Delle Jacobs's Blog, page 7

SIREN COVER CONTEST! PRIZES! Updated

(Note 2: I've added two new designs to the contest, based largely on what you've had to say so far. So if you've got time, take a look and see what you think of #4 and #5.)

(NOTE 1: If you have to comment anonymously, pls include your FaceBook name of some other way I can reach you- probably not good to show your email address on the comment.)

I'm about to release my first totally independent novella, SIREN. This 25,000 word novella. It's gone through an outside editor, and is ready to go. Except for one thing. It has THREE covers. So I'd like you to help me decide which one is the best one for the story.  THERE WILL BE PRIZES.


WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: SIREN is a 24,000 word novella, a sensual historical sea fantasy romance set in 1851, during the time of the great Clipper Ships. From the beginning, Siren is a mystery to the hero, John Wall, so main story is told entirely in his point of view, to emphasize his inability to know or understand the mysterious being of the sea.
For seventeen years, John Wall has sailed the seas, braving storms and pirates to bring his cargo safely into port.
Sometimes he sees the Siren and hears her clarion voice above the crashing waves: "Come to me, John Wall. Come to me."
But the Siren's song is death, so John resists its lure--Until the night he meets the King of Storms.
Masts shattered, sheets ripped and sails torn, his men-- gone--John clings fiercely to the wreckage, defying death.And the Siren comes for him."Come to me," her beautiful voice sings.
Their lips locked in a kiss, John Wall slips beneath the sea.
What has he found? Heaven? Hell? Or something beyond his wildest imagination?
WHAT TO DO:
Read the blurb and look at the three proposed covers, on this post. And comment. If all you want to say is "Great cover!", that's fine with me. But the commenters who give some helpful, insightful suggestions  (I get to decide) will be given an extra FIVE chances toward winning the prizes. Yes, you can say you don't like something, and yes, you can point out flaws. Remember, my crazy eyes often don't see something that's perfectly obvious to other people, so I don't take offense to such things if they're not rudely presented.

You MUST be willing to give me your actual email address if you are a winner because all prizes must be sent by email.

PRIZES:
1st: $25 Gift Certificate to Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Sony, or other ebook retailer the winner chooses. This will be MY choice of the most helpful comment. no promises that I'll actually be able to use the best comment though.
2nd: $10 Gift Certificate to an ebook retailer of winner's choice, randomly drawn from all commenters. (Don't spam me with hundreds of "nice cover" type entries. I'll just delete all but one anyway.) Commenters with helpful suggestions or comments beyond "nice cover" remarks will be given five entries into the drawing.
3rd: Ten $1 Gift certificates to AMAZON ONLY. These will be randomly drawn in the above manner.
Bonus Prizes: Two Free copies of SIREN from Smashwords

Nobody gets more than one prize.

DEADLINE: You've got till NOON, Friday May 18, 2011, to enter. I have to cut it off then so I can get the book out. And I'll announce the winners on Friday night on this blog.

And look for SIREN's release on Amazon, Smashwords and other ebook retailers. I'll post precise links when I get them.

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have to say!

Oh, the Treachery!

Temporarily FREE on Kindle!Okay, so it's not really treachery. Maybe more of a slippery slope. But since I once broke my wrist by slipping on a flat, nearly level rock AFTER climbing down a cliff, I'm a little bit hyper-vigilant about slippery slopes.

It seems two of my books, FIRE DANCE and THE MUDLARK, are caught in a price war between Sony and Amazon. Sony marked them down to $0.00 (which as near as I can tell is a contract violation), and Amazon consequently matched the price (which is NOT a contract violation).

Temporarily FREE on Kindle!I have no idea how this might have changed my sales numbers on Sony- and in fact I can't get any communication from either them or Smashwords, my distributor. But I can tell you Amazon reports that I've had over 35,000 downloads of my FOUR directly published books in less than a week.

So I should be excited about two huge bookstores giving away my book without my permission? You bet. Here's why:

At first sales of the other two, non-free directly published books as well as the three published by other publishers, dropped drastically. But within less than a day, they rose. They had been dragging after a four month run at the Top Seller lists on Amazon, and needed a little infusion of something. My plan had been to direct-publish a novella- my historical sea fantasy romance, SIREN, but formatting problems, three back-to-back conferences in April and a huge increase in cover art requests have slowed me down for anything that doesn't have a firm deadline. So Free Reads is just the boost I need right now to go along with the next release.

