Rod Raglin's Blog, page 36
April 23, 2016
SELF-e connecting indie books, libraries and readers
Out of the blue came an email inviting me to participate in the third Thursday Self-e Twitter chat focused on international authors in indie and self-publishing.
How come I wasn’t invited to the first two? Never mind, I wouldn’t have participated anyway just as I’m not planning to participate in this one, but I am interested in indie and self-publishing and who and what is SELF-e ?
SELF-e is a discovery platform powered by Library Journal designed to expose self-published ebooks to more readers via the public library, locally or nationwide (that means the US).
Authors whose ebooks are selected by Library Journal for inclusion in SELF-e modules can use a digital badge promoting their inclusion to potential readers who may choose to purchase a copy of the title and/or to purchase other books by that author via retail channels. Ebooks that are not selected by Library Journal will still be accessible to local library patrons via state-specific modules.
Okay, what’s the catch, as in how much are they going to charge?
But wait, there is no cost to participate, and distribution via the SELF-e platform is royalty-free.
What they do ask is if your book is selected you give them a non-exclusive license to make your ebook available to public library patrons via subscribing institutions in the public library market, including subscribing public libraries in your state.
My local library is currently carrying my six novels, which they actually purchased (a thousand thank you’s), but I would have gladly donated them.
Authors and their publishing service providers/future publishers are not restricted in any manner from promoting and selling their ebooks to any market (including the public library market via other vendors).
This information comes off their website which has yet to be updated to let authors know they are now also accepting international titles.
So why is Library Journal doing this?
Forgive me if I’m skeptical but there’s an entire industry of sycophants who’s sole purpose is to rip off vulnerable, delusional, hopeful and yes, stupid new indie authors. Is LJ the exception?
Apparently.
They claim their primary directive is connecting indie books, libraries and readers.
“Libraries are driving a new era of ebook discovery for indie authors and small presses. SELF-e helps develop robust local writing communities and keeps libraries at the center of the indie book movement.”
Well, all can say to that is “hurrah!”, and what took you so long.
Visit their blog http://self-e.libraryjournal.com/blog/to see the latest SELF-e news and events.
Submit your books at self-e.libraryjournal.com
Stay Calm, Be Brave, Watch for the Signs
30
Book Giveaway Win a copy of
THE BIG PICTURE, FOREST or ABANDONED DREAMS
Enter at
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at
Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend, The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic and Abandoned Dreams are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
The ECO-WARRIORS series:
Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success?
Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs
Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients
are available as e-books an paperbacks at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my Flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
April 18, 2016
Indie author bookstore wants to rent you shelf space
I recently received an email from an indie author bookstore that wants to stock my books.
My response is not elation or gratitude, it’s suspicion.
I think this industry is making me a cynic.
Anyhow…
P.J. Boox http://pjboox.com/ was started by “award-winning”(?) author and illustrator, Patti Brassard Jefferson in the summer of 2015. Brassard describes herself as a self-published author who released her first book with an indie publisher (how does that work?) and so on and so forth to the end that apparently she can “relate”.
Her store only accepts self-published and indie authors (are these not one and the same?), “as well, micro, small press, vanity and subsidy publishers may submit books. Traditionally published large publishing houses and imprints may not.”
Already I’m having difficulty with the pitch and wondering if Brassard wrote this how she became an award-winning author? I mean is there a difference between micro and small press? Aren’t vanity and subsidy publishers the same thing? Is a traditionally published large publishing house the same as a large publishing house or a traditional publisher? Does the writer know that saying the same thing only using different words is still being redundant?
Anyhow, let’s cut to the chase.
Brassard doesn’t want to stock my books she wants to rent me shelf space in her store.
For $80.00 and a one time set up fee of $18.00, I can rent a shelf that will fit six books max for four months. If they sell your books in the store you get 98 percent royalty. If you want them to sell them online you ante up another $15.00 set up fee and they take twenty percent.
You send them your books and every month they send you the money you earned that month.
So lets crunch some numbers, shall we?
My novel Abandoned Dreams sells for $9.99. I order six to fill the shelf and have CreateSpace ship them to PJ Boox. It costs $26.57
I add the set up charge and the shelf rental of $98.00 plus the cost of the books for a total of 124.57. If I sell all six books at $10.00 = $60.00, less 2%@ $1.20 = $58.80 net. I’m in the hole $65.77.
