Michael Allan Scott's Blog, page 6
April 10, 2013
Paranormal – A New Reality . . . Or Is It?
If you can believe Wikipedia, Paranormal is:
“A general term (coined ca. 1915–1920) that designates experiences that lie outside the range of normal experience or scientific explanation or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science’s current ability to explain or measure.
Thousands of stories relating to paranormal phenomena are found in popular culture, folklore, and the recollections of individual subjects. In contrast, the scientific community maintains that scientific evidence does not support a variety of beliefs that have been characterized as paranormal.”
Hmm . . . It would seem paranormal phenomena exist and can be experienced (but apparently, not by scientists.) Are they real?
Everything Old Is New Again
Paranormal . . . found in popular culture. It’s embedded in the hot new genres: Paranormal Romance, Paranormal Mysteries, Paranormal Investigation. It floods the media and entertainment fields with hits like The Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer, considered Paranormal Romance. Yet when Bram Stoker, the father of modern vampire stories, published Dracula in 1897, it was considered Gothic Horror.
Oh, that’s right, “paranormal” didn’t exist yet.
It didn’t exist for Edgar Allan Poe either—more like horror & mystery incorporating the supernatural.
Hmm . . . It would seem paranormal was invented out of thin air. Couldn’t possibly be real.
The Big Time
Then there’s the superstars, people like: Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Peter Straub. Many of their works easily fall under the guise of paranormal. In other words, plain old-fashion Horror.
More Than Just Another Horror Show
Whether evil entities, ghouls, ghosts, vampires and zombies are making love, waging war, fulfilling a curse or exacting revenge, paranormal encompasses them all, far exceeding the boundaries of any one horrific element.
Then there’s the pedestrian stuff (old hat in this super-powered fang-banging day and age), scientifically inexplicable phenomena such as run-of-the-mill ESP, telekinesis, psychic abilities, spiritualism, predicting the future, etc. The list goes on . . .
Hmm . . . All just wild imagination? But then, what is the raw stuff of reality, if not illusory? After all, isn’t reality perception? Best not to inspect the fabric of reality too closely.
Paranormal and the Murder Mystery
As a mystery writer it’s important not to violate my readers’ reality. And when you want to know what mystery readers want to see in their mystery stories, you ask them. By survey, readers told us a protagonist with paranormal abilities would enhance mystery books, if done believably.
So it came to be that Lance Underphal, the reluctant psychic in Dark Side of Sunset Pointe, added a paranormal twist to my “Noir Nouveau” murder mystery series.
I hope you find the paranormal aspect entertaining.
As for whether it’s real or not?
You’ll have to let me know.
Your paranormal comments are most welcome.
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
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March 14, 2013
The Fine Art of Book Trailers
While the major motion picture studios mastered the art of movie trailers long ago, many authors and publishers are still bumbling their way through early attempts at duplicating the movie trailer’s success.
Essential Ingredients
In order to determine what goes into a good book trailer, it’s essential to identify its purpose. First and foremost (lest we forget in our eagerness to entertain), a book trailer is a promotional piece—an ad for a book, pure and simple.
Effective Promotion
When it comes to promotion, what’s effective is an elusive creature, subject to the vagaries of the carefully guarded and often poorly understood “secrets” of marketing. Small wonder then, that book trailers are all over the map in terms of effectiveness.
Learning the Ropes
I’ve recently embarked on producing/writing a book trailer for my first mystery book, Dark Side of Sunset Pointe. And while I have more than 30 years hard-won experience in sales and marketing, it’s a whole new ballgame for me when it comes to the publishing industry. As an interested observer in this phenomena of the book trailer, it’s fairly obvious that the same basic rules apply.
Does it:
Capture attention?
Create interest?
Deliver the message?
As an artist, it’s all too easy to abandon the basics of marketing in favor of “Art.” Yet, no matter the gorgeous aesthetics, without delivering the message, it’s an narcissistic masturbatory exercise at best. And we all know how those turn out. Still, creating interest is the Holy Grail, and the bar is set nearly out of sight for most of us mere mortals. The key question becomes, does it entertain the target audience?
In the Hunt
Take a look at these trailers and let me know your thoughts:
Harbinger: book trailer
Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters: book trailer
Offworld by Robin Parrish: book trailer
Did the trailers above, pass the acid test? Did they get your attention, capture your interest, let you know a book is available for purchase, and where or how you can purchase it?
