Amazon/Shelfari Book Extras + Book Bloggers

[Sarah]

Authors, are you using your Amazon Author Central Page? Have you even set it up? If not, now you have another reason to do so. Amazon's Shelfari (Amazon bought Shelfari so it's the same company) site is not exactly easy to use but it is magically linked to your Author Central Page -- and it's linked just as magically to the "Book Extras" feature on Kindle readers (devices and apps alike)

Don't know what Book Extras are or how to use them? No problemo. I've done a 2-part blog on this topic over at Webbiegrrl's Wrtings:

Part 1 - What are Book Extras, why and how to use them.

Part 2 - How do Book Bloggers factor into Book Extras? Symbiotic win/win, that's how!

-sry
@webbiegrrl
http://webbiegrrl.blogspot.com/

[Doc]

So, does one of those articles cover setting up an Amazon Author Central Page?

Doc

[Sarah]

No, Doc, that's discussion unto itself.

However, I did think most Indie Authors would have "discovered" their automagically-generated Author Central Page. Amazon creates a crappy, empty one for you when you create your KDP account. You need to log into it to spruce it up (add an avatar pic, add your Twitter feed +/or an RSS feed, etc.)

Amazon's got oodles of help pages on how to access the Author Central Page and now that I think of it, yes, I do have links to the Author Central Page login on one or both of the articles, just in case someone can't find their OWN Author Central page. It's not linked from your KDP Dashboard (Stupidly!! It should be!)

The really powerful thing for us Indies about Shelfari Book Extras is the ability to customize our Book page from Shelfari INSTEAD OF from the Author Central side. That's Part 1.

Read the articles. Both are short, both have ooodles of links to tutorials and such but I go over the basic concepts.

-sry
(and p.s. welcome to the group; I don't believe I've seen you posting here before though I've been away from the group myself since December)

[Ottilie]

Aha can't wait to read this later :)

[Sarah]

Let all of us know what you think, Ottillie since you're so much more embedded at Shelfari than me or Cambria or any other CR'ers I could find accounts for there :) I looked, trying to friend my Goodreads friends :)

If I missed some aspect of what Shelfari offers please do share here!

-sry

[Ottilie]

Hahaha I don't spend nearly as much time as I should on there I'm hoping for this summer to get better time spent on more of the sites I use and not just facebook and goodreads...

[Sarah]

Ottilie wrote: "Hahaha I don't spend nearly as much time as I should on there I'm hoping for this summer to get better time spent on more of the sites I use and not just facebook and goodreads..."

hey, what's wrong with facebook and goodreads? lol

[Ottilie]

Hahaha Nothing I love them, I just need to spread the wealth a little...

[Marjorie]

Ottilie wrote: "Hahaha Nothing I love them, I just need to spread the wealth a little..."

Well, you could come hang out on Twitter (hahahaha)

-Friday
@phoenicianbooks

[Ottilie]

Haha I am on twitter occationally! I post really random things mostly!

Sarah I just read both and I agree when things are used properly they could really helpful, but at the same time could be dangerous. I got to learn a little bit about shelfra also :)

[Marjorie]

I think I'd rather have Book Bloggers dive in and participate (since I can always jump in and stop an abuser) than worry about dangerous or malicious people. I can't worry about haters all the time, you know? :) It's hard enough to remember who I am when I log in (LOL)

[Ottilie]

Haha yeah.

[Ian]

I sort of see Shelfari as Amazon's attempt to push Goodreads out. But I suppose there's plenty of market for more than three or four major book group sites.

[Marjorie]

Shelfari is definitely Amazon's (failed) attempt to compete with Goodreads but I don't think they're trying to push GR out per se. And LibraryThing is in more direct competition with Shelfari - I loathe LibraryThing. Really not a user-friendly environmen tfor me nor does it feel like a community.

I love Goodreads because of the groups and people I meet here. I don't even have a book published yet and I already feel a sense of community among certain segments of readers. Goodreads did that.

Shelfari is a tool to use to get at Amazon's marketing opportunities but it's not a really great community FWICT. I could be wrong. I haven't spent much time browsing their groups. It looked boring at a glance.

[Doc]

Sarah, the Webbiegrrl Writer wrote: "No, Doc, that's discussion unto itself.

However, I did think most Indie Authors would have "discovered" their automagically-generated Author Central Page. Amazon creates a crappy, empty one for y..."

OK. I'll take a look.

And I've been here for a while. I just don't post unless I have something to contribute or a question to ask.

Doc

[Barbara]

Doc wrote: "So, does one of those articles cover setting up an Amazon Author Central Page?

Doc"

Go to Author Central. https://authorcentral.amazon.com/gp/l...
Set up your Author profile and claim your books! :-)
I access it with my Amazon account (under my real name) and have claimed all three of my pen-names (they don't allow more than 3, so I better stick to those or I'll have to open another Amazon account, LOL)! :-)

[Sarah]

Thanks for posting the link, Barb. I had a couple of them in my 2-part blog post (the main one and the direct link to the Book Extras tab)

-sry