Leon Stevens's Blog, page 64
October 27, 2023
Free Book Friday Oct 27: Just the Promos
The story behind Free Book Friday: I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?
Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.
Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.
Featured Author: Zoe RouthZoë Routh is a leadership futurist, podcaster, and multiple award-winning author. She works with leaders and teams to navigate future horizons.
Zoë is an outdoor adventurist and enjoys telemark skiing, has run 6 marathons, is a one-time belly-dancer, has survived cancer, and loves hiking in the high country. She lives in Canberra and is married to a gorgeous Aussie and is a self-confessed dark chocolate addict.
When the world crumbles, can Terra Blanca stand? A test of leadership, loyalty, and legacy.
Discover the gripping prequel to the Gaia series, where power, innovation, and human resilience clash in a near-future dystopian world.Rylie Addison battles power struggles and a covert threat while striving to transform a groundbreaking man-made island into a thriving self-sustained community for climate refugees, risking it all on a critical leadership decision that could change the course of history.
Read for free!Reads From StoryOrigin and BookFunnelStoryOrigin and BookFunnel allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!
Since my newsletter goes out bi-weekly, I offer book promos on those dates, so here are what’s running right now:
Free Books
Oct 14- Nov 13
Kindle Unlimited
Purchase Links
Oct 25-Nov 22Review Copies (These are free!)Review copies: Like reviewing books? Try my two poetry collections: Lines by Leon and A Wonder of Words
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book (poetry or science fiction or both): Leon’s Newsletter
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 26, 2023
Thursday Thoughts: Marketing Mistakes
Sometimes I can’t keep up with all the special days/months/special interest dates. I can’t believe I completely missed “Booktoberfest” and/or “Boo-ktober”.
My books are like a needle in a haystack/drop in the ocean/grain of sand on a beach/star in the universe/snowflake…well you get the idea. It’s hard to be noticed when there are thousands of books being published everyday.
What works best? Newsletters? Author swaps? My hilarious interviews? Group promos? Paying for inclusion in a mailer? Amazon ads? Social media presence?
Pfft. Who knows. It’s hard to determine exactly where sales (when the occur) are coming from, especially when you are doing several types of promotions concurrently.
So, I just plug away at everything…something will work.
Right?
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 25, 2023
Weird Wednesday Oct 25th: Preparedness and Cartoons
Leaves raked. Just in time.
Patio furniture stored. Working on it.
Eaves cleaned. Oops.
Winter tires. Leaving that too late.
What am I forgetting?
What am I forgetting? I’m forgetting I forget to do these things every year. I’m forgetting that winter is an inevitability where I live.
Do I like winter? I don’t dislike it. It takes a switch in attitude to appreciate the season. Winter cycling is challenging but fun. You can’t snowshoe in the summer. The crisp air is, well, crisp. And don’t forget the complaining. No season elicits the volume of complaints that winter does.
So, bring out the coats and don’t forget the expletives.
-Leon
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 23, 2023
Music Monday Oct 1: Slone
There is a radio show on CBC here in Canada that occasionally does a feature called SYNTH: Songs You Need To Hear.
Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it.
Maybe you will find a new favorite.
CBC MUSIC, Central · Mornings with CBC Music
If you don’t live in Canada, you probably haven’t heard of Slone who have been around since 1992.
Sloan is a Canadian rock band based in Toronto and originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Sloan have released thirteen full-length albums and have received nine Juno Award nominations, winning one. Between 1996 and 2016, Sloan was among the top 75 best-selling Canadian artists in Canada and among the top 25 best-selling Canadian bands in Canada. The band is known for their sharing of songwriting and lead vocals from each member of the group and their unaltered line-up throughout their career.
I this their best song? When I think of Slone, this is the one that comes to mind, but 31 years of putting out albums will net you a few contenders.
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 22, 2023
Sunday Smile
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 21, 2023
Weekend Wrap-up Oct 21: Social Media or Social Meh?
Could I make the logo any smaller?
I use my social media for one thing…well maybe two, but they are related.