A Work In Progress
As for my book trailer, I’m taking it step by step, collaborating with a team of crack music video professionals.
Here’s a few stills from scenes in progress:
The Shooter
The Murder
The Psychic
The Banker
The Stripper
The Money
Interested in seeing more?
Let me know and I’ll send you the link as soon as it’s up.
I’d appreciate seeing your book trailer recommendations.
(In case you missed it, earlier—my mystery book on Amazon.com.)
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
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March 7, 2013
The Cost To Go Free
They’re everywhere—free eBooks. In Amazon’s Kindle Store there are 139,023 free eBooks as of this writing. There is a plethora of websites, Facebook pages and Twitter accounts, all specializing in free eBooks. And at what cost to authors, publishers and the publishing industry, in general?
A Marketing Ploy
Coming from a long history of sales and marketing, I understand the strategy of “free.” It’s one of the oldest come-on’s around—priming the pump to get the word out and the customers in. As Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr so aptly demonstrate in the cult-classic satirical comedy, the Magic Christian, the word “free” is magical when associated with money. People are basically nuts when it comes to bargains. And of course, in the minds of many, “free” appears to be the uber-bargain. But is it?
You Get What You Pay For . . . If You’re Lucky
The multi-billion dollar question to ask is, Who benefits most? Let’s take a closer look, shall we?
Is it the authors? I’ve read author accounts recently where due to the high saturation of free eBooks, the “free” for a few days to up rankings and jump-start sales has failed to produce tangible results.
Is it the publishers? I’ve yet to see a successful publisher tout “free” as an effective marketing strategy. Makes you wonder.
Is it Amazon? Ah . . . Now the pig is out of the poke. It’s all about eyeballs. Free eBooks are a huge traffic generator. And for Amazon and other online book retailers, free eBooks are pure gold. It costs them virtually nothing for all that site traffic. Once at the site, a consumer, drawn in by the lure of free, is much more like to buy something that isn’t free at all.
“Free” Rationale
Certainly some bargain hunter-types end up paying nothing for eBooks—download them and leave without paying a cent. But ask them after the fact and I suspect that most bargain hunters never get around to reading all those free eBooks. It comes down to a game, a shopping game, where he/she who gets it free, wins. Most die-hard bargain hunters could care less about the content.
Then there are those who believe they are entitled. To this way of thinking, everything should be free—it’s their right. Like the early Napster phenomenon, selfish people with no respect for the work of others (especially artists) will rip off whatever they can, whenever they can, just because they can—in essence, criminal. Guess that’s one way to get what you want out of life.
My Audience—the Readers
As a mystery writer and self-publishing entrepreneur, I’m convinced that feeble attempts to buy the hearts and minds of genuine readers are at best, ineffective. And at worst, degrade the value of good content. The way I see it, any discerning reader looking for a good value in entertainment will not turn away from a good book at $.99, $2.99 or even $9.99 in favor of a poor book for free. While price-point is important in this highly-competitive marketplace, it is not the determining factor for most readers. I’ve come to the conclusion that my audience is not the “free” eBook bargain hunters.
End Game
That’s not to say I won’t use up those KDP Select “free” days for my mystery books. Combined with other marketing and PR strategies, those “free” days can still be effect tools to help drive traffic to a predetermined destination.
In the end, we all have to decide for ourselves what works and what doesn’t.
Has “free” worked for you? Don’t hesitate to comment.
I’d appreciate seeing your experiences and thoughts on the matter.
(Here it comes—the blatant self-promotion for my newest mystery book on Amazon.com.)
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
February 28, 2013
Mood Music – A Mystery Writer’s Soundtrack
In my view, everything goes better with music, including writing mystery stories. And I’m not the only mystery writer that listens to music while they work. If I recall, Stephen King mentions listening to Rock music in his seminal book, On Writing. He should, he owns the local Classic Rock FM station.
Emotional Tone
I find music particularly useful in setting the emotional tone or theme of a passage, paragraph, or chapter. From dark and brooding, up through melancholia, then on through rage, even exhilaration—music can elicit a wide range of emotions. Themes will range from despair, terror, romance and fast action. Once I’ve used music to set the mood, I’m off and running, bringing the next mystery book to life.
Listen with Feeling
Let the music carry you away.