What about if I sell more than double that, say 13 books at $10.00 = $130.00, less 2% @$2.40 = $127.60, but printing and shipping has just jumped to $49.07, so I’m still in the red $46.04.
My brain’s getting tired but suffice to say I would need to sell about 20 books in four months to break even and just a few less in the next four month cycle to pay the shelf rental considering the setup fee is waived. I fare even worse with books sold online by PJ Boox.
Will a bookstore in a strip mall in Fort Myers, Florida sell more books (a lot more) for me than Amazon considering they have my books available in all major English speaking countries in the world.
So let’s sum up shall we? Taking advantage of the offer presented by PJ Boox means more hassle and less profit plus grinding my teeth every time I have to think, say or write that ridiculous name.
Sure I want to see my books in a bookstore, but I’m waiting until they pay me rather then the other way around.
Stay Calm, Be Brave, Watch for the Signs
30
Book Giveaway Win a copy of
THE BIG PICTURE, FOREST or ABANDONED DREAMS
Enter at
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at
Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend, The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic and Abandoned Dreams are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
The ECO-WARRIORS series:
Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success?
Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs
Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients
are available as e-books an paperbacks at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
April 11, 2016
Chasing the elusive book review
My first novel was published six years ago followed by five more with the most current one, Abandoned Dreams, released in March, 2016.
Over that period of time I’ve had a total of about thirty reviews – that’s for all books combined, non-duplicated. They’ve appeared and can actually be read on:
Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4603345.Rod_Raglin
LibraryThing https://www.librarything.com/search.php?search=rod+raglin
I’ve had a few other reviews on personal blogs, and there may even be more out there I’m not aware of.
I confess I actually paid for three, but never again. Despite the assurances from paid for review sites that the fee does not guarantee a positive review I can’t reconcile this practice with my own conscience.
So how does an indie author get honest reviews since reviews apparently sell books?
I say apparently because I don’t know otherwise. My experience has been a few reviews equal a few sales. Would a whole bunch of reviews translate into a whole bunch of sales? I can’t say for sure because…well, you figure it out.
As a journalist I was trained to not to assume anything and take nothing for granted. I strongly urge other indie authors to do the same. As far as unsubstantiated and exaggerated claims the charlatans in the writing/publishing industry rank right up there with those affiliated with miracle cures and get rich internet scams.
But I digress. How does an indie author get honest reviews?
I’ve tried book giveaways on sites like Booklikes http://booklikes.com/ LibraryThing, Goodreads and StoryCartel. I’ve sent hundreds of free e-books attached to personalized e-mails. I keep an up-to-date website, tweet everyday and even blog, as you are no doubt aware, though I have yet to establish any link between the last three “soft sells” and book sales, unless after reading this you decide to buy one of my books and post a review (let me know if you do).
Media reviews or other established review outlets like Publisher’s Weekly and Library Journal seem reluctant to review your book unless it’s successful(?) or at least traditionally published.
In desperation I checked out a site called The Indie View http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/
If you’re inclined to read and subsequently write reviews of the work of independent authors you’re invited to add your name to their list, which is quite substantial.
If you’re an author and fishing for reviews the site provides you with the name of the reviewer, their website, their preferences, guidelines, where they post their reviews and the date this information was last refreshed.
Keeping all this in mind I sent about a dozen review requests with an e-book of Abandoned Dreams a little over two weeks ago. So far nothing.
However, here are some interesting things I discovered.
A least twenty-five percent of the reviewers listed are closed for reviews due to a backlog. I take that as not a good sign.
Quite a few reviewers state they will not post a review of a work they cannot rate as at least three stars. I imagine they do this out of consideration, however misguided, thinking a bad review can pull down an author’s average rating.
Depending on why you write, you may be of the opinion, as I am, there is no such thing as a bad review. First and foremost I want to become a better writer – money and fame, well, I’ll accept those too – if you insist. Critical reviews, especially those that are specific, point out where I’ve let the reader down and allow me to consider how to improve in those areas.
If you’re in this game for ego, if you some how think you can fool all the readers all the time than I can understand that a bad review really sucks.
But not for me.
If someone hated my book, well, that’s okay. I’m just glad they read it and took the time to review it.
Stay Calm, Be Brave, Watch for the Signs.
30
Book Giveaway Win a copy of
THE BIG PICTURE, FOREST or ABANDONED DREAMS
Enter at
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at
Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend, The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic and Abandoned Dreams are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
The ECO-WARRIORS series:
Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success?
Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs
Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients
are available as e-books an paperbacks at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
April 9, 2016
Seventh novel reaffirms why I write
I’ve finished the first draft of The Local Rag.
It’s now resting for about three months or until I’ve got it out of my system. Then I’ll do another rewrite and send it to my beta readers. They’ll come back to me in about six weeks with lots of errors and some incites.
This is my seventh novel. Why, you might ask, did I write this book when the previous six have cost me more in postage and delivery than I’ve made in royalties?
So more for myself than for you, let me review the reasons I write:
• I write because it’s fun. If you need me to explain fun, well, I’m sorry for you.
• I write because I learn stuff. All my novels are about something I want to learn more about. As the story unfolds I’m doing research and learning right along with my characters.
• I write because I hope to share my views about issues that are important to me – I’m still hoping to.
The Local Rag is about journalism, the media, publishing, and the truth.
My career in journalism, mostly as publisher and editor of my own community newspapers, has spanned nearly forty years. I’ve seen lots of changes but none so disconcerting as what I see today. I set out to learn more about the concentration of media ownership, the decline of print and the rise of online news outlets, and the role of citizen journalism (also known as public, participatory, democratic, guerrilla or street journalism) and how it affects the legitimacy of our news.
I learned a lot.
I’m sharing what I learned in the context of a novel that also includes friendship, small business, politics, murder, crime and corruption.
Have I missed anything?
Why don’t you tell me? There are never enough beta readers.
Three months from now I’ll be sending out the manuscript to beta readers. At that time the manuscript will be quite polished, but by my eyes only. I’m looking for my beta readers to find plot glitches, inconsistencies, typos, spelling mistakes – anything and everything that will make The Local Rag a better read and error free.
All beta readers are acknowledged in the front matter of the book and get a paperback edition free.
Interested? E-mail me at rod_raglin@yahoo.com
Stay calm, be brave, watch for the signs.
30
Book Giveaway – Win a copy of
THE BIG PICTURE, FOREST or ABANDONED DREAMS
Enter at
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at
Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend, The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic and Abandoned Dreams are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
The ECO-WARRIORS series:
Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success?
Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs
Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients
are available as e-books an paperbacks at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
April 5, 2016
Novel (paperback) giveaways
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Forest – Love, Loss, Legend
by Rod Raglin
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27669765
Giveaway ends April 30, 2016.
See the giveaway details
Goodreads Book Giveaway
The Big Picture
by Rod Raglin
Giveaway ends April 30, 2016.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24456462
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Abandoned Dreams
by Rod Raglin
Giveaway ends April 30, 2016.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29616205
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
March 22, 2016
“Indie” or Inkitt? Is going it alone better than providing free “content”
I continue to learn and it seems to get easier.
I have to confess this surprises me considering my brain has been, according to most scientific studies, in cognitive decline for nearly seven years now.
Why is learning getting easier or am I just imagining it?
No, it’s true. I actually figured out how to properly number my new novel Abandoned Dreams in a Word Document. And further still, I realized I could line up the front matter on facing pages by opening the menu “Layout” and pulling down “line numbers” and aligning the type by corresponding line numbers.
I think it’s because I’ve more time, which allows me to be more patient, which allows me to make mistakes, and yes, actually learn from them.
There was a time, and not so long ago, that I would be running behind as soon as I woke up. I had no time for mistakes, nor the patience it takes to learn complex new things. Okay, page numbering is maybe not that complex but you get what I’m saying.
This is a round about way of announcing that my new novel, Abandoned Dreams is now available as a paperback as well as e-book at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
It actually is better formatted than my previous five novels and has the least errors. I’d like to say no errors, but I know at some later date I’ll be looking at it and for sure I’ll find one – or more.
And if you see any be sure to let me know.
Here’s another thing I’ve learned. On social media nothing is more important than content.
I learned this while trying to find something interesting to tweet to my twenty-seven followers (some are real people). My themes are the environment, writing including literacy programs, author readings, and writing projects, community affairs and events, and photography (mine). If I come up with something original I get more response, which is gratifying but, you guessed it, doesn’t translate into book sales.
So is there a way to get more content than setting up a sight that publishes creative writing? I don’t think so. Writer’s upload their work in hopes of what I’m not sure -some feedback, a connection and it becomes a self-perpetuating thing. Just imagine the numbers of hits, members, whatever, the site’s owners can show advertisers.
The best thing is it’s all free.