That's most likely about 20,000 new readers in the US and about 4,000 in UK, at least glancing at my books on their Kindles. And from my experience, a fair number of readers will go buy another book by me, once they've read one. I particularly like seeing my UK sales go up, tossing both HIS MAJESTY, THE PRINCE OF TOADS and LOKI'S DAUGHTERS into the UK Top Sellers lists. Before, they'd gone all but undiscovered.

So what am I going to do about Sony? Nothing, probably. Will they pay me? I don't know. But in the meantime, I'm issuing an open invitation to all readers. GO GET 'EM!

KINDLE SALES UPDATES

I haven't posted in awhile- I can't believe how busy I've become since the New Year, both with ebook sales and ebook covers. But the whole ebook worlds seems to be spinning so fast it's hard to see what is going on. So I thought I should drop by my own blog and tell you what I see.

The sales growth has been phenomenal in three months for my books, and a lot of other authors are reporting the same thing. It's clear, though, that sales growth is uneven, and a lot of authors are struggling, trying to get a toe hold in the market. I get asked a lot how to do that, and I really can't tell you how to do it. What worked for me began with a fabulous piece of luck, yet I have to say it's probably the only major piece of luck not directly related to hard work I've had in all my years in publishing. The rest was really a matter of working myself and my books into the right position at the right time, but without knowing ahead of time what that position and time would be. In other words, plain old perseverance.

But I'm happy to report that HIS MAJESTY, THE PRINCE OF TOADS has remained at the top of the Regency Romances for a solid month, and has been on the Top Selling Romances list for 48 days. How many sales does this take? Around 200 a day. Totals? For four books, in December I sold 1208 books, but January jumped to just under 6,000. And February, almost reached 10,000. With my other published books on Amazon, sales weren't as good, but they also have been rising. So I'm certain I sold well over the 10,000 last month. This month? Looking good but not nearly that kind of increase. And every day I have to sell more than before to keep my ranking. So some days I sell more books yet still drop in ranking. Some days the other way around. So, since I've been ranking between 29 and 46 in all Romances, I figure there are at least 50 other romance authors who are having the same kind of experience, or even better. I wonder how many books they're selling????

LADY WICKED is out!

I haven't been so excited about a book release since my first one back in 2000. But LADY WICKED is a very special book to me.

Available at Amazon, The Wild Rose Press,
 All Romance EBooks, etc.
http://tinyurl.com/4pvom2o It finalled in the Golden Heart twice, and won in 2005. It had a hard time in the post -9/11 era when few editors would buy historicals of any flavor, and particularly not those that weren't all light and fluffy. LADY WICKED isn't fluff. I do write fluff and love to do it, but although this book has lots of humor in it, it's definitely not the softest tissue in the box. But it's special because, as in all my books, love and justice triumph in the end. This time in a very memorable way. When karma comes around for my villains, it does a lot more than knock the wind out of them. I think this is the best ending I've ever written because, poetic justice really reigns.

Now, here it is! Launching with its first two reviews, both of them wonderful!

From RT Reviews:
RT RatingLady Wicked is not only a wonderful romance, it's also a fantastic mystery. As this compelling novel goes from hysterical scenes to dramatic ones all while developing a captivating romance, readers may well wonder if Jacobs has created a Mr. Darcy for this generation.

 From Sizzling Hot Book Reviews:
POSTED BY REVIEWER VICKY AT 5:52 PM
LABELS: 4 HEARTS,Lady Wicked deals with what happens after all the balls and parties we so often read about in historical romances. We can all guess about the happy stories, but Lady Wicked gives us a look into what can happen when the other extreme happens. Delle Jacobs has done her research into the laws and social rules of the time, giving us a real feel for what was accepted and how it might have happened. While this is fiction and an extreme case, one understands that divorce seems to be a last step taken.


Lady Wicked is much more than a historical or even a divorce novel. We see Savoury grow as a person. He learns he has been wasting he life before now. He connects to his family home, to the 'real' people around him, and finds love for the first time. He may be in tarnished armor, but he is a true knight, rescuing not only Davina, but a couple other characters as well. Watching him become a man is so nice. Davina admits that she was not much of anything under her father, finding herself as she realized she was willing to give up all wealth and title just to get out from under her husband. She has to learn to overcome her own fear, especially of men, large men. This is not easy, and is to be expected after her abuse.


The twist to the mystery of Lady Wicked is great, and I really enjoyed it. There is some nice play on historical law, and the lead up to the romance works well. This is a definite read for historical lovers, and for those who like to see the underdog win as well. 

TWO NEW RELEASES!

