tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post5586782568987559648..comments2023-12-09T00:33:24.572-08:00Comments on Novel Matters: Exploring the Ecosystem of Kindle for MarketingBonnie Grovehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11377519561074174038noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-73178116801115173582012-10-21T18:21:10.415-07:002012-10-21T18:21:10.415-07:00How can I get involved in that book club in Januar...How can I get involved in that book club in January? I love Donald Maas. I have "The Fire in Fiction" that I intend to re-read every year. It's so good. I wrote the name of the book, but would love to join the book club discussion. Nikole Hahnhttp://www.thehahnhuntinglodge.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-74702134408316869242012-10-19T13:24:06.659-07:002012-10-19T13:24:06.659-07:00I've been marketing four eBooks since March. T...I've been marketing four eBooks since March. Two suggestions- visit Hootsuite.com - learn how to use their tool. (they have their own University) it's one of the keys.<br />Also visit Kindle Direct it's a constant learning requirement.SageXperthttp://www.jackghardy.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-42746418089826825252012-10-17T11:39:48.784-07:002012-10-17T11:39:48.784-07:00Amelia: Thanks for your perspective. My goal is to...Amelia: Thanks for your perspective. My goal is to earn enough from Goodness & Mercy to do an even better job for the next book, that means a design professional for the cover and the formatting. I'm with Cherry. A cover is what attracts my attention. A title draws me in, and the book description sells me. Not a job for amateurs.Patti Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01210807015376289703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-46661158719050932812012-10-17T10:30:52.077-07:002012-10-17T10:30:52.077-07:00My husband is a design professional. It's amaz...My husband is a design professional. It's amazing to see the thought and detail a good designer will put into every aspect of his design always keeping the end user in mind. <br /><br />And these days, yes, keywords are important. Search engines are an interesting and complicated beast, but they can really work for you. <br /><br />I think it's great that Alvear explained these 2 areas for authors. It's definitely not part of our normal realm of thinking.Amelia Rhodeshttp://www.ameliarhodes.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-49307914207282669102012-10-17T09:10:21.354-07:002012-10-17T09:10:21.354-07:00Henrietta, I apologize. I wasn't clear about t...Henrietta, I apologize. I wasn't clear about the sales numbers. Alvear blogged for five years prior to adding his book for sale. Even though he made some money. It wasn't enough to live on.<br /><br />As to people moving on quickly, yes. But the books that persist on the New York Times Bestsellers list are not the titles you would expect. Oh sure, Patterson and Steele will top the list for three weeks, but the stories that stay and stay are books like Water for Elephants, The Secret Life of Bees, and The Help. These are beautifully crafted books. These are the kind of stories Maas talks about int he book we'll be doing as a book club in January. So, keep crafting Henrietta. A great story is the beginning point. The rest of this is making sure your story is read.<br /><br />Henrietta, we're waiting for your story. <br /><br />Cherry: Key words or phrases are like, Historical, romance, Colorado, inspiration, etc. These words or phrases placed in your book's description and categories helps those people who are browsing digitally to find your story.<br /><br />I love haphazard readers. They're very interesting people, just like you.Patti Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01210807015376289703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-71643406001148923292012-10-17T08:20:31.944-07:002012-10-17T08:20:31.944-07:00Further more;
I am rather a haphazard and accident...Further more;<br />I am rather a haphazard and accidental reader, though I live the rest of my life intentionally. Books can be a best seller and I will not be aware of them until someone trades or loans me. On the other hand, I have stumbled on some marvelous, well-written reads that never became household words.Cherry Odelberghttp://einefeistyberg.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-38832319013474726082012-10-17T08:17:26.552-07:002012-10-17T08:17:26.552-07:00Yes, I admit to picking up a book because of a cov...Yes, I admit to picking up a book because of a cover, "a picture paints a thousand words," type of cover. I also happily pick up non-descript old looking books because of an attention getting title or the author's name. Rarely do I shop for (unknown) fiction by key word or genre I mean, how do you know what issues will be dealt with until you begin the first chapter and are swept in?Cherry Odelberghttp://einefeistyberg.