Throw in a contest with a small cash prize, a publishing deal (like that’s worth anything in this day of fast and easy self-publishing) and the site lights up.
What I’ve just been describing is Inkitt. These are the people who claim they have a system using “data analysis to determine and predict the success of a novel.” They claim they “are also working together with some of the world’s biggest publishing houses to publish any potential best-sellers we find.”
Considering Inkitt’s claims and after reading a few chapters of some of the stories posted on the site I was more than a bit suspect. What is actually going on here?
Recently they hosted Swoon, a contest for romance novels. Since there was no down side (fee) I entered my novel Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs as an experiment more than anything else.
The submission deadline was February 23rd. The voting deadline was February 29th.
There were 160 submissions. A novel, Trying to Behave got the most votes at 312. Loving the Terrorist got one vote. I wonder, does this mean I won’t win?
It is now March 22nd and the judges: agent Rebecca Friedman and romance authors Laurelin Paige and Melody Grace have yet to announce the winner.
What happened to the formula, the data analysis that could determine and predict the success of a novel? Why are we waiting for mere mortals to read all these submissions (a task I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy) to come up with a winner?
Meanwhile, Inkitt has launched another contest. The Grand Novel contest deadline is June 7th and already there are 198 entries.
Talk about content.
March 9, 2016
Author rankings, sales ratings and other publishing enigmas
Have you ever tried to make sense out of the author rankings and sales ratings on Amazon?
For example, on March 4, 2016 my Author Ranking on Amazon was 1,189,814.
On March 5 Abandoned Dreams was released as an e-book after being available for about three months as a pre-order.
There was one sale and my Author Ranking rose to 791,455, a jump of 398,359 points. My ranking as of this writing is 833,996 and dropping, but still significantly higher than in previous months and all on the strength of one sale.
On February 14th Abandoned Dreams entered Amazon’s system with a sales ranking of 167,189, that’s without a sale. On March 5 with one sale under my belt my ranking had dropped to 1,431,617.
Does any of this make sense to you?
Of course it makes less sense that I care what my ranking is considering there are hundreds of thousands of authors listed on Amazon apparently doing better than me.
While we’re on the subject of making sense, which I seldom do, here’s another enigma.
After giving two books away on Goodreads I noticed 193 people had added Loving the Terrorist (one of the books I gave away) as “want to read”, and 259 people had added Saving Spirit Bear as “want to read”.
That was two months ago and those numbers haven’t changed. Apparently, not one person has read either of my books despite “want(ing) to read” them.
I’m thinking clicking the “want to read” button is equivalent to “friending” and “following”, it signifies nothing.
And despite 1,195 people entering the contest and four actually winning books the number of reviews I’ve received on Goodreads hasn’t increased either.
To add insult to injury this month their Author Newsletter is pitching “one very simple thing you can do on Goodreads that will boost your visibility, engage your followers, and raise awareness of your book.”
The simple thing is to share your favourite books by adding them to your shelf. This will evidently “Give new readers a better understanding of where you came from by sharing what you enjoy.” It will also generate a “news feed update to your followers”.
It seems like a tremendous stretch to think a follower would read one of my books because they were interested in the books, other than my own, I recommend – and that’s not just because I have no followers.
And yet the folks at Goodreads are adamant that this works just as well as “claiming your author profile, running a giveaway, and enabling Ask the Author.”
Since I’ve tried (am currently trying) the other three suggestions and haven’t had any significant results whatsoever forgive me if I take a pass on this latest one.
I’ll be releasing Abandoned Dreams in paperback likely by the end of the month.
I’ll do it without fanfare.
I mean really, what’s the point.
Stay calm, be brave, watch for the signs.
30
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend and The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
The ECO-WARRIORS series:
Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success?
Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs
Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients
are available as e-books an paperbacks at http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
February 18, 2016
What I’m learning from rewriting my first novel
I wrote my first novel, The Local Rag, in 2003.
Like most first novels it was a masterpiece.
I sent it out and as the response came in I decided maybe I didn’t want to be a novelist after all.
I hid the manuscript in the back of my filing cabinet.
Four months ago I dug it out. It hadn’t improved with age, but at least I could now read it without weeping and gnashing my teeth. To my surprise I discovered if you could overlook the very bad writing (which I admit was difficult, even painful) there was indeed a story buried in there, one even more in need of telling today than it was thirteen years ago.
