The writer brain is a strange, strange place. I think, usually, the term 'writer brain' is used for times when writers can't necessarily connect with what's going on around them. Stuff happens and we're all like 'huh, what?'
But there's another thing writer brains do... at least mine does... and that's to come up with endless possibilities for any given thing all the time. To see not just both sides of an issue, but every possible side to the issue. To wonder 'what if' about everything.
For me, this comes in really handy watching true crime shows and reading mysteries. I can usually figure out the whodunnit or if not the exact killer, then several possibilities of who did it.
It also leads me to a wide array of conspiracy theories. This came in pretty handy when writing Project Hermes. (On sale now... see what I did there?) I thought about microchips for animals and wondered 'what if a microchip carried more than just information?' And then 'what if there was something in there that could kill?' And then 'what if someone bad in the government got a hold of the ability to use that?' Bingo bango bongo... a book.
I also think about smaller conspiracies... like 'what if she left her car running because she was actually trying to fill my house with CO2 and kill me?' (Accidental Death) Or 'what if an elderly person's death wasn't because they were old?' (Early Grave)
My conspiracy theories also come in handy for a laugh around the house. This morning, I posited a theory to Hubs and he suggested that perhaps he needed to look into buying me a tinfoil hat. And we laughed.
I don't really need a tinfoil hat. Just because I posit a theory doesn't mean I believe it's true. I'm just putting it out there. Because it was just in here (points to head.) If it never comes to light that it's true, it's just one of my weird theories. And if it does turn out to be true, I can say 'I told you so'. If nothing else, it's good fodder for the writing.
Do you have any conspiracy theories? Or is it just me?
Showing posts with label Accidental Death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Accidental Death. Show all posts
Monday, January 27, 2020
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
A Dennis Haggarty Mystery Sale
It's time again for another sale. This time around, Accidental Death and Natural Causes are on sale for 99c/99p each.
Actually they're on sale today through next Tuesday night, but I made the graphic for posting on FB.
I know tons of people bought Accidental Death, but haven't bought Natural Causes yet. Now's a good time to rectify that, if you're one of them.
In AD, you get to meet Dennis Haggarty, a gritty Denver Homicide Detective, as he comes up against small town attitudes while trying to solve a murder no one wants to believe is murder.
In NC, you find Dennis is now the Chief of Police in a small mountain town where an apparent cougar attack isn't what it seems. The place has changed, but the attitudes haven't.
I got the idea for AD while living in a small town in the middle of nowhere and realizing how easy it would be to have a murder explained away as accidental. The young man found hanging in his garage. The stranger found burned up in his car in the middle of a wildfire. The time my insane neighbor almost asphyxiated us by letting her guests run their RV in her driveway while my home filled with exhaust. Little things that made me wonder and wondering always leads me to stories.
I grew up outside a small town, hearing about the attitudes inherent there - although being outside of it then. Then I found myself smack in the middle of it later in life. I'm well outside of it now, but hell, I hear about it here, too. Three different towns, three different states, same small-town ideas and prejudices and attitudes. Go figger.
Anyway, I had a lot of fun writing these books. I hope you have a lot of fun reading them.
I know tons of people bought Accidental Death, but haven't bought Natural Causes yet. Now's a good time to rectify that, if you're one of them.
In AD, you get to meet Dennis Haggarty, a gritty Denver Homicide Detective, as he comes up against small town attitudes while trying to solve a murder no one wants to believe is murder.
In NC, you find Dennis is now the Chief of Police in a small mountain town where an apparent cougar attack isn't what it seems. The place has changed, but the attitudes haven't.
I got the idea for AD while living in a small town in the middle of nowhere and realizing how easy it would be to have a murder explained away as accidental. The young man found hanging in his garage. The stranger found burned up in his car in the middle of a wildfire. The time my insane neighbor almost asphyxiated us by letting her guests run their RV in her driveway while my home filled with exhaust. Little things that made me wonder and wondering always leads me to stories.
I grew up outside a small town, hearing about the attitudes inherent there - although being outside of it then. Then I found myself smack in the middle of it later in life. I'm well outside of it now, but hell, I hear about it here, too. Three different towns, three different states, same small-town ideas and prejudices and attitudes. Go figger.
