Apologies for taking five whole days since I last updated this blog. It isn't a sign that my interest is waning in my book writing project. Quite the contrary in fact, I am raring to get stuck in, both in promoting my current book, and starting to get on with writing another.
I have not been selling well the last few days, there has been a definite slow down, but I think that is probably as much as anything to do with the fact that many people still simply do not know about my book, Smugglers at Whistling Sands.
But tonight I had my 17th sale on Amazon.co.uk and I have now had three sales on Amazon.com making 20 in total. When you consider that those sales have come in little over my first month I should not be too displeased. I am now, temporarily no doubt, back in the top 100 bestsellers in the category children's fiction, action and adventure on Amazon.co.uk - just - at #99.
I think I should mention as well, the power of Twitter - I searched on the key word Abersoch on Twitter at the weekend and a few tweets came up from people who had mentioned Abersoch. I sent a personalised tweet to one of them, the woman in question had already heard of my book, was delighted I had got in touch and promptly bought it, once I had explained how. She also told a friend of hers who has since been in touch via Twitter but who wants to wait until I bring out the hard copy of Smugglers (which I will at some stage).
I mentioned how keen I am to plunge myself into my novel writing ambitions. Unfortunately for me, I have been kept very busy at work recently, not only trying to keep up to speed with my own output of columns, leader columns and features, but having to cover for the farming correspondent who is currently off.
And the more work I have to do, the more I daydream about novel-writing and then take even longer getting stuff done. I need to have more self discipline, dear boy, I tell myself. Unfortunately, I don't always listen, not even to myself!
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Another 5-star review . . . but sales dried up today (never mind)
Today I was very pleased to receive my second review - another five stars, from "Bart" who is a regular holidaymaker to Abersoch and loved the book, as did his young daughter. "Bart" is the guy who contacted me via Facebook and has now very kindly repeated his positive comments publicly on my Amazon listing.
Also pleasing, is the fact that someone has already marked it a "helpful" review so all this will help me with future sales.
Talking of which, I have now notched up 15 buyers, but I'm feeling a little disappointed today because I've not had any sales in the last 24 hours and have dropped from hovering just outside the top 5,000 best selling on Kindle to 18,000. You soon get punished if you don't sell books, your ranking drops swiftly, by around 500 an hour. But as I've said before, that is good because it shows that people are buying books on Kindle.
Ultimately, my book will keep selling if it's any good and sales will dry up if it isn't and that is the way it should be.
Also pleasing, is the fact that someone has already marked it a "helpful" review so all this will help me with future sales.
Talking of which, I have now notched up 15 buyers, but I'm feeling a little disappointed today because I've not had any sales in the last 24 hours and have dropped from hovering just outside the top 5,000 best selling on Kindle to 18,000. You soon get punished if you don't sell books, your ranking drops swiftly, by around 500 an hour. But as I've said before, that is good because it shows that people are buying books on Kindle.
Ultimately, my book will keep selling if it's any good and sales will dry up if it isn't and that is the way it should be.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Fantastic message from a reader - makes it all worthwhile!
I won't give his name as his comments weren't posted on a public forum but somebody who has recently bought my book, Smugglers at Whistling Sands, has sent me a message via Facebook to say how much he enjoyed reading it - and also his 10-year-old daughter, who was particularly pleased and proud that she could relate to the photographs I have sprinkled throughout the book.
Furthermore, he stays in a place not too far from where I and my family stay while on holiday at Abersoch - and he's invited me to join him for a beer when I'm next up there. I have, of course, been only too happy to agree!
The buyer has also promised to spread the word about the book, based as you will know, at Abersoch. That sort of thing is crucial to my success as a fledgling novelist. Think of my book like a restaurant you've been to for the first time. If you don't like it, you won't recommend it - but if you do and you tell others about it, then word of mouth can work wonders. I've now had 13 sales and that's pleasing because it shows a steady trickle of orders.
Anyone reading this who are themselves fledgling novelists, do take a look at the site www.authonomy.com run by Harper Collins - it was recommended to me by a fellow writer. Absolutely excellent place to be for anyone seeking help, advice and feedback on their own writing. The only catch being, you need to dole it out to others. But one thing I am fast learning, is the sheer goodwill that exists in the writing community and towards writers.
As you may know, I am a journalist - and the reaction to that when I meet people socially for the first time can often be one of slight unease, curiosity, and a sense of wondering what sort of chap we have here.
No such qualms exist towards novelists, who are much loved by all. I'll raise a glass to that!
Furthermore, he stays in a place not too far from where I and my family stay while on holiday at Abersoch - and he's invited me to join him for a beer when I'm next up there. I have, of course, been only too happy to agree!
The buyer has also promised to spread the word about the book, based as you will know, at Abersoch. That sort of thing is crucial to my success as a fledgling novelist. Think of my book like a restaurant you've been to for the first time. If you don't like it, you won't recommend it - but if you do and you tell others about it, then word of mouth can work wonders. I've now had 13 sales and that's pleasing because it shows a steady trickle of orders.
Anyone reading this who are themselves fledgling novelists, do take a look at the site www.authonomy.com run by Harper Collins - it was recommended to me by a fellow writer. Absolutely excellent place to be for anyone seeking help, advice and feedback on their own writing. The only catch being, you need to dole it out to others. But one thing I am fast learning, is the sheer goodwill that exists in the writing community and towards writers.
As you may know, I am a journalist - and the reaction to that when I meet people socially for the first time can often be one of slight unease, curiosity, and a sense of wondering what sort of chap we have here.
No such qualms exist towards novelists, who are much loved by all. I'll raise a glass to that!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
A five-star review for Smugglers on Amazon
My book picked up a fantastic review last night posted on my Amazon listing from Canadian buyer Martin Jones in Toronto - and it may well be no coincidence that I had two sales overnight, taking me to 9, of which 4 were in the last 12 hours. (Click the Amazon link to my book on the right hand side to see Martin's review and info about the book).
