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Indie Authors Share Their Secrets to Creating Successful Self-Publishing Careers
Posted by Cynthia on October 3, 2016
The self-publishing landscape has changed. Ask any indie author who has been at it for a while, and they’ll likely agree that what used to drive discovery in self-publishing isn’t what works now, and there are no guarantees that what works now will continue to work in the future. “The moment you think that a particular activity is the “best” one, it gets stale and something else catches on,” says David Estes, author of the popular YA series The Dwellers Saga and Slip.
The problem with discovery might be due to the dramatic increase in self-published titles, giving readers more choice but making it more competitive for authors to stand out. According to a recent Bowker report, the number of ISBNs from self-published books grew by 375% between 2010 and 2015. There were 727,125 ISBNs assigned to self-published titles in 2015 alone. If anything, this likely under-represents the number of indie books, as many popular self-publishing platforms don’t require an ISBN to release a book.
Self-publishing is an attractive option to the approximately 81% of Americans who want to publish a book some day, and more self-published authors are making a living today than traditionally published authors, according to Hugh Howey, bestselling author of Wool, citing an Author Earnings report.

But don’t think that simply hitting ‘publish’ is all it takes. “I would upload my book to the KDP platform, fill everything out, and hit publish. Then the program would think and think, and then—nothing. No book live,” remembers Shannon Mayer, author of Raising Innocence. “I spent three days trying to figure out why it wouldn’t work before I stumbled on the reason: I hadn’t put in who the author was!”
Technical difficulties aside, self-published authors realize too late that publishing a book is a lot of work. In celebration of Indie Author Day on October 8th, we asked three bestselling indie authors how they turned their passion into a career, and for their advice on approaching self-publishing successfully.
While writing is a solitary endeavor, self-publishing isn’t—or shouldn’t be—if you want your career to take off. Chanda Hahn, who worked as bookseller and children’s librarian before writing her bestselling Unfortunate Fairytale series, knows what areas she needs to outsource to professionals, like copy and line editing, and what can be done in-house. “My brother-in-law does my covers, and I’ll find the models and get a cover shoot done for the book. I found one model in a Panera Bread while I was eating lunch!”
As a former accountant, Estes realized that he needed to approach his self-publishing career like a business. “My goal is to publish a finished product that is as high-quality as possible at the lowest cost. I try to save money where I can, but I do not do so at the sake of quality.” Authors simply cannot go at it alone, and being realistic about where your strengths and weaknesses are will help you identify where you need help. “I have zero skills with graphic design, so I outsource the cover design to a trusted friend who happens to be a graphic designer,” says Estes.
And yet, because of the nature of the beast, every responsibility ultimately lays with the self-published author. “Every choice I make for my books and my stories from plot, editing, cover art, marketing… it’s all on my shoulders,” says Mayer, who has written more than 30 books. This level of involvement is what initially appeals to indie authors, but the scope of what needs to be done (and done well) can be overwhelming for someone who tries to do it all alone.
Writing, editing, designing, pricing…the last thing indie authors usually think about when they finally hit ‘publish’ is marketing the book. But readers can’t buy a book they’ve never heard of. While there are many outlets and opportunities for authors to promote their books, Goodreads remains the largest site for readers, with more than 50 million members.
“I joined Goodreads as a reader, not an author,” says Estes, which anyone can see by checking out his robust bookshelves. Estes found several groups in his favorite genres where he could chat about books, TV, movies, and the like. “A few of the group members realized I was an author and decided to try my books simply because they were curious.” He began participating in formal group “Read to Review” programs, where he would offer free copies of his books in exchange for reviews. “That’s where I first started growing the seeds that would become my fan base, eventually expanding into my official Goodreads fan group.”
David Estes Fans and YA Book Lovers Unite! has more than 3,000 members, but the group is not just about him. He and his two moderators ensure there’s something for everyone, whether that’s playing Book Bingo or conducting interviews with other authors like Marissa Meyer, Hugh Howey, and Jennifer Nielsen. Estes estimates that he spends about 10 hours hanging out in the group, and about 15 hours on Goodreads overall per week.