Anyway, I had a lot of fun writing these books. I hope you have a lot of fun reading them.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
A Dennis Haggarty Mystery Sale
Good morning!
Starting today, both books in A Dennis Haggarty Mystery series are on sale for 99c/99p each.
Starting today, both books in A Dennis Haggarty Mystery series are on sale for 99c/99p each.
Here's the FB ad copy for today:
Big city cop. Small town murders. Starting today, get both books in A DENNIS HAGGARTY MYSTERY series for only 99c/99p each.
US: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BTN1W19
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dennis-Haggarty-Mystery-Book/dp/B07BNNDTLM
#mystery #murder #notcozy #ebooks #99c #99p
I didn't pay for any advertising this time, so we'll see how it goes.
The sale last through Tuesday of next week, so if you haven't read them yet, now would be the time. Or if you've only read Accidental Death, now's the time to get Natural Causes.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
July Sale #4 - A Dennis Haggarty Mystery Series
Now's the time to buy Accidental Death and Natural Causes for only 99c/99p each. Or, if you've already read AD, now's the time to pick up NC.
This is a true series with Dennis Haggarty as the main character. They're both 'Big City Cop meets Small Town Murder'. Except in NC, the Big City Cop is now the police chief of a small mountain town. Dennis still has to deal with things he's not used to - small town cliques and small town minds. He's still not used to any of it. Poor guy.
I won't tell you much more about NC, in case you haven't read AD yet.
As for AD, it came about after living in a small town in CO and being a watcher to the things that went on there. It's also based on growing up on the outskirts of a small town in Michigan, and watching all the things that happened then. Add those experiences to my suspicious mind and my overactive imagination, and you get murder that might not necessarily look like murder. Especially harrowing when you're up against people who don't want it to be anything so vile as homicide. Fortunately, Dennis knows better and he's not the kind of man to back down when he's out for justice.
The third book is just an idea in my head. I picture Dennis going off to a regional police chief's conference, discovering a body or two, and then running afoul of all the small town police chiefs who don't want it to be murder. Or something. Dennis can't catch a break.
It's just a zygote right now, so don't hold your breath waiting for it.
Meanwhile, these two can be read without having to wait on the third book. No cliffhangers. They're both fully-encapsulated stories within themselves. But you might want to read them in order. NC has some stuff about things that happened in AD that might be confusing if you haven't read AD yet.
I hope you give them a try and enjoy them.
Oh, and they totally aren't 'cozy', so don't be surprised. Thanks!
Wednesday, July 3, 2019
July is Sales Month
I went a little nuts yesterday morning. Starting tomorrow, July 4th, at least one of my books will be on sale every day through the 29th in both the US and the UK. (As long as Amazon doesn't brainfart.)
Here's how it shakes down:
July 4th - 10th - Project Hermes
July 10th - 16th - Blink of an I
July 16th - 22nd - Sleeping Ugly
July 23rd - 29th - Accidental Death and Natural Causes
All of them will be 99c/99p on their respective dates. I'll let you know if I manage to secure advertising for any of them. With the sale for PH coming so soon, there definitely will not be an ad for that one. The others? We'll see.
I do know I'll be doing my damndest to generate sales in other ways. As unobtrusively as possible. And, of course, as inexpensively as possible. Which means I'll be busting my hump on FB. A little twitter (which I hate, but it's there and I'm using it).
Not sure what'll be happening next month. Probably another Once Upon a Djinn sale. Maybe Unequal. We'll see. I can't think about August right now. Gah, next month is August?!
Okay, back to the grind. What have you got going on this month?
Here's how it shakes down:
July 4th - 10th - Project Hermes
July 10th - 16th - Blink of an I
July 16th - 22nd - Sleeping Ugly
July 23rd - 29th - Accidental Death and Natural Causes
All of them will be 99c/99p on their respective dates. I'll let you know if I manage to secure advertising for any of them. With the sale for PH coming so soon, there definitely will not be an ad for that one. The others? We'll see.
I do know I'll be doing my damndest to generate sales in other ways. As unobtrusively as possible. And, of course, as inexpensively as possible. Which means I'll be busting my hump on FB. A little twitter (which I hate, but it's there and I'm using it).
Not sure what'll be happening next month. Probably another Once Upon a Djinn sale. Maybe Unequal. We'll see. I can't think about August right now. Gah, next month is August?!
