Marketing Monday

Since marketing seems to be the hardest hurdle for writers to leap, I thought I'd continue with the theme of the past Monday and talk a little about marketing again.  (And please note, I'm still too new at this to know if any of it will actually help me gain sales.  I've heard it can, but I have no data to back that up.)

First things first - making the book free.  Here's an excellent article from Elizabeth Spann Craig on the subject: The Impact of Free Promos.  Based on what I'd already read on the subject, I had planned on making Dying Embers free.  Hell, that was half the reason I signed the book up for Kindle Select - because the Select program let's you set the book for free for 5 days over the course of your 90 day period (in a row or one at a time or whatever).  I'd read that setting your book to free can help increase sales.  (I know, it sound anti-intuitive, but if other writers are selling books and doing this, what can it hurt to try.) 

To that end, Dying Embers is free for today only - 12:00am 3/2 thru 11:59 3/2 - so if you haven't got a copy of your very own yet, go get one.  Read it.  Review it if you're so inclined.

Which leads me to reviews.  Having them helps sales.  And as of this posting, I have 4 awesome reviews over Amazon and Goodreads.  I didn't solicit them - and I will never pay for them.  That's not cool. 

Which leads me to another marketing thing I have going on tomorrow - Kboards.  They have something like 80,000 subscribers and for a mere $15 they're running my book on what's called their 'Book Discovery Days' promo.  It'll be there along with other books, of course, but for that price, I couldn't pass it up.  That'll be up at 4pm Pacific tomorrow.  (After free day is over - unless Amazon screws something up and makes my 'day' longer.)

But don't let me forget what I have going on today!  A friend of mine messaged me the other day asking if I'd like to guest blog - pimp my book, etc.  I wrote a post and sent it over.  So today, I'm guest blogging at the homeplace of Laura Bickle - writer of awesomeness for adult and YA markets.  I've stalked... err, followed Laura ever since I read her urban fantasy Embers years ago.  And we became friends.  Now, I'm not advocating going out and making friends so that they'll pimp your books for you.  I am advocating going out and making friends the natural way, and one hopes that they'll like you enough to offer to pimp your books.  But I've been slowly making friends since I started this blogging thing in 2006 before I ever dreamed of being brave enough to self-publish, so your mileage may vary.

Anyway, like I said, I'm not sure how effective all this marketing will be, but as of this morning, around 40 people have a copy of my book.  That's 10 more people than yesterday and the day is early.  And if only a fraction of those people review it or chat it up or want a hardcopy of the book for their very own, it'll be worth it.  I think.  Maybe. 

Time will tell.  And I will share as much as I can along the way.