
I have yet to hear any definitive proofs that social media are going to be all that useful and effective in marketing; certainly not enough to demand that an author have a presence. In fact there are some traditionally published authors who I would guess the publishers would prefer not to have a lot of interaction with their fanatic readers[except under some controllable circumstance.].
I have not yet worked directly with Amazon and Barnes and Nobel because I've place Xlibris between myself and them. [Barnes and Nobel might not be as accessible as Amazon without some sort of middle man.] I have also used Smashwords. This means that I don't really know if dealing directly with Amazon in one of their exclusive programs will push you into some of their marketing.
What I do know is that whichever way your work hits Amazon you need to hit the ground running with some form of marketing to generate sales immediately. The bottom line is that very quickly you will be buried by the massive number of new books coming out. In my case, using Xlibris, what happens with my books is tantamount to this strange analogy I've built in my mind.
Imagine having your books all packaged and sent out worldwide to the brick and mortars where they are received and promptly placed in the back of the warehouse or storage area and left that way: unopened and safely packaged. Then the store waits until customers come in and ask for the book.
This is what happens if you don't do marketing. So honestly speaking, whatever you do for marketing is better than nothing and I would think that taking advantage of all the free avenues available within the internet would do no more harm than steal time from you.
Just a few data points from me
I am self-published (since Nov 2014) with IngramSpark (POD) and Amazon KDP (eBook) and the sole responsibility of marketing/buzz is on my own shoulders.
Here is my view...
- after reviewing forums/advice I recognised that independent authors will not get into Bricks and Mortar shops; and will not garner reviews from any notable magazines/newspapers/web-sites *** of course there are exceptions
- Twitter/Facebook "to strangers" is all but useless - it's all noise - the one exception is if you can get a "name" to spam you... I have not managed that yet
- you need to utilise your own "social network" (friends/family/one level removed/ etc.)
- you need to market to genre specific (I'm SciFi - and RomCom/Slasher readers will not be interested in my books - neither will people who don't read books)
your difficulty (I suspect) is that you are trying to create Buzz without a product (as the book is not out yet)...
Ideas:... not many but
Can you serialize the first 3 or 4 Chapters on a Blog (This is what Andrew J Morgan did with Vessel and it is selling well)
Can you send put a Beta Version out for Review on GoodReads (Read4Review) or IndieReviewer or BookBub or ...
... that's it really... just that idea... sorry
For the Indie Author, once published, I have seen no evidence to suggest anything other than Amazon "best seller" lists as the primary target
So you need to have an email list of all of your friends/family/one level removed/SciFi Forum contacts -- Spam them and Beg
... then once you have 10/15/20 reviews on Amazon/Good Reads... then perhaps a Give Away Weekend.. and some Advertising on a valid web-site
Note: I went way too early on this... and paid a "two figure sum" to put a advert banner on "A Dribble of Ink" http://aidanmoher.com/blog/
I think that has generated me... 1 or 2 Kindle Sales... but as I said, I went way to early - I do not have enough reviews on Amazon yet.
feel free to ask for more
but don't get me started on the way that Amazon treats Independent Authors (particularly those aligned to Ingram/LightneingSource)
** Quick Edit **
I am approaching "local press to where I live" and "local press to where the story is set" - nothing yet but the signs are moderately warm.
I am also planning on approaching local bookshops...
**
FibEddie
I am self-published (since Nov 2014) with IngramSpark (POD) and Amazon KDP (eBook) and the sole responsibility of marketing/buzz is on my own shoulders.
Here is my view...
- after reviewing forums/advice I recognised that independent authors will not get into Bricks and Mortar shops; and will not garner reviews from any notable magazines/newspapers/web-sites *** of course there are exceptions
- Twitter/Facebook "to strangers" is all but useless - it's all noise - the one exception is if you can get a "name" to spam you... I have not managed that yet
- you need to utilise your own "social network" (friends/family/one level removed/ etc.)
- you need to market to genre specific (I'm SciFi - and RomCom/Slasher readers will not be interested in my books - neither will people who don't read books)
your difficulty (I suspect) is that you are trying to create Buzz without a product (as the book is not out yet)...
Ideas:... not many but
Can you serialize the first 3 or 4 Chapters on a Blog (This is what Andrew J Morgan did with Vessel and it is selling well)
Can you send put a Beta Version out for Review on GoodReads (Read4Review) or IndieReviewer or BookBub or ...
... that's it really... just that idea... sorry
For the Indie Author, once published, I have seen no evidence to suggest anything other than Amazon "best seller" lists as the primary target
So you need to have an email list of all of your friends/family/one level removed/SciFi Forum contacts -- Spam them and Beg
... then once you have 10/15/20 reviews on Amazon/Good Reads... then perhaps a Give Away Weekend.. and some Advertising on a valid web-site
Note: I went way too early on this... and paid a "two figure sum" to put a advert banner on "A Dribble of Ink" http://aidanmoher.com/blog/
I think that has generated me... 1 or 2 Kindle Sales... but as I said, I went way to early - I do not have enough reviews on Amazon yet.
feel free to ask for more
but don't get me started on the way that Amazon treats Independent Authors (particularly those aligned to Ingram/LightneingSource)
** Quick Edit **
I am approaching "local press to where I live" and "local press to where the story is set" - nothing yet but the signs are moderately warm.
I am also planning on approaching local bookshops...
**
FibEddie
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2012
- Messages
- 319
You can also try Amazon reviewers and book bloggers, though don't be disappointed if you haven't much success with them because they are typically deluged with offers.
http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/
http://www.amazon.com/review/top-reviewers/ref=cm_cr_tr_link_1
For Goodreads giveaways, you need a paper version and international postage can be expensive. There's no guarantee that you will get reviews from the winners (though Goodreads encourages it). You have a six month window after the book is published. I believe Library Thing allows you to give away ebooks. FibEddie is right though - you should try to get reviews first to get entrants interested in the book itself.
Hope it helps.
http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/
http://www.amazon.com/review/top-reviewers/ref=cm_cr_tr_link_1
For Goodreads giveaways, you need a paper version and international postage can be expensive. There's no guarantee that you will get reviews from the winners (though Goodreads encourages it). You have a six month window after the book is published. I believe Library Thing allows you to give away ebooks. FibEddie is right though - you should try to get reviews first to get entrants interested in the book itself.
Hope it helps.
tinkerdan
∞<Q-Satis
There is a spot on Goodreads that an author can upload an e-book to be offered to the goodread users to read.
Not quite the same as the give away but you can offer it free through that route.
Not quite the same as the give away but you can offer it free through that route.
Similar threads
-
-
-
-
-
(Found) Fantasy book where people get "power stones" added to their backs so they can generate special powers
- Started by giggsy10
- Replies: 3