I seem to be doing some thing wrong to get noticed

[David]

I suspect I am doing something wrong in Good Reads. I have a profile and have posted articles, reviews of other people's books, paid for a Good Reads giveaway and participated in discussions. I approach all my comments from a standpoint of service to other authors. I never berate or attack anyone. I only gave a bad review to one book, but I listed exactly what I felt were the deficits. I try to be a good online citizen and participate in the community, though I cannot spend every day on social media die to work commitments.

Yet, I am not getting any real notice or seeing an increase in sales of my novel. It is a timely story about sexual harassment and assault. I have also written posts in other social media platforms on feminism and the need for gender equality in our society.

I had hoped the theme and story would resonate and open a discussion. Few have taken notice. Does anyone have suggestions to get people engaged?

Regards,

David

[Lynn]

David,
First let me say - congratulations on publishing! I don't know how much advice I have....I would say, let everyone that you can think of know about your book. Have you posted a cover and short blurb on FaceBook or any other social media? Have you offered to speak to any groups on this subject - it is hot in the media right now. As a woman.....I don't know what my reaction would be to a man discussing sexual harassment and assault. I'm sure that's not politically correct on my part...but just sayin'

[P.D.]

You need to advertise. Just participating in Goodreads isn't going to get your book in front of readers.

[P.D.]

Sexual assault is not just something that happens to women.

[Dwayne, Head of Lettuce]

Yeah, I don't know of anyone that's going to go buy someone's book just because they reviewed someone else's. Unless you're expecting a review swap, which is forbidden.

It would be my guess (and that's all it is, so please... let's keep this civil) that women are, in general, not very keen on learning about sexual assault and harassment from a man. This doesn't mean you shouldn't speak about it or write about it. If it's something you feel strongly about, do it. You just may have a tough time reaching your audience. Maybe your next book should target men and encourage men to act like gentlemen and not savages. Just a thought.

Anyway. Yes. Market the book. Get it out there. Posting in Goodreads groups, posting articles, reviewing other people's books, and so on are not good ways to get noticed as a writer. This group, for instance, is meant as a support group, not a marketplace. So, it's great when people want to post here and ask for help or help others, but it's not a place to market your book.

[D.]

I agree with P.D. You have to advertise your book. There are lots of threads on GR about advertising sites.

[Jillian]

David wrote: "I suspect I am doing something wrong in Good Reads. I have a profile and have posted articles, reviews of other people's books, paid for a Good Reads giveaway and participated in discussions. I app..."

Hello David, I was compelled to add a comment.

I agree with Pamela that you will need to advertise, which means incurring actual expenses beyond giveaways. Goodreads has the self-advertisement program for authors that charges per click. I am not convinced that it leads to eventual book sales or reviews, but it is not a big investment for some exposure on this website. Amazon also has the pay-by-click ads that have worked better for me (but the expenses can sneak up on you if you don't monitor it).

If you are already established on Facebook, you should consider doing some targeted ads there to find readers who are interested in discussing/reading your subject matter. You don't have to spend a lot on FB ads (I think ads begin at $4), but it helps direct your books to the right audience that you can select. You might also consider joining subject groups on FB without advertising.

Most of all, I wanted to be sure you knew that this question comes up often in my circle of writer friends. We seem to agree that the easier self-publishing has become in the last few years, the harder it is to find a following for your books without a publicity plan--so many new authors/good stories/cheap or free books to compete with. Persevere!

[Michael]

Jillian wrote: "...the easier self-publishing has become in the last few years, the harder it is to find a following for your books without a publicity plan--so many new authors/good stories/cheap or free books to compete with. Persevere!"

This is the first thought that came to my mind in answer to David's question. There are thousands of authors out there self-publishing on a daily basis. It's hard to be discovered through the noise of it all.

I write and self-publish as a hobby, but what I hear from other self-publishers is that marketing is the hardest thing to do in the writing process.

Best wishes!

[Laura]

David, my experience with Good reads is that it is a site more for authors than readers and authors are so busy promoting their own books that they don't read other people's. Harsh, but that's how I see it.

It is very difficult to get attention. multiple giveaways, Amazon giveaways, book signings, professional reviews, contests...it is all exhausting but necessary. There is a very helpful discussion thread on promotion and I urge you to check it out.