Okay, back to the grind. What have you got going on this month?
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
Funny Story
So, I have another sale going on. Accidental Death is only 99c/99p through Monday. And I actually have some advertising set up this time. Expect to see an ad in the Book Adrenaline newsletter tomorrow.
Funny story... When I set up the ad for the 18th last week, my brain was actually think the 18th was two weeks away. I didn't realize I had given myself... and the venue... such a tight time frame. So, when I never got an invoice from BA, I figured they were basically telling me I was crazy to even try for an ad right then. Flash forward to yesterday and I get a polite notice from BA that if I don't pay their invoice they can't put my ad in their 18th newsletter.
I swear I never got the original invoice. I checked my spam... nope. Checked my trash... another 'pay this or else' notice was in there, but no original invoice. Then again, I dumped my trash, so I might've missed it. So, I paid the invoice right then and they indicated they got the money, so everything should be in place to be in the newsletter. AD will probably be jammed in at the bottom, but I did this to myself. Poor planning on my part.
Next month, I promise to not have my thinker so far up my... err... armpit.
Anyway, BA is only $15, so it's worth a shot, eh?
Anyway #2, let this be a lesson to you - don't assume your ad was rejected. Check those folders and be alert. There's every chance that because I get so many newsletters these days, I actually got the invoice, but deleted it with the plethora of other mail. Derp.
As for next month, the Once Upon a Djinn books will be on sale, with an ad and everything... good lord willin' and the creek don't rise. Not sure of the exact dates yet, but I'll let y'all know.
By the way, if you've already read AD and haven't read it's sequel Natural Causes, it's not on sale, but it's only $2.99.
Funny story... When I set up the ad for the 18th last week, my brain was actually think the 18th was two weeks away. I didn't realize I had given myself... and the venue... such a tight time frame. So, when I never got an invoice from BA, I figured they were basically telling me I was crazy to even try for an ad right then. Flash forward to yesterday and I get a polite notice from BA that if I don't pay their invoice they can't put my ad in their 18th newsletter.
I swear I never got the original invoice. I checked my spam... nope. Checked my trash... another 'pay this or else' notice was in there, but no original invoice. Then again, I dumped my trash, so I might've missed it. So, I paid the invoice right then and they indicated they got the money, so everything should be in place to be in the newsletter. AD will probably be jammed in at the bottom, but I did this to myself. Poor planning on my part.
Next month, I promise to not have my thinker so far up my... err... armpit.
Anyway, BA is only $15, so it's worth a shot, eh?
Anyway #2, let this be a lesson to you - don't assume your ad was rejected. Check those folders and be alert. There's every chance that because I get so many newsletters these days, I actually got the invoice, but deleted it with the plethora of other mail. Derp.
As for next month, the Once Upon a Djinn books will be on sale, with an ad and everything... good lord willin' and the creek don't rise. Not sure of the exact dates yet, but I'll let y'all know.
By the way, if you've already read AD and haven't read it's sequel Natural Causes, it's not on sale, but it's only $2.99.
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Natural Causes - On Sale Now
If you're one of the hundreds of people who bought Accidental Death but haven't gotten around to its sequel yet, now would be the time to snag a copy. Find out what Dennis and the gang are up to. See who's dropping bodies in Dennis' path this time.
If you haven't gotten a copy of AD, it's always at the low price of $2.99 (free with Kindle Unlimited).
Now, these are definitely not cozy mysteries. Readers have described them as noir or hard-boiled. This particular story has a basis in a news item from a few years back. I'd tell you all about it, but then I'd ruin the mystery for you.
That's the new version of the ebook cover up there. (The paperback cover remains the same - a little lighter with a grave in the distance.) The text is exactly the same. And no, that's not Jillian on the cover. She's not on the cover of AD either.
This one is also not set in Serenity. Dennis has moved on. Now he's the police chief in a small mountain town - Last Ditch, CO - dealing with the residents, a questionable death, and the lingering stench of what happened in Accidental Death. Stuff like that weighs on a man.
Anyway, if you're interested in a quirky, gritty mystery set in small-town Colorado, pick up a copy. And if you could, leave a review.
Thanks.