I was sort of dreading my first review so I was delighted to receive such a good one and a couple of criticisms made by Martin were delivered gently and constructively. Book reviews are in the hands of the reader and can be as harsh or as flattering as people wish to deliver them and that's the way it should be.
What particularly pleased me is that he clearly enjoyed Smugglers At Whistling Sands and felt that it had pace and was a page-turner - which is what I wanted. I hope other buyers will also find the time to post reviews and I really do hope I can keep getting the book out there and selling. I am not interested in acquiring riches - what I want is readers!
Martin described my book as "fantastic value" at 86p and said that its low price didn't reflect its quality. He felt it must be a marketing strategy on my part to set the price at that level. He is absolutely right - the marketing strategy is to maximise sales - ie. readers. My research tells me that setting the price low is important for unknown and self-published authors like me if we are to have any hope of readers taking a risk on us. At 86p I am hopefully worth a punt - but why should you pay £4.99 when you've never heard of me before?
Longer term, I would love to make money from writing novels for this very simple reason: if it paid the bills then producing creative fiction is where I want to be. The important point though, is to write for the love of it, and if it pays, it can become the day job. Until then, as the saying goes: don't give up the day job!
I was sort of dreading my first review so I was delighted to receive such a good one and a couple of criticisms made by Martin were delivered gently and constructively. Book reviews are in the hands of the reader and can be as harsh or as flattering as people wish to deliver them and that's the way it should be.
What particularly pleased me is that he clearly enjoyed Smugglers At Whistling Sands and felt that it had pace and was a page-turner - which is what I wanted. I hope other buyers will also find the time to post reviews and I really do hope I can keep getting the book out there and selling. I am not interested in acquiring riches - what I want is readers!
Martin described my book as "fantastic value" at 86p and said that its low price didn't reflect its quality. He felt it must be a marketing strategy on my part to set the price at that level. He is absolutely right - the marketing strategy is to maximise sales - ie. readers. My research tells me that setting the price low is important for unknown and self-published authors like me if we are to have any hope of readers taking a risk on us. At 86p I am hopefully worth a punt - but why should you pay £4.99 when you've never heard of me before?
Longer term, I would love to make money from writing novels for this very simple reason: if it paid the bills then producing creative fiction is where I want to be. The important point though, is to write for the love of it, and if it pays, it can become the day job. Until then, as the saying goes: don't give up the day job!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
A little more about my book based at Abersoch and the Llyn peninsula
A number of people are finding this blog from the Abersoch website www.abersoch.co.uk which is very pleasing and I'd like to give you a quick introduction to the book and its connections to Abersoch and the Llyn or the Lleyn as many people still spell it.
Abersoch and the surrounding area is in my blood - I love the place and have been going there on holiday all my life - so for 44 years to be precise! So when I decided to write a children's adventure novel, the part of the world which has such fond memories for me seemed the obvious location.
The title makes no reference to Abersoch of course, but instead refers to Whistling Sands as in "Smugglers At Whistling Sands". The youngsters who feature in this book are on holiday at Abersoch but they do not just stay put there. Their adventure takes them to a number of places including Whistling Sands obviously but also the St Tudwal's Islands, Aberdaron and Porth Ysgo - a remote beach nearby, and the hillside above. The owners of the Vaynol Arms public house in Abersoch might be pleased (I hope) to discover that their premises features in the novel.
The action centres around the Johnson children, Jack, David and Emily (aged 12, 11 and 10 respectively) and a headstrong girl called Lou whom they meet on the beach. It is she who is the catalyst for these rather dull Johnson siblings to spread their wings a bit. And what better time to do that than when they should happen across the activities of smugglers!
I don't wish to give too much away about the plot but there is quite a lot of realism in this story, for all the fact that it is a rather post-modern children's adventure owing some of its inspiration to Enid Blyton's novels which I enjoyed a great deal as a child.The activities of the smugglers are based on real life occurences and if you do a search on Google at the point when the children do their Google search, you might well come across references to real-life smuggling which was in part the raw material for the book.
My chief hope is that my novel will appeal to youngsters and indeed adults who either have a connection to the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area or enjoy traditional Blytonesque adventure stories. There's a bit more info on the book's Amazon listing - you can find a link to it on the right hand side of this page.
Well I better close for now because I am still trying to hack the bamboo roots out at the front of the house and pretty difficult work it is too. Oh by the way, for those of you who have been following my blog and my efforts to actually sell my book, my sales tally has now risen majestically from four to . . . five! I don't care if that isn't very good, I'm pleased (and if I'm pleased, that's the main thing!).
Right, off to be bamboo-zled (groan).
Abersoch and the surrounding area is in my blood - I love the place and have been going there on holiday all my life - so for 44 years to be precise! So when I decided to write a children's adventure novel, the part of the world which has such fond memories for me seemed the obvious location.
The title makes no reference to Abersoch of course, but instead refers to Whistling Sands as in "Smugglers At Whistling Sands". The youngsters who feature in this book are on holiday at Abersoch but they do not just stay put there. Their adventure takes them to a number of places including Whistling Sands obviously but also the St Tudwal's Islands, Aberdaron and Porth Ysgo - a remote beach nearby, and the hillside above. The owners of the Vaynol Arms public house in Abersoch might be pleased (I hope) to discover that their premises features in the novel.
The action centres around the Johnson children, Jack, David and Emily (aged 12, 11 and 10 respectively) and a headstrong girl called Lou whom they meet on the beach. It is she who is the catalyst for these rather dull Johnson siblings to spread their wings a bit. And what better time to do that than when they should happen across the activities of smugglers!
I don't wish to give too much away about the plot but there is quite a lot of realism in this story, for all the fact that it is a rather post-modern children's adventure owing some of its inspiration to Enid Blyton's novels which I enjoyed a great deal as a child.The activities of the smugglers are based on real life occurences and if you do a search on Google at the point when the children do their Google search, you might well come across references to real-life smuggling which was in part the raw material for the book.