[[deleted user]]

Jillian wrote: "Goodreads has the self-advertisement program for authors that charges per click. I am not convinced that it leads to eventual book sales or reviews..."

But it can lead to people adding the book to their shelves.

[Ben]

I do all of my stuff on Twitter. I participate in the writing games each day, and I know that some of my followers have purchased my book.

Like others have said, I can easily imagine that some people are turned off by a man writing about a woman who'd been sexually harassed and assaulted. That might not be fair, but I suspect it to be true.

It also might be as simple as people not being interested in your book's plot. A lot of people exclusively read a single genre, maybe two. I know that I personally don't read very many books (maybe 5%) that are outside of the fantasy/sci-fi genre, or the action-thriller genre.

[Tony]

David, you might not be doing anything wrong, it is simply that there are oodles of other books out there competing for their share of the market. I believe it takes a lot of advertising, the right opportunity, stellar reviews, and some good luck to get satisfactory sales in self-publishing.

[David]

Thank you for all your comments and suggestions. I very much appreciate you taking the time to reply. I have spent hundreds of dollars for adverting on Facebook, Instagram, Pinerest, Goodreads and other platforms. I have given readings and book signings at brick and mortar stores.

I share the book with people on my email list and spread the work across professional writing groups I belong to, As mentioned, I write posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked In and other sites not to promote the book, but to discuss the themes. I have not used Twitter extensively , but I will now do so.

I realize that there is plenty of competition and the average writer in North America makes $60,000 a year. It is a tough business and I accept that.

I had considered that some people would be put off by a man writing a woman's fiction book and was actually advised to adopt a female Pseudonym, but that would be lying. Feminism is not a war between men and women, although centuries of abuse has raised anger and hatred from within some people. This is more than sad. It represents a block to actually establishing an equal society. I specifically chose women as my beta readers and listened closely to their feedback, My receptions at readings has been enthusiastically positive among women. A white woman once asked Malcolm X what she could do to end racial prejudice and he said, "Nothing." He later write that he regretted his answer.

If you have anymore comments and questions I am eager to read them.

[David]

Oh my gosh. My finger slipped. The average salary for writers in $6,000, not $60,000. If only is were.

[Dwayne, Head of Lettuce]

The best advice I can still come up with is to keep writing and getting more books out there. Keep learning the craft and applying what you learn. The more material you have out, the more likely someone will discover you.

Also, while it's good that you market your work, I would recommend not spending any more money at it. I haven't heard a lot of good things from anyone who has spent money on marketing.

There are plenty of threads in our group where you might pick up some tactics that have worked for others. It's difficult to tell you what you should be doing specifically as there seems to be no one-size-fits-all advice. What works for some doesn't work for others. I have a lot of short stories and give them away free now and again. That works for me. Some people have no success with it, though.

One last thing, using a pseudonym is not dishonest in any way. Many authors have done this. I'm not saying you should, just that whoever told you it's lying is wrong.

[D.]

I think the only way to really get your book out there is to do sales and advertise on sites like eReader News Today and Fussy Librarian. There are lots of advertising sites out there and many threads here on Goodreads discussing which are the best ones. You may not break even but your book will be getting into more hands - or it may sell like hotcakes.

[Thomas]

I have read your questions and replies along with the kind folks who also replied to your appeal. David, maybe the question not asked is, what are your expectations?

Its implied you have some sales, you just feel there should be more. I've seen some great and pertinent answers around the need to market and advertise but you have done that to some extent. Frankly, you may be doing everything you need to do.

If you thought your one book would rocket you to the top of the charts and make you a lot of money, it may be your expectations were not set properly. It is a very tough business. For a good book, with the right cover, and blurb, and adverts, and real-world marketing, the results may still be so-so sales. There are very good practices that need to be followed to gain a respectable response in this current market, and they may not always work for you.

One thing that I did not hear, that may be missing, is multiple books. It is near impossible to gain a respectable amount of sales without a track record of books to support a base of readers. One book, almost never gets a large response for indie publishers.

So my suggestion/advice is to keep plugging away. Focus on your adverts, build your core team of readers, and keep writing.

Good luck, David!

