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As an author what is your 'next level' goal?
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Tara Woods Turner
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Sep 24, 2016 05:37PM
Whether you just started your first book or you've been kicking butt on Amazon for several months now, what is your personal definition of the next level? What is your next goal and how does it fit into your overall strategy?
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My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!
I've got my first book on the Kindle Select - Kindle Unlimited program.I am just starting to use Facebook groups to market my book with the view of making it visible to Kindle Unlimited users.
What I'm after with this is regular KNEP pages read. At the moment I'm zero - so next level would be some pages read every day.
Graeme wrote: "I've got my first book on the Kindle Select - Kindle Unlimited program.I am just starting to use Facebook groups to market my book with the view of making it visible to Kindle Unlimited users.
W..."
Congrats! Make sure you optimize your free and countdown promo days.
Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"Do you use a query letter template?
I want to be able to say "I sold hundreds of books today." I am really hoping that it happens next week! But if not, maybe next time :). Stay tuned.
Marie wrote: "I want to be able to say "I sold hundreds of books today." I am really hoping that it happens next week! But if not, maybe next time :). Stay tuned."I would cross my fingers but with all of your hard work you don't need luck! Will you put badges on your covers?
Hi Tara,I am listing the facebook groups in an excel spreadsheet with the following columns
Group Name
Date of the action
Time of the action (New York time)
Action #1 (something like "Wrote Post")
Action #2 (Something like "Wrote Blurb Post with Link")
Action #3 ...
Results
Lessons Learned
I currently have 15 groups that I belong to. I started my first campaign yesterday.
The result so far is a single "like". (Ironic LOL).
I'm noting which groups quickly get swamped by other posts and which dont. At least one group allows non-book posts, and I wonder about that group...
There is a lot of what appears to be trash on the groups that is definently not my genre and I wonder if I'm barking up the wrong trees.
I'll persist with this strategy for a while. Basically I'll re-post each morning and see what happens.
Hi Tara, yes I do. Goodreads and Query connect has helped a lot too. I have simplified my plot a whole lot. Maybe I need to resubmit on both sites again. Any advice?
Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"after 3 or 4 rejections from ezines, i've decided to expand the short story into a novelette (17,500 words) to self-publish on amazon. that is my goal for the end of the year.
Alex G wrote: "Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"after 3 or 4 rejections from ezi..."
Awesome! Zombies?
Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"Hi Jeannine :) what sort of book?
Jeannine wrote: "Hi Tara, yes I do. Goodreads and Query connect has helped a lot too. I have simplified my plot a whole lot. Maybe I need to resubmit on both sites again. Any advice?"Set a timer for 20 seconds and read your query out loud. When the timer goes off see where you are in the query and mark it with a pen or a line break. Everything above the mark is all the info an editor may have to make a decision. Is it enough? Are your strongest points above the line?
Thanks Tara, I will do.Marie, it's a light horror/fantasy book about a young nursing student who administers a herbal serum from a witch doctor (African folklore) to her father and instead of healing him, she kills him.
GraemeTry to line up some blog stops on or near your promo days as well. Fussy Librairian is a promo site that charges as little as $10 but make sure you book early. Comb the threads and submit to as many free sites as possible.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Tara wrote: "Marie wrote: "I want to be able to say "I sold hundreds of books today." I am really hoping that it happens next week! But if not, maybe next time :). Stay tuned."I would cross my fingers but wit..."
Thanks Tara, but I'm sure I could use a little luck. I'm pretty nervous about my new release next week. Hm, I'm not sure how to do the badge thing. I'm just hoping Amazon will toss some my way :).
What's your next level goal, by the way?
Jeannine wrote: "Thanks Tara, I will do.Marie, it's a light horror/fantasy book about a young nursing student who administers a herbal serum from a witch doctor (African folklore) to her father and instead of hea..."
Nice one! Good luck with your query letters :)
Thank you and good luck with your sales!!
Graeme wrote: "Hi Tara,I am listing the facebook groups in an excel spreadsheet with the following columns
Group Name
Date of the action
Time of the action (New York time)
Action #1 (something like "Wrote Post..."
