Orrin Jason Bradford's Blog, page 14

Few Free Reviewer Copies of Seeds of a New Birth

In preparation for conducting a major relaunch of my favorite science fiction thriller, Seeds of a New Birth, I’m looking for a few more Amazon reviews.

Do you enjoy thriller type books with a science fiction theme? Books like those written by the late, great Michael Crichton, or Robin Cook? How about movies like Blade Runner or the more recent Lucy or Edge of Tomorrow? If so, I believe you will also enjoy my SF bio-genetic techno-thriller, Seeds of a New Birth. Here’s a little about it:

Unlocking the Potential of the Human Mind Scientific Breakthrough... Or a Really Bad Idea?Click To Tweet

Research geneticist and biogenetic engineer, Lionel Adams is onto something hot –the key to unlocking the vast reserves of the human mind. Everyone is interested in it. Bio Vita Tech, the research lab he works for, is excited about the possibilities and the potential mega-profits. So are their foreign competitors who are counting on their inside man at Bio Vita to deliver Adam’s secret into their hands.

Everyone seems to want a sample of Adam’s formula, except his college buddy, Flip MacDougal, who makes a surprise visit to Bio Vita to play a practical joke on his old friend. Unfortunately, it’s Flip who ends up with the sample. His world is turned upside down as he struggles and maneuvers his way through the trouble he has gotten himself into as he unwittingly spreads his “gift” to others.

Seeds of a New Birth is a technological thriller with a hint of romance (and yes, even sci-fi erotica) about a future where the highly volatile formula of biogenetic engineering coupled with corporate and personal greed threatens the course of human evolution and perhaps mankind’s very existence.

To grab your free reviewer copy just complete the short form below.

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My Favorite 1 Star Amazon Review

Like most authors reading a ‘bad review’ of a book that I’ve invested hundreds (or thousands) of hours writing can be…well painful, a little like having one’s fingernails pulled out one by one. Sure, there are those who say that any review is a ‘good review,’ and at some level I agree with this…especially when they’re not about one of my babies.

However, I must admit to roaring with laughter when I read a 1-star review of my book, Seeds of a New Birth (written under the pen name of Orrin Jason Bradford). The review was short and to the point — brutally to the point:

After reading the Kindle free sample, I cannot imagine who would ever want to continue reading this pathologically sex obsessed piece of unmitigated trash.

Really, the reviewer got all that from the sample of the book? Now, I admit there is sex in this book, more than in any other book I’ve written, but it’s not gratuitous sex. It’s integral to the storyline:

While visiting his lifelong friend, a prominent biogenetic researcher attempting to unlock the vast reserves of the human mind, playboy Flip MacDougal accidentally impregnates himself with a compound that transforms his reproductive tract into a factory of super sperm which he unwittingly shares with his “harem” of unsuspecting women resulting in the birth of the Kindred.

So, while I’m not sure I agree with the review, it did give me a good laugh. Come to think of it, it may be great evidence that all reviews are ‘good reviews.’ I think a lot of people (myself included) would just have to check out the sample after reading these comments. So, thanks to the kind gentleman who took the time to post his opinion.

Aspiring Authors: You Need to Know about My Story Doctor

I’ve read and enjoyed several of David Farland/David Wolverton’s books through the years. More recently I head that he was not only a great writer of science fiction and fantasy but also an extraordinary writing instructor with such well-known authors as his students as:

Dan Wells
Brandon Sanderson
Brandon Mull, and
Stephanie Myers

He has also been credited with recommending / Greenlighting Harry Potter to Scholastic.  Pretty fair credentials I’d say, wouldn’t you?

Well, having now been engaged in his The Story Puzzle:How to Brainstorm and Outline a Best Seller, I must add my endorsement to the list. The Story Puzzle covers the steps involved in prewriting and outlining your novel. David is not only one of the best writing instructors I’ve ever been privileged to learn from he’s one of the nicest and most dedicated people I’ve met in my six-plus decades on the planet.

Not only are the online video classes filled with valuable content, the assignments are challenging and can often be used towards your next work of art. On top of that, the weekly Q&A sessions are both instructional and inspirational. If online education isn’t your thing, then Dave also offers a number of live workshops through the year.

For example, I’m also registered for a live, face-to-face workshop entitled Greenlighting Your Novel taking place in Atlanta on Oct. 10-11.

So, if you’re really serious about developing yourself as a writer, check out My Story Doctor. I give it a 5 star out of 5 rating.

How to Market Your Books on Goodread

I could write a really long and involved blog post about this topic or I could let Cynthia Shannon, Author Marketing Coordinator for Goodreads do it instead, and since she knows far more about it than I do at this point, I’ll just simply share her great video on the subject.

This will also free up a little time so I can implement some of the great suggestions Cynthia makes in the video. Just click on the image below to get started…and I’ll see you on Goodreads.  HERE’S my Goodread Author’s page so we can connect.

