The guys are taking a break from the podcast (if you have comments or suggestions for what you’d like to see if we bring it back in a couple of months, please leave them!), but we answered another pile of listener questions today amid a few doggie interruptions, ahem.
Here are the specific questions we addressed:
How do you approach marketing an audiobook? Advertising specifically to audiobook listeners? Or reliance on general traffic to your product page combined with having the audiobook simultaneously with ebook release?
Would any of you consider doing another “start from scratch” pen name experiment?
Let’s say an indie author has exactly one (1) book out. Let’s also say they didn’t do the rapid release thing at *all*, nor much in the way of ads. Is the best practice still “finish the series and build a backlist”? Or should they try some ads?
1. Is $2.99 too much to ask for a 60k urban fantasy as a new writer? 2. Do you guys have any tips on what you would do if you were starting out as a new author?
Do any of you use photos of yourself in the “about the author” section of your books like trade pub does?
ISBNs – Should we get our own or just use the free ones provided by Amazon, etc? What’s the difference? Pros and cons of each?
Affiliate links – What do they do? Where do we get them? Proper usage?
Writing workshops – How can writers find them? Is there a way to see if they are good/worth the money? Are there online options?
Top 100 – What does it mean to be in the top 100? What can be learned by looking at the top 100 in genres we might be writing in?
What kind of checklist of things do each of you do when preparing to release a book? IE Reviewing editorial notes, getting a copyright…
You mentioned in the most recent episode that you thought Also Boughts on Amazon might be on the way out. Does that mean pen names aren’t important anymore? If they are, is it worth republishing books under pen names if they aren’t the same genres?
On today’s show, the guys answered listener questions about pre-orders, rapid releases, how they found their editors, whether it make sense to keep series in Kindle Unlimited while publishing stand-alone novels wide, and lots of other stuff. Here’s a list of the questions they got to in the show (the second half of the batch will be answered next week):
For rapid release for a 5 book series, would you recommend the time-gap between releases be 2, 3, or 4 weeks? And for somebody using it to rebuild their readership, would you recommend Amazon Marketing Ads on the first book to help train amazon algorithms?
People always ask about rapid release, but never about what happens BETWEEN series release cycles. As they’re stockpiling new titles, I assume there are months where nothing new is up depending on how long it takes for them to write. Algorithm cliff chaos? Discuss.
Since everyone is asking about rapid release. How long should you advertise or pre-launch the series before you rapid release the books? Also where does most of your traffic for book buying come from? Is it the mailing list?
On one of the shows, someone mentioned that a short preorder lead has less impact on the “spike and decline” than a long one. Can you guys talk about that?
I’ve decided to try using some boosted posts from my FB page instead of running ads. I’ve turned off my ads and will instead run the same amount of money per day over a week and see what happens. Have any of you tried using boosted posts only for adverts?
I’m planning to write both standalones and series books, is it better to take your standalones wide to help establish yourself in those markets? Or am I better off leaving my standalones in KU?
How do you guys handle health care without an employer?
How did you find a good editor and what did you do to try them out to decide they were “the one?” (The guys mentioned the Reedsy Marketplace as a possible place to look.)
Also wondering about best ways to find an editor for SF (space opera).
Thoughts about the new service, Reedsy Discovery?
If your book has reviews in non-US amazon stores, is there a way to merge all of them to US store since it’s the exact same book?
What are the most surprising/unlikely income streams you’ve developed in your writing career?
I’d like to hear your thoughts on the building and usefulness of FaceBook pages and reader groups.
This week, the guys talked about the various tools and services they use as professional authors. Everything is listed below with links to the sites. The guys also gave some tips for increasing engagement on Facebook and Twitter and really using those social media platforms to help turn casual readers into fans–and maybe even attract new fans!
In this short episode, Jo and Lindsay jump on the bandwagon and share some of their marketing and publishing (but mostly marketing!) predictions for 2019.
Will Amazon ads expand and offer more opportunities? Or will authors get fed up with the high cost of clicks and flock to something else? Is the mailing list swap dead? Will group promotions become more sophisticated?