Life is getting exciting! Two releases in one month! A whimsical contemporary Valentines Day novella from the Cupid Gone Wild anthology, THE BOSS WORE RED, co-authored with SamMarie Ashe, and released by eTreasures. Remember when I did that mock cover? Well, it spawned a story, and it's just plain fun!
Buy It on Amazon                                            Buy It from All Romance eBooks



AND LADY WICKED, Golden Heart winner and winner of many contests, will be released Feb. 25 from The Wild Rose Press. I have already been told by the Romantic Times reviewer that the review, probably in the April issue, will be the very highest RT can give!

Pre-Order it on All Romance eBooks!

Help Support Egyptian Author Olivia Gates on her Release Day

This came to me from my friend Deb Marlowe who got it from Bonnie Vanak. Please feel free to copy and paste it in your blog or wherever, since Olivia is unable to access the internet during the unrest in Egypt.***My friend Bonnie Vanak (who writes Egyptian-set historicals as well as wonderful Nocturnes!) alerted me to the plight of Harlequin author, Olivia Gates. Here's the info from Bonnie's blog:


As you know, protests are taking place in Egypt and the government has shut down internet communication. Author Olivia Gates, who lives in Egypt, has a February 1 release by Harlequin Desire called  To Tempt a Sheikh . We'd like to get out the word about her book since Olivia cannot.


Let's support an author who cannot access the internet to promote her book.


To Tempt a Sheikh  by Olivia Gates


He rescued hostage Talia Burke from his royal family's rival tribe and swept her into his strong embrace. But Prince Harres Aal Shalaan soon discovered there was more to the brave beauty than he knew. Talia held information vital to protecting his beloved kingdom…and she had every reason not to trust him.


Marooned together at a desert oasis, Talia couldn't resist Harres. Yet even as his sizzling seduction entranced her, his loyalty to his family and country would always make them enemies. Falling for the sheikh would be her heart's greatest mistake…but she feared it was already too late….


In stores February 1!


Available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders, Books A Million and bookstores everywhere. Also available at eharlequin both in print and as an ebook.


To read a first chapter and visit Olivia's webpage, click  here .

KINDLE E-BOOK SALES ARE GOING THROUGH THE ROOF

Amazon Best Seller!Over the last few months I've been keeping a close eye on the volume of my sales on Kindle, and recently realized that my efforts have a wider range of importance than just my personal experience and the books I'm personally selling.

Many of you know I received a phenomenal boost back in October when Kindle put two of my books on their 100 Free Reads list for five days, and that my sales numbers continued to be high (but not THAT high) for the rest of the month (actually have continued high). But you might not know what the long term ramifications have been. And you would be unlikely to know how that has put me into a position to observe the massive changes in the ebooks market in the last few months. I have kept records of how my books have moved up and down on the charts, but that is of interest mostly to me. One of the things that I think is of broader interest is in charting the advance of sales in general.

This Free Reads boost gave my books a visibility they didn't have earlier, and I've had at least one book on a best seller list since then. As long as there's one on a visible list, buyers can easily find my books because, especially if they like what they read, one book leads to another sale, and then another, which in turn propels other books onto best seller lists. That's how HIS MAJESTY, THE PRINCE OF TOADS got there. It was never a free read, but was discovered by readers who had liked FIRE DANCE and THE MUDLARK. LOKI'S DAUGHTERS didn't get quite this kind of boost, but it is now showing excellent sales.

Since I have several self-published books on Kindle, I am able to receive immediate exact sales reports and compare them with the rankings for my books. HIS MAJESTY, THE PRINCE OF TOADS consistently accounts for half of the sales for four books,  which gives me a perspective on what is needed to keep a book on the best seller lists, and how many sales it takes to improve the ranking. I decided after Thanksgiving to offer all of my books at 99 cents through the Christmas season, and originally had intended to return to the normal $2.99 price after Christmas Day. But my sales volume was so high, I changed my mind and have kept the low price. I'm aware that this low price means I can't get Kindle's 70% royalty rate, but I made the decision because I see my job right now as to grab buyers and hopefully develop a large group of returning readers. In looking at the numbers of "also bought" books sold, I believe this is happening because people who bought one of my books have a vary high incidence of buying the others.

Sales on Kindle since Christmas Day have risen to between double and triple the pre-Christmas rate, which was high to begin with. This appears to be a general trend on Kindle, and likely is a reflection of the incredible number of Kindle readers sold by Amazon this holiday season. Every day except one in the new year has shown an increase in volume over the previous day, and I am now selling at about 100 books a day (four titles). Today is on track to record perhaps as many as 120 books sold.

