Kevin Hardman's Blog, page 20
July 12, 2013
Results from KDP Select Free Promotion: The Party's Over...
My books Sensation and Warden are both in the KDP Select program. For those unfamiliar with KDP Select, it is a program in which an author agrees to make his or her ebook available exclusively in the Kindle Store for 90 days. That means no selling your ebook on Smashwords, B&N, etc. (You can still sell print versions wherever you like.)
In exchange, the author receives - among other things - higher royalty rates in some regions and 5 days during that 90-day period in which to offer his/her ebook for free. The book also gets included in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, where it can be borrowed for free by Amazon Prime members. Books that are borrowed earn of a share of a global fund established by KDP. Each borrow has historically earned about $2 (although the exact figure varies month-to-month), so if you have a book in KDP Select that is borrowed 152 times during the month, you can expect to earn about $304 from that. (That's borrows, not sales, which would be entirely different.)
Needless to say, when you offer your book for free, you can expect for the amount of downloads to increase significantly. Initially, this was a boon for authors since - in the early days of KDP Select - a free download was essentially the same as a sale in terms of how if affected your rankings, and there was a good chance your book would be comfortably positioned in the upper echelons of your category when the free promotion ended (which usually resulted in a post-promo bump in sales). However, Amazon has done a fair amount of tweaking to the algorithms since then that significantly affect the weight given to freebies.
In my case, for example, I published Sensation on Kindle in early May 2013 and picked two days in early June to offer the book for free. (I figured a month would give me enough time to do adequate promotion, if necessary.) Much to my surprise, sales for the book took off, and by the end of May it was #1 in one of its categories.
At that juncture, I became a little nervous. The book was selling well, so I was afraid that free days would cannibalize sales. I was seriously tempted to pull the plug on the free days altogether, but I had already arranged free promotions on a number of sites. Therefore I decided to stick it out, thinking that maybe if there were something ike a 10-to-1 ratio between the weighting of free downloads to sales (ie, every 10 freebies were equivalent to 1 sale), I could still make out alright.
Over the next two days, over 3000 copies of Sensation were downloaded, and I broke into the Top 100 of the Kindle Free Store. (I don't know exactly how high I got, but the highest I saw was #90.) That was far more than I ever anticipated, so I was hoping that the payoff would come in the form of a higher ranking in the Paid Store and the post-promo bump that many other authors have experienced. I got neither.
Both my overall ranking and my daily sales fell following the promotion, and neither has recovered. When I discussed it with a fellow author, he mentioned that it was his understanding that the ratio between free downloads and sales is something like 220:1. In other words, 220 free downloads is worth about 1 sale. In essence, a free download is worth almostt nothing (outside of additional exposure).
In retrospect, I can't help feeling that KDP Select has lost much of its sex appeal. For instance, while it can help you get your books into the hands of more readers via free promotions, you don't need Select to offer your book for free. Moreover, I think that borrows - just like freebies - cannibalize sales. I'm not saying that getting 152 borrows in a month means that you would have gotten 152 additional sales if you weren't in Select. However, I do think that at least some of those borrow definitely would have become sales.
Bearing all this in mind, I will probably pass on renewing with Select when the current exclusivity period expires, as the party is clearly over. This will let me dip my toe into some other waters (B&N, Smashwords, what have you) and hopefully expand my audience. (And if I don't like it, I can always come back to Select.)
Side Note: For those who may be interested, I had the opportunity to write a guest post on Joe Konrath's blog, which may be found here.
In exchange, the author receives - among other things - higher royalty rates in some regions and 5 days during that 90-day period in which to offer his/her ebook for free. The book also gets included in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, where it can be borrowed for free by Amazon Prime members. Books that are borrowed earn of a share of a global fund established by KDP. Each borrow has historically earned about $2 (although the exact figure varies month-to-month), so if you have a book in KDP Select that is borrowed 152 times during the month, you can expect to earn about $304 from that. (That's borrows, not sales, which would be entirely different.)
Needless to say, when you offer your book for free, you can expect for the amount of downloads to increase significantly. Initially, this was a boon for authors since - in the early days of KDP Select - a free download was essentially the same as a sale in terms of how if affected your rankings, and there was a good chance your book would be comfortably positioned in the upper echelons of your category when the free promotion ended (which usually resulted in a post-promo bump in sales). However, Amazon has done a fair amount of tweaking to the algorithms since then that significantly affect the weight given to freebies.
In my case, for example, I published Sensation on Kindle in early May 2013 and picked two days in early June to offer the book for free. (I figured a month would give me enough time to do adequate promotion, if necessary.) Much to my surprise, sales for the book took off, and by the end of May it was #1 in one of its categories.
At that juncture, I became a little nervous. The book was selling well, so I was afraid that free days would cannibalize sales. I was seriously tempted to pull the plug on the free days altogether, but I had already arranged free promotions on a number of sites. Therefore I decided to stick it out, thinking that maybe if there were something ike a 10-to-1 ratio between the weighting of free downloads to sales (ie, every 10 freebies were equivalent to 1 sale), I could still make out alright.
Over the next two days, over 3000 copies of Sensation were downloaded, and I broke into the Top 100 of the Kindle Free Store. (I don't know exactly how high I got, but the highest I saw was #90.) That was far more than I ever anticipated, so I was hoping that the payoff would come in the form of a higher ranking in the Paid Store and the post-promo bump that many other authors have experienced. I got neither.
Both my overall ranking and my daily sales fell following the promotion, and neither has recovered. When I discussed it with a fellow author, he mentioned that it was his understanding that the ratio between free downloads and sales is something like 220:1. In other words, 220 free downloads is worth about 1 sale. In essence, a free download is worth almostt nothing (outside of additional exposure).
In retrospect, I can't help feeling that KDP Select has lost much of its sex appeal. For instance, while it can help you get your books into the hands of more readers via free promotions, you don't need Select to offer your book for free. Moreover, I think that borrows - just like freebies - cannibalize sales. I'm not saying that getting 152 borrows in a month means that you would have gotten 152 additional sales if you weren't in Select. However, I do think that at least some of those borrow definitely would have become sales.
Bearing all this in mind, I will probably pass on renewing with Select when the current exclusivity period expires, as the party is clearly over. This will let me dip my toe into some other waters (B&N, Smashwords, what have you) and hopefully expand my audience. (And if I don't like it, I can always come back to Select.)
Side Note: For those who may be interested, I had the opportunity to write a guest post on Joe Konrath's blog, which may be found here.
June 14, 2013
All Authors Blog Blitz
As part of the All Authors Blog Blitz taking place today, I am proud to have my first blog interview with Toni Allen - tarot reader, astrologer and author. With that, let's launch right into it.
Toni can you tell us a little about your background?
As a child I was always making up stories in my head, but mainly only wrote them down for school. I studied photography at college and it’s still one of my greatest passions, being able to capture a single moment and show others how I see the world around me. It wasn’t until I was in my teens that I realised that other people don’t relate to the world in quite the same way as myself, and it was only through a long process of self-discovery that I acknowledged the word psychic to explain the many weird and wonderful things that happened around me. As a child I assumed that everyone else had prophetic dreams, saw ghosts and knew what was occurring in other places at the same time. To me this was all normal, a part of who I am.