We recorded early this week, since Christmas is on a Tuesday, so we hope you enjoy the show while you’re traveling or after you’ve had fun with the holidays. The three of us answered listener questions that covered the range from what the heck is meta data and SEO to what kind of marketing we plan to try in 2019 and which advertising platforms we’ve found best for their books.
Here’s a list of the questions as well as some Bookbub-related links that Lindsay promised:
How do you market cross-over fiction such as a mix between urban fantasy and near-future-SF?
Is urban fantasy with a lighter humorous note a trend now?
What is meta data and SEO, and does it matter for authors?
How much value is there to in-house promos on the various retailers, such as prime reading on Amazon, the promo tab on Kobo, and Apple and B&N features?
What new will Jo, Jeff, and Lindsay be trying in 2019 in regard to marketing?
Are book blog tours worth your time as an author?
What should you do to build buzz and sell books if you don’t have money to spend on advertising?
Who are the guys’ favorite authors and how did they influence them?
How do you go about improving as a novelist and keeping new books from being too much like what you’ve written before?
Have you tried to publish your audiobooks on Spotify?
Do you need an ISBN for an Amazon paperback and a different one for an IngramSpark paperback?
What’s the biggest thing you learned/realized in 2018, and how will that change your approach to publishing in 2019?
How would you go about calculating ROI for advertising a series that doesn’t have a set reading order? Whenever people talk about this calculation, it always hinges on figuring out your readthrough, but if the series has multiple entry points and you can skip books, what then?
What do you find is the most effective platform for authors for ads?
What marketing avenues would you recommend for authors who aren’t big fans of marketing?
How have your audiobook sales done for your different series? Does releasing a new audiobook for a backlist book help boost sales?
Jo and Lindsay recorded early this week, since Lindsay is off to the 20Booksto50K conference (inspired by Michael Anderle, as Lindsay said in the show, but put together by Craig Martelle, which Lindsay should have said!). While Jeff was busy packing up his house to make his move to Phoenix permanent, Jo and Lindsay offered some tips on how to do well if you choose to go exclusive with Amazon to enroll in Kindle Unlimited. They also answered some great listener questions related to the topic.
Here’s what we discussed, swiped straight from Lindsay’s notes (they aren’t too tidy; you should definitely listen to the show!):
Is KDP Select/Kindle Unlimited right for you?
Personal considerations (supporting Amazon and possibly hurting other retailers, bowing to their demands for exclusivity, having all your eggs in one basket) + can you do better exclusive and in KU than wide = your unique answer!
Lindsay’s strategy and why?
Staying wide with the back catalogue and launching new series into KU, then eventually moving them out when sales/borrows slow down. How this has resulted in a nice boost in income for her without having to have all of her eggs in one basket.
Launch strategies –
Rapid release and advantages – momentum, less reader attrition, possibly more visibility, something in the hot new releases every month, possible to get the All-star bonuses by focusing your efforts into a couple of months.
Slow and steady – maybe releasing two-four books a year on a regular schedule – we’ve had people who have kept things rolling with promos and sales and just consistently releasing new books. KU can still be useful if you’re able to keep your books selling… these folks often invest more time and money into advertising to keep from falling off the face of the planet
Pricing considerations –
99 cents vs. full price – More non-KU people may pick up a 99-center, which helps with rankings, but at that price you’re making less on a novel if people buy instead of borrow.
$4-$5 – People get away with this and are more likely to get a book to stick in KU because of the borrows buoying things up. BUT if your book isn’t to market or really going to appeal to a lot of people, this can make you sink more quickly than a 99-cent Book 1.
Launching with your 5 free days – I haven’t tried this but I’ve heard from several people now who had some good momentum by trying this right out of the gate.
Remember, if you’re doing a series, it’s about what you can earn over the course of the series, not just from one book.
Focusing on one genre and releasingfrequently or at least consistently –
This is an area where I fail a bit, and I would struggle more if I wasn’t fairly prolific. It’s also why I’ve started focusing on one series to completion – drop three quickly and then one more a month or as close as possible. This gives you some of the “sticking to one genre” advantage even if you fully plan to write in another genre next year.