My chief hope is that my novel will appeal to youngsters and indeed adults who either have a connection to the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area or enjoy traditional Blytonesque adventure stories. There's a bit more info on the book's Amazon listing - you can find a link to it on the right hand side of this page.
Well I better close for now because I am still trying to hack the bamboo roots out at the front of the house and pretty difficult work it is too. Oh by the way, for those of you who have been following my blog and my efforts to actually sell my book, my sales tally has now risen majestically from four to . . . five! I don't care if that isn't very good, I'm pleased (and if I'm pleased, that's the main thing!).
Right, off to be bamboo-zled (groan).
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Abersoch's top website tells the world about my book!
I'm delighted to say that www.abersoch.co.uk Abersoch's excellent no.1 website (literally no.1 - check Google) has just announced the existence of my ebook Smugglers At Whistling Sands to the world. They have done so far more effectively than I can.
Search Abersoch on Google, and this website comes up first and in its news section, you will now find a good write up on my book which is of course based at Abersoch and other locations along the Llyn peninsula. The news item contains links both to this blog and to the listing on Amazon.
I think it is a measure of how much I rate being publicsed by this site that I have given them the information about my book exclusively. I have not sought any newspaper publicity for it - I am happy to target it directly towards the two markets which really matter - the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area and lovers of Enid Blyton's books.
I'll blog more very soon on my thoughts about targeted marketing for ebooks, but for now, I better get on with writing of a different kind - newspaper work (which is of course, what pays the bills!).
Search Abersoch on Google, and this website comes up first and in its news section, you will now find a good write up on my book which is of course based at Abersoch and other locations along the Llyn peninsula. The news item contains links both to this blog and to the listing on Amazon.
I think it is a measure of how much I rate being publicsed by this site that I have given them the information about my book exclusively. I have not sought any newspaper publicity for it - I am happy to target it directly towards the two markets which really matter - the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area and lovers of Enid Blyton's books.
I'll blog more very soon on my thoughts about targeted marketing for ebooks, but for now, I better get on with writing of a different kind - newspaper work (which is of course, what pays the bills!).
Another sale, and my thoughts are turning to reviews . . .
I had the fourth sale of Smugglers this afternoon and it is a funny feeling to think that, with the exception of my first buyer, who hails from Canada, I have no idea who the other three are.
Could they be the next door neighbour but one, could it be a family member? A work colleague? The fact is, almost nobody knows about my ebook and all members of my family are under instructions not to buy it off Amazon which is currently the only place I have my it for sale. I simply want to feel that any purchase is a genuine one, ie. one made by a stranger or a sworn enemy or something - not my best mate, or a sympathetic neighbour, or a kindly in-law who feels I need a little encouragement.
And the other thing is, will the book get reviewed - I can be pretty sure one of those buyers will review it but not necessarily the others. I do feel a slight feeling of unease that anyone anywhere in the world can download my book and just read it for themselves. My first buyer, who is himself writing a book, expressed that very emotion in an email to me and it made me realise I feel the same way.
I suppose it is easy to be nervous about any possible criticism but it is through critical appraisal that we all learn and all fledgling novelists should remind themselves that the greatest writers in history have their critics and indeed, from Shakespeare through to the likes of Thomas Hardy, have stuff to their name that is, shall we say, not their best.
It's interesting that my favourite author, George Orwell, so disliked his early two novels A Clergyman's Daughter and Keep The Aspidistra Flying that after early print runs, he refused to allow them to be reprinted in his lifetime. I enjoyed reading both, but in particular, Keep The Aspidistra Flying - a harrowing tale of a struggling writer who could barely make ends meet and felt worthless in the process. There is some very powerful, and at times poetic language by Orwell and I only wish he had written more of this type of book.
Anyway, enough of Mr Orwell for one evening, it is already nearly half past midnight here in North Wales and I could go on about him all night, and after another tiring day on the paper (working from home today though, not the office) I probably ought to get to bed.
Could they be the next door neighbour but one, could it be a family member? A work colleague? The fact is, almost nobody knows about my ebook and all members of my family are under instructions not to buy it off Amazon which is currently the only place I have my it for sale. I simply want to feel that any purchase is a genuine one, ie. one made by a stranger or a sworn enemy or something - not my best mate, or a sympathetic neighbour, or a kindly in-law who feels I need a little encouragement.
And the other thing is, will the book get reviewed - I can be pretty sure one of those buyers will review it but not necessarily the others. I do feel a slight feeling of unease that anyone anywhere in the world can download my book and just read it for themselves. My first buyer, who is himself writing a book, expressed that very emotion in an email to me and it made me realise I feel the same way.
I suppose it is easy to be nervous about any possible criticism but it is through critical appraisal that we all learn and all fledgling novelists should remind themselves that the greatest writers in history have their critics and indeed, from Shakespeare through to the likes of Thomas Hardy, have stuff to their name that is, shall we say, not their best.
It's interesting that my favourite author, George Orwell, so disliked his early two novels A Clergyman's Daughter and Keep The Aspidistra Flying that after early print runs, he refused to allow them to be reprinted in his lifetime. I enjoyed reading both, but in particular, Keep The Aspidistra Flying - a harrowing tale of a struggling writer who could barely make ends meet and felt worthless in the process. There is some very powerful, and at times poetic language by Orwell and I only wish he had written more of this type of book.
Anyway, enough of Mr Orwell for one evening, it is already nearly half past midnight here in North Wales and I could go on about him all night, and after another tiring day on the paper (working from home today though, not the office) I probably ought to get to bed.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Sales of my Abersoch based ebook triple!
Oh yes, you can prove anything with statistics, can't you! Mind you I'm easily pleased where my ebook Smugglers At Whistling Sands is concerned. I had my second sale yesterday and my third sale about an hour ago. That's right I've sold three copies (since July 21, 2011).
It's great news. I was thinking I was going to go down in history as the only person to write a book and have no sales at all. So I'm very chuffed that I have made this progress. Here's to sale number 4!