Because I can compare my actual real time sales numbers with my overall ranking, I can see I'm doing only barely better than other books in my genre and in historical fiction, so the top books must be selling individually at least 80-100 per day. Yet there's only one or two of those books even appearing in the best selling general fiction list.

At the top of the Regency list, it now takes about 50 sales a day to move upward in ranking from #7 to #6, but of course the higher the ranking, the more sales are needed, while at the lower end of the lists, just a few sales will move a book from 4,000's to 3,000's. Over all, this indicates to me that the volume of sales of Kindle books has more than doubled its pre-Christmas numbers, and possibly could be three times. In the most popular genres, it might be even higher.  Several times I have noted a sudden jump in my number of sales, yet my overall ranking lowered, which tells me other genres were having even sharper volume sales increases.

I seem to do well overnight, and my ranking is often better in the morning than it is for the rest of the day. I suspect this reflects Asian and European sales. This balances with my web page stats which show I have a fairly large following in Asia and Europe. My ranking is usually higher if I first check my stats at 7 a.m. than if I don't get around to it till 10 a.m. But I also see a big jump in early evening, which may be after-work surges.

Although romance is doing very well in ebook sales, the top positions are still dominated by mainstream fiction and thrillers. Ficton that appeals to men appears more likely to be represented on the general fiction list than fiction that appeals mostly to women. However, in November I noticed there were no romances in the top 20 fiction ebooks, but now they are appearing in the top 10. I don't know if this was a fluke or not.

In romances, ebooks clearly dominate the top ten, with only a few paperback showing up. Classics such as Diana Gabaldon's and Ken Follett's books continue to be in extremely high demand and consistently show high in the best seller lists. Historical romance is not selling as well as Contemporary romance, although it sells very well.

I'm not in a position to tell you about other genres, other than these very limited observations. But I'll keep watching, just because I find it interesting.

Delle

Delle Jacobs http://dellejacobs.blogspot.com
LADY WICKED coming 2/25/2011 from The Wild Rose Press
Every proper lady ought to have a rake in her life.

Laptop!

New laptop is here and it's gorgeous! However I am at the "I hate you I hate you" stage. Two hours to find out how to turn on the backlit keyboard- yes the info is there, but it's listed under a different model only, and you have to know that first without being told.

Why the #*!! can't manufacturers write simple, down to nitty gritty manuals anymore? Is it because men don't read manuals and they don't write manuals for women???

Now re-installing software and data. Photoshop is up- the brand new CS5 Extended, and I am salivating, just thinking about it, But must get back to my story which is nearly done. But I have to have the software installed first.

Computer Failure! New One Coming

My NEW Dell Vostro 3500
in Lucerne RED!!!Well, my trusty old Dell Vostro laptop finally gave out after four years. I could replace the motherboard, but the cost is about $175-$200 for the motherboard, assuming free labor. I've got my Baby, the MSI Wind U230 to tide me over, but while it's great for its intended purpose, coffee shop writing, it's hard on my  eyes for other things. So it's time to move up.

Only Dell offers the anti-glare screen I must have in a wide variety of models. I also really want a backlit keyboard for durability and the visibility- important for my screwball eyes. But finding my right combo at a good price was hard. I'm having to downgrade on hard drive size, but I work off back-up drives a lot anyway. I could replace it with my new 500 gb drive from the defunct machine, but there's that pesky warranty problem. And, silly thing that I am sometimes, I am actually paying extra for RED. But  you know how I love color.


If anyone I actually know who is close by wants a free motherboardless laptop, it's theirs. I loved this little workhorse and put a lot of money into upgrading and otherwise spoiling it so I'd love to see it get a new home. Possibly even talk son into doing an install for the nice person who will buy the motherboard. And no I will not guarantee anything. Not labor, not parts, not even whether this will continue to operate. It might not even be the motherboard that's at fault- could be the CPU or something else, even though it's most likely that. I'm simply not taking that responsibility.

I'll keep the new 500 gb hard drive as a backup drive, and re-install the original 120 gb, which had relatively little use. There's 4 gb of DDR2 memory, two batteries- a 9 cell in good shape and a 6 cell almost new. A new AC power cord and adapter, even a new keyboard and touchpad because I'm so hard on those. An anti-glare screen, of course. And Windows 7, recently installed, but I won't need. No Word, WordPerfect, Photoshop or that kind of stuff.