Christopher D. Schmitz's Blog, page 52

Netgalley for peanuts?

I came across a little blog post today which derailed my typical posting schedule because it was important to the pocketbooks of Indie writers. I’ve heard good things about Netgalley’s author promo services helping boost a book’s number of reviews. My publisher for one of my titles had been offering a reduced price for a netgalley promo since they get a bulk rate as a publisher.

It didn’t take much poking around to locate something called a Netgalley Co-op Service. They act as a publisher, get a discounted rate, and can set up a bare-bones kind of package for you to get your title on Netgalley for somewhere in the neighborhood of $50. If you’re considering stepping up your pay-to-play advertisements you should read this blogpost:

https://anaspoke.com/2016/09/22/my-experience-with-a-netgalley-co-op-by-patchwork-press/

Free Fiction Tuesday! #wott

Dekker’s Dozen: The Last Watchmen

I wanted to give you all a final chance to pick up my sci-fi for free today on Kindle. If you liked Firefly, you should check out Dekker’s Dozen: The Last Watchmen. It’s normally five bucks on Kindle. Today is the last day it’s free (just checkout normally–the price is set to $0.00). https://www.amazon.com/Dekkers-Dozen-Watchmen-Christopher-Schmitz-ebook/dp/B01FWERIGW

Wolf of the Tesseract

WotT has just dropped on Audible/ACX and I have 2 free downloads up for grabs. They will be randomly selected followers who share this post by the weekend! You can check it out and listen to a sample on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Wolf-of-the-Tesseract/dp/B01LZ3YM9B

The Kakos Realm: Grinden Proselyte

TKR Book 1 is currently a giveaway at Goodreads. Just click Enter Giveaway to potentially win a paperback copy! This 1st in an epic Christian Fantasy series is what you might expect if Frank Perretti wrote a Game of Thrones novel. https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/202920-the-kakos-realm

share it an hashtag it peeps!

State of Writing

SO last week I powered through like 3 chapters… I basically did that again–I got a little fixated, like a dog on a bone, and couldn’t relent. I finished the rough draft for Fear in a Land Without Shadows on Saturday. That’s good because I also jotted a rough outline of a 5 book arc for a new YA series The Hidden Rings of Myrddin the Cambion (which is about 3 years away from ever putting pen to paper… I’ve got at least 3 other books to write before I begin that series).

Here’s a little teaser for Fear, though:

Following the nearly completed apocalypse of E-day, an infertile obstetrician, a man with Down’s syndrome, and an injured preacher must join forces with an atheist to turn back the second demonic apocalypse. The creatures can only move in the dark, but deep inside humanity’s last underground bunker, the lights have begun to go out.

(Now I just need to finish John in the John over the next two weeks and I’ll be sitting pretty good. I forsee that coming together well–and then I can begin a final draft on The Kakos Realm: Rise of the Dragon Impervious!)

FREE GIVEAWAY WEEKEND! #wott

I’m doing a huge promo blitz this weekend so that people will have enough time to read read and leave reviews before I present at the Twin Cities Book Fair by the middle of next month.

Kindle Giveaway – Dekker’s Dozen: The Last Watchmen (just checkout normally–the price is $0.00).

https://www.amazon.com/Dekkers-Dozen-Watchmen-Christopher-Schmitz-ebook/dp/B01FWERIGW

Paperback Giveaway – The Kakos Realm: Grinden Proselyte giveaway is at Goodreads. Just click to enter. They pick winners and tell me who to mail copies to.

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/202920-the-kakos-realm

Audiobook Giveaway – Wolf of the Tesseract was just released via Audible/ACX and I have 2 free downloads up for grabs. They will be randomly selected followers who share this post! You can check it out and listen to a sample on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Wolf-of-the-Tesseract/dp/B01LZ3YM9B

As Always, check out my author pages

http://www.authorchristopherdschmitz.com

https://www.facebook.com/authorchristopherdschmitz

and Join my mailing list!

http://eepurl.com/b6phYn

10 Important Things When Pitching Books at Conventions, Festivals, Trade Shows, etc.

I have some experience in sales and did a lot of pitch-work for a company and ran a company’s booth at all of our conventions back when I used to work in real estate. I thought I’d share some things I’ve gleaned over time that I feel help me sell books at these kinds of things.