My prediction yesterday that I was to end up on enforced gardening leave all day, so to speak, proved accurate. I ended up chopping down the enormous runaway bamboo bush outside our dining room windows. It was becoming a bit of an eyesore and it looks a lot better now. Still got the roots to dig out though - I'm hoping bamboo roots don't go down too deep. And today I was back at work at my beloved newspaper, writing a personal column and a leader column and finishing off a double-page feature which should have been sorted on Friday but wasn't. It had to be finished today because it's going in tomorrow's paper - a deadline is a wonderful thing.
I was thinking of sketching out a bit of plot for another book I'm hoping to get started on on the train coming back but it was a bit packed, and I was a bit tired so I settled down to read Quentin Letts' 50 People Who Buggered Up Britain. Very amusing and apt it is too - particularly reading it in the wake of the riots which have buggered up Britain even more of course.
Quentin Letts is an excellent, fluid writer - I recommend him to those of you unacquainted with his skilful prose. That said, it's a pity he's not prime minister.
It's great news. I was thinking I was going to go down in history as the only person to write a book and have no sales at all. So I'm very chuffed that I have made this progress. Here's to sale number 4!
My prediction yesterday that I was to end up on enforced gardening leave all day, so to speak, proved accurate. I ended up chopping down the enormous runaway bamboo bush outside our dining room windows. It was becoming a bit of an eyesore and it looks a lot better now. Still got the roots to dig out though - I'm hoping bamboo roots don't go down too deep. And today I was back at work at my beloved newspaper, writing a personal column and a leader column and finishing off a double-page feature which should have been sorted on Friday but wasn't. It had to be finished today because it's going in tomorrow's paper - a deadline is a wonderful thing.
I was thinking of sketching out a bit of plot for another book I'm hoping to get started on on the train coming back but it was a bit packed, and I was a bit tired so I settled down to read Quentin Letts' 50 People Who Buggered Up Britain. Very amusing and apt it is too - particularly reading it in the wake of the riots which have buggered up Britain even more of course.
Quentin Letts is an excellent, fluid writer - I recommend him to those of you unacquainted with his skilful prose. That said, it's a pity he's not prime minister.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Why I don't want to mow the lawn today
It's Sunday afternoon, 12.20pm (BST) and the smell of roast beef is wafting from the kitchen through to the lounge where I sit with my laptop on my knees typing this. But on pain of not getting any Sunday lunch my wife requires me to get out of my chair, into the garden and mow the lawn. After lunch, there will probably a number of other horticultural tasks available for me to do, in addition to helping look after our young kids aged 4 and 3.
At the risk of stating the obvious, I don't want to mow the ruddy lawn! I want to be working on book-related things. I have got a number of ideas for pushing my Smugglers children's book and I also want to be rolling up my sleeves thinking up ideas for book number two.
And yet, an afternoon in the garden beckons. Ok, that's not such a terrible chore, I'm just mindful of the fact that today is Sunday, I'm sailing through it fast, I spent all yesterday helping my parents who were taking part in Open Garden Day to raise money for their village church and tomorrow, I'm sorry to tell you, is MONDAY again.
When oh when will get some quality time to work at being a novelist? I just have to make time I suppose. And now my wife has summoned me to the kitchen to help prepare lunch. Oh well . . .
At the risk of stating the obvious, I don't want to mow the ruddy lawn! I want to be working on book-related things. I have got a number of ideas for pushing my Smugglers children's book and I also want to be rolling up my sleeves thinking up ideas for book number two.
And yet, an afternoon in the garden beckons. Ok, that's not such a terrible chore, I'm just mindful of the fact that today is Sunday, I'm sailing through it fast, I spent all yesterday helping my parents who were taking part in Open Garden Day to raise money for their village church and tomorrow, I'm sorry to tell you, is MONDAY again.
When oh when will get some quality time to work at being a novelist? I just have to make time I suppose. And now my wife has summoned me to the kitchen to help prepare lunch. Oh well . . .
The value of building friendships for aspiring and unknown novelists
As I am now finding out, trying to make it as a novelist when no-one knows you or what you've written is a tough battle. But it should be remembered that numerous others are also treading the same path and there is so much we can all learn from each other.
You could be negative about this and see it as unwanted competition but that's not my view. To me, other wannabe novelists are friends, not enemies. I am happy to help others to get their books out there in front of the reading public and happy also to tap into their advice..
As you'll know from my recent posts, I have acquired my first buyer for my Abersoch-based ebook Smugglers At Whistling Sands. He has also given me some excellent advice - namely the importance of making one's book or extracts of it available to online reviewers, many of whom will themselves be aspiring novelists - and receiving constructive advice and criticism from the community. Furthermore, that there are more avenues to explore than just selling one's ebook on Amazon.
Someone who has often been a source of inspiration for me to further my ambitions as a novelist is Keith Robinson, who is British but now lives in America and who has recently completed a trilogy of fantasy novels in his Island of Fog series about apparently normal youngsters who develop special powers and who can transform themselves into mythical creatures.
He is also the brains behind an excellent Enid Blyton tribute website, very much underpinned by his own love of Blyton's tales. Keith also writes a regular blog http://www.unearthlytales.com which tells of the ups and downs along his own road to become a recognised author - at this stage self-published but hopeful of winning a publishing deal one day.
Following on from a reply to one of his recent posts, Keith has invited me to plug my book on his Enid Blyton website http://www.EnidBlyton.net This will undoubtedly be a big help. Keith's site is hugely popular among Enid Blyton fans and as best-selling Kindle author John Locke points out, a key element to marketing your books is to know where that market is and target it. And my book is the sort that fans of Enid Blyton may well like (if I say so myself!).
So I am feeling very heartened by the response both from Keith and from my first buyer. Making friends and chatting with lke-minded "indie" authors can be hugely helpful and very rewarding.