Great strategy. For me, the most response comes from posting in the huge groups (20,000+ members). Off the top of my head, the names of these are Book Place, Kindle Publishers, Passion for Books, Book Club. Good luck with your new campaign :).
Hi Tara, - thanks for the link.Marie - I'm still collecting groups, I will attempt to join about 4 or 5 per day to avoid FB algos. The reason for the .xls file is to avoid shotgunning and to give me an opportunity to refine and optimise my marketing over time.
Immediate goal: hit No. 1 in an Amazon sales category; I'm one away right now, so we'll see - not sure I can dislodge the champ. After that, I think seeing some degree of sustained sales once my Countdown wraps up; ideally, a higher plateau than it was before. I'm not sure what other options are out there to make that happen that I haven't already pursued aside from perhaps the most important - get Book No. 2 out there, then 3, then 4, etc. Everything I've read says that having multiple books is the true key, due to the multiplier effect.
The frustrating part at this point is that I'm going about my second book using traditional means (querying, etc.); I'm considering whether it makes more sense to focus instead on self-publishing that one as well. Decisions, decisions.
Marie wrote: "Awesome! Zombies? "not just any 'ol zombie--very special ones. ;)
Graeme wrote: "Hi Tara, - thanks for the link.
Marie - I'm still collecting groups, I will attempt to join about 4 or 5 per day to avoid FB algos. The reason for the .xls file is to avoid shotgunning and to give..."
heh heh. don't remember who, but if i recall correctly someone in this group got a timeout in the corner for running afoul of the FB algorithms.
E.M. wrote: "Immediate goal: hit No. 1 in an Amazon sales category; I'm one away right now, so we'll see - not sure I can dislodge the champ. After that, I think seeing some degree of sustained sales once my ..."
It will happen! When it does take a screenshot of your #1 badge and share it with us in the upcoming Member Milestones folder! But don't forget that you already have Amazon Top Ten Bestseller bragging rights for life. No small feat.
Alex G wrote: "Marie wrote: "Awesome! Zombies? "not just any 'ol zombie--very special ones. ;)
Graeme wrote: "Hi Tara, - thanks for the link.
Marie - I'm still collecting groups, I will attempt to join about ..."
I also remember that comment - hence my careful approach.
Plus I also view this as a marathon and not a sprint.
To write and publish a novel that is outside of my current series of superhero mystery novels. I want to be able to write and publish across several different genres to show versatility as a writer.
Next goal is 100 visitors a day to my website. Started with about 10 visitors a day, then increased it to 30, then to 50 and now Im around 60. I'd like to be around 125 visitors a day by the time the book goes on sale on Black Friday. I hope that will bring 1-3 sales a day... but I might be too overly optimistic.
Michael wrote: "Next goal is 100 visitors a day to my website. Started with about 10 visitors a day, then increased it to 30, then to 50 and now Im around 60. I'd like to be around 125 visitors a day by the time..."
Worthy goal. How do you incentivize your email captures?
J.D. wrote: "To write and publish a novel that is outside of my current series of superhero mystery novels. I want to be able to write and publish across several different genres to show versatility as a writer."I think this will also keep you stimulated, creatively. Flash fiction and novellas are a great way to try a different genre, I've found.
marieThank you for asking :) My next goal is to finish my marketing and promo master spreadsheet for non-fiction. This also includes researching and finalizing plans for an author site and blog. I keep procrastinating because I find the whole thing to be overwhelming. It's so embarrassing! Everyone and their grandmother has a website, blog, newsletter and youtube channel ha ha and I keep pretending that all I have to do is write. Pffft. The game has changed and I have to become a multimedia player, right? So, yeah, battling that giant and trying to make a huge leap into the 21st century lol.
Michael wrote: "Next goal is 100 visitors a day to my website. Started with about 10 visitors a day, then increased it to 30, then to 50 and now Im around 60. I'd like to be around 125 visitors a day by the time..."
do you mean organically without ads? facebook ads are great
my next goal is to master attention grabbing headlines
This was a great idea for a thread, Tara! I love seeing the different angles here and it's helping me brainstorm for future goals.