Monday, November 19, 2018
Not Giving Up
Okay, so you may have noticed an increased number of book discounts around here lately. I've had Kindle Countdown Deals for Project Hermes, Sleeping Ugly, and Blink of an I.
This is because I'm trying to be more active out there. I'm trying to encourage readers to buy my books.
Thus far, it hasn't worked out so well.
But then again, I haven't paid for much advertising.
Today starts the KCD for Accidental Death. I did pay for advertising this time. We'll see how that goes when the ad comes out on Wednesday. I'd like to at least sell enough books to pay for the ad, but if it only serves to have some of my rankings boost up a little, that'd be great.
I'm not giving up. Sometimes, I'd like to. Not give up writing, but give up with these blasted sales and the marketing and... Well, that's just stupid. Marketing's part of the biz and I knew that when I took it on.
I just wish I was better at it. Or rich enough to hire someone to do it for me.
So, anyway, if you haven't read Accidental Death yet, now might be a good time to pick up a copy. And while you're at it, grab Natural Causes, too. It's only $2.99. So, you get both Dennis Haggarty books for under $4.
See? Not giving up.
This is because I'm trying to be more active out there. I'm trying to encourage readers to buy my books.
Thus far, it hasn't worked out so well.
But then again, I haven't paid for much advertising.
Today starts the KCD for Accidental Death. I did pay for advertising this time. We'll see how that goes when the ad comes out on Wednesday. I'd like to at least sell enough books to pay for the ad, but if it only serves to have some of my rankings boost up a little, that'd be great.
I'm not giving up. Sometimes, I'd like to. Not give up writing, but give up with these blasted sales and the marketing and... Well, that's just stupid. Marketing's part of the biz and I knew that when I took it on.
I just wish I was better at it. Or rich enough to hire someone to do it for me.
So, anyway, if you haven't read Accidental Death yet, now might be a good time to pick up a copy. And while you're at it, grab Natural Causes, too. It's only $2.99. So, you get both Dennis Haggarty books for under $4.
See? Not giving up.
Friday, June 22, 2018
Brief Marketing Update 1
I'm doing some test marketing right now. This post is as much about me keeping it straight as information for you guys if you're interested in marketing data. Bear with me.
So yesterday, I had a $10 ad go out for AD. I sold 5 books and earned just under $4.
This morning, I posted sales links for AD to various FB groups* for free and, within an hour, sold 2 books.
Today, two more ads go out at $6 each. One for AD and one for NC. :fingers crossed:
The reason the title of this post says '1' is that I'm going to try to post an update later if sales change. If you don't see an update, there was no change.
* The FB groups posted to were: Amazon Kindle Goodreads, Indie Authors International, eBook World, Self Published Crime Fiction Writers, and Crime, Thriller and Mystery Readers' Cafe. Since the books I sold were in the UK, I'm going to assume the Indie Authors International group gained me those sales, but I could be wrong.
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Sale Time Again
Years ago, there was this furniture store that would have so many sales it was hard to discern if any of them were really special. It was like 'oh, yawn, they're having a sale again'. I am trying to keep that in mind when I have these sales, but it seems like the number of books I sell hinges on having 'sales'.
So here we are again. Another sale. This time, the books of the 'A Dennis Haggarty Mystery' series are both on sale for 99c or .99p. Now until Sunday.
I know a great deal of people have purchased Accidental Death since it's release in 2015, so now's their chance to pick up the second book - Natural Causes - for cheap. See what's happening with Dennis and Jillian and Pat.
Accidental Death, as you may know, is particularly close to my heart. You know, the wife of a former city manager writing about the widow of a deceased city manager. That sort of thing. All spun up into a hard-boiled, noir-like mystery with characters you could meet in any small town on the eastern plains of Colorado. (Or anywhere else in America, truth be told. I borrowed some traits from people I knew back in small town Michigan, too.)
Natural Causes progresses from there with the problems of a small mountain town instead of a small plains town, but the problems aren't that much different. Murder, mayhem, cover up, with Dennis investigating it all and trying to stay sane.
Anyway, I hope you'll give them a try. Or if you've already tried Accidental Death, will give Natural Causes a whirl, too.
So here we are again. Another sale. This time, the books of the 'A Dennis Haggarty Mystery' series are both on sale for 99c or .99p. Now until Sunday.