You could be negative about this and see it as unwanted competition but that's not my view. To me, other wannabe novelists are friends, not enemies. I am happy to help others to get their books out there in front of the reading public and happy also to tap into their advice..
As you'll know from my recent posts, I have acquired my first buyer for my Abersoch-based ebook Smugglers At Whistling Sands. He has also given me some excellent advice - namely the importance of making one's book or extracts of it available to online reviewers, many of whom will themselves be aspiring novelists - and receiving constructive advice and criticism from the community. Furthermore, that there are more avenues to explore than just selling one's ebook on Amazon.
Someone who has often been a source of inspiration for me to further my ambitions as a novelist is Keith Robinson, who is British but now lives in America and who has recently completed a trilogy of fantasy novels in his Island of Fog series about apparently normal youngsters who develop special powers and who can transform themselves into mythical creatures.
He is also the brains behind an excellent Enid Blyton tribute website, very much underpinned by his own love of Blyton's tales. Keith also writes a regular blog http://www.unearthlytales.com which tells of the ups and downs along his own road to become a recognised author - at this stage self-published but hopeful of winning a publishing deal one day.
Following on from a reply to one of his recent posts, Keith has invited me to plug my book on his Enid Blyton website http://www.EnidBlyton.net This will undoubtedly be a big help. Keith's site is hugely popular among Enid Blyton fans and as best-selling Kindle author John Locke points out, a key element to marketing your books is to know where that market is and target it. And my book is the sort that fans of Enid Blyton may well like (if I say so myself!).
So I am feeling very heartened by the response both from Keith and from my first buyer. Making friends and chatting with lke-minded "indie" authors can be hugely helpful and very rewarding.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Hodder's modernised editions of Enid Blyton's Famous Five series
Call me a journalist! I can't believe that I have only just found out that Enid Blyton's wonderful Famous Five series has been relaunched by publishers Hodder with their language updated (and no doubt, any remaining political incorrectness excised).
This decision was taken a full year ago and hit the papers and I'm beginning to wonder which part of the moon I must have been holidaying on to have completely missed this. I loved the Famous Fives as a child, and frankly still do as an adult. They were in part the inspiration for my book, Smugglers At Whistling Sands which, you might feel, has a somewhat Blytonesque touch to it.
And yes, for sure, my dialogue is up to date and the kids calls their parents mum and dad not mother and father but then I wrote it in the 21st century. Why is it necessary to go back to books penned in the 1940s and 1950s and make such changes? Should we do the same to Dickens so that he can reach a more modern audience who perhaps struggle with the concept of a world before the motorcar was invented?
What Hodder's decision does show, however, loud and clear, is that there is still a market for the kind of wholesome, "normal" if I may use that word, children's adventure story. Personally I feel that many children's authors of today feel that such tales are hopelessly dated and old fashioned and that today's youngsters won't be interested unless some fire-breathing dragon hoves into view each chapter.
I have tried in my book to give children back the kind of adventure story that Blyton wrote for them - albeit I feel with an attempt at rather more realism than she strived for. Whether I have been successful or not is for others to judge, but that has been my aim.
Has anyone seen these new re-written Famous Five books? I would be interested in your opinion. I shall share my views when I have got hold of a couple of copies.
This decision was taken a full year ago and hit the papers and I'm beginning to wonder which part of the moon I must have been holidaying on to have completely missed this. I loved the Famous Fives as a child, and frankly still do as an adult. They were in part the inspiration for my book, Smugglers At Whistling Sands which, you might feel, has a somewhat Blytonesque touch to it.
And yes, for sure, my dialogue is up to date and the kids calls their parents mum and dad not mother and father but then I wrote it in the 21st century. Why is it necessary to go back to books penned in the 1940s and 1950s and make such changes? Should we do the same to Dickens so that he can reach a more modern audience who perhaps struggle with the concept of a world before the motorcar was invented?
What Hodder's decision does show, however, loud and clear, is that there is still a market for the kind of wholesome, "normal" if I may use that word, children's adventure story. Personally I feel that many children's authors of today feel that such tales are hopelessly dated and old fashioned and that today's youngsters won't be interested unless some fire-breathing dragon hoves into view each chapter.
I have tried in my book to give children back the kind of adventure story that Blyton wrote for them - albeit I feel with an attempt at rather more realism than she strived for. Whether I have been successful or not is for others to judge, but that has been my aim.
Has anyone seen these new re-written Famous Five books? I would be interested in your opinion. I shall share my views when I have got hold of a couple of copies.
I got it! My first sale
Yes! It's official, I've found out this morning that I have had my first sale! It's to a chap in Canada who is also writing his own children's novel and who's given me a couple of interesting ideas for getting the book read by people and reviewed. I enclose the evidence below from Amazon.co.uk:
Of course, you may be reading this and thinking, that it's pretty bad having only sold one book three weeks after publishing it. To that I would point out that the likes of John Locke had pretty poor sales at the start too. The first thing any unknown author needs to know loud and clear about succeeding, is that it is incredibly hard. The trick is not to give up - at least to give it a good go.
As I said in an early post, I am not that bothered whether I make it as a novelist, but I will be very bothered if I go through life feeling that I never tried. Now, I have a question for you: who is going to be my SECOND customer?
- Format: Kindle Edition
- File Size: 722 KB
- Publisher: Overton Press (21 July 2011)
- Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.Ã r.l.
- Language English
- ASIN: B005E0AK2O
- Average Customer Review: Be the first to review this item
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #10,985 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
Of course, you may be reading this and thinking, that it's pretty bad having only sold one book three weeks after publishing it. To that I would point out that the likes of John Locke had pretty poor sales at the start too. The first thing any unknown author needs to know loud and clear about succeeding, is that it is incredibly hard. The trick is not to give up - at least to give it a good go.
As I said in an early post, I am not that bothered whether I make it as a novelist, but I will be very bothered if I go through life feeling that I never tried. Now, I have a question for you: who is going to be my SECOND customer?
Thursday, August 11, 2011
I think I'm poised to get my first sale . . .!