While at college someone introduced me to Tarot and, due to my early years of self-discovery, I immediately understood the symbols and was able to read the cards without ever having picked up a book on the subject or had any training. Becoming a Tarot reader gave me a platform to use my psychic abilities and help other people with my ability to see beyond the physical realm. As a teenager I was always intrigued by astrology and would do things like sit in the pub with my friends, scribble down birthdays and announce, “Did you know that even though eight people are here we only have Sagittarians and Taureans?” My friends would reply, “Who cares?” And I would say, “I do,” and had to work out why we had homed in on each other. Consequently I learnt astrology.
I now work full time as a tarot reader and astrologer.
You can find out more about me on my blog at http://toniallenauthor.com/
How'd you make the transition to becoming an author?
I started writing novels years ago. Stories populated my head and so I started to write them down. A few poems came along too.
After I started reading tarot I went out and bought a few books on the subject to see what others were thinking and, to be frank, I found them quite irritating because they just gave the meaning of the card but not the reason why it should mean that in the first place. I was already teaching a small group of students and handing out information sheets, and one student said, “You’ve got the making of a book here,” so I started collating my material and putting into book form. Hence the System of Symbols, a new way to look at tarot evolved from my teaching notes.
What kinds of things do you write about?
With my fiction I think a friend of mine put it very well. She said, “I’ve got it. You’re books do have a theme, they’re all about ordinary people that extraordinary things happen to.” These extraordinary things usually have a paranormal twist of some description, but in my experience they are not impossible. My main characters are not ghouls, or vampires they are just ordinary folk…oh yes, and usually there’s some kind of investigation or mystery unfolding as the story progresses. The next novel I’ll be releasing, Visiting Lilly, is a detective mystery, with a paranormal/sci-fi twist.
That's very ineteresting. Now, can you tell us a little about your latest book?
Being Richard is a story about a very ordinary man who just happens to be an immortal. He wasn’t born immortal. A sacrificial ritual to protect his tribe from an advancing army backfires and instead of killing Sunbeerka, gives him eternal life. So now he’s 2,562 years old, looks like he’s thirty and is yet again scrabbling around for a new identity so that he doesn’t appear to be too young for his alleged age. Choosing to become Richard Ridley, who died as an infant, proves extremely challenging.
He doesn’t want to be Richard, but his nemesis appears in the form of Gilbert Hawkins who works for a secret government department that is hunting down immortals, and is forced to become Richard.On first meeting Gilbert Sunbeerka asks,
“How long have you been observing me?”“Long enough to know that you’ve way out lived your four score and ten. Before Julian you were Mike; and killing Bobby off just after the war was a real mistake, maybe one of your biggest. Records, Richard, records and photography, they really have been the bane of your life in recent years, even though you’ve proved extremely camera shy.”There was no point in answering him. He was my worst nightmare come true, all of my fears realised into one forty something man leaning against my gate thinking he was clever. Those sharp brown eyes were scrutinising me, eyeing me up and down, searching for answers in my face and eyes, and the way I smiled or frowned.“I have all of the evidence,” he said, turning his collar up against the fine mist of drizzle that had begun to grey the surrounding green.“I’m sure you do.” I pushed myself off the gate and headed back towards the cottage.
Gilbert admits that he too is an immortal, although he was born like it. It’s not until one of them is wounded that the differences in their immortality start to show; and questions arise as to whether Gilbert is immortal or lying. Persuaded that all the The Department wants is for him to track down other immortals, Sunbeerka plays their game, but cannot rest until he’s discovered how baby Richard really died. Researching the dead child’s family leads him to uncover dark family secrets, living relatives with blood on their hands and murder. Life becomes dangerous, even for an immortal.
Which do you prefer writing - fiction or non-fiction? Why?
Now that’s a really difficult choice. I think it has to be equal. I enjoy writing non-fiction because I love sharing my knowledge with other people. When people say they have learnt something new from one of my books that gives me a real buzz. With fiction I’m more compulsive addictive. People appear in my head and I have to write about them, they have a story that needs to be told. I enjoy getting to know my characters, but sometimes they’re like naughty children and run off and do their own thing, which is exciting and part of the fun.
What's the most difficult thing you've encountered in your journey as an author?
Finding the time to write all of the novels that I want to write. I have several finished novels waiting to be tweaked ready for publication, but I’m also working on a new project.
Also finding the right platform and audience for my work. I’m not a natural at social media, but I’m having a go and slowly but surely connecting with people who enjoy my style and content.
What words of encouragement would you give to any potential authors out there?
Never give up, never give in. Keep writing. When you’ve finished one piece of work send it out if you’re looking for mainstream publication, but start on your next manuscript, don’t stop writing. In your more creative times always keep a notebook of ideas. A word or two, a scene, any idea that pops into your head. This will become your source book when less creative times leave you feeling dispirited.
Finally, where can readers find your books?
Being Richard is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and in paperback. iTunes and from Lulu.
The System of Symbols, a new way to look at tarot is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and in paperback. iTunes and from Lulu.
Sex and Tarot is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and paperback. iTunes and Lulu.
You’ll also find my books on Nook and other platforms. You can join me on my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ToniAllenAuthor or my blog http://toniallenauthor.com/ to find out more about me and my latest books.
Thanks, Toni, for taking the time to speak with us today and share your experiences. We look forward to hearing about your success in the future.
Toni can you tell us a little about your background?
As a child I was always making up stories in my head, but mainly only wrote them down for school. I studied photography at college and it’s still one of my greatest passions, being able to capture a single moment and show others how I see the world around me. It wasn’t until I was in my teens that I realised that other people don’t relate to the world in quite the same way as myself, and it was only through a long process of self-discovery that I acknowledged the word psychic to explain the many weird and wonderful things that happened around me. As a child I assumed that everyone else had prophetic dreams, saw ghosts and knew what was occurring in other places at the same time. To me this was all normal, a part of who I am.
While at college someone introduced me to Tarot and, due to my early years of self-discovery, I immediately understood the symbols and was able to read the cards without ever having picked up a book on the subject or had any training. Becoming a Tarot reader gave me a platform to use my psychic abilities and help other people with my ability to see beyond the physical realm. As a teenager I was always intrigued by astrology and would do things like sit in the pub with my friends, scribble down birthdays and announce, “Did you know that even though eight people are here we only have Sagittarians and Taureans?” My friends would reply, “Who cares?” And I would say, “I do,” and had to work out why we had homed in on each other. Consequently I learnt astrology.
I now work full time as a tarot reader and astrologer.
You can find out more about me on my blog at http://toniallenauthor.com/
How'd you make the transition to becoming an author?
I started writing novels years ago. Stories populated my head and so I started to write them down. A few poems came along too.
After I started reading tarot I went out and bought a few books on the subject to see what others were thinking and, to be frank, I found them quite irritating because they just gave the meaning of the card but not the reason why it should mean that in the first place. I was already teaching a small group of students and handing out information sheets, and one student said, “You’ve got the making of a book here,” so I started collating my material and putting into book form. Hence the System of Symbols, a new way to look at tarot evolved from my teaching notes.
What kinds of things do you write about?
With my fiction I think a friend of mine put it very well. She said, “I’ve got it. You’re books do have a theme, they’re all about ordinary people that extraordinary things happen to.” These extraordinary things usually have a paranormal twist of some description, but in my experience they are not impossible. My main characters are not ghouls, or vampires they are just ordinary folk…oh yes, and usually there’s some kind of investigation or mystery unfolding as the story progresses. The next novel I’ll be releasing, Visiting Lilly, is a detective mystery, with a paranormal/sci-fi twist.