Here’s a few pieces I use to set the tone:
Marilyn Manson’s cover of Sweet Dreams (Warning – this one’s not for the faint of heart.)
Calling You (Bagdad Cafe)
Bjork’s Venus as a Boy
Blade Runner’s Love Theme – Vangelis
Randy Newman – The Natural Soundtrack, Prologue 1915-1923
A New Day For You – Basia
Paul McCartney – Every Night
Together Again – Dave Koz
Huey Lewis – Give Me The Keys
Funky Town – Pseudo Echo
Tell me, what do they bring to mind.
You have no idea how much I enjoyed putting this together. Hope you enjoy it, too.
(Here it comes—the blatant self-promotion for my newest mystery book on Amazon.com.)
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
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February 21, 2013
Confessions of a Social Media Anti-Socialite
When I told my wife I was making friends on Facebook, she laughed . . . loud and hard, for several minutes. She knows me all too well. She and my black and tan Doberman, Otto are about the only ones that do. It’s true, when it comes socializing, I’m a dyed-in-the-wool troglodyte.
Lone Wolf Syndrome
It’s not that I’m anti-social. I like most people I meet, whether in person or on-line. And I seek out those who are knowledgeable in my fields of interest, whose creative works I appreciate—people who are highly productive. But at the end of the day, I go my own way. At sixty-two years of age, what’s left of this life appears short and I’ve no time for chit-chat and no patience for idle gossip. To me, it seems like a common sense approach.
A Writer’s Life
My chosen profession—a mystery writer—reflects my social tendencies. Most days, I spend long hours in a room, in front of a computer, writing mystery stories by myself. On the surface, it could appear to be a lonely task. However, being alone is not the same thing as being lonely. In truth, I’m spending quality time with my future readers. I just happen to love creating entertaining stories—in this case, writing mystery books.
Social Media Presence
You probably gathered by now, it goes against my grain—counterintuitive. So how have I managed to pull together a modest presence on a few social media platforms? Any publishing industry expert will tell you, it is absolutely necessary that every writer who wants to achieve commercial success MUST have an author platform. And the most widely accepted way to build that platform is—you guessed it—social media. Ergo, I became actively engaged in social media (much to my chagrin.) True to form, I sought out a social media expert and enlisted her help. Rachel Thompson of Bad Redhead Media is nothing short of amazing, a social media goddess. If it wasn’t for her, I’d have the only Twitter account with a minus sign in front of the Followers number. (Now, I even know how to do hyperlinks.)
Question Is, Does It Work?
I’m now convinced that a real presence on social media is an important part of gaining adequate exposure for my mystery books—building a platform as a mystery writer. (See? I now know the importance of keywords, too.) However, social media is only a part. And from my perspective, NOT the most important part. There’s all that other stuff to consider, like writing mystery books that entertain, not to mention traditional marketing, advertising and PR. In short, you need all your dogs barking to be successful in the highly competitive publishing industry.
What’s truly amazing, though . . . I’ve made lots of new friends!
By the way, you can find me on: Twitter, Goodreads, Google +, Facebook, and a growing list of others, in case you’re so inclined. (I’ll get the hang of this, yet.)
If you’re building an author platform, or you’re a reader bombarded by authors’ social media posts, I’d love to know your thoughts. (Here it comes—the blatant self-promotion for my mystery books – Amazon.com.)
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
February 14, 2013
10 Songs Dedicated to the Mystery of Love
10 Songs Dedicated to the Mystery of Love
For most, love remains a mystery. And on this Valentine’s Day I am reminded what a powerful force love is, in our lives. Volumes have been written about love—its glory and heartache. As an integral part of the human experience, you’ll find love won and lost throughout literature—all its emotions, hate, jealousy, lust, desire and ecstasy. To be sure, erotica and romance are more popular than ever. And any mystery writer worth his or her salt incorporates love’s many tentacles into his or her mystery stories. But for my money, music says it best.
Nothing Captures the Essence of Love Like Music.
A tribute to the standards, know commonly as torch songs—a few all-time favorites to tug on the heartstrings:
• Let’s Fall In Love, Chris Botti
• Nat King Cole’s Stardust
• I Remember You, Diana Krall
• Willie Nelson’s Someone To Watch Over Me
• Misty, Sarah Vaughn
• Frank Sinatra’s One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)
• Chris Botti w/ Paula Cole – My One and Only Love
• Kenny Rankin’s When Sunny Gets Blue
There are hundreds more that come to mind. I’m sure you know them by heart.