Yes folks, you read it here first! I think I might be about to get my first ever sale of my Abersoch-based ebook Smugglers at Whistling Sands on Amazon.
Quite a while ago, I sold a few chapters of the book while still unfinished, on eBay, actually printing them out in mini magazine format and selling them in parts, each containing two chapters each. It was not the most efficient or effective way to do it and ran aground in large part because I realised I wanted to re-edit the book as I was writing it.
However, a chap who bought a few of those opening chapters never entirely gave up on me and has rediscovered my book now that I have launched it on Amazon's Kindle in electronic format. It's pleasing to think that here was somebody who liked the thing enough to still remember my book and look out for it on the web, hoping one day it would get finished. And on that note, my book, although recently published, was started a good while ago in 2006 but then dropped before getting sorted out some two years later.
As I think I mentioned in an earlier post, I got it to one traditional publisher, only for it to be rejected, albeit politely, and I then put it on the back burner, until Kindle Direct Publishing and ebooks came along.
Oh and I've also had a very nice reply from a lady via Facebook who responded to my Facebook campaign targeting a number of individuals in Abersoch to let them know about the novel. No-one has moaned at me for "spamming" them so I think I may send out a few more Facebook messages. After all, isn't that really what social networking is all about - to allow people to contact those that they don't know but with whom they have something in common?
Anyway, here's looking forward to My First Sale - I'll let you know when it happens!
Quite a while ago, I sold a few chapters of the book while still unfinished, on eBay, actually printing them out in mini magazine format and selling them in parts, each containing two chapters each. It was not the most efficient or effective way to do it and ran aground in large part because I realised I wanted to re-edit the book as I was writing it.
However, a chap who bought a few of those opening chapters never entirely gave up on me and has rediscovered my book now that I have launched it on Amazon's Kindle in electronic format. It's pleasing to think that here was somebody who liked the thing enough to still remember my book and look out for it on the web, hoping one day it would get finished. And on that note, my book, although recently published, was started a good while ago in 2006 but then dropped before getting sorted out some two years later.
As I think I mentioned in an earlier post, I got it to one traditional publisher, only for it to be rejected, albeit politely, and I then put it on the back burner, until Kindle Direct Publishing and ebooks came along.
Oh and I've also had a very nice reply from a lady via Facebook who responded to my Facebook campaign targeting a number of individuals in Abersoch to let them know about the novel. No-one has moaned at me for "spamming" them so I think I may send out a few more Facebook messages. After all, isn't that really what social networking is all about - to allow people to contact those that they don't know but with whom they have something in common?
Anyway, here's looking forward to My First Sale - I'll let you know when it happens!
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Traditional methods of publishing remain important
A contact of mine at the Oxford University Press has suggested I send some chapters of my manuscript to them for consideration. The OUP aims to give a two-month decision which is quicker than quite a few people.
Certainly my decision to self publish through Amazon's Kindle shouldn't persuade me to close my mind to traditional publishing methods which is likely to remain important well into the electronic age. In fact, I can't envisage a time when reading a book on paper and ink will ever be replaced by the e-book era. The popularity of e-books simply gives all authors, particularly indie authors, more options than before.
I am pleased to see I am gaining more presence on Google, both my name George Chedzoy and the name of my book, Smugglers At Whistling Sands, are easily searchable. The not so good news is that this blog has not achieved many hits and I have no reason to think anyone has actually yet found my book listing on Amazon, let alone actually taken the leap and paid 86p for it (USD $1.41).
But these are early days, anyone who knows the story of John Locke and Amanda Hocking, will realise that their starts were extremely slow and faltering. For those who don't know, both have gone on to sell more than one million e-books. Indeed, it was the e-book market which saved Amanda Hocking's dream of becoming a novelist - after having suffered countless rejections from traditional publishers.
The worst crime a rookie author can commit is to give up - the journey to making it as an author is a long and rocky one, but I am determined to forge ahead.
Certainly my decision to self publish through Amazon's Kindle shouldn't persuade me to close my mind to traditional publishing methods which is likely to remain important well into the electronic age. In fact, I can't envisage a time when reading a book on paper and ink will ever be replaced by the e-book era. The popularity of e-books simply gives all authors, particularly indie authors, more options than before.
I am pleased to see I am gaining more presence on Google, both my name George Chedzoy and the name of my book, Smugglers At Whistling Sands, are easily searchable. The not so good news is that this blog has not achieved many hits and I have no reason to think anyone has actually yet found my book listing on Amazon, let alone actually taken the leap and paid 86p for it (USD $1.41).
But these are early days, anyone who knows the story of John Locke and Amanda Hocking, will realise that their starts were extremely slow and faltering. For those who don't know, both have gone on to sell more than one million e-books. Indeed, it was the e-book market which saved Amanda Hocking's dream of becoming a novelist - after having suffered countless rejections from traditional publishers.
The worst crime a rookie author can commit is to give up - the journey to making it as an author is a long and rocky one, but I am determined to forge ahead.
Sunday, August 07, 2011
Marketing my Kindle ebook feels like a tough call
You know how it is when you're trying to roll a boulder uphill? No nor me, but I would guess it feels something like I do now. I just feel like I don't really know how to market my book and any attempts that I make are like cries in the desert, unheard by anyone.
Yesterday I adopted a direct marketing approach to pushing Smugglers At Whistling Sands. I contacted around 50 people with connections to Abersoch via Facebook. I didn't spam them by saying "please buy my book, it's just 86p." I would like them to, of course, but above all I just wanted them to know of its existence and that it is set in a place they know and probably love. Furthermore, I didn't choose them at random, but rather because they seemed the right sort of people whom it was worth contacting. Perhaps, if they tell others, news of its existence will spread by word of mouth.
So far, I have no reason to think that this approach will be successful however, indeed it might backfire, so I probably won't continue with it for now unlessI feel it does yield something positive. I have had no responses from anyone, but on the other hand, I've not had any complaints either.