Many self-published authors spend most of their marketing efforts on social media because they spend more time than money on it. “Once I’m [online], hours pass and I have no recollection of where they went!” Hahn credits Goodreads with helping her connect readers with her books. Her newest book, Lost Girl, will be the first one for which she’ll share advance reading copies for early reviews. “I’ve always been lucky enough to have very dedicated fans that want to share their love of the book by posting reviews.”
Does she read her reviews? “Never. I may see my book and see that it has a number of reviews, and I’ll be, “Five thousand reviews…that’s awesome.” I don’t want to know how many are five stars or one stars…that’s not what’s important. What is important is that I wrote a book that made the readers feel something and respond, whether that is negative or positive.”
UnEnchanted is the first book in the five part Unfortunate Fairy Tale series, and the author has received more than 32,000 overall ratings to date. The unconventional fairy tales incorporate fantasy and adventure, and appeal to a teenage audience looking for a twist on their favorite stories from childhood. “A few weeks after I published, I started to get quite a few emails from agents. I knew I was doing something right and then the paychecks started to come in.”
Mayer offers a free ebooks to anyone who signs up for her mailing list on her website, which accomplishes two things at once: building a dedicated list of interested readers, and putting her book out there to get ratings and reviews. Estes agrees: “The more readers that download your book, the more reviews you’ll get. Whenever my books are on sale or I have a new book coming out, I have a large group of readers I can immediately contact.”
Self-published authors need to realize that it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and it’s usually not the first book that will be your greatest hit. Nor the second one. “I’ve seen authors spend two years promoting one book and never write book two,” says Hahn. “When I first published, I released three books in six months. Then I was releasing two a year.”
“Some [indie authors] will hit it big with one book and think they’ve “made it.” I know I used to think that way,” says Estes. “The momentum from The Moon Dwellers has lasted for a long time, but I know it will eventually run out, which is why I’m always publishing new material and trying to shift my readers’ focus to my new books, so I can generate new income streams that will keep my career going for years to come.”
All three authors have been fortunate and savvy enough to be able to support themselves and their families through self-publishing, but they still sees the value in a traditional publishing deal because it allows them to reach a new set of readers. “I went in with an attitude that I would succeed at writing no matter how long it took,” says Mayer, who recently signed a deal with 47North, an Amazon publishing imprint.
Hahn is willing to entertain the idea of traditional publishing if the right publisher came along, but she’s happy with the support she’s received from Amazon Createspace, and grateful to Trident Media Group for their help with foreign rights deals. Estes and his agent are currently pitching his new high fantasy series to publishers, which he’s excited about. “People are still reading! The gap has vanished between indie and traditionally published authors. We are finally on a level playing field, and hard work and good writing will always yield success in the end.”
Get as many reviews as possible. “Without reviews, you have no chance at selling books. When you first publish a book, particularly a standalone novel or the first book in a series, your sole focus should be getting reviews, rather than selling books.” —David Estes
Choose your team wisely. “[Hire people] who already have an understanding of the industry. While you as the author can work with them to teach them the various areas of where you need help, its great if there is already a basic understanding of what needs to be done.” –Shannon Mayer
Share your work. “The biggest challenge is finding what works and how to get your book in front of readers. Fans love giveaways and Goodreads makes it easy to do paperback giveaways.” —Chanda Hahn (Note: eBook giveaways for self-published authors are coming soon! Read about our beta program here.)
Make your book available. “Some authors even choose to make their book perma-free, which allows the broadest number of readers to give it a try and possibly leave a review. If you do decide to offer your book for free, don’t forget to spend a little of your marketing budget to help you spread the word about your book.” —David Estes
Let your writing breathe. “When writing a new book it takes a few chapters to find your voice and rhythm and I have a tumultuous relationship with my manuscript. Most days I write easily and other days I need chocolate motivation and coffee to get words on paper.” —Chanda Hahn
Next: Goodreads Now Offers Ad Targeting Based on 20,000 Authors & 500 Genre Options
You might also like: The Successful Marketing Behind the Debut Novel "Lilac Girls”
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.