Walking around, I saw a number of other authors at a recent event–I always try to network when possible. One was pretty busy doing his setup and so didn’t have much to say (plus it was early and the coffee hadn’t kicked in, I assume.) Another mentioned that “it hasn’t been a very good weekend for him.” I interpreted that as book sales and personal contacts based on the languishing number of names on his mailing list signup sheet (my second page had half filled up by that day) –I can’t think of a good reason to spend your day at a vendor booth unless you want to sell as many books as possible or do some solid networking.

I realized that not everyone has much experience as a vendor and so I thought I would try to give some basic advice. Bear in mind, then, that I do make assumptions. Regardless, here are my tips to running an author’s booth at events.

Recognize that people didn’t come to buy your book. You will have to sell them on it. Have ready a three sentence elevator pitch, a longer version for those you’ve hooked, and a positive comparison to a well-known best seller, but with a twist. “My book is similar to Harry Potter, except that the main character is a girl with a speech impediment so she has trouble casting spells.” (yes I just made that up–yes I just might write that story).
Do not sit down. This is basic sales 101. Nobody buys something from someone in a chair. There’s a lot of psychology behind this. Feel free to disagree with me and sell fewer books, but if I’m talking to you at a convention about your book and you’re so unenthusiastic about it that you can’t stand (disabilities are an exception) then there’s less than a 1% chance I’m going to take it home with me. Along with this, put the book in their hand so they can feel a sense of ownership and possession on your book or item (it means they have to intentionally give it back and “say no” to buying it)–that’s harder to do from a seated position.
Greet people and look them in the eye. Often this means people stop and accidentally get sucked into a conversation you can and should steer towards your book (look for openings to shift the conversation). It’s fine if they walk away–often just drawing a crowd attracts other more likely buyers. They see 1 or 2 others at your table and say “what’s this interesting thing? I think I’ll take a peek.” Feel free to jump to the person with genuine interest and/or steer the conversation to include them in the sales pitch while the original party walked away. You can’t sell to everyone, so try to determine which person is more likely to buy: it’s usually person #2 in my experience.
Have a way to engage with people who walk away. A lot of people don’t buy anything until they’ve seen it all and many might become interested but still have no intention of buying. Even if you know this, those people can still have some value: try to get them interested in joining a mailing list–I often run a giveaway; each person who enters must give you enough info that you can add them to your mailing list after the event.
Make sure your family and friends understand that if they drop in on you at your table and an interested person comes to the table you’re going to drop them like a hot brick. You are there for a purpose. It’s like having a job: no personal phone calls when you’re on the clock. Yes, you’re the boss, but small talk with family and friends are not the chief priorities when customers come. they won’t wait for you, make sure your friends and family know that… they’ve got to know they should take a step back but return to the conversation later.
Network with others. Arrive early and budget a little time to meet your neighbors and other similar artists and authors also working the same event. They may or may not buy from you but that’s not the goal. Networking is immensely valuable. You might have to opportunity to guest-blog, trade reviews, or work on other projects in the future that blow open huge holes of opportunity in the future. Don’t pass up that chance.
Don’t leave! It should go without saying, but the less you are your table, the more likely you are to sell. Over a recent weekend I finally took a five minute break to hit the restroom when someone I’d connected with the day previous came looking for me (luckily, I’d gotten her onto my mailing list so I connected after the event). Try to time your restroom trips and snack runs accordingly. If you can get something delivered or come prepared so you don’t have to leave then all the better.
People don’t ever come back! except when they do… but it’s better to cut a deal and sell them something now than wait around expecting they will return and buy. From my sales training days in pitch-work I’d been told that something like 4% or less of those promising to return and buy a product actually do. Bird in the hand and all that… don’t hold your breath on people coming back. Before they ever leave, ask them to put their info on your mailing list.
Market yourself: make sure you have an appealing setup. Money spent on professional banners, postcards, and marketing materials that will catch the eye are worth it. Nobody will buy from you if they never see you. You’re an introvert and don’t want to engage people? Tough, role-play as an extrovert. Either fake it or hire someone to do it for you. You’ve got to grab attention in the three second window you’ve been given. At the last con I attended my booth-mate had his amazon sales page up so he could show interested people his reviews. That worked for him. There is no sure-fire set of materials to have, so find what works–the only wrong choice is to forego them entirely.
Connect with readers. Ask everyone to leave a review in the usual places (Amazon, Goodreads, Smashwords, etc.) Spend extra time with those you are sure will read and review and seem to really be engaging with you. Remember that those readers you connect with are more likely to read through your entire back-list, buy your new titles, and recommend you to friends. Readers are awesome. Readers for life are better!

