I have tried a few things over the last year and thought I’d share my views/experience...

[Jo Zebedee]

Soooo... The fifty-million dollar question - when does it tail off? I did the bookbub on the 24 Nov - it's now 3 weeks later.

Sales did die down quite quickly but have continued at a higher rate than previously - helped, no doubt, by being high in the searches.

What has remained high, however, are the Kindle unlimited readthroughs - 2-3 books per day average are still being read. I think that's indicative of it being loaded during the days of the promo and people only reading through when they get to it. So, today I finally dropped out of the top 10,000 kindle books and the top 100 categorys I was in.

Overall, I hoped to do 30-40 books during the promo. In the last three weeks at least ten times that and have so far had my ratings intact. I expect things to die down now but thought this would be useful to gauge expectations.

So what next? I can't do another countdown until Feb. End of March sees the release of Abendau 2. What I hope to do/have got lined up is - an interview coming out soon, a radio interview in jan, a good podcast being recorded in Jan, an event - maybe more than one - in March. Also, some additional retail exposure locally.

Because there's no magic bullet, I'm afraid. This has given a boost but, frankly, it's back on the horse come the new year and back to promoting, promoting, promoting...

 

[FibonacciEddie]

Hopefully your 300/400 sales during the burst will spawn 20/30/40 reviews and then the book looks even more credible to passing browsers
I heard a guy at a conference say that "50 reviews" was a/the magic number -- but I tend to think that no-one really knows

I would definitely suggest you do another "burst" for Inish Carraig in Jan/Feb (but with a different provider - maybe from pambaddeley's list - which is excellent)

The other thing you could consider is "pricing" - I started (with my book Emergence in Nov 2014) at £2.99 - but then in June took it down to £0.99 and then sales picked up... I guess that Pound barrier is quite a big psychological one ... (re: Poundland / Poundsaver) ... I never put the price back up ... I took the view I'd prefer 1,000 sales at 99p to 333 sales at 2.99p (rounding errors notwithstanding)

Particularly with Abendau, you could put No.1 out at 99p and then price up 2 and 3...

So my sales update (since original post on 24th Oct) is all Kindle

Jan 2015 - Jun 2015 :: 1 or 2 or 3 per day (all UK)

July 2015 - August 2015 :: 4 or 5 or 6 per day (split 50/50 UK and USA)

During (Jun to Nov) I did a few $30 promos (4/5 in total over 6 months) --- keeping price at 99p/99c

Since Sep 2015 - Dec 2015 :: Average 8 or 9 or 10 per day (split 40/60 UK and USA) -- with a few USA days double that... awesome days reach 16/18 sales in total

I am really really really super-superstitious and so don't want to jinx myself, but I would say that main factors are:
1) Low price
2) Promotions giving me boost into Top 20 Hard Science Fiction / TechnoThriller sub-lists (so Emergence becomes browsey-discoverable)
3) Decent number of reviews giving credibility to product so that people are prepared to take a punt
4) Low price

There are all sorts of moral questions about such low pricing and devaluing the art etc. -- I am not 100% comfortable with my position on that one

peace and goodwill
n

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I will definitely do something else - and hope to hit the US market, who actually seem to like the concept. And @Gary Compton has plans for Abendau - but I agree a low-entry price on book one (and some free days) is a good way in.

You're doing great - your ratings are amazing.

I hqve thought about price dropping to 99p but have decided not to - partly because the 35% royalty rate is so unappealing against the 70% on the higher rrp - but also because I'm wary of being seen as too cheap and of not being able to do promos. I'm on 2.24 or thereabouts and I think that's as low as I'd be happy to go, on a regular basis, but there are sound arguments both way.

I hope, if anyone is reading this thread, regardless if thinking of trad or sp, they see that as an author you really have to tey to understand the business end of things. No one would go naively into any other work without knowing their terms and conditions and comparitive options, after all. I heard somewhere that people with business experience tend to do well as sp, and certainly I find my managerial and self management (I run my own consultancy) skills very transferable. It sounds harsh, to say that writing isn't enough - hell, I'd love to lock myself away and write - but it's probably not.