Self-publishing is an attractive option to the approximately 81% of Americans who want to publish a book some day, and more self-published authors are making a living today than traditionally published authors, according to Hugh Howey, bestselling author of Wool, citing an Author Earnings report.

But don’t think that simply hitting ‘publish’ is all it takes. “I would upload my book to the KDP platform, fill everything out, and hit publish. Then the program would think and think, and then—nothing. No book live,” remembers Shannon Mayer, author of Raising Innocence. “I spent three days trying to figure out why it wouldn’t work before I stumbled on the reason: I hadn’t put in who the author was!”
Technical difficulties aside, self-published authors realize too late that publishing a book is a lot of work. In celebration of Indie Author Day on October 8th, we asked three bestselling indie authors how they turned their passion into a career, and for their advice on approaching self-publishing successfully.
The Secret of the Self-Published Writer: It Takes a Village

As a former accountant, Estes realized that he needed to approach his self-publishing career like a business. “My goal is to publish a finished product that is as high-quality as possible at the lowest cost. I try to save money where I can, but I do not do so at the sake of quality.” Authors simply cannot go at it alone, and being realistic about where your strengths and weaknesses are will help you identify where you need help. “I have zero skills with graphic design, so I outsource the cover design to a trusted friend who happens to be a graphic designer,” says Estes.
And yet, because of the nature of the beast, every responsibility ultimately lays with the self-published author. “Every choice I make for my books and my stories from plot, editing, cover art, marketing… it’s all on my shoulders,” says Mayer, who has written more than 30 books. This level of involvement is what initially appeals to indie authors, but the scope of what needs to be done (and done well) can be overwhelming for someone who tries to do it all alone.
Thinking About Marketing First
Writing, editing, designing, pricing…the last thing indie authors usually think about when they finally hit ‘publish’ is marketing the book. But readers can’t buy a book they’ve never heard of. While there are many outlets and opportunities for authors to promote their books, Goodreads remains the largest site for readers, with more than 50 million members.
“I joined Goodreads as a reader, not an author,” says Estes, which anyone can see by checking out his robust bookshelves. Estes found several groups in his favorite genres where he could chat about books, TV, movies, and the like. “A few of the group members realized I was an author and decided to try my books simply because they were curious.” He began participating in formal group “Read to Review” programs, where he would offer free copies of his books in exchange for reviews. “That’s where I first started growing the seeds that would become my fan base, eventually expanding into my official Goodreads fan group.”
David Estes Fans and YA Book Lovers Unite! has more than 3,000 members, but the group is not just about him. He and his two moderators ensure there’s something for everyone, whether that’s playing Book Bingo or conducting interviews with other authors like Marissa Meyer, Hugh Howey, and Jennifer Nielsen. Estes estimates that he spends about 10 hours hanging out in the group, and about 15 hours on Goodreads overall per week.