That's very ineteresting. Now, can you tell us a little about your latest book?
Being Richard is a story about a very ordinary man who just happens to be an immortal. He wasn’t born immortal. A sacrificial ritual to protect his tribe from an advancing army backfires and instead of killing Sunbeerka, gives him eternal life. So now he’s 2,562 years old, looks like he’s thirty and is yet again scrabbling around for a new identity so that he doesn’t appear to be too young for his alleged age. Choosing to become Richard Ridley, who died as an infant, proves extremely challenging.
He doesn’t want to be Richard, but his nemesis appears in the form of Gilbert Hawkins who works for a secret government department that is hunting down immortals, and is forced to become Richard.On first meeting Gilbert Sunbeerka asks,“How long have you been observing me?”“Long enough to know that you’ve way out lived your four score and ten. Before Julian you were Mike; and killing Bobby off just after the war was a real mistake, maybe one of your biggest. Records, Richard, records and photography, they really have been the bane of your life in recent years, even though you’ve proved extremely camera shy.”There was no point in answering him. He was my worst nightmare come true, all of my fears realised into one forty something man leaning against my gate thinking he was clever. Those sharp brown eyes were scrutinising me, eyeing me up and down, searching for answers in my face and eyes, and the way I smiled or frowned.“I have all of the evidence,” he said, turning his collar up against the fine mist of drizzle that had begun to grey the surrounding green.“I’m sure you do.” I pushed myself off the gate and headed back towards the cottage.
Gilbert admits that he too is an immortal, although he was born like it. It’s not until one of them is wounded that the differences in their immortality start to show; and questions arise as to whether Gilbert is immortal or lying. Persuaded that all the The Department wants is for him to track down other immortals, Sunbeerka plays their game, but cannot rest until he’s discovered how baby Richard really died. Researching the dead child’s family leads him to uncover dark family secrets, living relatives with blood on their hands and murder. Life becomes dangerous, even for an immortal.
Which do you prefer writing - fiction or non-fiction? Why?
Now that’s a really difficult choice. I think it has to be equal. I enjoy writing non-fiction because I love sharing my knowledge with other people. When people say they have learnt something new from one of my books that gives me a real buzz. With fiction I’m more compulsive addictive. People appear in my head and I have to write about them, they have a story that needs to be told. I enjoy getting to know my characters, but sometimes they’re like naughty children and run off and do their own thing, which is exciting and part of the fun.
What's the most difficult thing you've encountered in your journey as an author?
Finding the time to write all of the novels that I want to write. I have several finished novels waiting to be tweaked ready for publication, but I’m also working on a new project.
Also finding the right platform and audience for my work. I’m not a natural at social media, but I’m having a go and slowly but surely connecting with people who enjoy my style and content.
What words of encouragement would you give to any potential authors out there?
Never give up, never give in. Keep writing. When you’ve finished one piece of work send it out if you’re looking for mainstream publication, but start on your next manuscript, don’t stop writing. In your more creative times always keep a notebook of ideas. A word or two, a scene, any idea that pops into your head. This will become your source book when less creative times leave you feeling dispirited.
Finally, where can readers find your books?
Being Richard is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and in paperback. iTunes and from Lulu.
The System of Symbols, a new way to look at tarot is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and in paperback. iTunes and from Lulu.Sex and Tarot is available from Amazon US | Amazon UK for Kindle and paperback. iTunes and Lulu.
You’ll also find my books on Nook and other platforms. You can join me on my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ToniAllenAuthor or my blog http://toniallenauthor.com/ to find out more about me and my latest books.
Thanks, Toni, for taking the time to speak with us today and share your experiences. We look forward to hearing about your success in the future.
June 13, 2013
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Book Promotion
Years ago, I read an interview with a musician who described what it felt like the first time he heard one of his songs on the radio. I can't remember exactly what he said, but the word "surreal" comes to mind. Regardless, I had a similar experience recently when I received an email from Amazon that contained the following:
Hopefully it's not too hard to read, but this is an email from Amazon recommending my own book Sensation to me! How cool is that???!!! (Not to mention, as I said before, surreal.)
Naturally, I'm pretty pleased about it (because I assume this means it's being recommended to other people), but I wish I knew how to quantify the effect. In other words, does this have an effect on book sales? If so, how much? To what extent does it weigh in a buyer's decision vs. a tweet saying something similar or a reviewer's blog?
Or maybe it doesn't even matter. After all, I'm getting a lot of positive exposure from this and that's probably enough. I feel blessed that the book is continuing to do well, and I'm grateful for all the support I'm receiving. Hopefully, I'll keep getting cool emails like this well into the future.
June 10, 2013
May 2013 Book Sales
I feel blessed to have had a rather successful May in terms of book sales. I had gone through the trouble of making some very nice Excel tables and charts to present the data, because I think they show some interesting trends. Unfortunately, you can't post Excel charts/tables here (and I'm not sophisticated enough to use other applications), so we'll just have to make do with the raw numbers.
Sensation The month started off a little slow; I published Sensation on Kindle on May 3, and I had a grand total of 3 sales for the week ending May 11, but things quickly picked up.
WeekSales5/11/1335/18/1385/25/13326/1/1387
In essence, I started off selling 3 copies per week on Kindle and ended the month selling more than 30 books per day and ranked #1 in multiple categories. This, of course, is success at a greater level and far faster pace than I ever anticipated, and I really don't know what factors to attribute it to other than the fact that, as my mother always says, GOD is good. I think it also helped that I received some good reviews, both on Amazon and other places, such as the Comic Book Bin .
In addition, June also got off to a robust start (see below), so things are going quite well at the moment.
Warden I previously wrote in another post about that fact that I was having such overwhelming success with Sensation that Warden had become kind of an afterthought. However, it has been doing well, despite only being published on Kindle during the last week of April.
Week Sales
5/4/1345/11/1305/18/1305/25/1326/1/1318
I'm extremely proud of these numbers, and the fact that Warden is currently ranked #23 in one of its categories (as well as #53 in another). It's taking a little more time, but I'm certain that eventually it can be just as successful as Sensation.
In short, I count myself fortunate to be enjoying a modicum of success early on with respect to these books. I'm praying that my work continues to gain momentum and resonate with readers, and I thank everyone for their support.
*FYI: For the first 5 days of June Sensation sold over 300 copies (close to 70 books per day). As of today, June 10, Warden has sold over 60 copies. Thanks again, everyone, for all your support. I know that past performance is no guarantee of future results, but...Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Sensation The month started off a little slow; I published Sensation on Kindle on May 3, and I had a grand total of 3 sales for the week ending May 11, but things quickly picked up.
WeekSales5/11/1335/18/1385/25/13326/1/1387
In essence, I started off selling 3 copies per week on Kindle and ended the month selling more than 30 books per day and ranked #1 in multiple categories. This, of course, is success at a greater level and far faster pace than I ever anticipated, and I really don't know what factors to attribute it to other than the fact that, as my mother always says, GOD is good. I think it also helped that I received some good reviews, both on Amazon and other places, such as the Comic Book Bin .
In addition, June also got off to a robust start (see below), so things are going quite well at the moment.
Warden I previously wrote in another post about that fact that I was having such overwhelming success with Sensation that Warden had become kind of an afterthought. However, it has been doing well, despite only being published on Kindle during the last week of April.