Questions on Releasing a Book in Installments

Charles Dickens built his amazing career as a writer releasing his novels in serial forms. According to the Boz Project:

Every one of Charles Dickens’s novels was published serially–that is, the novels appeared not all at once, but in parts or installments, over a space of time.  Publishing his novels in serial form expanded Dickens’s readership, as more people could afford to buy fiction on the installment plan; publishers, too, liked the idea, as it allowed them to increase sales and to offer advertisements in the serial parts.  And Dickens enjoyed the intimacy with his audience that serialization provided.

More recently, Hugh Howey released his SF bestseller, Wool, as a serial, falling into this way of publishing more or less by accident. The story goes that he released a short story by the same name in July of 2011 and it became the most popular thing he’d ever written. So popular that readers wanted to know the rest of the story, so by January 2012, Howey had self-published five serial stories about that underground silo and collected all five into an ebook, the Wool Omnibus.

So, I’m seriously considering releasing my next SF thriller, Babble, in a similar manner — one gripping, can’t-put-it-down installment at a time. Granted, how a book is released is certainly no guarantee of worldwide fame and fortune. If it were everyone would be doing it. Still, it makes sense to me for the following reason:

1. I can finish the revision and polishing process of the rough draft in installments as well. Release the first one, then move on to polishing the second segment even as I hopefully get some constructive feedback from readers of the first installment.

2. The idea of getting constructive feedback from those reading the earlier installments is quite attractive. I like the idea of becoming more intimate with my reading audience, just like Dickens did.

3. It will challenge me to write the very best story of which I’m capable and hopefully develop my writing skills each step and installment along the way.

 

But I have a few questions that I’d really like feedback on:

A. Would you be more inclined to give a book by an author you weren’t familiar with a chance if it was offered in this serial format?

B. If you were in my shoes how would you ‘get the word out’ about this serial (besides writing about it here on my blog)?

C. How important do you feel it would be for each installment to have its own unique cover or could one cover image serve the same purpose (with the copy clearly delineating which installment it is)?

D. Would it make any sense to offer the installments as a CreateSpace physical book? And,

E. How many pages would you expect an installment to be so if it sold for 99 cents it would still feel like a good deal?

Inquiry minds want to know. Please leave your feedback below under the comment section. And if you’d like to learn more about Babble, check out this page.

 

Tina Games on Social Media for Authors

Most indie authors know the power and importance of using social media to help us become known and make more people aware of our books. Right? Right.

But I for one will readily admit I don’t know how best to leverage my time on the myriad of social media outlets that are available, but I sure am interested, so I went to a good friend of mine who has much more expertise and success with social media — Tina Games.

Tina is also one of our most dedicated and successful Life On Purpose Coaches, but in today’s interview I asked her to wear her hat as social media expert. Not surprising, the hat fit perfectly as I think you’ll hear in the interview.

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Grandpa – What’s an Elephant?

I’ve recently started the ‘prewriting’ stage for my third book in the Zak Bates Eco-adventure series that began with Dominion Over All followed by Endangered (which is in the final editing phase). I started this series with Ivory – Zak Bates Eco-adventure #3. The purpose of this series is to share my journey from story idea to a finished book entitled Ivory. It’s my hope and intention that both writers and readers of visionary fiction will find this journey of interest and value.

Prewriting

Prewriting is an interesting, exciting, and sometime frustrating stage of writing for me. Interesting in that I get to delve into background research, exciting because I get to ‘make up’ the story often from a small seed of an idea, and frustrating when the tiny seed refuses to germinate fast enough for my tastes.

Today, I want to simply share an online poster that I ran across that’s quite revealing because it graphically points to the plight of Africa’s elephants which will be the theme of book #3. As you’ll notice the estimated population of elephants has declined from around 3 million in 1940 to just around 300,000 less than 75 years later.  At this rate elephants will be extinct before my future grand kids are old enough to learn about them in school.

That’s just not right!

It’s likely that the setting for at least part of the Ivory story will be the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and the Tsavo East National park in Kenya Africa.

And clearly a significant recent occurrence that moved this story from the back burner to the front burner was the recent murder of Sateo —  one of the largest and last remaining Great Tuskers — brutally killed by poison arrows of poachers. More about Sateo in later posts.

 

 

Ivory: Zak Bates Eco-Adventure Book 3

Like many people I’ve been appalled by the horrendous killing of thousands of majestic elephants by poachers over the past several years so I’ve decided to do my part to spread the word so this senseless killing can be stopped before it’s too late and elephants become one more species that no longer exists on our Earth.

Ivory is the working title of the book. It’ll be the third book in the Zak Bates Eco-Adventure series that started with Dominion Over All and continues with Endangered (that will be out soon.)  While it’s been percolating in my mind to write for over a year the recent killing of Satao, one of the largest and oldest ‘great tuskers’ was the impetus to move forward with this project.