Does she read her reviews? “Never. I may see my book and see that it has a number of reviews, and I’ll be, “Five thousand reviews…that’s awesome.” I don’t want to know how many are five stars or one stars…that’s not what’s important. What is important is that I wrote a book that made the readers feel something and respond, whether that is negative or positive.”
UnEnchanted is the first book in the five part Unfortunate Fairy Tale series, and the author has received more than 32,000 overall ratings to date. The unconventional fairy tales incorporate fantasy and adventure, and appeal to a teenage audience looking for a twist on their favorite stories from childhood. “A few weeks after I published, I started to get quite a few emails from agents. I knew I was doing something right and then the paychecks started to come in.”
Mayer offers a free ebooks to anyone who signs up for her mailing list on her website, which accomplishes two things at once: building a dedicated list of interested readers, and putting her book out there to get ratings and reviews. Estes agrees: “The more readers that download your book, the more reviews you’ll get. Whenever my books are on sale or I have a new book coming out, I have a large group of readers I can immediately contact.”
Parlaying Self-Publishing into Viable Career
Self-published authors need to realize that it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and it’s usually not the first book that will be your greatest hit. Nor the second one. “I’ve seen authors spend two years promoting one book and never write book two,” says Hahn. “When I first published, I released three books in six months. Then I was releasing two a year.”
“Some [indie authors] will hit it big with one book and think they’ve “made it.” I know I used to think that way,” says Estes. “The momentum from The Moon Dwellers has lasted for a long time, but I know it will eventually run out, which is why I’m always publishing new material and trying to shift my readers’ focus to my new books, so I can generate new income streams that will keep my career going for years to come.”
All three authors have been fortunate and savvy enough to be able to support themselves and their families through self-publishing, but they still sees the value in a traditional publishing deal because it allows them to reach a new set of readers. “I went in with an attitude that I would succeed at writing no matter how long it took,” says Mayer, who recently signed a deal with 47North, an Amazon publishing imprint.
Hahn is willing to entertain the idea of traditional publishing if the right publisher came along, but she’s happy with the support she’s received from Amazon Createspace, and grateful to Trident Media Group for their help with foreign rights deals. Estes and his agent are currently pitching his new high fantasy series to publishers, which he’s excited about. “People are still reading! The gap has vanished between indie and traditionally published authors. We are finally on a level playing field, and hard work and good writing will always yield success in the end.”
5 Tips from Self-Published Authors
Get as many reviews as possible. “Without reviews, you have no chance at selling books. When you first publish a book, particularly a standalone novel or the first book in a series, your sole focus should be getting reviews, rather than selling books.” —David Estes
Choose your team wisely. “[Hire people] who already have an understanding of the industry. While you as the author can work with them to teach them the various areas of where you need help, its great if there is already a basic understanding of what needs to be done.” –Shannon Mayer
Share your work. “The biggest challenge is finding what works and how to get your book in front of readers. Fans love giveaways and Goodreads makes it easy to do paperback giveaways.” —Chanda Hahn (Note: eBook giveaways for self-published authors are coming soon! Read about our beta program here.)
Make your book available. “Some authors even choose to make their book perma-free, which allows the broadest number of readers to give it a try and possibly leave a review. If you do decide to offer your book for free, don’t forget to spend a little of your marketing budget to help you spread the word about your book.” —David Estes
Let your writing breathe. “When writing a new book it takes a few chapters to find your voice and rhythm and I have a tumultuous relationship with my manuscript. Most days I write easily and other days I need chocolate motivation and coffee to get words on paper.” —Chanda Hahn
Next: Goodreads Now Offers Ad Targeting Based on 20,000 Authors & 500 Genre Options
You might also like: The Successful Marketing Behind the Debut Novel "Lilac Girls”
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
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You're welcome! I'd also be very interested on your thoughts on some of the above topics, if you have a chance to post :)

That's a great point, Chanda, your biggest fans are usually willing to help you out. I also should mention that at the end of my books, I have an "Author's Note" that says something about how reviews really help both authors and readers, and that I'd love to read their reviews.

Some great ideas there (point 4 I'd never do anyway, cricket on my shoulder won't let me) thanks so much.

No worries! And LOL about the cricket. Coincidentally, the latest book I published is a SciFi Pinocchio retelling where Jiminy Cricket is a flying nanobot named Fig :) So I fully appreciate the reference!

