Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Holiday/Celebration Sale!
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
ABNA 2013
It's that time again. Thousands of writers from all over the world are flocking to Amazon to enter their book babies in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. Can you feel the excitement? I sure can.
This year, ABNA has changed. There will be five categories: General Fiction, Mystery/Thriller, Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror, Romance, and Young Adult. One finalist will be named from each of these five categories. Penguin is out. The grand prize winner now gets published by Amazon Publishing and this includes a $50,000 advance! Wow! And the rest of the finalists ALSO get a publishing contract with Amazon (and a $15,000 advance). ABNA has really stepped up their game this year. These are amazing prizes, you guys.
As one of last year's finalists, and a person who has entered ABNA a grand total of three times, I have a lot of advice to pass on to the new crop of entrants:
1. This should go without saying, but make sure your manuscript is 100% finished, edited, and polished to a high gloss shine.
2. Need help with your pitch? Take a peek at mine or ask for help on the ABNA forum pitch thread.
3. Yes, you can enter your self-published book. At least half of last year's finalists were/are self-published.
4. DO NOT...I repeat, DO NOT...put your name anywhere on your pitch, excerpt, or manuscript. You will be disqualified.
5. Your excerpt must be the FIRST 3000-5000 words of your manuscript. Stop it at a good point. Leave them hanging.
6. Don't be discouraged if your second round reviews aren't the greatest. Mine weren't.
7. If you're not from the US, and you make it to the semi-finals, make sure you have a current passport, just in case. I didn't.
8. Participate in the discussions on the ABNA forum. The people there are not only interesting and hilarious, they are also extremely supportive. There's a lot of waiting involved in the ABNA contest, so why not pass the time with other writers who are going through the same thing?
9. If you're anything like me, you might want to blog about ABNA so future entrants can read about the process.
10. See #4 again. This mistake knocks out at least one person every year.
Have fun and GOOD LUCK with ABNA 2013! You're in for a wild ride.
This year, ABNA has changed. There will be five categories: General Fiction, Mystery/Thriller, Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror, Romance, and Young Adult. One finalist will be named from each of these five categories. Penguin is out. The grand prize winner now gets published by Amazon Publishing and this includes a $50,000 advance! Wow! And the rest of the finalists ALSO get a publishing contract with Amazon (and a $15,000 advance). ABNA has really stepped up their game this year. These are amazing prizes, you guys.
As one of last year's finalists, and a person who has entered ABNA a grand total of three times, I have a lot of advice to pass on to the new crop of entrants:
1. This should go without saying, but make sure your manuscript is 100% finished, edited, and polished to a high gloss shine.
2. Need help with your pitch? Take a peek at mine or ask for help on the ABNA forum pitch thread.
3. Yes, you can enter your self-published book. At least half of last year's finalists were/are self-published.
4. DO NOT...I repeat, DO NOT...put your name anywhere on your pitch, excerpt, or manuscript. You will be disqualified.
5. Your excerpt must be the FIRST 3000-5000 words of your manuscript. Stop it at a good point. Leave them hanging.
6. Don't be discouraged if your second round reviews aren't the greatest. Mine weren't.
7. If you're not from the US, and you make it to the semi-finals, make sure you have a current passport, just in case. I didn't.
8. Participate in the discussions on the ABNA forum. The people there are not only interesting and hilarious, they are also extremely supportive. There's a lot of waiting involved in the ABNA contest, so why not pass the time with other writers who are going through the same thing?
9. If you're anything like me, you might want to blog about ABNA so future entrants can read about the process.
10. See #4 again. This mistake knocks out at least one person every year.
Have fun and GOOD LUCK with ABNA 2013! You're in for a wild ride.
Monday, November 26, 2012
How ABNA Changed My Life
On YAtopia today, I discuss how ABNA changed my life. And a giveaway!
YAtopia Guest Post and Giveaway
YAtopia Guest Post and Giveaway
Monday, November 5, 2012
Douchebags - Hot or Not?
For a while now, I've been noticing a trend in popular YA/New Adult (and some adult books too): Alpha male/douchebag love interests and the girls who put up with them because they are hot. It's everywhere.
Now, I appreciate a misunderstood, imperfect bad boy, but only if he has redeeming qualities and is a decent person at heart. These days, a lot of teens and women seem to be swooning over guys who I think are total psychopaths. I'm sorry, but if the love interest is a total jerk who treats his girlfriend like crap, I don't care how hot he is. I will not swoon.
I can't help but recall what I was reading as a teen and how I might have reacted to the content in books today. I mean, I remember being scandalized when Michael told Katherine she was acting like a bitch in Judy Blume's Forever (even though she kind of was acting like one, being all jealous of whats-her-face for no reason). And would Christopher, the nutcase who stalks Jessica in Two Boy Weekend, be considered more sexy than scary today? Even though he doesn't have fangs?
Considering my undying love for Sarah Dessen, perhaps I've adopted a different view of what love interests should look like in a typical YA book. Take Wes from The Truth About Forever, for example. He's my favorite YA book boyfriend ever. He's the measuring stick against which I hold all my own boy characters. He's the kind of guy every girl--real and imaginary--deserves.
In my opinion, the YA world could use more a little more Wes.