Week Sales
5/4/1345/11/1305/18/1305/25/1326/1/1318
I'm extremely proud of these numbers, and the fact that Warden is currently ranked #23 in one of its categories (as well as #53 in another). It's taking a little more time, but I'm certain that eventually it can be just as successful as Sensation.
In short, I count myself fortunate to be enjoying a modicum of success early on with respect to these books. I'm praying that my work continues to gain momentum and resonate with readers, and I thank everyone for their support.
*FYI: For the first 5 days of June Sensation sold over 300 copies (close to 70 books per day). As of today, June 10, Warden has sold over 60 copies. Thanks again, everyone, for all your support. I know that past performance is no guarantee of future results, but...Laissez les bons temps rouler!
June 3, 2013
The Little Novel That Could
In a number of my previous posts, I have mentioned the early success that I have been blessed to have with my superhero novel
Sensation
, which is currently #1 in a couple of categories. What's been lost in the shuffle, however, is the fact that my other book,
Warden
, is also performing respectably. In fact, I looked up earlier today and found that it was listed in the Top 100 in one of its categories:
96.
Warden (Book 1: Wendigo Fever)by Kevin Hardman
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,913 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)#96 in Books > Children's Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Spine-Chilling Horror
Frankly speaking, it caught me a little by surprise. Like any other author, I had been watching the sales that were occurring with both of my books. However, I was a bad parent, paying more attention to the child who showed all the textbook indicators of being a phenom rather than recognizing that both of my literary children were special. Thankfully, Warden took no notice of my neglect, and has just kept chugging right along like The Little Engine That Could.
Needless to say, I'm thankful that both books are finding an audience. If I'm being honest, however, I have to admit that - if I'd had to choose between them - I would have thought Warden more likely to become a runaway hit. With its inclusion of mythical creatures, monsters and other things-that-go-bump-in-the-night, it seemed to be a bit more mainstream. (For the record, calling paranormal and horror novels "mainstream" still seems like an oxymoron to me, because when I was growing up I don't recall the genre being embraced the way it is today.) Although I've decided to incorporate less-common creatures in my Warden series (such as the Wendigo, which - accordingly to legend - is virtually unstoppable), I was still concerned that readers might find the idea of a superhero novel like Sensation to be passé in comparison. In fact, between the two, my twelve-year-old actually liked Warden better. (And let me say here that, while these two books will certainly appeal to the young adult/teen demographic, they are meant to be enjoyed by readers of all ages.)
As they say, however, truth is stranger than fiction, and I couldn't be more pleased that Sensation has been so warmly received by readers and that Warden is getting its sea legs as well. I'm praying that the same audience that is embracing the former will find room on their shelves for the latter.
Update When I check a short time ago, Warden had moved up to #66 in its category. As always, I feel blessed to have this success, and I thank everyone for their support.
96.
Warden (Book 1: Wendigo Fever)by Kevin HardmanAmazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,913 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)#96 in Books > Children's Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Spine-Chilling Horror
Frankly speaking, it caught me a little by surprise. Like any other author, I had been watching the sales that were occurring with both of my books. However, I was a bad parent, paying more attention to the child who showed all the textbook indicators of being a phenom rather than recognizing that both of my literary children were special. Thankfully, Warden took no notice of my neglect, and has just kept chugging right along like The Little Engine That Could.
Needless to say, I'm thankful that both books are finding an audience. If I'm being honest, however, I have to admit that - if I'd had to choose between them - I would have thought Warden more likely to become a runaway hit. With its inclusion of mythical creatures, monsters and other things-that-go-bump-in-the-night, it seemed to be a bit more mainstream. (For the record, calling paranormal and horror novels "mainstream" still seems like an oxymoron to me, because when I was growing up I don't recall the genre being embraced the way it is today.) Although I've decided to incorporate less-common creatures in my Warden series (such as the Wendigo, which - accordingly to legend - is virtually unstoppable), I was still concerned that readers might find the idea of a superhero novel like Sensation to be passé in comparison. In fact, between the two, my twelve-year-old actually liked Warden better. (And let me say here that, while these two books will certainly appeal to the young adult/teen demographic, they are meant to be enjoyed by readers of all ages.)
As they say, however, truth is stranger than fiction, and I couldn't be more pleased that Sensation has been so warmly received by readers and that Warden is getting its sea legs as well. I'm praying that the same audience that is embracing the former will find room on their shelves for the latter.
Update When I check a short time ago, Warden had moved up to #66 in its category. As always, I feel blessed to have this success, and I thank everyone for their support.
June 1, 2013
How to Beat the High Cost of [Indie] Publishing
Back when I was in high school, a friend's mother decided to publish a book. She went the self-publishing route, and in the process spent something like $2000. Unfortunately, the book had minimal sales, to say the least, and she lost money on the deal. However, she may have felt it was worth it to achieve her lifelong goal of becoming a published author. (There's a reason why they call it "Vanity Press.")
These days, of course, it's a lot easier - and cheaper - to self-publish. In fact, you can essentially publish for free. For example, you can just go to Createspeace or Kindle, upload your novel, pick your free cover (or design one yourself) and you're done. No out-of-pocket expense whatsoever.
That said, I think there actually is a cost to publishing via the do-everything-yourself route. Basically, as I mentioned in my post on Of course, someone is bound to argue that outsourcing all of these activities costs as well, and they'd be right. But what is that cost? In short, what's the budget you need to anticipate if you're in mind to self-publish a book?
To answer this, you really need to think about what services you need. On my page of Self-Publishing Links, I try to cover the basics in this arena, so let's take a look at what you might hypothetically have to spend on a novel of, say, about 200 pages:
Publishing - As previously stated, this is essentially free, so cost is $0. (Just to be clear, I'm speaking of ebooks and print on demand (POD) services, not traditional vanity press publishing).
Editing/Proofreading - Prices vary, with some people charging by the word, others by the page, and so on. I think that budgeting $1/page should be adequate.
Conversion/Formatting - Again, prices vary. I've seen some that strike me as relatively expensive (over $100) and others that are extraordinarily cheap ($5 on Fiverr). Searching for some middle ground, let's just budget $69 (which is the cost of the Kindle Conversion service on Createspace).
Cover Art/Design - This is another one that is all over the place in terms of cost. An artist with name brand recognition could charge a hefty fee that runs into the thousands. Or you might come across someone who is immensely talented but undiscovered at the moment and commission them on the cheap. In short, prices here can be as low as five bucks or cost thousands of dollars. For argument's sake, though, let's assume you can get it fairly cheap - maybe a pre-made cover for about $50.
ISBN Numbers - I enjoy having my own ISBN numbers and being my own publisher, but it's not a necessity. Let's assume that in this arena you're an extreme cheapskate and are willing to use an ISBN number provided by Createspace, B&N or whatever publishing platform you use. Ergo, cost is $0.
Copyright Registration - As I mentioned in my other post , copyright protection attaches to your work as soon as its created. However, let's just assume that - in addition to being cheap - you are a paranoid mofo, and want additional protection. In that instance, online copyright registration is only $35.
So what's the total damage?
Publishing: $0 Editing/Proofreading: $200 Conversion/Formatting: $69 Cover Art/Design: $50 ISBN Numbers: $0Copyright Registration: $35Total: $354
In addition to this, I'd say that you should tack on some additional funds to cover incidentals. For instance, you might want to order a proof for review purposes. You may want some copies to give away to friends and family, or to send to potential reviewers. You might also want to do a little advertising. Thus, I'd say that it's probably worthwhile to bump your budget up a little and round it off to a nice even $500.