[Tony]

I agree with Dwayne. Keep on writing, the more books, articles, blogs you have out there, the more likely your exposure would be, and the material will inevitably click with some readers regardless of the themes.

[David]

Thank you all again. Your generosity if wonderful. This forum is worth the price of admission. I have released a new book in Kindle format and will be releasing the paperback version soon. I'm working on the next one. That was an excellent suggestion.

[P.S.]

You need to have a Facebook page, join groups and post daily. Also get on twitter, linked in and other book groups. Google is good, you can also post the books on Pinterest. I have the best luck on Facebook groups for getting the books noticed. I am also an avid reader and sharing other authors books on my Facebook page and a group I started helps a lot to let other authors, who are also great readers know you are willing to help them. In turn, they will help you.

[D.]

P.S. wrote: "You need to have a Facebook page, join groups and post daily. Also get on twitter, linked in and other book groups. Google is good, you can also post the books on Pinterest. I have the best luck on..."

But do you get sales from social media? Unless you advertise, I don't think many sales come from social media. My experience was that it was a huge investment of time for little return.

[P.S.]

I get all my sales from social media.

[D.]

P.S., which social media platforms? Do you advertise or put your books on sale or free?

[Jessica]

P.D. Workman (Pamela) wrote: "Sexual assault is not just something that happens to women."

Thank you, Pamela, for making this clear. I cannot comprehend why anyone would think telling a man he can not write about sexual assault, no matter who it is against, is OK. That's like saying a man cannot investigate sexual assault, or be on a jury where sexual assault is being determined, or be a judge in that case, or be married to a woman who experiences it and be able to help her recover.

The amount of M/M romance and erotica stories written by women is extraordinary. Shall we go and tell them that, not being gay men, they cannot possibly have any understanding of gay male characters an only gay males can write those stories? Rubbish.

Utterly ridiculous identity politics at its worst. Nobody can ever again write anything they have not or could not experience directly, is that right? Then lets write off the Norse chronicles and Egyptian gods. Lets remove superheroes and folk tales. What a stupendously boring world we'd live in.

David, there is little else to say than if someone tells you you cannot write something because you aren't one of the people who can apparently understand it then I can give you a fairly common four letter word to give them in return. Compassion for your characters and the openness to explore ideas is what makes your story valid, not their sex (or yours), not their colour, (or yours), not their ethnicity or religion (or yours) or anything else.

Keep writing, and never let people make you feel guilty for your work based on their own ideologies.

[Ian]

Jessica wrote: "P.D. Workman (Pamela) wrote: "Sexual assault is not just something that happens to women."

Thank you, Pamela, for making this clear. I cannot comprehend why anyone would think telling a man he can..."

At times like this, I wish Goodreads had a "Like" button. It drives me nuts the way people twist themselves in knots worrying if they "should" or "should not" write a story, and the naysayers hovering in the wings just waiting for a chance to get offended.

On that basis, I couldn't write sci-fi at all, because I've never flown faster than light or visited another planet, and one of my MCs is a woman assassin (neither of which apply to me). The whole point of fiction is for the author to use their imagination to tell a story. 'Nuff said.

[P.D.]

Thanks, Jessica and Ian. I was beginning to wonder if I was the only one who felt this way. If sexual assault is something you want to write about and educate people about, then do it. It goes without saying that you should be sensitive, do your research, and make sure you fully understand the issue, but if you're doing the work, there's no reason you should be able to write about the issue, regardless of sex/gender/personal experience.

[Tony]

A well put and nicely written post. You nailed it down. Basically, writers use their imaginations, whether from the point of view of the victim or protagonist.

[M.L.]

Hi David,

I took a look at your book and just off the top I think a different cover would help. The blurb says it's 1901 but the cover doesn't convey that at all. If you use the word 'suffragette' it conjures up an image and that image on the cover could add to the appealability of the book. Currently it's more reminiscent of a retro magazine cover.

Also, the cast of characters sounds very eccentric. If you can somehow emphasize them in relation to your MC it would make it more compelling. (Margaret has challenges and they are not the most 'normal' of folks--which makes them interesting.)

Cover and blurb should support what the story is about and those things need to be in synch.

That said, it's not a guarantee of increased sales or anything else, but if you can make your marketing package more appealing at first glance, then folks might want to delve further into the book. Hope that helps.