I'm a self published author of a short story collection. I've had a lot of agents respond well to my work, but tell me that short stories are not marketable and that they will not accept previously self published works. However, you mentioned that agents began contacting you shortly after your book was released.
Understandably, every agent is different. What advice do you have for self published authors seeking agency representation? Do you feel as though the success of your books made it so that agents overlooked the fact that it was self published first?
Thanks!
-Ophelia

My agent offered to represent The Moon Dwellers AFTER it had been self-published for a year. But she did say upfront, that it was unlikely we'd be able to garner interest from a publisher for a self-published book, and she was right. However, we did manage a major audio deal with Podium Publishing, and received a number of movie/TV inquiries (though none of them panned out, it was still exciting!). And the more important thing was that it STARTED our professional partnership. As I wrote new, unpublished books, she's provided editorial services and pitched them to publishers.
This is the advice I would give to you specifically: When seeking an agent, you are much more likely to get interest if you submit unpublished works. That being said, if you've had success in terms of sales/reviews of your self-published works, that HELPS in the portion of the query where you talk about your platform, a crucial element these days.
When it comes to short stories, it is also true that you're much less likely to get interest from agents/publishers unless you are already an established bestselling author. Personally, I've had the most success with short stories when I include them as either: 1) a bonus at the end of my full-length novels; or 2) I sell a collection of short stories or a novella for $0.99 as an introduction to one of my full-length novels/series.
Best of luck and I hope this helps!



Amazon now allows you to add a print version of your book from the kindle version straight from the dashboard, which might be worth considering (cost should be no more than a little of your time).

The only thing about this is be wary if you are using Createspace already. Amazon owns Createspace, the printing will be handled the same way. But if you import a Createspace title into the KDP dash you lose the distributed channels that CS provides (Amazon warns you of this before letting you commit the change).

There's a writer in LA who sets up her card table and laptop in the middle of a roundabout and does her couple of hours writing there. As a publicity stunt, it worked well enough to get her lamestream media coverage. Try that, but up it with a striptease every morning. Say you're trying to write the "naked truth." Do you want to sell books or not?

What works in 2017 for book marketers? Which tactics can self-published authors use to see some results? Obviously, putting all our eggs in one basket and relying on any one tactic in particular is never good. But what should our portfolio of marketing methods consist of?
One outside of the box method I've heard discussed elsewhere is sending out a book press release. Both Derek Murphy of Creative Indie (http://www.creativindie.com/how-to-re...) and Dave Chesson of Kindlepreneur (https://kindlepreneur.com/book-press-...) seem to suggest that, for this to work, it needs to be an epic story that really catches peoples' attention. Has anyone had any experience with this?
I think building a list is a classic tactic which will never go stale. To do it well is quite intense in terms of work but I think the efforts are usually worth it. Just the range of book marketing benefits (advance readers, word of mouth promotion, pre orders, feedback etc) that can be generated from a good list is astounding.
What about book advertising in 2017? A lot of people seem to be finding success by focusing on Amazon ads over Facebook, but is Amazon likely to get saturated at some point?
And let's look ahead, what will be the next hot method? Why?

Other than that, I see the use of videos/book trailers as a marketing tool becoming more important, particularly when advertising. It would also be wise to focus on audiobooks, which are experiencing rapid growth not unlike ebooks were a few years ago.
I'd love to hear other authors' thoughts on this subject!

Larissa Zaleska Onyshkevych
Borders, Bombs, and Two Right Shoes

Goodreads free books is a very poor vehicle. I gave away ten with a little note asking the recipient for a review. I got one review. One joker sold the book I gave him on Amazon as a used book. The 10 books cost me $100 approximately. Save your money and don't fall for this.

Robert wrote: "David wrote: "Very good points, James. And I agree, we always have to look ahead. I expect BookBub will continue to be the best paid return-on-investment advertising tool. However, as you said, mai..."
Umm, if you read my post you'll see I was talking about BookBub, not Goodreads. BookBub provides a massive return on investment every time and generates a ton of reviews.
Never have I suggested giving away free PRINT copies of books in exchange for reviews, that will always generate a negative ROI due to the cost of paper books. What I suggest is that you join some Goodreads groups in your genre that have established Read for Review programs where you give away free EBOOKS in exchange for reviews. That is highly effective and will generate plenty of reviews. Also, just as an FYI, the purpose of Goodreads free books is more to drive awareness of a book, as well as to get readers to add it to their TBR list. I usually do one paperback giveaway for each new book I release to begin to build awareness. Then later on I might do another giveaway of one paperback in a year or so to rekindle interest/excitement about the book. But I do not expect reviews for these. Nor is there any kind of measurable ROI from it.