Of course, within that $500, you can fudge numbers any way you like. Maybe you absolutely have to have your own ISBN numbers and will shell out $250 for 10 of them and forego copyright registration. Maybe you can find a retired English teacher who will proof your work for $50. Maybe you've got a cousin who's an artist and will work for free as long as you put a link to his gallery on your blog.
Finally, to the extent that $500 sounds like a lot of money (and I'm not saying that it isn't), think about how much time you would spend doing the things noted yourself. How much time would you spend proofreading your 200-page novel? (And if you say, "Not much" or "Just a couple of hours," then your work is pretty much assured to have some typos/errors.) How much time would you spend creating that perfect cover? How much time would you spending formatting/converting your work for publication as an ebook?
Basically, you need to figure out what your time is worth (slap a value on it) and determine if you'd rather spend that time - and if that time is better utilized - writing, or doing all this other stuff. In my book, I'd rather spend the time writing, and leave the other stuff to the professionals. It may cost a little moolah now, but in my opinion it's worth it and will pay big dividends later.
*One added note: I can't emphasize enough the importance of a good, professional cover. From a novelization standpoint, it's the face you're showing the world, so decide whether you want it all dolled up, or more like someone who just rolled out of bed and immediately went about their day without any attention to hygiene, grooming, etc.
These days, of course, it's a lot easier - and cheaper - to self-publish. In fact, you can essentially publish for free. For example, you can just go to Createspeace or Kindle, upload your novel, pick your free cover (or design one yourself) and you're done. No out-of-pocket expense whatsoever.
That said, I think there actually is a cost to publishing via the do-everything-yourself route. Basically, as I mentioned in my post on Of course, someone is bound to argue that outsourcing all of these activities costs as well, and they'd be right. But what is that cost? In short, what's the budget you need to anticipate if you're in mind to self-publish a book?
To answer this, you really need to think about what services you need. On my page of Self-Publishing Links, I try to cover the basics in this arena, so let's take a look at what you might hypothetically have to spend on a novel of, say, about 200 pages:
Publishing - As previously stated, this is essentially free, so cost is $0. (Just to be clear, I'm speaking of ebooks and print on demand (POD) services, not traditional vanity press publishing).
Editing/Proofreading - Prices vary, with some people charging by the word, others by the page, and so on. I think that budgeting $1/page should be adequate.
Conversion/Formatting - Again, prices vary. I've seen some that strike me as relatively expensive (over $100) and others that are extraordinarily cheap ($5 on Fiverr). Searching for some middle ground, let's just budget $69 (which is the cost of the Kindle Conversion service on Createspace).
Cover Art/Design - This is another one that is all over the place in terms of cost. An artist with name brand recognition could charge a hefty fee that runs into the thousands. Or you might come across someone who is immensely talented but undiscovered at the moment and commission them on the cheap. In short, prices here can be as low as five bucks or cost thousands of dollars. For argument's sake, though, let's assume you can get it fairly cheap - maybe a pre-made cover for about $50.
ISBN Numbers - I enjoy having my own ISBN numbers and being my own publisher, but it's not a necessity. Let's assume that in this arena you're an extreme cheapskate and are willing to use an ISBN number provided by Createspace, B&N or whatever publishing platform you use. Ergo, cost is $0.
Copyright Registration - As I mentioned in my other post , copyright protection attaches to your work as soon as its created. However, let's just assume that - in addition to being cheap - you are a paranoid mofo, and want additional protection. In that instance, online copyright registration is only $35.
So what's the total damage?
Publishing: $0 Editing/Proofreading: $200 Conversion/Formatting: $69 Cover Art/Design: $50 ISBN Numbers: $0Copyright Registration: $35Total: $354
In addition to this, I'd say that you should tack on some additional funds to cover incidentals. For instance, you might want to order a proof for review purposes. You may want some copies to give away to friends and family, or to send to potential reviewers. You might also want to do a little advertising. Thus, I'd say that it's probably worthwhile to bump your budget up a little and round it off to a nice even $500.
Of course, within that $500, you can fudge numbers any way you like. Maybe you absolutely have to have your own ISBN numbers and will shell out $250 for 10 of them and forego copyright registration. Maybe you can find a retired English teacher who will proof your work for $50. Maybe you've got a cousin who's an artist and will work for free as long as you put a link to his gallery on your blog.
Finally, to the extent that $500 sounds like a lot of money (and I'm not saying that it isn't), think about how much time you would spend doing the things noted yourself. How much time would you spend proofreading your 200-page novel? (And if you say, "Not much" or "Just a couple of hours," then your work is pretty much assured to have some typos/errors.) How much time would you spend creating that perfect cover? How much time would you spending formatting/converting your work for publication as an ebook?
Basically, you need to figure out what your time is worth (slap a value on it) and determine if you'd rather spend that time - and if that time is better utilized - writing, or doing all this other stuff. In my book, I'd rather spend the time writing, and leave the other stuff to the professionals. It may cost a little moolah now, but in my opinion it's worth it and will pay big dividends later.
*One added note: I can't emphasize enough the importance of a good, professional cover. From a novelization standpoint, it's the face you're showing the world, so decide whether you want it all dolled up, or more like someone who just rolled out of bed and immediately went about their day without any attention to hygiene, grooming, etc.
May 29, 2013
Will Success Spoil Kevin Hardman?
As noted in my
last post
, my novel Sensation actually broke into the Top 100 in its Fantasy category last week, debuting at No. 97. I was tremendously excited and was barely able to focus on anything else.
Over the next few days, I watched it climb steadily higher in both wide-eyed surprise and white-knuckled anticipation. They like me! They really like me! I thought. After all, I only just put the novel on Kindle at the beginning of May, so I felt extraordinarily blessed to have found an audience so soon.
When I woke up yesterday morning, I checked and saw that I was up to #2. Excellent! I thought and gave my wife the good news. As I drove to work, I tried to imagine what it might feel like if I ever reached the top spot, but it's one of those things that you can't quite get your arms around because it would be so surreal. Around that time I got a call from my wife.
"What are you going to do if you hit number one?" She asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, are you going to call me, text me, what?"
"Babe, I don't know what I'll do. I'll probably go into shock."
A short time later I was in my office pulling up the rankings, and that's when I saw it:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,731 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store) #1 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy #27 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Superheroes
I was No. 1. Numero uno. All I could do was just stare at the screen for about 5 minutes. Then I got up, calmly closed the door to my office, and did the Happy Dance.
Okay, I didn't do the Happy Dance, but I was excited enough that I would have done it if someone had asked me to. I sent my wife the requisite text and then just kind of sat back in awe. This was something I had prayed for (and GOD had been kind enough to answer that prayer), but it happened so exceedingly fast that I wasn't quite able to wrap my head around it or the implications. What exactly does it mean to get the top slot? I figured that it might result in additional sales, give me greater exposure, and so on, but what did it mean in the grand scheme of things?
Does it mean that I'm a good writer? Does it mean that I'm a successful writer? Does this validate me as an author? It kind of put me in mind of that old movie Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, where a guy gets everything he wants professionally and discovers that the things he thought were important are actually empty and meaning less. In short, it felt good (fan-freakin'-tastic, actually) to be #1, but the meaning behind it all seemed elusive.