Yet I can’t leave you without tagging a couple contemporary faves:
• Renee Olstead – A Love That Will Last
• Pete Belasco – I Ain’t Doin’ It
Okay, your turn . . . talk to me about love. What tunes are on your soundtrack for romance?
(Here it comes—the token mention for all those web crawlers—my mystery books.) Remember to give me some love on Amazon.com.
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
February 10, 2013
The Top 5 Mystery Writers?
Fiction Stacks (Photo credit: chelmsfordpubliclibrary)
The Top 5 Mystery Writers?
In the process of preparing for the release of the first in my series of mystery novels, I commissioned a market survey of book buyers. One of the survey questions was: ” Who are your favorite mystery writers?”
Aside from the insight I gained for marketing purposes, I personally found the results surprising. See what you think.
Stephen King came in at Number 1.
John Grisham and James Patterson tied for Number 2.
Dick Francis and Mary Higgins Clark tied for Number 3.
Number 4 was Dan Brown.
There was a 5 way tie for Number 5: Joel Goldman, J.K. Rowling, Robert Ludlum, Stephanie Meyer, Agatha Christie.
What Were You Smoking?
Okay, so . . . it’s true. While they are all top authors, they’re not exactly the list of mystery writers I would have come up with. Come on, Stephanie Meyer is the bestselling author of the Twilight Series which is considered a Young Adult Paranormal Romance. Then there’s J.K. Rowling, the billionaire author of the Harry Potter books. A fabulous success story and publishing phenomena, but a mystery writer? I can almost see how Dan Brown and Robert Ludlum could make the list. Still, their works are largely known as thrillers. Thrillers, mysteries, are we picking nits here? And what about Stephen King? In my mind, one of the greatest, most prolific horror writers of all time. And arguably, many of his works are easily classified as mystery stories. However, he’s not widely known for his mystery novels.
How Could the Book Buying Public Be So Wrong?
Some of my favorite mystery writers didn’t even make the top 10. For starters, what about James Lee Burke, or Michael Connelly?
At the end of the day, book buyers aren’t wrong. The customer is NEVER wrong. If they say these authors pen their favorite mystery books, then of course they’re right. After all, good mystery stories are in the eye of the reader.
Mystery, Undefined
Among other things, the survey results prove that what makes a good mystery story is still a mystery.
Who’s Missing?
Who are your Top 5 mystery writers?
(Warning – blatant self-promotion.) The first in the Lance Underphal Mystery series can be found on Amazon.com.
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
February 3, 2013
What Do Poe, Charlie Parker and Van Gogh Have In Common?
They are all considered artistic geniuses in their respective fields. And all three died in poverty.
Why?
Why, indeed. All three produced art that would become well known and highly respected—watershed works. Edgar Allan Poe is known as the Grand Master of the Mystery genre, having penned what is considered the first mystery story in modern English literature. Charlie “Bird” Parker is known for his innovate sax style, creating a jazz genre known as Be Bop. Vincent Van Gogh blazed a unique trail with his bold colors, emotional depth and raw beauty—now iconic.
Edgar Allan Poe – The Murders in the Rue Morgue
Charlie “Bird” Parker – Yardbird Suite
Vincent Van Gogh – Starry Night
Today, their creations are not only economically viable, but potentially worth millions. Yet during their lifetimes they were largely unappreciated; and if recognized at all, considered tortured eccentrics destined for obscurity.
Ironic, isn’t it? Three more tales of woe that would, on the surface, confirm the “starving artist” premise.
Starving Artists – The Myth
Does it truly take more than a lifetime to gain recognition for outstanding works of art? Many would have us believe it. And it would be tragic, if it were so. But the whole “tortured genius” mantle of nobility—to slave away in a life of depravation and obscurity, sacrificing one’s self for one’s art—is pure bunk. Largely, an excuse for failure, whether in art or in life.
And when it comes to failure, there is no shortage of excuses. We’ve heard them all: They were drunkards, or drug addicts; they were mentally ill—obsessed with their art; and so on and so forth, ad infinitum.
Trust me, there is nothing heroic about sacrificing one’s self for one’s art. Starving, intoxication and all the accompanying mental derangement does NOT make for better art. In fact, it severely limits one’s vision, expressiveness and aesthetic abilities.
