Indie Publishing is Like Yoga

writing exercise stretching-498256_960_720Thank goodness we don’t have to do the Downward Facing Dog. No one wants to see me do that. What we do need, though, is flexibility. Flexibility in all things Indie: how we look at writing itself, how we market, what our covers look like, how long or short our blurbs are: everything.

Indie Publishing was easier four or five years ago. I published my first book in September of 2012. I sold 82 copies that first month, and was thrilled. As soon as I hit the 30-day cliff, though, that booked stopped selling. I sold two copies in a week. So, I did a free promo and gave away almost 25,000 copies. Total cost of that promo? Zero dollars. There was no Bookbub yet, and all the sites were just looking for free books to feature. I applied, they featured me, and the free downloads poured in. Continue reading “Indie Publishing is Like Yoga”

Newsletter Swapping Service Offers Authors a Free Way to Connect, Advertise

newsletter swap logoIf you’re an author who doesn’t have a ton of money to spend on advertising, but would like to be seen, newsletter swapping is something you might want to consider. The basic principle is simple: Author A and Author B write in similar genres and each one has a newsletter. When Author A sends out his newsletter, he includes Author B’s book and vice versa. With newsletter swapping, each author gets exposure to potential new readers while exposing their own readers to books they might enjoy.

In the past, in order to do this, two authors would tend to have to know each other, have talked about their lists, and then decide they want to swap. The first newsletter swaps I’ve done occurred this way (once I swapped with an author who has a 20k+ list). When a swap goes well, it’s great to see an uptick in sales or free downloads as a result. But the pool of most authors’ knowledge/friendships with other authors is limited.

However, a service I discovered in December is making newsletter swapping easy, providing lists of authors with similar genres and spots available in their newsletters. Continue reading “Newsletter Swapping Service Offers Authors a Free Way to Connect, Advertise”

Facebook Page Update: 2017 Brings More Interaction and Video

facebook-530337_1280While it may not look like it at first glance, Facebook is undergoing major changes rolling in to 2017. It’s nearly impossible to keep up with what is happening unless it’s your full-time job. So let’s see if we can help you keep on the cutting edge without going bonkers.

Our Facebook Page is one of the most ubiquitous tools for authors. It’s like the Yellow Pages of twenty years ago. Unfortunately, it may become about as effective as the Yellow Pages of today. While it is not going away, Facebook appears to be putting their efforts into other bells and whistles of their platform. Continue reading “Facebook Page Update: 2017 Brings More Interaction and Video”

Allan Baehm Wins Flash Fiction Challenge

Allan Baehm is the Readers’ Choice in this week’s Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction Challenge. The winning entry is decided by the popular vote and rewarded with a special feature here today. (In the case of a tie, the writer who submitted an entry first is the winner per our rules.)

Without further ado, here’s the winning story:

Continue reading “Allan Baehm Wins Flash Fiction Challenge”