After a while, I just gave up on trying to figure it out and decided to enjoy the ride while it lasted. I'm an author, and this is what I do. It's great that my work is resonating and finding an audience and I recognize how lucky that is, because there are lots of other authors with more talent than myself who simply haven't struck the right chord yet with readers. However, I think as long as they enjoy what they are doing and put their hearts into it, eventually they will find success.
Ultimately, I like to think that being #1 means that people are getting as much joy out of reading my work as I am getting out of writing it. And as to enjoying the ride while it lasted, that turned out to be about a day-and-a-half:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,361 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)#2 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy #21 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Superheroes
I'm back at #2. However, if you look at my rank in the Paid Kindle Store, it's actually a lot better than it was when I hit number one - #5,361 vs. #9,731. This again kind of comes back to what it really means to be No.1. Was I better off before with the #1 ranking, or at #2 but with better stats in the Kindle Store? Personally, I prefer the latter; being #2 in this instance has greater value. As someone once said, everything's relative. That said, I'm truly grateful for the support I've received, and I hope the audience for my work keeps growing.
Over the next few days, I watched it climb steadily higher in both wide-eyed surprise and white-knuckled anticipation. They like me! They really like me! I thought. After all, I only just put the novel on Kindle at the beginning of May, so I felt extraordinarily blessed to have found an audience so soon.
When I woke up yesterday morning, I checked and saw that I was up to #2. Excellent! I thought and gave my wife the good news. As I drove to work, I tried to imagine what it might feel like if I ever reached the top spot, but it's one of those things that you can't quite get your arms around because it would be so surreal. Around that time I got a call from my wife.
"What are you going to do if you hit number one?" She asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, are you going to call me, text me, what?"
"Babe, I don't know what I'll do. I'll probably go into shock."
A short time later I was in my office pulling up the rankings, and that's when I saw it:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,731 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store) #1 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy #27 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Superheroes
I was No. 1. Numero uno. All I could do was just stare at the screen for about 5 minutes. Then I got up, calmly closed the door to my office, and did the Happy Dance.
Okay, I didn't do the Happy Dance, but I was excited enough that I would have done it if someone had asked me to. I sent my wife the requisite text and then just kind of sat back in awe. This was something I had prayed for (and GOD had been kind enough to answer that prayer), but it happened so exceedingly fast that I wasn't quite able to wrap my head around it or the implications. What exactly does it mean to get the top slot? I figured that it might result in additional sales, give me greater exposure, and so on, but what did it mean in the grand scheme of things?
Does it mean that I'm a good writer? Does it mean that I'm a successful writer? Does this validate me as an author? It kind of put me in mind of that old movie Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, where a guy gets everything he wants professionally and discovers that the things he thought were important are actually empty and meaning less. In short, it felt good (fan-freakin'-tastic, actually) to be #1, but the meaning behind it all seemed elusive.
After a while, I just gave up on trying to figure it out and decided to enjoy the ride while it lasted. I'm an author, and this is what I do. It's great that my work is resonating and finding an audience and I recognize how lucky that is, because there are lots of other authors with more talent than myself who simply haven't struck the right chord yet with readers. However, I think as long as they enjoy what they are doing and put their hearts into it, eventually they will find success.
Ultimately, I like to think that being #1 means that people are getting as much joy out of reading my work as I am getting out of writing it. And as to enjoying the ride while it lasted, that turned out to be about a day-and-a-half:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,361 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)#2 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy #21 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Superheroes
I'm back at #2. However, if you look at my rank in the Paid Kindle Store, it's actually a lot better than it was when I hit number one - #5,361 vs. #9,731. This again kind of comes back to what it really means to be No.1. Was I better off before with the #1 ranking, or at #2 but with better stats in the Kindle Store? Personally, I prefer the latter; being #2 in this instance has greater value. As someone once said, everything's relative. That said, I'm truly grateful for the support I've received, and I hope the audience for my work keeps growing.
May 24, 2013
Zen and the Art of Amazon Rankings
When I first looked into indie publishing a few years back, I recall coming across a statement that the average self-published book only sold nine copies. Nine! I don't know where the person making that statement got their stats, but it was a little frightening to me. Authors put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into their writing; the thought of only selling nine copies might be a little discouraging.
I was recently discussing this subject with a friend, who felt that the obvious solution to selling more books was to get ranked on one of Amazon's bestseller lists. This struck me as a lot like the which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg scenario: in order to sell more books, you need to get ranked on one of the lists. In order to get ranked, however, you need to sell more books. In other words, my friend's advice wasn't a real solution, but more of an objective.
Needless to say, every author wants to sell a lot of books. (Or at least I assume they do.) Thus, while my sales numbers are still modest, I was thrilled to see Sensation break into the Top 100 in one of its categories on Amazon a few days ago:
47.
Sensation: A Superhero Novelby Kevin Hardman
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,661 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
#47 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy
It actually debuted at No. 97, so I got the thrill of watching it climb higher. (It actually reached as high as No. 32 - Woo hoo!!!!) Of course, it was difficult to get anything done for the rest of the day. It was a lot like when you first earn money via AdSense; you just want to sit there all day clicking the refresh button, waiting to see how much the numbers change.
I'd like to argue that the novelty wore off after a day or so, but that's nowhere near the truth. I'm actually still on cloud nine about it, but to a certain extent basic human nature began to reassert itself. In essence, I started to get greedy. It wasn't enough that I was ranking in the "Fantasy" category; why wasn't I ranking for "Superheroes" as well???
Frankly speaking, I didn't think it was a completely unfair question. After all, "Fantasy" and "Superheroes" were the two categories I selected for this novel. Moreover, when I looked at the numbers, my rank in the Paid Kindle Store was actually better than some books in the Top 100 in the "Superheroes" category.
Anyway, I called Amazon to woodshed them over the issue, but apparently I overlooked one of the essential variables in the algorithm used to calculate rankings: time. I had thought that perhaps I had listed my book in the wrong category, hadn't chosen the right keywords or what have you, but the representative I spoke with (who was very helpful, by the way), told me that my book was definitely in the proper category. However, she also said that the length of time that a book has been out and selling well also plays a factor.
In short, it appears that the Amazon rankings are even more complex than I initially thought. Obviously it's not enough to just sell a certain number of books (although that is undoubtedly the first step); you also have to sell consistently. Unfortunately, I don't think I'm quite there yet in terms of selling an expected number of books each day. Hopefully, that will change in the near future.
I was recently discussing this subject with a friend, who felt that the obvious solution to selling more books was to get ranked on one of Amazon's bestseller lists. This struck me as a lot like the which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg scenario: in order to sell more books, you need to get ranked on one of the lists. In order to get ranked, however, you need to sell more books. In other words, my friend's advice wasn't a real solution, but more of an objective.
Needless to say, every author wants to sell a lot of books. (Or at least I assume they do.) Thus, while my sales numbers are still modest, I was thrilled to see Sensation break into the Top 100 in one of its categories on Amazon a few days ago:
47.
Sensation: A Superhero Novelby Kevin HardmanAmazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,661 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
#47 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Fantasy
It actually debuted at No. 97, so I got the thrill of watching it climb higher. (It actually reached as high as No. 32 - Woo hoo!!!!) Of course, it was difficult to get anything done for the rest of the day. It was a lot like when you first earn money via AdSense; you just want to sit there all day clicking the refresh button, waiting to see how much the numbers change.