How could such talent fail so utterly?
No doubt they had their issues, but those issues were largely symptomatic of the losses they suffered. After all, they were pioneers.
Pioneers Get the Arrows, Settlers Reap the Rewards
They were the cutting edge of their art and craft, making up the rules as they went, learning the hard way, by trial and error, paying dearly for those errors—too dearly. These men forsook social acceptance and material comforts to create new realms of aesthetic experience—magical, beautiful, groundbreaking—flying in the face of convention. Whether by chance or design, only they could say.
In a world where starvation, war and cruelty are daily realities, art can appear to be a luxury, at best. And at its worst, frivolous. We’ve all heard it. “You can’t make a living at it.” “You’ll starve.” And yet it’s our artists that dream society’s dreams, create the culture and blaze a trail into the future.
The Art of Living
What these men displayed in creative genius, they lacked (or simply ignored) in practical skills for day-to-day living. Had they been schooled early-on in the basics of business management, they likely would have enjoyed the fame and fortune they deserved. How they lived their lives should serve as a cautionary tale and duly noted by all professional and would-be artists.
(Warning. Here comes Business Management 101 – Promote.) Yes, it’s true, I write mystery stories and I’m not starving. Still, I think you’ll find my work worthy. More on my murder mystery books can be found at http://michaelallanscott.com/
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
January 28, 2013
Hot Babes On Ghostly Planes
If you faced the survival odds of WWII bombing raids, you’d use everything at your disposal to increase those odds. Painting a pin-up beauty on the nose of your bomber couldn’t hurt. Fear and homesickness, a lethal blow for moral. And so it began. Lady Luck and a tribute to that girl you wished you were with, instead of fighting a grisly war—rogue nose art, as unique an underground art form as anything you’ll ever find.
Aircraft Nose Art of WWII
Early on, Command looked the other way. However, it was destined not to last, its lack of restraint offending the sense of decorum of the Powers that Be. Here’s a collection of pin-up art that graced the noses of several warplanes.
Some of the more famous artists that contributed to the nose art of WWII:
Alberto Vargas
Earl Mac Pherson
Rolf Armstrong
Okay guys, no drooling.
Flying Naked Into War
Take off—take it all off—for the wild blue yonder. Scantily clad beauties—they will forever fly on in our collective memory. Here’s some of those memories from the WWII Aircraft Graveyard in Kingman.
Have an underground art form or a memory you’d care to share? By all means, enlighten me.
(Warning. Here comes the blatant plug.) Yes, it’s true, I write mystery stories, not history books. More on my murder mystery books can be found at http://michaelallanscott.com/
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
January 21, 2013
5 Tips to Avoid eBook Burn
With the onslaught of digital reading devices and the subsequent flood of eBooks, readers are faced with a big dilemma. How to keep from getting burned by poor quality eBooks.
Awash In Books
If you haven’t noticed, publishing is changing faster than Clark Kent in a phone booth. For the most part this is a good thing. However, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll find any of the major publishing houses agreeing with this point of view.
Much like the music industry of a decade ago, the publishing industry is undergoing a sea change, creating a virtual ocean of new eBook and print on demand (POD) book titles. On Amazon alone, there are more than 124,000 paperbacks and in excess of 59,000 eBooks, and that’s just in Amazon’s Mystery, Thriller and Suspense category. That’s a lot of mystery stories.
All total, there are almost a BILLION Kindle eBooks now available on Amazon.
Too Many Choices
We are all busier than ever today. No one has the time to scan through anywhere near a billion titles looking for a worthwhile read. And unfortunately, not all of these eBooks are worth reading.
Not having read anywhere near 1,000,000,000 eBooks, I can’t tell you what percentage are worth your time and money. (Although, there are nearly 55,000 FREE Kindle eBooks at this writing.) However, I suspect a significant number of the eBooks available will come up lacking. Out of the last twenty eBooks I’ve added to my Kindle, I will only finish a handful. The rest, I’ve stopped reading.
From personal experience I can tell you, writing good mystery books (or any other form of fiction) is an arduous task. Not many do it well.
At a minimum, it’s disappointing, and often frustrating to spend precious time scanning through vast seas of eBooks, then finally making a selection only to discover the eBook isn’t worth the digital paper on which it’s printed—worse than nothing. You’ve been robbed.
