I put a question mark after it because it’s always a question, right?
What works now and will keep working so I can just focus on WTDT. (Writing the Damn Thing)
Because based on a couple of years doing this, nothing sells your last book like the next one.
Seems like you read that somewhere before? Yeah, there’s a reason it’s repeated over and over. Because that is the one marketing thing any writer can do, and should do that will help you grow your business.
I know we like to say there’s no ONE path up the mountain, but for 99% of us, the best way to get up the mountain is to write more than one book. Lots of books with lots of opportunities to find readers.
Plus, the more you write, the better you get. I think that’s a good path too.
Let me tell you about a path I took.
This Corona thing has me a little stressed out. I’m not really a data junkie, but I do study charts and graphs and know how to read data. Which helps me in this business of writing.
Sometimes.
The data tells me we’re in for a rough 8 weeks in the US. I tend to err on the side of conservative so I wondered what I could do to help my readers.
First path up the mountain is ALWAYS TAKE ACTION.
Words on a page are better than an idea in your head, even if they are crappy words.
I wanted to give something to my readers.
I decided to put almost my entire catalog in KU for FREE for 1 day.
I have a big backlist. A couple of series in sci fi, post apoc, thriller and UF.
Second path up the mountain is don’t GENRE HOP.
But I did, and here we are, and now I have readers who clamor for the “next in series or when is the next book coming out” in four different genres.
Sigh. This is the Don’t be like me moment.
Back to the marketing that might have worked.
I put everything for Free. Almost everything. A couple of titles had been promo’d in 1Q so couldn’t.
I wrote a short note to my mailing list titled: This is the shortest note I’ll ever write.
Side note: My list is around 8k, roughly 2k per genre, except UF, which is 1.2k. I write my list about a lot of stuff. Personal thoughts. 8 year old baseball games. The dumb dog.
If you want to know how to do great newsletters, write it like you’re writing a note to your BFF who knows all your secrets. It gets good response rates.
I scheduled the email to go out in the morning.
Then I tracked. Cause I’m as addicted to clicking refresh as an Everest mountaineer is to her oxygen tank.
3k giveaways by noon. 5k by 7.
I tweeted it. I posted it on Instagram. I LinkedIn it.
One of my readers posted it on FB and shared it.
I didn’t. Let’s chalk that up to a miss. I should have, first thing, and boosted the post for 1 day to a look alike audience for $5 or $10.
Oxygen deprived minds make dumb decisions sometimes.
I ended the night with 6425 giveaways, and woke up to 342 more this am.
78 book sales. Not a bad day.
I know KDP days work well for my titles, and usually do a 4 or 5 day promo when I publish.
This tells me a lot of folks missed those days.
They got a smile and hopefully, a book they’ll enjoy. I got a boost in author ranking, and picked up 8 new NL subscribers.
These numbers were spread out by genre and over 40 titles, but I learned something from my list data.
ONE: The post apoc fans (16 books in the series) are the most vocal and engaged.
Maybe because I’ve put out 16 in the series.
They want the next book NOW!
My follow on marketing is a 3 book mini-series in the series out in April/May. I showed them the covers and got some pretty salacious emails back. Plus, don’t tell them, but I’m almost done with the next book in the main series and I’m gonna surprise drop it to them next week. Sshhh.
This was planned pre-Corona/Covid, but I’m encouraged by the numbers. Let’s see how it plays out.
TWO: The most downloads were the UF series. Are they used to free stuff or is that market trending up?
I had a mystery thriller series planned and written (6 books, 3 done) and was encouraged by the K-lytics report that said this was a strong market-
But I have no list there, so it’s new to me. (I put up a reader magnet on Prolific and StoryOrigin to build a list, but it’s in a growth phase)
I have great covers in the UF series, and wish I could clone myself to write both genres at the same time. Or two clones, so I could do three.
I’m afraid that would turn into a whole clone war, and that’s copyright infringement and who wants to go down THAT road?
Not this original.
The follow on marketing for this Big Day Giveaway is to finish the next books in the post apoc series and pop them up.
Do a couple of free paid promo sites.
The takeaway. Use your KDP days and make it fun. Reward your readers. Treat ‘em like gold. It’s stuff we know, but may not remember to practice.
Also, don’t be afraid to do something big. Giving away 40 titles?! How does that make me money?
Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn’t.
I am all about the money, but I’m also about building a fan base that tweets me, FB’s me, Insta’s me, and sends me emails begging for the next book AND telling the people they know about it.
Five years ago today, I biked down a volcano in Hawaii.
It was the day after running a marathon, so I figured I’d be safe.
It was mostly braking, some coasting, and trying not to fall 90% of the time.
Still, it was a cool adventure.
I car camped the night after, sleeping next to a beach as waves crashed on the shore.
This morning, I wasn’t sure if I planned to even go outside.
The temp was 17 when I woke up, and warmed all the way up to 29 when the sun peeked over the edge of the eastern horizon.
That’s where it planned to stay, according to the professional liars who masqueraded as weathermen.
I was reminded of my Hawaiian adventure by Facebook, who is kind enough to document my day with photo and post and even video, should I so choose.
And then, forever, my adventures are etched into the interwebs, brought up once a year to remind me of what I once did.
Or in this case, how awesome I was, just five short years ago.
I’m too embarrassed to post today.
What would I say?
My toes are cold and I’m curling up on the couch?
That is as far a cry from volcano cruising as there ever could be.
Every day I think about car camping.
Grabbing a minivan, tossing a sleeping bag and some gear in the back, and get gone to parts unknown.
I think about exploring, adventure, trail walking, wildlife stalking, running up mountains and biking down them.
I think about cruising the New England country side and pulling over to roadside stands to buy homemade jam for picnic sandwiches.
Or puttering down A1A all the way to the end and settling in on some beach in Key West to watch the sun rise on one side of the island and go down on the other.
If there was such a trip, it would involve every historic marker along the way, and the wild places would have to have internet, so I could post about them.
Chris Lowry Books 