I review quite a number of books by independent authors (see link below to my video book review blog Not Your Friend, Not Your Family book reviews) and most of them are making the same mistakes I made in my first novel. This means if you continue writing for ten more years you should at least achieve my level of skill, which, come to think of it might make you want to rethink your career path, especially if you consider the lack of success I’ve attained.
But I digress.
What the rewriting of The Local Rag (yes, I’m rewriting it) has done for me is affirm my criticism of the work of new writers – at least in my mind.
To put that another way, I am now rewriting The Local Rag in accordance to what I’ve suggested many new authors do to improve their work.
And what are those suggestions:
Begin with Goal, Motivation and Conflict: what does my protagonist want, why do they want it, and what is preventing them from getting it? Write your GMC down and refer to it each time you begin to write. It will keep your story focused.
Don’t over explain – especially simple actions and the description of characters. Leave it to the reader’s imagination
Use adverbs sparingly. Especially don’t use them to explain your dialogue.
Leave out everything (and I mean everything) you can’t attribute to developing character or advancing the plot.
In 2003 the word count for The Local Rag was about 82,000. The 2016 version will likely be about 60,000.
Of course, a significant number of the words deleted are “that” (used 910 times) and “just” (used 279 times) in the original manuscript.
However, I hope the new version supports the theory that less is best when it comes to writing.
Herewith is blurb for The Local Rag. I find writing the blurb before you actually begin writing the novel is another good way to keep focused.
Do you believe everything you read in the newspapers?
Jim Mitchell doesn’t.
He’s a journalist and the publisher and editor of a community newspaper, The Sentinel.
He gave up a career with big media because he couldn’t justify their choice of what to cover, couldn’t tolerate the way they edited his stories and would not be implicit in misleading the public to benefit some hidden corporate agenda.
When he bought The Sentinel he thought all that would end. Being owner of “the local rag” he could select the stories, edit the copy and make sure the interests of the community were served.
He would print the truth – no slant, no bias, no spin, and he’d make a living doing it.
He was wrong.
Right from the beginning Jim’s brand of reportage rankles some powerful people, people who pay his bills. Then there’s the new competitor, a multinational media conglomerate that’s expanding its generic community newspaper format into The Sentinel’s market area.
Soon it’s a struggle for The Sentinel to make a profit and for Jim to keep true to his uncompromising ethic.
When his best friend, Anthony Bravaro decides to run for mayor Jim’s hopeful for the first time he’ll see an honest politician.
Hope turns to dismay as Jim watches the quest for power turn a good man bad.
Tony’s campaign tests Jim’s professional objectivity and personal integrity. When Jim confronts him with damaging information that could end his run for public office he finds out how far Tony’s prepared to go to win the mayor’s seat – farther than he ever could have imagined.
30
Book Giveaway. 100 e-books of ABANDONED DREAMS ’til March 1
LibraryThing:
https://www.librarything.com/er/giveaway/list
BookLikes:
http://booklikes.com/giveaways/show/2196/abandoned-dreams-rod-raglin
ABANDONED DREAMS
Special Preorder Price 99¢ ’til March 6, 2016
After March 6, $3.99
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0191B3XDE?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
January 26, 2016
Does sending out Advance Reading Copies get more reviews?
In case you don’t know, and why would you, I write a fair number of book reviews. They’re broken into two categories:
– Reviews of new, self-published authors, and
– Reviews of new, traditionally published Canadian authors.
I post these reviews on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, BookLikes, LibraryThing, Smashwords and Google Books as well as my local library subject to the book being available on or through these sites. For example, if a book is not listed on Smashwords, no review is posted.
With new self-published authors I also post the review as a video on my YouTube channel Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Book Reviews https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
I’ve chosen these two categories to review because I am them (or is it they are me) and I know how difficult it is to get reviewed and acknowledged.
I’m not a top Amazon reviewer – my actual ranking is 323,578. My YouTube channel has one hundred and ninety views, half of them probably me trying to get it right, and one subscriber. So I was a bit surprised to receive this email:
Dear Rod,
As a quick introduction, I was the #1 bestselling novelist in India in 2008 (Keep off the Grass, HarperCollins India) and 2010 (Johnny Gone down, HarperCollins India) with 200,000+ copies of my novels in print. Both novels have been optioned into major films, currently in different stages of development.
Penguin Random House publishes my first international novel, THE YOGA OF MAX’S DISCONTENT, worldwide in Spring 2016. The book is about a Wall Street investment banker who becomes a yogi in the Himalayas and is both a page turning adventure through the hidden underbelly of India and a journey of tremendous inner transformation. I was looking at books with similar themes i.e. contemporary fiction or international voices on Amazon and saw you had reviewed The Lowland.