The other thing I looked into today, was offering my ebook for free via Amazon's Kindle store as a limited promotion, on the basis that at this stage it isn't royalties I'm after, but readers. There are, after all, quite a number of pretty interesting looking books which are available via Kindle for free. But this is not an easy route to go down, I have discovered.
Kindle Direct Publishing does not allow authors to offer their books for free. You must charge the minimum of 86p (75p +VAT) on Amazon.co.uk and its equivalment on Amazon.com and Amazon.de. The reason a number of books appear on Amazon for free is because the company is committed to beating or at least matching the lowest price, so if Amazon finds your work is free elsewhere, it chooses to reduce your price to zero. But you can't do it yourself.
Maybe that is a route I should not be tempted down anyway. I spent a lot of time writing the 45,000 words to be found in Smugglers At Whistling Sands. I'm only asking 86p for it in any case. I've just got to keep finding strategies of driving people to my book.
Anything that works for me, I will gladly share with readers of this blog. In exchange, let me know what is working for you - I do hope something is!
Yesterday I adopted a direct marketing approach to pushing Smugglers At Whistling Sands. I contacted around 50 people with connections to Abersoch via Facebook. I didn't spam them by saying "please buy my book, it's just 86p." I would like them to, of course, but above all I just wanted them to know of its existence and that it is set in a place they know and probably love. Furthermore, I didn't choose them at random, but rather because they seemed the right sort of people whom it was worth contacting. Perhaps, if they tell others, news of its existence will spread by word of mouth.
So far, I have no reason to think that this approach will be successful however, indeed it might backfire, so I probably won't continue with it for now unlessI feel it does yield something positive. I have had no responses from anyone, but on the other hand, I've not had any complaints either.
The other thing I looked into today, was offering my ebook for free via Amazon's Kindle store as a limited promotion, on the basis that at this stage it isn't royalties I'm after, but readers. There are, after all, quite a number of pretty interesting looking books which are available via Kindle for free. But this is not an easy route to go down, I have discovered.
Kindle Direct Publishing does not allow authors to offer their books for free. You must charge the minimum of 86p (75p +VAT) on Amazon.co.uk and its equivalment on Amazon.com and Amazon.de. The reason a number of books appear on Amazon for free is because the company is committed to beating or at least matching the lowest price, so if Amazon finds your work is free elsewhere, it chooses to reduce your price to zero. But you can't do it yourself.
Maybe that is a route I should not be tempted down anyway. I spent a lot of time writing the 45,000 words to be found in Smugglers At Whistling Sands. I'm only asking 86p for it in any case. I've just got to keep finding strategies of driving people to my book.
Anything that works for me, I will gladly share with readers of this blog. In exchange, let me know what is working for you - I do hope something is!
Saturday, August 06, 2011
Abersoch's top website to give my book a mention next week
Good news - Abersoch's top website, www.abersoch.co.uk, is going to give Smugglers At Whistling Sands a mention next week in its news section. I think that will really help get the word out in the Abersoch area about my book. You only have to Google the word Abersoch and out of more than a million entries, abersoch.co.uk is the one that comes up in pole position.
I think the starting point for selling this book has to be places like Abersoch, Aberdaron and the Llyn peninsula as a whole. It could appeal to children anywhere in the world who like this type of adventure story, but it's got most chance among the thousands of holidaymakers who flock to this area every year. If I can get them on board, maybe word of mouth can help push my fortunes out to wider frontiers.
What I could really do with doing is to spend the next month solidly pushing it and marketing it - and making a start on book 2 of course. Sadly however, such an approach is the preserve of full-time novelists, not new wannabes like me. On Monday after a two-week break, I must return to my occupation: that of being a journalist on a regional newspaper. It's still writing and writing is what I enjoy, but I would love to make it as a novelist as well as a hack!
I think the starting point for selling this book has to be places like Abersoch, Aberdaron and the Llyn peninsula as a whole. It could appeal to children anywhere in the world who like this type of adventure story, but it's got most chance among the thousands of holidaymakers who flock to this area every year. If I can get them on board, maybe word of mouth can help push my fortunes out to wider frontiers.
What I could really do with doing is to spend the next month solidly pushing it and marketing it - and making a start on book 2 of course. Sadly however, such an approach is the preserve of full-time novelists, not new wannabes like me. On Monday after a two-week break, I must return to my occupation: that of being a journalist on a regional newspaper. It's still writing and writing is what I enjoy, but I would love to make it as a novelist as well as a hack!
Thursday, August 04, 2011
New lower price for my Kindle ebook set at Abersoch!
Tempting though it is to go for Amazon's 70% royalty from sales, I have decided instead to accept the lower commission rate of 35%, allowing me to drop the price of my ebook Smugglers At Whistling Sands from £1.71 to just 86 pence. Yes it's a shame that I will only pick up a royalty of some 26p from that from any sales on Kindle, compared to £1 but right at this moment, making money from my book is a secondary consideration. What I really want is sales.
And so far, I have not sold a single book of my children's adventure novel set at Abersoch on the Llyn peninsula of North Wales. Is my price drop a sign that I don't think it's worth £1.71? No of coures not. If anything I believe it is worth far more than this, but unknown authors like me need to take a reality check.
Why should you, reading this, risk shelling out £1.71 on someone you've never heard of before? It seems more reasonable to ask you to part with 86p on the basis that, in the event that you hate my book, it is not a huge amount to lose. When you consider how John Locke and Amanda Hocking started out - they offered their books at very cheap prices. Now that they are well known and have got tens of thousands of sales, they can charge more because they have a following.
And the other thing to bear in mind, of course, is that writing novels has got to be about more than making, or trying to make, money. It has got to be about the love of books. If somebody reads my book free of charge, right to the end, they have paid me the huge compliment of investing their time into bothering with my efforts when there are so many other writers out there.