There is mostly bs out there in the cyber world re self publishing. You will have to find out for yourself. But if you are a writer, it won't stop you. You'll keep writing, but might always crap out when it comes to make a buck off it. So what?

I disagree. GRs is an opportunity to connect with readers and gain a loyal following. I have a fan group with more than 3,000 members on GRs. I also met every single one of my beta readers and Street Team members on GRs. It was here that I found my readership, which first allowed me to become a full time writer. I've been making a living off this gig for 5 years now. But you are entitled to your opinions, Robert, we each have to make our own way in this business.

I have over a 1,000 "friends" on GR, but I only hear from one or two, and this is after making an outreach with a personal message to many. I think 2 out of the 1,000 plus bought an e-book, making me 35 cents on each sale for a grand total of 70 cents. This is reality, folks.

I ha..."
No politics for me, I loathe that sort of thing. Plus there are hundreds of other Indie authors with much larger reader bases than me, so it's not like I'm an enigma. How do I have time to write? I wake up and write 3-4 hours in the morning (3,000 word minimum). Then I spend 4-5 hours on the business side of things (publishing, marketing, connecting with readers and other authors, etc.) Like I said, it's a fulltime gig.
If I'm being honest, Robert, I think you're going about this the wrong way and you have the wrong attitude toward Goodreads. When you make a new "friend", don't send them a personal message to tell them about your books. That's annoying and won't help your cause. Join groups on Goodreads that interest you, meet people, and talk to them about shared interests, but do NOT talk about your books. This was my approach. Over time, I built relationships, some people clicked on my books, said "he's a nice person I like talking to", and then they started buying them. Some people liked them, wrote nice reviews, sent me personal messages, and I made friendships. This took a long time, over two years of spending significant time on Goodreads forming REAL friendships with people. It was organic. I befriended some of the readers who were the biggest critics of my early books and asked them to help me make my future books better. This became my beta team, all of whom I met on Goodreads and who read and provide feedback on all my books before I publish them. They have also, slowly, become fans of my books.
A Street Team is simply a group of your readers who love all your books. They are your advocates, early reviewers and inner circle. By these same methods over years I've built my street team, each of whom receive an advanced copy of any book before I release it, in exchange for a review. They were also the people who helped start my Goodreads fan group, which doubles as a YA book discussion group. The group mostly talks about OTHER books they like, not just mine, which makes it more fun.
Like I said, as far as Goodreads goes, you are focusing way too much on YOUR books, and not a love of reading in general, which is what the site is all about. Hope this helps.

Thanks for your help and good luck,
Rob

Best of luck with your latest project and your ongoing writing and publishing endeavors. Happy writing!


I'm very glad you're starting to make progress on the review front, Robert. Just keep focused and positive (and patient, although that is hard!) and it will pay off in the end.
A brief story: As I'd talked about earlier in this thread, I've worked very hard over the past five years to build my author platform, get reviews, build a street team from scratch, etc. Still, when I decided to switch genres from Scifi to Epic Fantasy, I was nervous my new series wouldn't find an audience or appeal to my current readers.
On March 1st I released the first book in The Fatemarked Epic. Each week after I released another book (the series now has four books):




Long story short, this series has been my most successful release to date, out-selling all others in its first two months. Reviews are coming in slow, but they are positive, and I am optimistic about the long-term success of the series. It has reconfirmed my belief that if you build a solid author platform and strong connections with readers, it will drive your career for years to come. For me, Goodreads is a big part of that!

