Anna’s Comments (group member since Mar 21, 2017)

Anna’s comments from the Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie group.

Don't be sorry, Amy. I think we all know that it is good to have a rant if it is relevant to what we are discussing because so often something positive comes out of it.

Are the authors doing well in the UK using FB and Twitter?
Are they using Kindle Countdown Deals?
Are they tapping into some other source?
Do they have long supporter lists?
Do series do better?
Anything else?

I'm not doing well in the UK.
I don't use Twit and FB
My stand alone does slightly better.
I don't have an operational mailing list
I do use Kindle Countdown Deals - of the 99p variety.

I'm in the wing and a prayer category too, Alex!

BookBub did it for my stand alone Time Travel Romance. But that was when they had just opened up a new genre (TTR) and were attracting authors. My first ad was $30. I daren't look now.

As we so often hear, timing is very important, and I have missed the boat for so much because I write so slowly. Getting faster now! I started at the same time as someone who has become a good friend and she caught all the boats - she's doing well. My first book (#1 in the trilogy) took 7 years. The next one took 4 years. But I have more time to write now and the last one took 2 years, my wip might be 18 months if I get off Goodreads, and the next might be 10 days. I can dream.

But yes, if I find a route through the maze, I'll be sure to tell this wonderful group.

Edit: Ah, just remembered. What really helped with the BookBub ad was that it got my TTR on some great Also Boughts. That is what kept it going - but it's fading now. Having a Kindle Countdown Deal on at the same time as a best-selling (i.e. upwards of 25,000 in Am charts) book in your genre can get you linked in with something that has a lot of traffic on Am and your book is in the Also Boughts every time someone visits.

Is that too garbled?

Thanks, Alex. That is helpful.

Yesterday I finished the first draft of the third book of my trilogy, so a strategy for visibility is becoming higher up the priority scale!

No, not if you've got it right and it sounds like you have. It'll be interesting to see how your books 5+ fare.

Well done Alex! I can't seem to break into the UK market - how did you do it?

I have only two books published in my trilogy but it is the stand alone Time Travel Romance that sells best.

Once I have my third book in the trilogy, I'd planned to do something similar to you, though I doubt very much that I'll ever put my much-loved-and-slaved-over first book of the trilogy as a freebie. 99c - yes.

I've no idea where to put this post and if you know better and can shift it - I'll be grateful! I can vaguely remember discussing raising prices - somewhere!

All my books have been $2.99 and £1.99 since publication apart from KCD's. However, I've tried raising the price of my better selling book to $3.25. There has been no fall off in sales. But in the UK, where I'd raised it to £2.25, there did seem to be a slow-down.

I would say that if you have achieved a certain level of visibility you might be able to raise your price a little to help pay for that visibility.

Yes, it's special.

What a clever bunch you lot are! I've been racking my brain cell for some sort of health problem and it's Carole and Chrys and their thinking outside of the box that saves the day.

That's good news, Carole (new homes with thatched roofs). They do look nice and if the fashion will provide work in a skilled job, that has to be good.

Anyone want to start a business training thatchers?

So sorry to read your troubles, Amy. I just hope things will get settled re your father and then maybe you can see what to do and which way to go. Running a business is not easy; I know from experience. But if you like it...

Thatched cottages - latest rage? Love it, Carole! Been going strong for centuries. Not that they had week-long holidays back then!

As for sales - hmm... a trickle is the best I can manage.

Thank you! I'd forgotten about this...

How long have you got?

The right betas are a godsend.

Yep! Same here. I'm glad you thought of that R.L. Immensely helpful. I don't do Facebook so Goodreads is everything to me. A good group is gold dust. Rare and valuable.

I'm sure I saw a thread somewhere about discounted promotions but as I can't find it, I hope you don't mind me putting this here. It comes from My Book Cave which does seem to be short of books as their lists sent to me have very few books on them. I don't think they have too many subscribers yet, but I do think they are growing. They have guidelines for describing your book, so be aware you have to make judgments on your own books, e.g. very violent to pussycat.

Earn a free retailer promotion!

We are excited about our growth and the increasing downloads our books are receiving. Authors have told us what a great value our promotions are for them, but we are finding that we need more great books for our voracious readers! So, for a limited time, you can earn $5 off your next retailer promotion when other authors you tell about us book and pay for a feature. Plus, they also get $5 off. You both win! The author(s) you recommend must be new to My Book Cave and must submit by the end of August. And there is no limit to how many discounts or free features you can earn, so your next promotion may end up being absolutely free. There is no limit to the number of credits you can earn, and your credit never expires. Even if your friends submit their books on August 31 and pay later, you both still get the deal. To receive your discount, just share your unique code with your author friends. They simply put in your code in the “Discount Code” box when they submit their book for a retailer promotion. The next time you promote with us, your accrued discount will be applied to your feature.

Give your author friends this URL to read about our services:
https://mybookcave.com/authorsandpubl...
Give your author friends this URL to submit their books:
https://mybookcave.com/submit-book/

Here is your unique code: annafaversham61

Yes, please put my unique code, I need all the help I can get. Thank you ;-)

Thanks Carole and R.L. It's still doing it but I've been able to flick through it now by way of the thumbnails, so thanks R.L.
I assumed someone had paid to advertise. This is what pops up (one way or another) http://bespokebookcovers.com/

It didn't 'pop up' it appeared as I turned a page.

I'll look forward to reading it properly now. Looks very good.

I can't get beyond the first few pages when an ad intervenes and when I close it down, my screen reverts to the cover.

I've signed in, I've pressed 'read now', I've tried about 8 times. What am I doing wrong?

Looks good - if it didn't, I'd have given up on the 3rd try!

Wow, Nancy! That's frightening. Thank you for the warning.

I checked out the site but probably didn't notice the warning. Fortunately, I don't think I entered any info.

Edit: Just read yours, Alex, after I'd posted this. Thanks for the extra info.

Agree.

Ah... thanks Theodore. I hope it continues even longer.

I've boosted my screen to 500% and I can see that your KENPs are above the 1,000 mark initially and very good after that! Well done. But even at 500%, I can't see what the numbers on the left are. Is the first line 20?

Well done! So exciting. Yes, ENT, as I fondly call them, are a real boost. Thanks for letting us know.

Anna