And so far, I have not sold a single book of my children's adventure novel set at Abersoch on the Llyn peninsula of North Wales. Is my price drop a sign that I don't think it's worth £1.71? No of coures not. If anything I believe it is worth far more than this, but unknown authors like me need to take a reality check.
Why should you, reading this, risk shelling out £1.71 on someone you've never heard of before? It seems more reasonable to ask you to part with 86p on the basis that, in the event that you hate my book, it is not a huge amount to lose. When you consider how John Locke and Amanda Hocking started out - they offered their books at very cheap prices. Now that they are well known and have got tens of thousands of sales, they can charge more because they have a following.
And the other thing to bear in mind, of course, is that writing novels has got to be about more than making, or trying to make, money. It has got to be about the love of books. If somebody reads my book free of charge, right to the end, they have paid me the huge compliment of investing their time into bothering with my efforts when there are so many other writers out there.
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
The Start of a Journey
The journey, to be precise, is towards the promised land of being a published novelist. I already have made it into print as a journalist, writing features and personal columns in the UK regional press.
But like many hacks, I yearn to make it as an author. I want this blog to chart that journey from the very beginning. The first big step towards being a novelist is to write a novel and I have done that. I have written a full-length 45,000 word children's adventure story called Smugglers At Whistling Sands set in Abersoch, North Wales. The next enormous step is to get it published and so far I have sent the opening chapters to one publisher and been rejected, albeit politely.
My next move should have been to push it towards other publishers and agents but a few weeks ago I discovered Amazon's e-book self-publishing service Kindle Direct Publishing. And I thought: what a potentially amazing idea. And then I learned of the success of people like John Locke and Amanda Hocking who have sold more than a million copies each exclusively through Kindle.
Personally, I never thought e-books would take off but they clearly have and that opens up great possibilities for unknown, self published writers. And so I have for now made the decision to publish my book via Amazon's Kindle. That's not to say that I won't try to get it out there as paper and ink, but for now I am happy to try and promote it as an e-book.
The research I have done into self publishing via Kindle throws up a mixed bag of some authors enjoying regular sales and others not doing half so well. One thing we must all bear in mind is that you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink. In other words, if our books are, frankly, not very good then ultimately, they will not meet with much success.
But what a service like Amazon's Kindle does, via the magic of the internet, is to give people the chance to read your book almost instantly if they should wish - and, one would have thought, cheaply if you are an unknown.
On that note, an unknown is very much what I am. The world does not know George Chedzoy, nor Smugglers At Whistling Sands. Nobody seems to know that it is now available on Amazon for the reasonable sum of £1.71. Not a single person has bought a copy of it since I uploaded it about 10 days ago. I am not aware of anyone in the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area of North Wales where the book is set knowing a thing about it.
To date, my book has only been read by my wife, my mum, my dad, and my best friend. My goal is to get at least a few people out there, in the world beyond the fields which surround my house in North Wales to take an interest in it, purchase it and hopefully, to enjoy it. My other goal is to get on with the task of writing more books, the next one possibly aimed at the adult market.
So you join me right at the very start of a difficult journey. You may be in the same position yourself, hoping to launch your first-ever book. If you are like me, you won't care if you never make it, you'll only care that you never tried. Here's to having a go!
But like many hacks, I yearn to make it as an author. I want this blog to chart that journey from the very beginning. The first big step towards being a novelist is to write a novel and I have done that. I have written a full-length 45,000 word children's adventure story called Smugglers At Whistling Sands set in Abersoch, North Wales. The next enormous step is to get it published and so far I have sent the opening chapters to one publisher and been rejected, albeit politely.
My next move should have been to push it towards other publishers and agents but a few weeks ago I discovered Amazon's e-book self-publishing service Kindle Direct Publishing. And I thought: what a potentially amazing idea. And then I learned of the success of people like John Locke and Amanda Hocking who have sold more than a million copies each exclusively through Kindle.
Personally, I never thought e-books would take off but they clearly have and that opens up great possibilities for unknown, self published writers. And so I have for now made the decision to publish my book via Amazon's Kindle. That's not to say that I won't try to get it out there as paper and ink, but for now I am happy to try and promote it as an e-book.
The research I have done into self publishing via Kindle throws up a mixed bag of some authors enjoying regular sales and others not doing half so well. One thing we must all bear in mind is that you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink. In other words, if our books are, frankly, not very good then ultimately, they will not meet with much success.
But what a service like Amazon's Kindle does, via the magic of the internet, is to give people the chance to read your book almost instantly if they should wish - and, one would have thought, cheaply if you are an unknown.
On that note, an unknown is very much what I am. The world does not know George Chedzoy, nor Smugglers At Whistling Sands. Nobody seems to know that it is now available on Amazon for the reasonable sum of £1.71. Not a single person has bought a copy of it since I uploaded it about 10 days ago. I am not aware of anyone in the Abersoch / Llyn peninsula area of North Wales where the book is set knowing a thing about it.
To date, my book has only been read by my wife, my mum, my dad, and my best friend. My goal is to get at least a few people out there, in the world beyond the fields which surround my house in North Wales to take an interest in it, purchase it and hopefully, to enjoy it. My other goal is to get on with the task of writing more books, the next one possibly aimed at the adult market.
So you join me right at the very start of a difficult journey. You may be in the same position yourself, hoping to launch your first-ever book. If you are like me, you won't care if you never make it, you'll only care that you never tried. Here's to having a go!
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Welcome to my new blog
Thank you for finding my new blog. I've set this up primarily as a wannabe novelist who has just written a full-length children's novel called Smugglers At Whistling Sands, set on the Lleyn peninsula of North Wales. I also hope to chart my journey from being completely unpublished to - possibly - making it as a writer of fiction.
There is so much more I wish to say, but I'm on a promise to my wife to cook the evening meal, which as it is 7pm here in North Wales, I had better go and do right away!
I'll post again very soon.
There is so much more I wish to say, but I'm on a promise to my wife to cook the evening meal, which as it is 7pm here in North Wales, I had better go and do right away!
I'll post again very soon.
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