Do you have a book and have found something that works for you at festivals and conventions? Comment with more advice! Like this list? Share it with your friends!

Christopher D Schmitz is an author of sci-fi, fantasy, horror (SF/F/H), nonfiction, and just about any other genre in between. In addition to his blog you can find his stories and novels at http://www.authorchristopherdschmitz.com.

Free Fiction Tuesday: The Kakos Realm

Here’s a link to a free paperback giveaway I’m currently running on Goodreads! That’s right. FREE. It will cost you nothing to enter and potentially win a free copy of The Kakos Realm: Grinden Proselyte. Click this link for the giveaway!

“This 1st in an epic Christian Fantasy series is what you would expect if Frank Perretti wrote a Game of Thrones novel.”

State of Writing

 

Yeeeeaaahhh. So when I said I’d write 2x devos last monday because I’d missed the previous week? I actually wrote 5. Getting a little excited as I work on my new devo book. My count is up to 52 devotional pieces drawn exclusively from John’s Gospel… I’m kind of torn between doing 52 or 60 pieces (either a 2 month daily devo book or a year-long weekly one). If I go with the former, I’m done… but I’ll probably do the latter cuz I’m an overachiever.

Speaking of overachieving… I actually wrote two chapters in Fear in a Land Without Shadows, too. Last week was good. I’m shooting for just one of each, this week. Don’t want to set the bar too high.

Followup on Reviews: Places to Find Reviewers

So I decided to take my own advice on how to communicate with and seek out reviewers. It wouldn’t be out of the question to shoot off an email that takes 10-15 minutes to write (so personal, not a form one) after checking out a review website–it might be wise to schedule this into one’s early morning routine…perhaps as the coffee is brewing.

Of course, this begs the question, “Where do i find reviewers?” That might be the hardest part, methinks. But then I went looking through the saved folder of useful links that I’ve got stashed about great resources I really ought to blog about and find a gem: a database of database of reviewers with links to their sites and the genres that they actively review… it’s been around since 2010 and has 381 reviewers listed.

This website belongs in your bookmarks tab:

http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/

Reviewing Dekker’s Dozen

last weekend I sold out of Dekker’s Dozen at a comicon. Shortly after I saw this awesome book review and wanted to share!

Having read one of Chris’s non-fiction works (Why Your Pastor Left?) recently, I wasn’t sure what to expect from his fiction side.

I was not disappointed.

The Last Watchmen was a brilliant exercise in leaving genre-boundaries behind. There’s certainly an element of science fiction as Chris introduces new and unique races to the typical pantheon as well as bringing in fascinating technology. Guns blaze, ships soar, and epic battles ensue – everything sci-fi readers love.

But there’s a low fantasy element as well. Without giving away too many secrets, any author who can effectively insert zombies into his science fiction, is definitely worth his salt.

And if that isn’t enough, Chris brings in a spiritual basis that is so much more than the genre typically permits. The apocalyptic theme weaves right in with the rest of the book and enthralls me – making me want to keep reading.

Seal all of these elements with deep characters and a hot-and-cold love affair, and you have the makings of a great work of art. Chris develops all of this at a quick pace and never gives the reader a chance to catch his breath. Phenomenal work.

Book Review: Asana of Malevolence

Kate Abbott asked me to review her new release, Asana of Malevolence, and was kind enough to mail me a paperback copy. I didn’t even notice the cat on the front until my wife laughingly pointed it out. I don’t know if Abbott is or is not a crazy cat lady, but the cat does play a significant role in the story, so it’s not out of place.

Asana seems to start slow (Chapter 1 might have been better as a prologue because of the passive world-setting Abbot leads with, and Sharon’s life seems to come in snippets with a bunch of “fast-forward” moments in between such as “two months later…” and “The next January,” etc.) Aside from that, readers can expect it to pick up quickly once the story picks up speed and the writing and intensity of the story overshadow that minor criticism (actually, I always found the same to to be true of Michael Crichton’s storytelling–and I love all of his books, though Jurassic Park takes almost 40 pages to even begin…pardon the digression.)

I found some of the visceral moments during the character’s descent into madness (you can pick up on the theme of mental sickness pretty easily) to be disturbing–particularly because of the nonchalance of the sporadic violence. The book can draw you in and mess with your mind. If you like psychological thrillers, you should give it a read (not as dark and graphic as The Following, it’s perhaps more scary of a cult-type thriller because of its relate-ability and grounding in the real world).