Writing to a hungrymarket –
Look in the Top 100s you’re interested (Chris Fox style) and see what’s selling. What sells steadily year in and year out? What’s come on strong in the past year? Think less about trends and more why is something working – because trad publishing isn’t fulfilling a demand? There’s a possible market.
When examining potential niches, also consider looking at the Amazon AUS/CA store, etc. to get a feel for what’s selling without AMS ads, since that can really obfuscate things – you have no idea how much the publisher of that perennial bestseller is paying to stay in their Top 100.
Can niche stuff work?
Depends on the niche – is there a hungry market that isn’t being served by trad pub or is it just kind of out there? Something that’s only going to appeal to a small audience like a steampunk fantasy lesbian romance? KU isn’t going to be great for something that a large portion of people just won’t pick up because they’re not into X thing. This is the kind of case where I like going wide with a series because you can do a permafree book 1 and reach a global market (sometimes things that are hangups in one country are less of a big deal in others!), so you just have much more potential to find the people who DO want X.
However, if there’s a hungry market, it can do super well in KU even if it’s niche. You need it to be niche in a way that it’s not off-putting to the majority of readers. That’s when KU is useful. “Well, I’m not sure LitRPG is my thing, or even what it is exactly, but huh, it’s about gamers, and I gamed as a kid… enh, let’s try it.” That’s where KU is ideal because the readers can check out the books for free with their subscription, so they might pick up things they wouldn’t have bought because they’re a little outside their wheelhouse.
Making more money from page reads
Everyone wants this, but Amazon is watching for people gaming the system, so be careful not to do anything wonky with formatting or bonus material. Be safe with that stuff so you won’t be penalized, because you don’t want your attempt to earn a couple hundred extra month to suddenly result in you earning nothing.
Probably okay to add the first chapter of the next book (less than 10% bonus material) and a Q&A or afterword, something the reader will genuinely want to read. But remember the litmus test: ask yourself if you would be adding this bonus material if this book weren’t in KU.
Legitimate ways (craft stuff):
Write a page turner!
Write a sprawling epic (it still has to turn pages).
Teaser/cliffhanger endings to get them to move on to the next book.
Listener Questions:
Dale: I’m currently wide, but I’m considering KU for my next series. So, my question: What are some approaches/tactics etc for succeeding in KU when you are *not* rapid releasing?
Greg: (1) Is there a “sweet spot” for how many books to have in a series before profits/page reads start falling off? (2) Better to offer a “standalone” freebie or a more “sequel-lite” novella for funnel, list-building, etc.?
MJ: Would you lean more towards FB or AMS ads if you wanted to focus on drivin up page reads and brand building?
Tara: Pricing strategies, especially for romance, especially for books that can be read as a stand-alone. I don’t like pricing at 99c, but it seems to be the popular way to rank well.
Tara: Oh, any insight into sweet spots for word count, though I do understand that it varies by genre.
Jammie: Thoughts on current “glitches” reflecting zero or low page reads and instances of book disappearance. Seems some (usually successful) authors launch to silence or messed up promos. How do you handle Amazon’s glitches and recover from a bad launch as a result? Wait it out?
Jammie: Watching fb groups and feeling skittish as a newcomer. Investing in marketing and promos with Amazon sort of feels like playing the stock market.
Vale: If you’re exclusive to KU on a pen name but want to release a reader magnet standalone novel set in the same world as the main series, would you make it 99 cents and exclusive for the page reads or go the wide route for just that book to get Amazon to price match it to permafree?
Jon: Since KU subscribers can’t preorder, what’s a good way to get KU subscribers interested pre-launch?
Beth: How do you determine that a series has run its course for page reads and should be removed from KU to go wide?
This week, the guys answered a couple of questions about staying motivated and finishing projects, even when your oh-so-appealing sink full of dishes is distracting you. They talked a bit about their adventures with Amazon advertising and what’s actually working for them now in 2018. They also discussed marketing a stand-alone novel, since Lindsay recently released Fractured Stars, a new space adventure story unrelated to her other series. She shared her numbers and what she did for the launch.