I'd like to argue that the novelty wore off after a day or so, but that's nowhere near the truth. I'm actually still on cloud nine about it, but to a certain extent basic human nature began to reassert itself. In essence, I started to get greedy. It wasn't enough that I was ranking in the "Fantasy" category; why wasn't I ranking for "Superheroes" as well???
Frankly speaking, I didn't think it was a completely unfair question. After all, "Fantasy" and "Superheroes" were the two categories I selected for this novel. Moreover, when I looked at the numbers, my rank in the Paid Kindle Store was actually better than some books in the Top 100 in the "Superheroes" category.
Anyway, I called Amazon to woodshed them over the issue, but apparently I overlooked one of the essential variables in the algorithm used to calculate rankings: time. I had thought that perhaps I had listed my book in the wrong category, hadn't chosen the right keywords or what have you, but the representative I spoke with (who was very helpful, by the way), told me that my book was definitely in the proper category. However, she also said that the length of time that a book has been out and selling well also plays a factor.
In short, it appears that the Amazon rankings are even more complex than I initially thought. Obviously it's not enough to just sell a certain number of books (although that is undoubtedly the first step); you also have to sell consistently. Unfortunately, I don't think I'm quite there yet in terms of selling an expected number of books each day. Hopefully, that will change in the near future.
May 17, 2013
Adventures in Indie Advertising/Promotion: Goodreads
There's an old question that goes: If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around, does it make a sound? In a similar vein, if you write the greatest novel in the history of the world but nobody knows about it, will you sell many books? It's possible, but not probable.
In essence, your job as a writer - especially an indie author - doesn't end once you upload that final, professionally-copyedited version with the too-cool-for-words cover art. You still have to get the word out about your book. That's not to say that some novels will not gain popularity and through great word-of-mouth, but I wouldn't put all my eggs in that basket as a virtual unknown. Basically, you will probably have to do some marketing (so build that into your budget).
In my own case, I've got several venues that I intend to use for marketing and promotion, but one that stood out to me was the prospect of a Goodreads advertising campaign. Goodreads bills itself as having "140 million pageviews and 19 million unique visitors a month." That's a lot of eyeballs, and I'm sure we'd all love to have them looking at ads for our indie novels. Thus, pulling the trigger here was really a no-brainer.
Goodreads' advertising system is a pay-per-click model. Thus, you pay every time someone clicks on your ad. The amount that you pay per click is based on how much you choose to bid, with the bid range being from $.10 to $300. (The default rate is $.50 per click.) You can fund fund an ad campaign with a certain amount of money and also place daily limits on how much is spent. For instance, you could place $10 in your account for a particular ad campaign, and then bid 10 cents per click with a $1 per day limit. At that rate, you would max out the account with 10 clicks per day over a ten-day period. However, Goodreads states that the average click-through rate (CTR) is .07%, meaning that to max out the daily limit your ad should expect to have about 14,285 views each day.
With respect to views, Goodreads uses a "complex algorithm" to determine which ads are shown on the site, and those with higher bids are given higher priority. In short, the higher your bid, the more your ad is displayed. That said, Goodreads states that the CTR is a greater determinant of which ads are shown more often - i.e., the more often your ad is clicked, the more often it is shown.
Personally, I've been bidding 30 cents per click and I'm pretty happy with the results. I have ad campaigns for both of my books, Sensation and Warden , and have set a daily limit of $5 for each. I've never come anywhere near to reaching my daily limit - even with two ads for each book - and I've had thousands of views for each campaign since starting my ad account on 5/6/13. (One thing I will say, however, is that once an ad gets at least one click I've noticed that the number of views increases significantly.)
Speaking of multiple ads, I have two for each book within each respective campaign; one is targeted to readers based on genre, while the other targets them based on authors. (This is in accordance with Goodreads' suggestions.) From my experience, those based on genre do exponentially better in terms of page views than those based on authors. Also, all ads in the same campaign are funded by the same pool of money, so you don't have to dump in a huge sum of money. regardless, your campaign will continue to run until you run out of moolah in your account.
So, in the grand scheme of things, is advertising on Goodreads worth it? I would say "Yes," but it also depends on what kind of value you feel you are getting out of the ads. For instance, if you are strongly adhering to a bean-counting philosophy, you may measure successful advertising solely in terms of resulting book sales. Thus, if your novel costs $2.99 and you're advertising it with a rate of 30 cents per click, then you may feel you need to sell at least one copy every 6 clicks or the ad is a failure. (Any more clicks-per-sale than that will result in a loss.)
From my perspective, I think it would be a mistake to measure success solely in terms of quantifiable data like sales. I believe you should also consider the amount of exposure you're getting. By way of example my novel Sensation has a completely abominable CTR of .01%. However, it has still had thousands of page views, resulting in it being added to several "to-read" lists on the site. (It also got a nice 5-star review.) And all of this is has only cost me pennies thus far.
In short, I think advertising via Goodreads is an excellent option. Creating an ad is simple and easy; anyone interested can get started on Goodreads' advertising page. (A nice FAQ is also located here.) Also, two other people who do an excellent job of discussing this advertising program are Lindsay Buroker and Geoff Wakeling.
May 9, 2013
Book Prices and Comparative Value
Mother's Day is coming up, so - like a good son - I recently went in search of an appropriate gift, along with a nice card. In addition, I've got numerous relatives (cousins, nieces, nephews, etc.) graduating from various institutions this month. Thus, it occurred to me to get all of the shopping for everyone out of the way at once.
Following that train of thought, I found myself in the greeting card aisle of my local drugstore, casually perusing the various cards-for-all-occasions on display. After making my selections and heading to the checkout counter, I offhandedly flipped one of the cards over to see how much it cost...and almost had a heart attack!
$6.99!!! For a card!
Talk about sticker shock! Granted it was nice, but it's essentially a folded piece of paper with a couple of sappy, sentimental lines of text. For that they want $6.99? You could get both of my books for less than that! (Admittedly, at $2.99 and $3.99 they're only a penny less, but you see my point.) In fact, the cheapest card I had picked up was actually $2.99.
Maybe I just haven't been paying attention lately. I can remember when you could get a nice card for 99 cents. Then I recall prices slowly creeping up: $1.39...$1.79...$1.99...$2.25. I just don't know when they took this monstrous leap such that they now cost more than books. (I'm assuming that Hallmark and the other greeting card companies know that the public is going to buy cards for occasions such as Mother's Day, and that some portion of the population is going to wait until the last minute. If all the "cheap" cards are gone at that point - i.e., those in the $2.99 range - then the buyer has no choice but to get the expensive card.)
Book prices, of course, is a hotly debated topic among indie authors. It's hard to find that sweet spot whereby readers will take a chance on you as an unknown, but at the same time you earn enough to make you feel...relevant (for lack of a better term) - like you can not only make a living at writing but that you're actually good at it.
If you're publishing on Kindle, there's certainly a powerful argument for keeping your price as cheap as possible, which usually means $.99. After all, you'll still earn a 35% commission (show me another business that will pay you that rate!), and - as almost everyone knows - it makes your book an easy impulse buy, such that you'll probably reach more readers. If I remember correctly, John Locke (author of the Donovan Creed novels) achieved tremendous success with this approach and still advocates it.