I know a great deal of people have purchased Accidental Death since it's release in 2015, so now's their chance to pick up the second book - Natural Causes - for cheap. See what's happening with Dennis and Jillian and Pat.
Accidental Death, as you may know, is particularly close to my heart. You know, the wife of a former city manager writing about the widow of a deceased city manager. That sort of thing. All spun up into a hard-boiled, noir-like mystery with characters you could meet in any small town on the eastern plains of Colorado. (Or anywhere else in America, truth be told. I borrowed some traits from people I knew back in small town Michigan, too.)
Natural Causes progresses from there with the problems of a small mountain town instead of a small plains town, but the problems aren't that much different. Murder, mayhem, cover up, with Dennis investigating it all and trying to stay sane.
Anyway, I hope you'll give them a try. Or if you've already tried Accidental Death, will give Natural Causes a whirl, too.
Monday, April 10, 2017
New Release and a Sale!
To celebrate, I made Accidental Death a Kindle Countdown Deal. It's available now thru Saturday for the low low price of 99c (or .99p in the UK).
And, as always, my books are all available for the Kindle Unlimited program which means they're free for subscribers (well, free after you pay you subscription fee, of course).
You don't need to read Accidental Death to understand what's going on in Natural Causes but, naturally, it helps. See where I started Dennis's story, how he met Jillian, and the reason Dennis has got some baggage this time around.
Loads of fun for everyone. Enjoy!
Friday, March 25, 2016
Accidental Death is Free!
Happy Good Friday! Or Happy Spring Solstice! Or just happy End of the Week! However you want to celebrate. In honor of the day, Accidental Death is free today and tomorrow. If you haven't snagged a copy, go forth and do so. Spend some time with Dennis Haggarty as he tries to figure out why so many people in such a small town are dropping like flies.
Detective Dennis Haggarty arrives in Serenity, CO to attend a funeral,
not investigate homicides. But finding a corpse on the mortuary lawn
wasn’t in his plans either. The townsfolk may be willing to ignore the
facts, but Dennis can’t avoid doing his job—especially after his
instincts tell him it’s murder.
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Amazon AU
It's free in other countries, too, but I didn't want to overload the page with links. I hope you'll look for it in whatever Amazon country you're in. =o)
Enjoy! And if you'd like to leave a review, that'd be awesome. Thanks!
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Amazon AU
It's free in other countries, too, but I didn't want to overload the page with links. I hope you'll look for it in whatever Amazon country you're in. =o)
Enjoy! And if you'd like to leave a review, that'd be awesome. Thanks!
Friday, December 25, 2015
Merry Christmas!
I hope you're all having a wonderful Christmas morning and that you got everything you wanted from Santa.
To help in that endeavor, I decided to make all my books 99 cents each. From tomorrow through New Year's Eve. Yep, every single one. If Santa brought you a new Kindle, or an Amazon gift card, or you got them for someone else, now's the best time to pick up a copy of any of the four - Dying Embers, Accidental Death, BloodFlow, or Wish in One Hand. Or if you've been given a Nook or some other ereader, and don't want to use the Kindle app, Wish in One Hand is also available through Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or Apple.
(This special pricing on DE, AD, and BF is for US and UK residents both. Sorry about everyone else, but Amazon only lets me do so much. WIOH should be low-priced everywhere.)
Oh, and if you're a Kindle Unlimited Subscriber, Dying Embers, Accidental Death, and BloodFlow are available for you to read with your subscription.
So, enjoy today with your family. Eat lots. Have fun. Read tomorrow while you're recovering. ;o)
Merry Christmas, Everyone. (Even if you don't celebrate, I wish you the merriest of days. Because, hey, who doesn't want to have a merry day?)
To help in that endeavor, I decided to make all my books 99 cents each. From tomorrow through New Year's Eve. Yep, every single one. If Santa brought you a new Kindle, or an Amazon gift card, or you got them for someone else, now's the best time to pick up a copy of any of the four - Dying Embers, Accidental Death, BloodFlow, or Wish in One Hand. Or if you've been given a Nook or some other ereader, and don't want to use the Kindle app, Wish in One Hand is also available through Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or Apple.
(This special pricing on DE, AD, and BF is for US and UK residents both. Sorry about everyone else, but Amazon only lets me do so much. WIOH should be low-priced everywhere.)