Here are a few of the specifics from their discussion:
Difficulties with piracy and copyright issues.
Using CoverVault.com to create your own 3D boxed set covers.
Getting personalized video shoutouts from celebrities through Cameo.com.
Jo’s jump into Patreon and what he’s offering for subscribers.
Getting the reviews from old editions of books on Amazon when republishing all-new versions.
Tips for keeping yourself from getting distracted when you work from home.
What to do when the story seems boring or bad or just isn’t coming together.
The challenges of making Amazon advertising work.
Scaling AMS ads once you do get them to work.
Why the guys are still big fans of running promos on free Book 1s in long series.
How to price a stand-alone novel and whether to try KDP Select/Kindle Unlimited or start out wide.
Deciding on cover art when your book wasn’t written to any particular market so there aren’t a lot of examples.
Writing a free tie-in short story or novella and publishing it at the same time as your stand-alone novel.
When and how the guys use boosted posts on Facebook.
Using newsletter bonuses to encourage sign-ups at the end of your novel (even a stand-alone novel) so you’re not starting from scratch with the next book.
Why the mailing list trumps all when it comes to advertising and marketing and is the most valuable asset you can build.
Today, the guys took on a batch of listener questions that ran the gamut from what’s the best schedule for a rapid release of a trilogy to what kind of markets we’ve targeted with Facebook advertising to what to do (and not to do) when choosing a book title.
And in case you missed it last week, we have a 30% off coupon code for Brian Meek’s Amazon Ads course. For those interested in signing up, you can use the code of SFFMP30: Mastering Amazon Ads: An Author’s Course
Here’s a look at the questions the guys answered:
What’s the best lag time between books in a trilogy rapid release? Is it best to dump all at once? 1/week, 1/2-weeks, or longer in between.
In your ideal rapid release schedule, how many days/weeks/months apart would you release each new novel in a science fiction series?
Any tips for marketing epic fantasy novellas/novella serials?
How do you decide when a series and it’s spin-offs should end?
How does (Lindsay) keep romance from overtaking an adventure story?
For Facebook marketing, do you find one demographic marker more useful than it’s counter-parts? Ie: is it effective to target age, income, etc, or are your best results from targeting by interest? Do you still boost posts?
Are you planning your calendar for 2019? will you be at any conferences this year? I missed you at the Sell More Books Show summit this year, but I can go next year. 🙂 Do Jo and Jeff attend anything?
Promos: is there a deeper marketing reason to choose to run them only on selected markets, or does a world-wide one mean a world-wide bucket of headaches? (See: yours and Jo’s Bookbub books being at the same time discounted on .com and full price on .it)
Lindsay, I’d love to hear about how the blog-novel went. Did it impact the launch much? How about blog traffic? Was there a bump in your other books via affiliate blog links?
Which writing craft books help/have helped you?
What does your outlining process look like?
What’s your best advice for picking a novel’s title?
How do you decide what genre to list as if it’s a bit of everything?
How do you guys get a universal link for one of your Amazon books (Amazon only), or did you not bother? Specifically a link that will send UK readers to the UK store, US readers to the US store, etc. Or did you provide links for all the separate countries?
I would love to hear an updated list of which promo sites you use.
A lot of Book Funnel/Instafreebie group promos I see all have the same group of books, even if there is a “theme” to the promo. Have you seen anyone having success doing a more targeted and small group promo?
I’d like to hear how Patreon is going. Any tips or anything you’d do differently? (I’ve just set up Patreon with early release books + other rewards like personalized copies via Ingram.)
This week, Lindsay, Jo, and Jeff geared the show toward newer authors getting ready to publish their first books or with a few titles out. They answered some questions and tried to offer advice based on what’s working for folks getting started now.
Here are some of the specifics that were touched on:
More options for photoshop fantasy and science fiction covers with models from NeoStock and Period Images.
Google Play coming on strong as a contender.
Profiting from AMS advertising.