On the flip side, if you charge at least $2.99, you get a whopping 70% commission. In other words, you have to sell almost six times as many books at $.99 to earn the same amount of money. It's certainly not impossible, but that's a lot of ground to make up. In addition, there's a significant amount of backlash now with respect to books priced at $.99. Basically, the book-buying public has come to assume that a book in that price range, by an unknown author, is probably an indie novel and not worth the price of entry.
In the case of my book " Sensation ," I labored long and hard over what the price should be. I was initially tempted to offer it at $.99, based on the fact that I'm a new author and I'd like to build a fan base. I figured that I would offer the sequel (which I'm working on now) at a more equitable $3.99. However, I looked at a couple of other books in the superhero genre, and found most were priced at $2.99+. For instance, Jim Bernheimer's Confession's of a D-List Supervillain costs $2.99. Marion G. Harmon began by offering the first novel in his Wearing the Cape series at $.99, but quickly raised the price to $2.99; today all the books in that series are priced at $7.99 on Kindle.
I'm not attempting to compare myself to those guys, but rather trying to convey what I feel the market is for books in this genre. By comparison, take a peek at the list of the bestselling comic books for January 2013 (compiled by Comichron) located here . Looking at this list, you can see, for example, that an issue of the Bionic Woman - priced at $3.99 and ranked at #294 on the list - sold almost 4,400 copies that month! (And I don't mean to imply anything bad about Bionic Woman; I'm just trying to suggest what the fiscal temperament is for those interested in comics and superheroes.) Based on what I've observed, I think $3.99 is a fair and reasonable price that readers of this genre would be willing to pay. (Not to mention the fact that Mrs. Wonderful (my wife) offered her unsolicited opinion on the subject: "You are not selling this book for 99 cents!" And that pretty much brought an end to the debate about price on my part.)
As to " Warden ," the mental exercise was much the same, with me coming to the conclusion that $2.99 was an appropriate price for this entry in the teen/young adult genre of horror, fantasy, magic and science fiction. (And again, the Boss Lady reviewed my work and would place her stamp of approval on nothing less than $2.99.)
In retrospect, I think that the prices for most ebooks - not strictly my own - are not only fair but actually cheap in comparison to other consumer goods - Exhibit A being the greeting cards I mentioned at the beginning of this post. But you can find this type of thing in various sectors, like the price of gas: people think that gasoline is expensive, but other products like soda and coffe are exorbitant in comparsion. By way of example, imagine you can buy a 12-ounce Coke for 50 cents. At that rate, Coke costs roughly $5 per gallon, but people happily pay that and more when they go out and eat lunch every day. Likewise with coffee.
Basically, at 3 to 4 bucks a pop, I think most ebooks represent extraordinary entertainment value. You'll pay twice that to go see a movie that you end up hating and not think anything of it (not to mention the $20 you spend on concessions). Thus, I don't even think there should be a debate about books in that price range, or even a little higher.
Following that train of thought, I found myself in the greeting card aisle of my local drugstore, casually perusing the various cards-for-all-occasions on display. After making my selections and heading to the checkout counter, I offhandedly flipped one of the cards over to see how much it cost...and almost had a heart attack!
$6.99!!! For a card!
Talk about sticker shock! Granted it was nice, but it's essentially a folded piece of paper with a couple of sappy, sentimental lines of text. For that they want $6.99? You could get both of my books for less than that! (Admittedly, at $2.99 and $3.99 they're only a penny less, but you see my point.) In fact, the cheapest card I had picked up was actually $2.99.
Maybe I just haven't been paying attention lately. I can remember when you could get a nice card for 99 cents. Then I recall prices slowly creeping up: $1.39...$1.79...$1.99...$2.25. I just don't know when they took this monstrous leap such that they now cost more than books. (I'm assuming that Hallmark and the other greeting card companies know that the public is going to buy cards for occasions such as Mother's Day, and that some portion of the population is going to wait until the last minute. If all the "cheap" cards are gone at that point - i.e., those in the $2.99 range - then the buyer has no choice but to get the expensive card.)
Book prices, of course, is a hotly debated topic among indie authors. It's hard to find that sweet spot whereby readers will take a chance on you as an unknown, but at the same time you earn enough to make you feel...relevant (for lack of a better term) - like you can not only make a living at writing but that you're actually good at it.
If you're publishing on Kindle, there's certainly a powerful argument for keeping your price as cheap as possible, which usually means $.99. After all, you'll still earn a 35% commission (show me another business that will pay you that rate!), and - as almost everyone knows - it makes your book an easy impulse buy, such that you'll probably reach more readers. If I remember correctly, John Locke (author of the Donovan Creed novels) achieved tremendous success with this approach and still advocates it.
On the flip side, if you charge at least $2.99, you get a whopping 70% commission. In other words, you have to sell almost six times as many books at $.99 to earn the same amount of money. It's certainly not impossible, but that's a lot of ground to make up. In addition, there's a significant amount of backlash now with respect to books priced at $.99. Basically, the book-buying public has come to assume that a book in that price range, by an unknown author, is probably an indie novel and not worth the price of entry.
In the case of my book " Sensation ," I labored long and hard over what the price should be. I was initially tempted to offer it at $.99, based on the fact that I'm a new author and I'd like to build a fan base. I figured that I would offer the sequel (which I'm working on now) at a more equitable $3.99. However, I looked at a couple of other books in the superhero genre, and found most were priced at $2.99+. For instance, Jim Bernheimer's Confession's of a D-List Supervillain costs $2.99. Marion G. Harmon began by offering the first novel in his Wearing the Cape series at $.99, but quickly raised the price to $2.99; today all the books in that series are priced at $7.99 on Kindle.
I'm not attempting to compare myself to those guys, but rather trying to convey what I feel the market is for books in this genre. By comparison, take a peek at the list of the bestselling comic books for January 2013 (compiled by Comichron) located here . Looking at this list, you can see, for example, that an issue of the Bionic Woman - priced at $3.99 and ranked at #294 on the list - sold almost 4,400 copies that month! (And I don't mean to imply anything bad about Bionic Woman; I'm just trying to suggest what the fiscal temperament is for those interested in comics and superheroes.) Based on what I've observed, I think $3.99 is a fair and reasonable price that readers of this genre would be willing to pay. (Not to mention the fact that Mrs. Wonderful (my wife) offered her unsolicited opinion on the subject: "You are not selling this book for 99 cents!" And that pretty much brought an end to the debate about price on my part.)
As to " Warden ," the mental exercise was much the same, with me coming to the conclusion that $2.99 was an appropriate price for this entry in the teen/young adult genre of horror, fantasy, magic and science fiction. (And again, the Boss Lady reviewed my work and would place her stamp of approval on nothing less than $2.99.)
In retrospect, I think that the prices for most ebooks - not strictly my own - are not only fair but actually cheap in comparison to other consumer goods - Exhibit A being the greeting cards I mentioned at the beginning of this post. But you can find this type of thing in various sectors, like the price of gas: people think that gasoline is expensive, but other products like soda and coffe are exorbitant in comparsion. By way of example, imagine you can buy a 12-ounce Coke for 50 cents. At that rate, Coke costs roughly $5 per gallon, but people happily pay that and more when they go out and eat lunch every day. Likewise with coffee.
Basically, at 3 to 4 bucks a pop, I think most ebooks represent extraordinary entertainment value. You'll pay twice that to go see a movie that you end up hating and not think anything of it (not to mention the $20 you spend on concessions). Thus, I don't even think there should be a debate about books in that price range, or even a little higher.