 

[FibonacciEddie]

totally agree with you on the need to research the business side

I am not yet sure if my 99p approach is the best way forward...

And (for any browsers) Jo's point on Kindle Pricing and Royalty Rate is a big one

I get ~30p Royalty on a Kindle Sale at 99p (35% but by the time they take all the little bits off it is actually 28p)... if I was priced at £2.99 and 70% then it would be closer to £2 per copy... so my point earlier in the thread about 3 times was wrong, it is closer to 7 times more profitable per book to be £2.99 @70%

...

However... on the Kindle Unlimited Programme (the rental rebate thingy) ... I actually get the equivalent of about £1.33 per borrow ... e.g., for September I had about 4,800 pages-read in KU in the UK (amazon.co.uk), which for a 400 page book is about 12 Books, for which my share of the pot was £16

... so -- perhaps -- I should push up the price of my book to encourage more KU Borrowers?

but if moving the 99p to £1.99 halves my sales then I may drop out of the sub-genre lists and then not be "found by browsers" who then borrow...

this needs thinking about......

the problem is that ... to my narrow mind ... a sale is worth more to me emotionally than a borrow

 

[Ray McCarthy]

but if moving the 99p to £1.99 halves my sales then I may drop out of the sub-genre lists and then not be "found by browsers" who then borrow ... a sale is worth more to me emotionally than a borrow

This is the advantage of a series. First book 99p with periods of free. The rest of the books £2.99?

 

[Jo Zebedee]

This is the advantage of a series. First book 99p with periods of free. The rest of the books £2.99?

There's definitely a different strategy to both.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

I think too that SP needs more frequent releases from an author than trad publishing, esp. at start? Hence I hope to get 5 books in my SF series near ready before SP any, and then maybe release one every 3 or 4 months?

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I think too that SP needs more frequent releases from an author than trad publishing, esp. at start? Hence I hope to get 5 books in my SF series near ready before SP any, and then maybe release one every 3 or 4 months?

I think it depends - if you can sustain that, yes, it's one model. I've settled for two a year for now - that seems to give time for each book to be in the sun for a while and not swamp it so it has no impact.

 

[ratsy]

The ones I've seen with some great success this year are Nick Webb and Richard Fox, and both have released sequels quite quickly. I think that publication dates are going to be changing and if the readers are hungry for it and the SP can get it done and out fast, we will see more of that in the coming years.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

The ones I've seen with some great success this year are Nick Webb and Richard Fox, and both have released sequels quite quickly. I think that publication dates are going to be changing and if the readers are hungry for it and the SP can get it done and out fast, we will see more of that in the coming years.

I think it also comes down to how quickly someone can write to the quality they want to aim for. I could probably nail three a year but things would be rushed and I know my books are always better with some stewing time and distance. Inish Carraig two years ago would have done okay, I think, for instance, but the extra edits etc made it more polished. Abendau 3 is due a review after Sunset comes out. I was already pleased with it - now I can see clearly where I want to strengthen it. I'm not against whacking books out if that's what the writer wants but I'd hate for people to feel they have to emulate it and add pressure and/or release a poorer version....

 

[ratsy]

Yes I agree for sure. I definitely don't think everyone should rush books out. I was just saying I've seen some real success stories doing it this year. That being said...did they have the drafts all done already...do they have amazing editors who help them greatly...there are a lot of factors to think about.

But I think these guys who are self-pubbing do have a few benefits when it comes to freedom of time-lines.

That being said, I have started my own Publishing company so don't listen to me

 

[Brian G Turner]

I could probably nail three a year

Whoah! Am trying to make pace for 1!

More seriously, though, with SP you don't have to release full novels, but can instead serialize them perhaps releasing each act as a seperate book. At least, that's more or less what Hugh Howdy did with Wool.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Whoah! Am trying to make pace for 1!