Its great seeing everyone's future goals! My book's being published in 2017 (took a long time to get there, but made it in the end!) and the next goal for me is somehow forging a career as an author - but I know how difficult it is, there's fierce competition out there!
My next goal is to do something - anything! I've had a busy summer and feel really tired and not very dynamic at all, but I must get off my backside and work on marketing.
Segilola wrote: "do you mean organically without ads? facebook ads are great."Its all organic traffic. I havent started doing FB ads or Google Ads yet. I dont have anything to sell so no reason to start advertising just yet...
Tara wrote: "Worthy goal. How do you incentivize your email captures?"
Im not really pushing the email captures yet. I have about 50 email addresses so far but right now Im just building trust and readership. Mid-October I will do an offer - first 6 chapters or an audio file of the first 6 chapters - when they sign up for the email list. And then when the book goes into presale I will follow up with ARCs with email signup.
My wife has over 75,000 twitter followers and once she does the audio file, she will start promoting it to her followers.
Alex G wrote: "Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"after 3 or 4 rejections from ezi..."
I'd say keep submitting, I've had short stories rejected six or seven times and then accepted.
Neil wrote: "Alex G wrote: "Jeannine wrote: "My next level is fine tuning a query letter for my first book. Out of 26 queries I have received zero requests, so yes, lots of work to be done!!"after 3 or 4 reje..."
good point. in this case, these ezines like Nightmare Magazine explicitly stated no zombies, but, of course, i was stubborn. so this work is better suited to the self-publishing venue.
but i have fantasy WIP short which is more cerebral and hence more suited to sci-fi/fantasy ezines like Lightspeed. that one, i'll shop it around more.
I'm sure it won't be a popular opinion - but for me 'next level' is deciding whether the biz is worth time and effort, for selling 2-3 books a week or a month is kinda uninteresting, but still require considerable promo effort and a small audience is not that inspiring. I'm experimenting at the moment, getting closer to trying a paid marketing, but after that - decisions stage -:)
Nik wrote: "I'm sure it won't be a popular opinion - but for me 'next level' is deciding whether the biz is worth time and effort, for selling 2-3 books a week or a month is kinda uninteresting, but still requ..."This is a valid consideration. But even if you don't publish or market please just keep writing. You'll be glad you did.
My goal is trying to understand what actually works to generate sales for the sort of books I write, which is essentially how to reach that niche, which is probably one that is not that interested in social media. Everything I try that is able to be monitored for success/failure ends up ambiguous.
Writing is addictive, hard to quit. And once you've written something, the ease of publishing is tempting and once published it's only natural to try to give your book some exposure. A vicious circle -:) But I hope I'll find some reasonable balance-:)
Not that vicious, Nik. You just try. The key is not to get obsessed with it. Also, perhaps, to live with disillusion.
Yep, sounds like the right approach to almost anything in life btw
Nik wrote: "I'm sure it won't be a popular opinion - but for me 'next level' is deciding whether the biz is worth time and effort, for selling 2-3 books a week or a month is kinda uninteresting, but still requ..."I agree, keep writing even if you take a break from publishing. Maybe nonfiction, something you can relax with.
My attitude is that I will never give up on my writing.My approach to writing is to always strive to improve the quality of my work.
I have the same approach to marketing.
I'm coming from nothing and everything I do is either making a positive difference or is helping me to learn how to do better the next time.
All,I echo Graeme's sentiments, but would add that my immediate goal is simpler: I just want to keep telling my stories--it's so much fun! PR and marketing not so much--blech! :-)
r/Steve
Steven wrote: "PR and marketing not so much--blech! :-)"For many it isn't, but probably a necessary evil for sales -:)
My goal used to be to 'get traditionally published'. After 20 rejections from agents I might just change it into 'getting published' or 'getting a freaking agent' I've worked with a Printing on Demand publisher and was quite unhappy about it so....