I’ll be chronicling this writing process here on my blog and via my author’s Facebook page so please join me and let your animal loving friends know about it as well. At least in my fictional world where there’s a magic cat and a flying dog and a boy named Zak Bates and his friend, Allie George, there’s hope for a solution. And maybe, just maybe some of that hope will slip into this real world as well, and this senseless killing will stop.

Here’s a short video reporting on the death of Satao on May 30, 2014. Tough to watch but awareness is the first step to change and transformation.

 

Invitation

Dear WBS,

Brad Swift is using Simpleology to get more done and would like to share tasks with you, but you’ll need an account.

Please click here to set up your free account:

http://www.simpleology.com/s/setup

If you run into any trouble, please don’t hesitate to contact our Customer Care Team:

http://www.simpleology.com/s/support

All the best,

The Simpleology Team

http://www.simpleology.com/s/support

P.S. – Please do not reply to this email as no one will see. Instead, please use the Customer Care link above. It’s faster anyway.

Debriefing the Purposeful Book Promo

On March 8-12th I ran a book promotion for two of my books about life purpose. Here’s the jest of the promo that I shared:

My book Spiral of Fulfillment: Living an Inspired Life of Service, Simplicity & Spiritual Serenity is now FREE on Amazon.com Mar. 8-12! Grab your copy here:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005G0JKBE If you live in the UK you can download it for free on the UK website here:https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005G0JKBE You do NOT need a Kindle to read these books! You can still read them on ANY computer, smartphone or tablet using Amazon’s free software available here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html... While you’re at it, pick up a copy of Life On Purpose: Six Passages to an Inspired Life for a deep discount during its Kindle Countdown special days (Regularly $9.99 Countdown starts today at only 99 cents & increases by a dollar each day.) Grab your copy here:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009ABMG9I If you live in the UK go here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009ABMG9I Win one of 100 Life On Purpose Courses — a $149 value: These special editions have full instructions on how to win one of 100 Life On Purpose Courses, so be sure to open the book and register early.

I shared this information (or parts of it) in the following ways:

The info about the free book I shared on about twenty web sites that promote such Amazon KDP giveaways.
I shared the full info on most of the 12 Facebook groups that permit such promotions. A few of them requested only the free book be posted which I complied with.
I also wrote and posted three press releases to PRLog. The press releases were viewed a total of 317 times.
I also created a short YouTube video trailer which has been viewed 83 times.
The promotion was also shared with the Life On Purpose Institute list as well as here on www.wbradfordswift.com.
I shared the promo info on my visionary author Facebook page and paid $30 for a Facebook ad which resulted in 17,405 people reached with 60 ‘engagements’ which broke down to 47 Photo Clicks, 6 Link Clicks, and 1 Page Likes.

The Results From these efforts my book, Spiral of Fulfillment climbed to the #1 spot in both its categories on Amazon’s free book lists. (See image). Since this was one of our primary intentions, Ann and I have declared the promotion a success. Also, we gave away 616 copies of Spiral of Fulfillment and sold eleven copies of Life On Purpose. 

Okay, those are the facts of the promotion. Now, let’s look at what was learned from the experience. The Debrief Here are the main points Ann and I gleaned from debriefing this first promotion. (Well, we promoted the Life On Purpose book in 2007 when it was first published but this is the first we did on our own with me as an ‘indie/hybrid author.’ 1. 616 people now have a copy of a W. Bradford Swift book related to purpose in their Kindle. I suspect this also means that they will get notices when/if a new WBS book comes out, maybe also the next time a WBS book is promoted. (I’m thinking Purposeful Prosperity might be the next book to promote either as giveaway or countdown.) 2. Promoting two books at same time didn’t work as well as I’d anticipated. My thinking was that we’d leverage the promotional effort, but it appears now that we simply diluted the effort especially of the second book. We sold 11 LOP books during countdown. I believe if the countdown had been done by itself might have been much better. The problem is that since KDP countdowns are so new there are the same kind of  ‘system’ available yet — web sites and Facebook pages where a countdown can be promoted. 3. Wondering if the time involved for writing 3 press releases and posting them online was really worth the effort. Seems like posting to Facebook and web sites might be a better use of the time. The exceptional could be for a book countdown promotion where those other options are far less. 4. LOP Course Contest — This also didn’t seem to get the attention it deserved. About 10 ‘winners’ thus far. Have one more week for people to learn of it and take action. Not sure at this point whether to extend it or let it end on March 19 — a week from yesterday. 5. And the biggest question of all: How to build on this successful first promo? How to build momentum? Answer – A next book promotion as a giveaway or countdown — not both. Consider a giveaway of related book — one related to life purpose like Purposeful Prosperity. It might make sense to run a second Life On Purpose Course contest. One note: Much of the promotional ideas came from Tom Corson-Knowles Udemy online course, How To Become a Bestselling Author on Amazon Kindle. More on that in another blog or vlog post. Your Turn What did you glean from this blog article? What other promotional ideas have you tried and found successful or tried and learned they didn’t work for you? Leave a comment below. We visionary authors and readers need to stick together.