More seriously, though, with SP you don't have to release full novels, but can instead serialize them perhaps releasing each act as a seperate book. At least, that's more or less what Hugh Howdy did with Wool.

That's changed a little with the new pricing policies and esp with the changes to kindle unlimited - novels do better, income wise, than shorter works now.v

 

[Ray McCarthy]

That being said...did they have the drafts all done already...do they have amazing editors who help them greatly.

That's certainly key factors. Preparation and support.

with SP you don't have to release full novels, but can instead serialize them perhaps releasing each act as a seperate book.

That would annoy me and most of the people I know. Several reasons.

 

[tinkerdan]

I Second the motion of annoyance:

That would annoy me and most of the people I know. Several reasons.

More seriously, though, with SP you don't have to release full novels, but can instead serialize them perhaps releasing each act as a seperate book. At least, that's more or less what Hugh Howdy did with Wool.

That would annoy me and most of the people I know. Several reasons.

Some have gone as far as to do twenty very short pieces and at .99 cents each that's almost $20.00 for something with the quality of a $2.99 novel(US)-
I've twice let myself get hooked into reading the first chapter for .99 and then discovered the scam and called it quits.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I mused, crunched some numbers and reduced Inish Carraig to 99p. My reasoning?

I'm on kindle unlimited, which means my ebook is exclusive to Amazon. If I get a readthrough I earn more than if I sell a book at 2.24. Therefore, readthroughs are king - and I get more of those the higher my ranking. So, despite the woeful royalties on a sale, I think I stand to make more at 99p by staying up the rankings and being visible. (Without KU I'd have held to the higher price.)

Also, I want a career at this - which means now is more about building readership and support than revenue from this book. So I'm happy to have IC as a loss leader.

My book was 2.24 in the Uk and had slowed a lot. Since going to 99p yesterday i've sold 7 and readthroughs have started up again. I have the sort of reviews that pull people in when they see the book.

I'll report back on how it goes and if, after 2 weeks, I'm losing money on this model I'll switch back.

 

[FibonacciEddie]

I mused, crunched some numbers and reduced Inish Carraig to 99p. My reasoning?

Snap!

I am KU also for Emergence

At 99p, I get ~28p per Sale

but in the KU I get ~£1.20 per 400 page ('readthrough')... I say £1.20 because that's an average - the "pot" changes month to month

I took exactly the same decision as you, Jo,

 

[Lex E. Darion]

(For those who have no idea my situation) --- I am a self-published writer who is trying to work out how to promote my work in an effective way… I have written 1 book only (so far) - Emergence

Thanks to you and Jo Z for your information - very useful.

If you don't mind me asking, did you send your work out to agents or just went straight for SP? And did you get a professional editor on it beforehand?

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Thanks to you and Jo Z for your information - very useful.

If you don't mind me asking, did you send your work out to agents or just went straight for SP? And did you get a professional editor on it beforehand?

I had an agent for my self published book and it didn't find a home (a combination of bad timing, a crossover book and bad luck.) but I am also traditionally published for my trilogy - and next standalone - one of whom's deal was comtracted by my agent (although set up by me.) so I'm all trendy and hybrid published.

It had an editor (I wouldn't release anything without one, ever, it does not pay back to cut that corner) - @Boneman here on the Chrons who is a pro editor, and then editorial guidance from my agent. And it was also fully copy edited by the same copy editor who does my trad published trilogy - @TheDustyZebra . So, quality wise there is no difference between my two (current) books and that is EXACTLY how it should be.

 

[FibonacciEddie]

.
For my one book so far, I used a professional editor, then I sent the manuscript out to agents, I got 10 - 15 rejections, then I did a re-write (with a little editorial review) and then I got a professional copy-editor and finally I self-published (i.e., I did not resubmit to agents a second time)

I would suggest a professional editor before submission to agents