Would you be interested in receiving a free advance review copy of my novel? We’re sharing them with a small handful of interested international readers for their honest reviews in advance of the The Yoga of Max’s Discontent’s worldwide release.
I’d be obliged if you could let me know of your interest.
Thank you,
Karan Bajaj
I’m not going to flatter myself by thinking I was personally chosen, or that I’m even part of “a small handful of interested international readers” since there are already twenty-eight advance reviews for the novel posted on Goodreads. More likely there’s a software program that selected me because I reviewed The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri.
Though this novel doesn’t fit into my review criteria I’m going to accept the author’s offer of an advance reading copy (ARC) for an honest review.
I sent out ARCs prior to self-publishing my last two books, The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic and FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend. Each time about one hundred and fifty people who’d previously expressed an interest in my work received an e-book . Altogether I doubt I got a half a dozen reviews.
It’s interesting that an author with considerable success and a powerhouse traditional publisher behind him is doing what appears to be the same hands on book flogging a nobody like me resorts to.
I’ll keep you posted on the process and my review.
Stay calm, be brave, watch for the signs
30
January 24, 2016
The cost of giving away free books
My Goodreads giveaway https://www.goodreads.com attracted twelve hundred and seventeen entries to win four paperbacks. Loving the Terrorist received five hundred and thirty-four and Saving Spirit Bear six hundred and eighty-three.
I just mailed the books to the four winners and the postage was $51.50, half of that was to send one book to a winner in Australia.
Tip: You might want to limit the entries to Canada and United States unless you’re rich or have a big following overseas.
When you factor in what Createspace charged me for print-on-demand copies and shipping the entire giveaway cost $88.98
Results? I did garner one five star review on Goodreads for both Saving Spirit Bear and Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs and…hold on, what’s this, two hundred and sixty-five other Goodreads members have marked Saving Spirit Bear “to read”?
I’m flattered, but I’m thinking it might be a computer glitch.
Forty-five people took advantage of my LibraryThing e-book giveaway https://www.librarything.com of The Big Picture – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic. This cost me nothing except about an hour and a half sending emails.
So the question is which giveaway is better:
Goodreads with twelve hundred and fifteen entries and four paperbacks given away at a cost of $88.98?
or
LibraryThing with forty-five entries and forty-five e-books given away at no cost?
I’ll let you know, but considering I’m expecting the net result in reviews and sales from both giveaways to be little better than nothing I’m leaning toward the least expensive. I mean, wouldn’t you?
I see I have a royalty credit on Smashwords for $4.47 and Kindle Direct is sending me an electronic deposit for 35¢ USD (which will actually net out to about 45¢ CA), so once again I’m starting the year in a deficit position of about $84.00.
What was I thinking?
30
Abandoned Dreams
Special Preorder Price 99¢ ’til March 6, 2016
After March 6, $3.99
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0191B3XDE?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
Video book reviews of self-published authors now at
Not Your Family, Not Your Friend Video Book Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH45n8K4BVmT248LBTpfARQ
Cover Art of books by self-published authors at
https://www.pinterest.com/rod_raglin/rod-raglins-reviews-cover-art/
My new novels, FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend and The BIG PICTURE – A Camera, A Young Woman, An Uncompromising Ethic are available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU and as e-books at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/raglin
Visit my publisher’s website for excerpts from, and a buy link to my Eco-Fi series ECO-WARRIORS Book 3, Not Wonder More – Mad Maggie and the Mystery of the Ancients http://www.devinedestinies.com/?route=product%2Fauthor&author_id=92
ECO-WARRIOR Book 1, Saving Spirit Bear – What Price Success? is available at
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU
ECO-WARRIOR Book 2, Loving the Terrorist – Beyond Eagleridge Bluffs is now available as in paperback at
http://www.amazon.com/author/rodraglin
More of my original photographs can be viewed, purchased, and shipped to you as GREETING CARDS; matted, laminated, mounted, framed, or canvas PRINTS; and POSTERS. Go to: http://www.redbubble.com/people/rodraglin
View my flickr photostream at https://www.flickr.com/photos/78791029@N04/
Or, My YouTube channel if you prefer photo videos accompanied by classical music
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQVBxJZ7eXkvZmxCm2wRYA
