Books by the Numbers

There is a persistent belief that if you go indie, you'll never sell much. They say people like Amanda Hocking, Zoe Winters, JA Konrath, Tina Folsom, etc. are just "lucky" and the fact that they are now making a living with their indie books is a fluke. Ok, yes, they've gotten lucky - the luck that comes with writing a great story, being enthusiastic, learning what you need to know, believing in yourself, and taking a chance. The luck that is defined as "preparation meets opportunity."

Someone else whose "luck" is increasing due to the same formula, is my blogosphere pal, Edie Ramer.  She just sold 1000 books on Kindle this past month and I couldn't be happier for her.  I fully expect that as more people read her books (which are fabulous, by the way - I LOVED "Dragon Blues") those figures will increase and she will soon be making a living wage at it herself.

My former critique partner, Amber Scott, is also doing amazingly well. Like Edie and Zoe, Amber's enthusiasm and passion for what she's doing is carrying her far. In fact, I recently told her she is my hero right now because I remember clearly the first time we met in Barnes & Noble. Neither of us had been published, both were very shy - she, exceedingly so - but were having fun trying to make something of what we had. Now that formerly shy young woman is burning up the internet with her podcasts, vblogs, interviews, presentations, panels, you name it, and her book "PlayFling" was in Smashwords top 20 for weeks.  And I fully expect her next book, Fierce Dawn, to do really well. Go, Amber!

Now, as for me, I didn't really have very high expectations venturing into the Indie Arena. I had seen how badly things turned out for my grandfather when he self-published (in the days before Kindle), and I've read all the caveats (even by successful indie authors) that say don't get your  hopes up too much in the beginning. And of course, there is still some stigma attached to it. But I was willing to try it, to see how it went.

Since "Unmasked" is a re-release of an older novella--as well as a bit niche in its audience*--I didn't do any promotion except to mention it a couple of times on my blog, Facebook and Twitter.  I put it out there to see what would happen, and to test the waters of this Kindle publishing thing.

To my surprise, I've already sold more copies in the past month than I did the whole time it was with its original publisher, and I'm within 15 copies of matching my first month's sales of "Managing Maggie" at Cobblestone Press - and MM was their bestseller for that month.  (At first, I thought I had surpassed the sales figure, but when I looked up my royalty statement from last year, saw that I'm almost there.) Fingers crossed that I can match it in the next three days, but even if I don't, I've still been pleasantly surprised.

"Unmasked" started out ranking at around #1 million something, then got to around #300,000 the first few days, peaking so far at around 20,000 in the US, but generally ranking between 25 and 40K.  I was a bit discouraged by that number until I bought the most recent book by a well-known, traditionally pub'd  author that I like a lot, and hers was ranked at #36,000+ that day.  But about an hour ago, I just found out to my surprise that "Unmasked" was #36 on the Amazon UK's list for bisexual erotica - I broke into a top 100!  Who knew?!

Now, in reality, the number of sales this month aren't going to pay my rent (especially with Unmasked now priced at 99cents), but even so - color me hooked!  Being able to control whether and when my story gets put for sale was so liberating and empowering. Now I'm asking myself, "If my first niche novella that I've hardly promoted at all can do this, what might happen if I promoted a book that has a wider audience range -- one that I'm also very enthusiastic about?"

That will my next experiment.  I'll let you know how it turns out. :)

Meanwhile, I know Charles Gramlich, Avery DeBow, Sidney Williams, Marcia Colette, and Steve Malley have all also tried the indie route recently - any of you want to share your experience so far? :)

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*When I first wrote Unmasked back in 2006, it was in response to a call from a publisher looking to fill slots for an erotic anthology about a masquerade ball held by the gods. In researching the editor, I discovered she really liked male/female/female menages, so I wrote a story with that in mind and sent it to her. Two morals to that story: One, if you want to have someone else publish your books, research the editor; and two, even if your book has a limited audience, that doesn't mean it has NO audience, so don't give up!

Last Chance

Last call is almost up for Avery DeBow's Mad Lib "Junket City", as well as today is the last day you can get Amber Scott's "Play Fling" (currently in the top 25 best sellers on Smashwords) free with the promotional coupon.