(By the way, the first four books listed in my Indie Gems post all have amazing, yummy, mysterious-and-troubled-but-incredibly-sexy, non-douchebaggy love interests. That's part of why I enjoyed them as much as I did.)
Now, I appreciate a misunderstood, imperfect bad boy, but only if he has redeeming qualities and is a decent person at heart. These days, a lot of teens and women seem to be swooning over guys who I think are total psychopaths. I'm sorry, but if the love interest is a total jerk who treats his girlfriend like crap, I don't care how hot he is. I will not swoon.
I can't help but recall what I was reading as a teen and how I might have reacted to the content in books today. I mean, I remember being scandalized when Michael told Katherine she was acting like a bitch in Judy Blume's Forever (even though she kind of was acting like one, being all jealous of whats-her-face for no reason). And would Christopher, the nutcase who stalks Jessica in Two Boy Weekend, be considered more sexy than scary today? Even though he doesn't have fangs?
Considering my undying love for Sarah Dessen, perhaps I've adopted a different view of what love interests should look like in a typical YA book. Take Wes from The Truth About Forever, for example. He's my favorite YA book boyfriend ever. He's the measuring stick against which I hold all my own boy characters. He's the kind of guy every girl--real and imaginary--deserves.
In my opinion, the YA world could use more a little more Wes.
(By the way, the first four books listed in my Indie Gems post all have amazing, yummy, mysterious-and-troubled-but-incredibly-sexy, non-douchebaggy love interests. That's part of why I enjoyed them as much as I did.)
Monday, October 29, 2012
Traction
Most indie authors struggle with sales. Sure, there are a select few who seem to sell thousands within weeks of publishing, but I think they are the exception to the rule. We all work hard, but some books just take off for whatever reason while others either don't sell at all or rise slow and steady. Of course, it all depends on genre, marketing, book covers, writing, story, etc.
What we all need, especially on Amazon, is traction. We need to figure out how to make more sales, so our books get more visibility, which results in more sales. This may take weeks, months, or even years.
In the past two weeks, I think I've started to accomplish this traction.
I published Just You and Someone Else at the end of June, 2012. I started advertising on social media around July 1, so let's go with that date. Sales were modest but steady for July. In August, they plummeted. Did some blog interviews, more marketing, and nada. September picked up a little, but still nothing to write home about. So I thought, hey, maybe I should do something about it.
On September 10, I lowered the price of Just You to $0.99 everywhere (Someone Else stayed at $2.99). Advertised again. Sales started to steadily climb with both books. Finally, about two weeks ago, I started seeing Just You in the "Customers who bought this item also bought" section, under some high-ranking books. Indies know how important those coveted spots are. Lots of people click through the "also boughts". Being there gives you visibility and increases sales. And when you get there, the $0.99 price tag makes you even more attractive.
October has been my best month yet. No, I'm not in the top 100 (not even close) but daily sales in the double-digits are better than a big fat zero. Naturally, most of the sales are on the cheaper book, but my $2.99 book has benefited too. The more people who read your work and like it, the bigger your fanbase grows, the more reviews you'll receive, and the more success you'll have on future books.
But to gain that traction, you have to experiment with different things...marketing, pricing, blurbs, covers. Take a look at the top-sellers in your genre. Find out what works. For me, it was the price adjustment. And patience. Keep in mind, it took me almost four months to see a rise in sales, and it didn't really pick up until I appeared in the "also boughts".
In order to sell your book, people have to see your book.
Want to help your favorite author gain visibility and traction on Amazon? Here are 10 quick and easy things you can do.
What we all need, especially on Amazon, is traction. We need to figure out how to make more sales, so our books get more visibility, which results in more sales. This may take weeks, months, or even years.
In the past two weeks, I think I've started to accomplish this traction.
I published Just You and Someone Else at the end of June, 2012. I started advertising on social media around July 1, so let's go with that date. Sales were modest but steady for July. In August, they plummeted. Did some blog interviews, more marketing, and nada. September picked up a little, but still nothing to write home about. So I thought, hey, maybe I should do something about it.
On September 10, I lowered the price of Just You to $0.99 everywhere (Someone Else stayed at $2.99). Advertised again. Sales started to steadily climb with both books. Finally, about two weeks ago, I started seeing Just You in the "Customers who bought this item also bought" section, under some high-ranking books. Indies know how important those coveted spots are. Lots of people click through the "also boughts". Being there gives you visibility and increases sales. And when you get there, the $0.99 price tag makes you even more attractive.
October has been my best month yet. No, I'm not in the top 100 (not even close) but daily sales in the double-digits are better than a big fat zero. Naturally, most of the sales are on the cheaper book, but my $2.99 book has benefited too. The more people who read your work and like it, the bigger your fanbase grows, the more reviews you'll receive, and the more success you'll have on future books.
But to gain that traction, you have to experiment with different things...marketing, pricing, blurbs, covers. Take a look at the top-sellers in your genre. Find out what works. For me, it was the price adjustment. And patience. Keep in mind, it took me almost four months to see a rise in sales, and it didn't really pick up until I appeared in the "also boughts".
In order to sell your book, people have to see your book.
Want to help your favorite author gain visibility and traction on Amazon? Here are 10 quick and easy things you can do.
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