I've got a question. I've self-published a trilogy, about 276,000 words total, and want to give it another shot at getting a good agent. I was hoping with enough reviews, the second time around they would take notice. For the 3 books, how many reviews should I have total before going back to pitch them. 100, 200, 300?
I remember from one of your posts, you mentioned u had a self-published book, but with the reviews you were able to develop a business relationship with an agent that led to an audio deal and further things down the road. I was hoping for the same thing.

This is a tough question, and I will say that *most* agents are not interested in working on a project that has already been published. My agent was sort of a unique case, and she's done the same with several other authors since, although now she is retiring.
So my answer to you is that the more reviews the better, there is no set amount. At a minimum, it's awesome to have more than 100 on Amazon for all your purposes (marketing, partnerships, etc.) It shows you are a serious writer with a following. Generally agents who are willing to look at self-published books will be more interested in your sales track record than reviews, so keep that in mind. But like I said, these agents are rare and seem to be getting rarer.
My advice to you if you really want to land an agent is to write your NEXT book/trilogy and pitch that.

My heartiest greetings to each one of you!
It gives me immense pleasure to share with you, the release of my novel. Indeed, this occasion is special for me, as for any persevering author, to be able to hold in hand, my very own piece of creation.
Well friends, after a prolonged effort, this has become possible.
I am truly elated to introduce to you, my fourth book – ‘Joe’s Republic – the legacy of an idler’, a novel in literary fiction. With great conviction I seek your support in acknowledging and promoting my work.
Book details:
Title: JOE’S REPUBLIC – the legacy of an idler
Author: Manisha Gupta
Genre: Literary Fiction
Pages : 230
ISBN: ISBN 9789387538337
Here is a short prelude
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3oKN...
If you wish to read, you can order your copy from the links below:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078ST9CTQ
https://www.amazon.in/dp/B078ST9CTQ
https://www.shopclues.com/joes-republ...
http://bluerosepublishers.com/product...
The boat is still here, Derek, thanks for stopping by! That's a crucial question. Your reviews will never come close to matching your sales, unfortunately, but that's okay because it's the same for all books. Even books that sell millions of copies only end up with thousands (or perhaps tens of thousands) of reviews. So if you manage to sell 10,000+ copies of a book (as I have with some of mine), you still might only see 1,000 or so reviews. But you can help improve the ratio by doing a number of things.
Here are some suggestions that have worked for me:
1) Advanced Review Copies (ARCs)- to kickstart a book's review count, give away ARCs in exchange for HONEST reviews. Focus on your biggest fans, particularly those who are bloggers or major social media users. They will help give you big exposure and a large number of reviews. I try to have between 50 and 100 reviews within a few days of my book's release.
2) Goodreads Read to Review programs- When I first started out, I sought out Goodreads groups in my genre (YA, Science Fiction, Fantasy). Many of these groups have formal Read to Review programs in place, and they will offer one of your books for free to their members in exchange for HONEST reviews, which the members have to post within the discussion thread. I've gotten hundreds of reviews this way. However, keep in mind that some of these RtR programs have long waiting lists, so plan well in advance.
3) Kindle free days or perma-free- although I'm personally not a fan of perma-free, it can work to get loads of reviews. Also, doing Kindle free days can work, too, especially if promoted via a large mailing list or BookBub. I've given away hundreds of thousands of free ebooks this way, and I always see a large bump in reviews. Again, don't expect to get as many reviews as you get downloads (not even close), but if you giveaway 20,000 ebooks and get 200 reviews over a couple months out of it, it's a positive thing.
4) Here's one big DON'T to add to the list, even if it's obvious: NEVER pay for a review, nor provide a reward for a review. That's not allowed (nor is it ethical) and Amazon will remove the reviews obtained this way if they catch wind of it. You can generally offer a free ebook in exchange for an HONEST review, but that's the extent.
Chanda or Cynthia, did I miss anything? Do you use other methods of boosting your reviews?