To entertain. Any one who finds me on any of my social media platforms will hopefully enjoy the content I create*. I am most often humorous, sometimes cynical, at times satirical, and occasional just bizarre. To reach new readers and to sell more books. Why else would I write and publish?The danger in promoting books is over-promoting to the point that people get annoyed and will tune out. But in order to be visible, you need to showcase your work often. I try to keep my promotional posts to under 50%
If you are on X-Twitter, you might notice it is a bit of an excremental extravaganza. Many authors use it as part of their advertising and I usually do one promotional post/day but since a post will quickly get buried in the feed, it doesn’t get seen by many.
Some of my posts I think are entertaining and will elicit a good conversation thread, but alas, twas not the case.
Do you remember when this was the most popular website? pic.twitter.com/JyGokypYfm
— Leon Stevens (@linesbyleon) October 19, 2023
I have “met” some very supportive author there, and a few readers have said they found me through that platform, but more and more it is feeling like a waste of effort, so I’m slowly backing away from X and focusing more on the others. Where else am I?
https://books.linesbyleon.com/links
I started on the new platform, BlueSky, and I have a few invite codes if you want another platform to try.
On my blog this week:
Free Book Friday Oct 20: Book or Not a Book
Thursday Thoughts: 25 Years and no difference?
Weird Wednesday Oct 18th: Cartoons
Open Book Blog Hop October 16th: Music and Writing
Metal Music Monday Oct 16: Too Early to Rock?
*Please don’t call me a content creator.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 20, 2023
Free Book Friday Oct 20: Book or Not a Book
A lot is said about book covers and when I came across this post:
NVDT RANDOM – Covers and Why You Can (Almost) Tell a Book by Them
I though about my own journey when I made my own [insert gasp of horror here].
Unless you are an amazing graphic designer (I am not) your choices are pre-made covers, design platforms like Canva or BookBrush, or piecing together a bunch of images on your own (not recomended).
Except for my first poetry book where I used my own illustrations I went with the Canva option but borrowed an image from BookBrush (read about it here: Under the Covers )
With Canva, If you spring for the pro version, you get a plethora of pre-generated covers, but if you choose one, complete with title and author name, you are forced to write that book and write under that pen name.
OK, you can edit the text, but you do run the risk of someone else having the exact same cover. So, are any of these real books?
-Leon
The story behind Free Book Friday:I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?
Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.
Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.
Featured Author: Reads From StoryOrigin and BookFunnelStoryOrigin and BookFunnel allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!
Since my newsletter goes out bi-weekly, I offer book promos on those dates, so here are what’s running right now:
Free BooksOct 14- Nov 13
Kindle Unlimited
Review Copies (These are free!)Review copies: Like reviewing books? Try my two poetry collections: Lines by Leon and A Wonder of Words
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book (poetry or science fiction or both): Leon’s Newsletter
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 19, 2023
Thursday Thoughts: 25 Years and no difference?
Remember this?
Twenty-five years ago this website was created. A year later, it almost broke the internet*.
Oh, how far we have co—wait, isn’t that just an early example of a meme? Isn’t the internet still filled with mindless, absurd, and inane content created to achieve that viral status, and that quickly gets shared by users trying be the first one to share said content?
What’s the earliest website you remember?
-Leon
*Fact used for entertainment purposed only.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 18, 2023
Weird Wednesday Oct 18th: Cartoons
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
October 16, 2023
Open Book Blog Hop October 16th: Music and Writing
If your WIP had a soundtrack, what songs would be on it? Do you write with some sort of background noise or do you prefer silence? (We may have touched on this before, but it’s a great way to discover new music.)
The simple answer is: I can’t write with music. It’s just too distracting. Even as I write this I had to turn off the radio.
You still listen to the radio?
Well, not on a radio, but a radio station.
If (and it’s a big if) I have music playing, it has to be something orchestral, usually Baroque.
The more complicated answer: I have written music to go with my WIP.
When I finished the last chapter and epilogue to the final book in my sci-fi trilogy, I was a bit saddened and teary eyed (yes, they’re that good), and nothing bring out a piece of music than emotion. So, I sat with my guitar and began to compose.
It took a few months, but the piece became an homage to the characters and the story. I then decided to make a video with it as a way to wrap everything up for the readers of the trilogy.
I can’t share the video because if you haven’t read the series, it won’t make sense, and if you are going to read it, there are spoilers in the video. But, I will share the piece, Time and Again, which I think stands on it’s own:
-Leon
Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!
Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
