Celebrating Independent Authors
I hate keywords. “Use keywords,” they say, for your blog post, your KDP book, your website, your AMS ads. Figuring out which keywords to use is harder for me than writing the actual post/book/ad. But I’m learning.
An example: the other day while checking the Amazon rank of one of my books after a sale, I noticed something odd. The rank in three different categories was showing. The first one was: Continue reading “The Importance of Categories and Keywords for Your Books on KDP”
For those new to Kindle publishing, questions often arise about the Kindle delivery cost. Some people aren’t sure what it is, who it affects, and if there’s a way to make it go away. Today, I’m going to give a quick overview of the fee and what it means to authors. Continue reading “What is the Kindle “Delivery Cost” and How Does it Affect Me?”
Ode to the Reader
Twas the night before I uploaded to KDP and all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring as my hand hovered over my mouse.
My masterpiece had been edited and formatted with care,
While visions of soaring up Amazon’s rankings floated through the air.
Okay, I’ll stop now.
You know that feeling you get when you check your dashboard and you’ve sold another book, or a reader has borrowed your book through Kindle Unlimited? You know what I’m talking about. It’s that little jolt you receive. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling thousands of books a month or a handful, there’s still some kind of a charge. I can attest to this because I’ve been in both camps. I’ve had months where I’ve sold tens of thousands of books and I’ve had months where the sales barely trickled in. Yes, ‘tis a fickle vocation we find ourselves in, isn’t it. As the jolly season approaches, I find myself in a contemplative mood, and I was wondering – what is that little burst of energy we feel when the numbers increase on our screen? What does it really mean? And, what should we do about it? Continue reading “The Self-Publisher’s Dashboard of Gratitude”
It happens. The title you chose just doesn’t generate the sales you hoped. No one besides you “gets” it. It’s time to give up on it and try something new.
But your book has been out for a couple of years now and you have some reviews on it. You worked hard getting those and you don’t want to lose them. It’s just all too horrible to think about.
Not so fast – there is actually a really easy way to update your title and upload a new cover without losing your reviews or your rankings. Imagine that! The order in which you make these changes is crucial, though, so please pay thorough attention. And this is for books on Amazon published through KDP and Createspace only. Continue reading “How to Change a Book’s Title Without Losing Reviews”