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-5511514175181979232012-10-17T07:17:05.872-07:002012-10-17T07:17:05.872-07:0050 books a month for 5 years?! I'd be happy wi...50 books a month for 5 years?! I'd be happy with that. But I know reality is 1000 books the first month and maybe 5 every other month from then on. <br />Our culture is always moving on to the new thing. Changing the title every year betrays readers. <br />I want to write a book that is passed down from mothers to daughters, discussed around campfires and family reunions and chosen regularly from book cases for many generations. Therefore I craft. <br />I saw a sign in a book shop yesterday. "Books are no more intimidated by Kindle than escalators are by elevators." It should have been 'stairs are by elevators' but you get the sentiment.<br />Thanks for sharing Patti! I glean while I craft because it might be God's plan to publish this work before I die. I'm not fussed about the when.Henrietta Frankenseenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-87588754717030461322012-10-17T07:03:39.514-07:002012-10-17T07:03:39.514-07:00Wanderer: To the contrary, you've been very he...Wanderer: To the contrary, you've been very helpful. You're 100% correct about the book description. It has to be the best writing the author has ever done, certainly not an afterthought. Also, the Alvear agrees with you about the "Look Inside" feature. Get your writing on the first page. That's what people want to see. All that other stuff? How about posted it on your blog?<br /><br />Megan: You have no idea how steep this learning curve is for me. I'm thankful people who have explored the unknown country of independent publishing are sending back messages about what they've learned. I didn't have the gumption to go through all the pricing strategies Alvear presents. Oh my! Basically, you try to make an educated guess and then you can adjust as needed. 18 hours indeed!<br />Thanks for thinking I'm brave. I think you're seeing dogged determination and a bit of desperation, easily mistaken for bravery.<br />Susie, your cover is PERFECT! Very appealing visually and aesthetically. I'm going to write your designer's name down. She's good. I like your caveat, "If we are smart..." Working at it!Patti Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01210807015376289703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-91024537935544637942012-10-17T04:16:47.397-07:002012-10-17T04:16:47.397-07:00Roseanna White at WhiteFire designed the cover for...Roseanna White at WhiteFire designed the cover for "Paint Chips". I could not be happier with it. It looks good both small and large. For that, I am most grateful. Were I to ever got completely Indy, I have plenty of artist friends and family to help. <br /><br />I'm glad that you mentioned that success isn't found in a formula. I think that our culture tends to want a 10 step plan to "making it". If it can be 5 steps, all the better. This all takes lots and lots of work. But if we are smart about it, we can manipulate technology to work for us.<br /><br />Patti, I know that your upcoming release is going to be fantastic. I can't wait to help promote it. Susie Finkbeinerhttp://www.susiefinkbeiner.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-52750682024204562242012-10-17T04:12:48.445-07:002012-10-17T04:12:48.445-07:00Keyword phrases? Do people actually google topics ...Keyword phrases? Do people actually google topics in fiction?<br />Where do you embed them, anyway...in the text? I vaguely understand SEOs, but this is so much to learn. Well done Patti. You are a brave lady. <br /><br />I tend to browse in book shops but search for either specific titles or authors on Kindle. And yes, I judge books by their covers pretty much all the time. <br />So. Much. To. Learn! Did I say you were brave? I'll say it again. You are brave! And thanks so much for sharing your findings.Megan Sayerhttp://www.megansayer.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-52457766373041816352012-10-17T03:30:52.072-07:002012-10-17T03:30:52.072-07:00I know little to nothing about this topic but as a...I know little to nothing about this topic but as an avid reader, I know what I look for. <br /><br />In bookstores I'm a browser. I'm also a goodreads fan and I read 1-star reviews first and 5-stars last or not at all. A great cover might catch my attention but a plain cover won't put me off in the least. Titles grab me, perhaps more than anything. That book description is all important because ff there's a grammatical or spelling error, or if the description is wordy or too long, the author's writing style becomes suspect. Sometimes it intrigues me if a book is compared to a more familiar book ("In the Tradition of <i>Jane Eyre</i>), if it's worded in such a way that the author doesn't sound like she's bragging. <br /><br />On ebooks, when I try the "look inside" feature, I don't like to scroll through a bunch of praise and 5-star reviews. I can look at those elsewhere; now I just want to sample the author's writing style and see if I like the voice. <br /><br />I am not positive I'm trying to be helpful with this comment; I may have merely used your post as an excuse to ramble about books. Indulge me. V. Gingerichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01615988080091167938noreply@blogger.com