What happened?
The Old Gatekeepers
The Good Ol’ Boys of publishing a/k/a the Traditional Publishing Houses (as opposed to Indie and Self-Publishers) claim that quality in publishing is a gone dog, ruined for publishers and readers alike with the advent of all this easily-accessible digital technology. (We’ve all heard THAT tune before.)
Nobly appointing themselves as the “Gatekeepers,” traditional publishers claim their contrived manipulation of book markets somehow allowed only worthwhile books to make it. Certainly, it made for scarcity and high prices. I don’t know about you, but I prefer lower prices and more choices. Obviously, the publishing industry’s “new normal” is a boon for the reading public. Not to mention, throwing the doors to publication wide open for a mystery writer like me.
Yet, how much is too much? With so many eBooks available and no one home in Quality Control, how do you keep from getting burned?
Improving Your Chances
For starters, we’ll focus on Amazon, since they are arguably the largest purveyor of books and eBooks on the planet.
While Amazon’s highly publicized mission statement is “Start with the customer and work backwards” they shy away from quality issues, relying almost entirely on customer feedback regarding products and their relative worth, hence the “customer review” program. However, like most large corporations, it’s all about the bottom-line—money. The number of books sold is what counts. And when it comes to fiction, humongous publishing houses with deep pockets can skew the results. Fiction books and the stories they tell are, in large part, subjective, adding to the degree of difficulty. Arming yourself with good information is the key, so here’s a few tips.
1. “Bestselling” status does not always equate to a worthwhile read.
We’ve all had the experience of buying a “bestselling” book only to wonder how it made the list. Never forget that the “bestselling” status was conjured up by marketing experts for large publishers in collusion with the media for only one purpose—sell more books. That said, there are many outstanding works that rightfully make the bestseller lists.
2. Use Award Winner lists as a guide, but be selective.
Like “bestseller” lists, awards were invented to sell more books. Stick to those awarding entities whose judging bodies are made up of the reading public and/or author peer groups. Avoid media-managed awards, such as publisher-backed, journalists’ or critics’ awards. If in doubt, find out how the judge selections are made. If it’s not fully disclosed, avoid the list.
3. Comparative shopping tools help, but aren’t the “be all, end all.”
Amazon’s recommendations based on your purchases, along with specific book site recommendations such as “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought” and “Frequently Bought Together” can guide you. However, don’t buy blind on these recommendations only, or you’ll eventually get burned.
4. Customer Reviews also help, but beware.
There are both good and bad reviews/reviewers, and I’m not talking about the number of stars. Look for the tag below the stars “Amazon Verified Purchase.” It’s more likely a real customer review. Additionally, look for “real” reviews that are specific regarding story points, characters and prose—likes and dislikes. Then take it all with a grain of salt. A gushing 5-star review could be the author’s mother. A scathing 1-star review could be a competing author with a severe case of sour-grapes.
5. Try the combo!
After you’ve carefully tip-toed through the minefield, the best results usually come from a three-part inspection process:
1. Read the “Book Description” to get a feel for the storyline.
2. Take a “Look Inside.” Read enough to know whether or not you like the writing style.
Along with a few “Customer Reviews” to give you reader impressions (the third of three parts), you are in position to make an informed buying decision and not likely to get burned.
Okay, so there are really 6 tips . . . Or are there actually 7?
The New Gatekeepers
At the end of the day, we, the eBook reading public, are the new “Gatekeepers.” And in this new era of digital publishing, it’s a big responsibility. However it WILL get easier as long as we remember to look out for each other along the way.
Set an example. Let other eBook buyers know what you think. Help them make informed choices based on your reading experience, good or bad. After you’ve read your new book and while your impressions are fresh, take a few moments to write an in-depth review (without giving the story away.)
Remember to reward those works that are worthy with good reviews. Click the “Liked” button at the top of the book site. And finally, share your reviews with friends and followers. Amazon is only too happy to link with your social media platforms, publishing your review in their streams.
Also, if you have any suggestions on how to add to and/or improve these eBook buying tactics, please enlighten me. I intend to look at other eBook and POD book venues in future blogs.
(Warning. Here comes the blatant plug.) More on my murder mystery novels can be found at http://michaelallanscott.com/
Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Michael Allan Scott and a clickable link back to this page.