Moving from CreateSpace to KDP Print.
What to do to gain traction when you move from KDP Select and out into the other stores.
What to do when your first book is cross-genre and doesn’t fit well into the current categories on Amazon and other stores.
How do you find a good editor?
Should you try to save up three or more books for rapid release when you’re a new author?
The importance of having realistic expectations.
What you can do to start building up a list of buyers before you launch your first novel.
What are some low-cost advertising options.
What can you do for marketing if you’re shy?
If you’ve written three books in a series and haven’t had much success, should you pull the plug?
What are some of the best marketing services for space opera/SF?
On this week’s show, Jeff, Jo, and Lindsay discussed the information on Data Guy’s slides from his 2018 SFWA presentation in May. The slides are up here if you want to take a look. They also discussed some of the news in the indie world this summer and how the Amazon hammer has been coming down on those partaking in Kindle Unlimited shenanigans. Here are Lindsay’s notes (but you’ll get more out of just looking at the slides!). Also, the tool Jo mentions partway through the episode is KDP Rocket.
Notes from the SFWA 2018 slides:
Adult SF/F sales peaked around 2009 and then, according to Nielson/NPD Bookscan, have been on the decline since.
Result? The SF/F sections in bookstores shrank and author advances did too.
It’s true that after 2009, print sales dropped twice as far as in most other book genres, but digital sales have taken up the slack. While only 25% of overall sales for traditional publishers are ebooks, it’s different with SF/F. Ebooks make up 37% of traditionally published purchases. Add in SF/F audiobook sales, and things seem to be even or even slightly on the rise.
And on the indie/small press side…
SF&F sales by traditional publishers have become the minority. Big Five takes 21% of the pie, Amazon publishing imprints 7%, other small/med/large publishers 9%, and then indie self-pub w/o imprint, with their own imprints, or in indie self-pub collectives make up more 52% (the rest uncategorized stuff).
This is units sold. He looks at dollars earned too.
The average purchase price for a trad published SF/F ebook was $8.04 (May 2017 – April 2018)
For self-pub and Amazon imprints: $3.20 (sweet spot of $4 the highest with $5 right behind it).
Put them together and the average purchase price is $4.43.
How does KU factor in?
$30 million a year in US subscription revenue is from KU which accounts for 25% of non-traditional SF/F ebook dollar sales.
When it comes to money, self-pub SF/F authors are now earning a much larger share of the royalty dollars generated by SF&F books than traditionally published SF&F authors. SF/F sales are disproportionately ebook and audio now – digital. This may explain why incomes of traditionally published and self-published authors appear to be moving in opposite directions.
Most traditionally published SF/F ebooks purchased in the last 12 months were deep backlist titles published prior to 2015. Nontraditional SF/F ebook purchases were mostly frontlist and recent backlist (since 2015).
“What happens when the non-trad “deep backlist” fills in?”
Science Fiction Top subgenres by ebook sales:
Military SF – over 4 million
Adventure SF – just shy of 4 million
Post-Apocalyptic – about 3.5 million
Dystopian – about 3 million
Space Opera – shy of 3 million
Toward the bottom: steampunk, alternative history, LGBT, Humorous
“Traditional publishers outperform in some SF categories but underperform in many of the highest selling ones.”
Fantasy Top subgenres by ebook sales:
Paranormal & urban – over 11 million (PNR/romancy in there but top selling by almost a factor of 2)
Epic fantasy – close to 6.5 million
Sword & sorcery – 4 million
Coming of Age – 3.5 million
Romantic fantasy – 3 million
Toward the bottom: Alternate history, dragons & mythological creatures, humorous, Christian fantasy, Gaslamp
End stuff:
This means SF/F sales (print, ebook, audiobook) are actually significantly up overall from that supposed high point in 2009. A lot. They’ve doubled since 2010 with the majority of sales just going unreported right now and thus understating SF&F true popularity with readers.
Why? Speculation: new SF/F readers, old readers reading more, former used book readers now buying ebooks instead, or former library users brought in because ebooks are more affordably priced?