Steve Malley has published his novel "Crossroad Blues" there as well, and I have "Unmasked" for free during the July promotion as well. Oh, and after you've checked out Steve's book page, you should really take a look at his tattoo art. Now I wish I were in New Zealand so I could get one. :)

Forgive me for not getting this up earlier. I've been busy, busy, busy with working the day job, gearing up to do my yearly Halloween art sale, creating cover art with Cobblestone Press, and just trying to decide what I want to be when I grow up.

Dream a little dream with me...

Amber Scott had a fun challenge on her blog the other day. Basically, it's a 10 minute meditation/positive visualization exercise where you hold a strong image of your heart's desire in your mind for ten minutes a day for one week. She is going to check back on everyone in a week to see how they feel.

I threw my hat in the ring... sat down to do my ten minutes... and realized I had no idea what my heart's desire really was! That turned into two days of just spending those ten daily minutes asking my subconscious to dig up what I really wanted, what would make me glow with happiness. But make it something selfish, please. Sure, we'd all like world peace, an end to hunger, etc. But what about ME? What would tingle my pringle in the meantime while we're all hoping for whirled peas?

Then, quite strongly, I had an image of myself in the kitchen, painting. It was a flashback to a day when I realized I was really happy, and that I had never been so happy in my life. That was almost three years ago now, and I haven't felt that good since. I miss it. And the key to that happiness was that I was solely working for myself, on my own schedule, doing the things I love to do. I was writing, painting, and sculpting daily. My daughter and I were spending enjoyable moments together - there was no stress of going to a day job I hated. I had enough money to get by then. That was it. That's what I want.

That's not too much to ask, is it? Now, you try it. Feel free to share it here if you want, or just hold it close to your heart and smile mysteriously. :)

Meanwhile, today is my daughter's 18th birthday, Lana Gramlich has a new book of her photographs out, and her husband, Charles, just published a collection of Westerns. Congratulations to all. :)

Almost Magical Monday

I've been meaning to start up my "Magical Monday" posts again, but it seems like there's always something that comes up before I get to it.

So, meanwhile, let me offer you another Monday tradition that I think you'll enjoy reading: Amber Scott's Motivational Mondays. They are just that: motivational, and often magical as well. :) You can find a listing of them here: http://en.wordpress.com/tag/motivational-mondays/ or at her blog, http://amberscottproject.wordpress.com/.

I loved her series on "book babies" and "book parenting."

For more inspiration, Zoe Winters is also blogging over at Magical Musings about her journey in self-publishing as well. This was interesting for me, because I know a lot of people who are now trying that route, and I've started to dabble in it as well. (Just FYI - I'm not talking about the "you pay big bucks for someone to print a bunch of books that you have to buy yourself" type of self-publishing here, but a whole different venue where your upfront costs can be nearly zero and your profit is your own.)

Is there anything you've found particularly interesting or helpful lately that you'd like to share? Topic doesn't matter - just something you've enjoyed. :)

Meet Author Amber Scott

Happy Friday! Today, I'm so pleased to have author Amber Scott (occasionally aka Amber Dayne) with me. I'm also pleased that she graciously is also interviewing me over at her blog today as well. So, let's get started....

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KS: Hi Amber, it’s great to have you here today. I mentioned you in my blog a few days back, and I’m excited that you agreed to allow me to grill…er, interview… you today about your writing.

Probably the most common complaint from writers is that they never have enough time to write. I know you have two small children at home, yet since I met you four years ago, you’ve had a baby, had six books published (Irish Moon aka The Last Templar, The Best Revenge, Jessie’s Girl, Wanted, Soul Search, and PlayFling) and now you’re also working on screenplays. This doesn’t even count the stories you’ve written which haven’t been published yet. Can you give us an example of your “typical” writing schedule?

AS: I tell you, when you throw articles and blogging in there, too, I get dizzy thinking about it. Thankfully, I’ve figured out how to take each task one at a time, or like Anne Lamott’s book explains, Bird by Bird. With two young children and a husband vying for my attention, I’ve learned how to write in small spurts and with a little one on my lap. A few years ago, I let go of the notion that I should be able to carve out a couple hours a day reserved for writing. Instead, I gave up TV and am constantly back and forth to my computer, to the kids, back to my story, over to dishes and so on. It’s an imperfect system I find I have to tweak and adjust to every day but I’ll get there.

KS: Well, you must be doing something right! I listened to your interview on Romantically Speaking w/ Danielle Monsch (http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/talkCast.jsp?masterId=73538&cmd=tc) and you mentioned your love of writing in different genres (I’m totally on board with you on that!) and I’m wondering what has been your favorite of the stories you’ve written so far, and why?

AS: Thank you so much for listening. Danielle is a lot of fun and made the interview really easy. It was like talking to a great friend. I wish I could pick one genre I prefer! It seems like it’d make the career building part of all this easier. Alas, I go where the itch takes me. I’m polishing an urban fantasy, called Realm, right now, continuing the doomed cupid series Play Fling, and started plus two screenplays, D-Word and Threshold. I’d say the two things I tend to stick to are paranormal elements and comedy but not necessarily together.

KS: Any one particular scene/hero/heroine out of all the genres that has really stayed with you?

AS: Jessica Hayes in Jessie’s Girl has really stayed with me. I think gay and lesbian fiction is regrettably still seen as taboo but I hope it will become mainstream. Love is love, right? Jessie has such a difficult decision in this story. She falls for the girl her brother, who is also her best friend, thinks is ‘the one’. And Sabrina falls as well. Only Sabrina hasn’t quite come to terms with what ideal life versus real life means. Their story was heart-wrenchingly wonderful to write.

KS: It was a great story and the conflict was very moving. Speaking of conflict, most writers are familiar with the “inciting incident”, “the dark moment”, and the “return with the prize” in stories. I’m wondering if you may have experienced some of those in real life on your path to publication, what they were, and if you’d like to share them?

AS: My inciting incident to novel writing came with my first NaNoWriMo. It took me from dreaming of being a writer to actually writing and I got hooked. My dark moment came when I read Stephanie Meyers Twilight saga and had an epiphany: If I didn’t love my own characters as thoroughly as she clearly loved hers, was it worth pursuing this career? I took a break and realized, yes it’s worth it. The pain, the fear, the lack of sleep. And I stopped writing with that lingering desperation to find some secret formula and simply write for the fun of it now. My writing improved. My return with the prize has to be my first contest win, an Honorable Mention in the Save the Cat! Last logline of 2009! contest. The late Blake Snyder, author of the series and whose site hosted the contest, is my biggest writing hero. I really wish I could have met him.

KS: Congratulations - that's quite a journey, Amber! Where can readers find your work now, and what can we expect next from you?

AS: Right now Play Fling is at Smashwords.com and Scribd.com for a limited promotional release while I submit it to agents and editors. I’ll be placing a couple of freebie novels up on each site as well this summer. My screenplays may join the novels once they’re polished and registered with the Writer’s Guild. I see self-publishing as a great way to earn readers and share the process with them. I’m shopping my urban fantasy, Realm, also but contemporary erotica has been whispering in my ear again. I hope to have another novella completed and submitted to Liquid Silver Books soon. I adore this publisher and hope to continually add to my booklist there. You can also find me at 1stTurningPoint.com, a place for authors to learn and share all about promotion.

KS: Wow, you sure do keep busy, and I look forward to seeing more from you. Is there anything else you’d like your readers to know?

AS: Simply how much I appreciate their taking the time to share my inner worlds. Having a reader feels like sharing a favorite song or movie with someone. I cherish it. As a thank you today, I’d like to offer a free ebook download of Play Fling at Smashwords.com. This is the story of a doomed cupid determined to match a repressed divorcee with her ex. There’s just two problems: a too young, too hot college boy distracting her matchmaking target and the fact that she stinks at playing cupid. Simply enter code: SE77K. It expires March 17th. Thank you so much for having me, Kate. We’ve come a long way and here’s to much, much further! KS: Here, here! Thank you, Amber. :)

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So, what questions do you have for Amber? Side note: Amber is generously giving away copies of Play Fling for the time being, but my publisher would kill me if I gave away so many books. :) However, not to be selfish, everyone who comments here and/or on Amber's blog today and wants to be entered to win a copy of Managing Maggie in one of the following formats: .PDF, .mobi/Kindle, or .LIT simply has to state their preferred format in their post.

Coming soon...

Devin McKee will be my guest tomorrow, discussing her book DANGEROUS MAGIC. Please join us and say hello. :)

On Friday, Amber Scott will join me to discuss writing in different genres and how a busy mom finds time to write. At the same time, she will be interviewing me on her blog. Please stop by both blogs and say hello for a chance to win free ebooks. :)