Oh, and if you're a Kindle Unlimited Subscriber, Dying Embers, Accidental Death, and BloodFlow are available for you to read with your subscription.
So, enjoy today with your family. Eat lots. Have fun. Read tomorrow while you're recovering. ;o)
Merry Christmas, Everyone. (Even if you don't celebrate, I wish you the merriest of days. Because, hey, who doesn't want to have a merry day?)
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Such a Deal Like You've Never Seen. Oy.
Yep, it's another Kindle Countdown Deal. This time Accidental Death gets a turn on the KCD merry-go-round. It'll be on sale for 99c through Saturday.
Big city Detective Dennis Haggarty goes to small town Serenity, CO to comfort his grieving sister, not to investigate crime, but when stumbling over a body uncovers a string of not-so accidental deaths, he has to do his job—whether the locals want him to or not.
I'd really appreciate it if you passed it along. Or if you wrote a review. Or if you just liked it on FB or Twitter or whatever.
Thanks bunches!
-B.E.
Big city Detective Dennis Haggarty goes to small town Serenity, CO to comfort his grieving sister, not to investigate crime, but when stumbling over a body uncovers a string of not-so accidental deaths, he has to do his job—whether the locals want him to or not.
Thanks bunches!
-B.E.
Monday, July 6, 2015
Advertising Update
Because I said I would talk more about the weekend's advertising, here goes:
Friday at 10am Central my Kindle Countdown Deal started. The price went to $.99. I tweeted. I facebooked.
crickets
Friday at 1pm Central by ad went live in the Ereader New Today newsletter.
And the sales started racking up.
By midnight, I had reached 197 orders*. At 10am on Saturday when the price rose to $1.99, I sold another 15 books. And I had reached #8 on the Amazon hard-boiled mystery list, #10 on the Kindle hard-boiled mystery list, and #24 on the crime thriller list. I also broke the top 1000 of all books at Amazon.
At the $1.99 price point, I sold 19 books on Saturday and none before the price went up to $2.99 on Sunday.
I sold two books in the late afternoon on Sunday at the $2.99 price point.
I also had people read at least 2800 pages in the KU program or about 5.5 books - which I kind of attribute to people reading the ENT ad, borrowing the book, and reading it. I don't know if that was actually 6 people reading five and a half books or 11 people reading half the book or 100 people reading a small portion of the book. I prefer to think the first scenario.
I also sold two Dying Embers yesterday - after not selling any in the prior days of July - so I could count those as residual sales from people snagging AD and looking for other books I've written. Could just be a coincidence, though.
I picked up one new Amazon review. 5-stars. Thanks for that, whoever you are. I also got an awesome Goodreads review. You know who you are and you totally rock.
Since ENT has a policy that they won't take another ad for the same book for 90 days, I can't repeat this experiment for a while. I know when Wish in One Hand is ready, I will place an ad there for that book, too. The ad did what I wanted it to - pay for itself, get me some nice sales, and push my book into the rankings so more people might discover it. That's really all one can ask from advertising, really.
I hope that helps put things in perspective. And as always, this is my journey. What happens here might not be indicative of what will happen with your advertising and your books. You could sell tons more. Or maybe less. That's your journey. Write the best book you know how, put together some snazzy cover copy and a good cover, and see what happens for you.
And good luck! None of this is easy, but it's been worth it for me. Even if watching the sales data has become somewhat addictive. ;o)
*technically all of my mentions of 'sales' in the above post are really 'orders'. Some of them still have to clear the buyer's bank before they count in my royalty report, and I didn't feel like parsing all that out before this post went live. Suffice it to say, most orders turn into sales within a few days, so it all comes out on the good side.
Friday at 10am Central my Kindle Countdown Deal started. The price went to $.99. I tweeted. I facebooked.
crickets
Friday at 1pm Central by ad went live in the Ereader New Today newsletter.
And the sales started racking up.
By midnight, I had reached 197 orders*. At 10am on Saturday when the price rose to $1.99, I sold another 15 books. And I had reached #8 on the Amazon hard-boiled mystery list, #10 on the Kindle hard-boiled mystery list, and #24 on the crime thriller list. I also broke the top 1000 of all books at Amazon.
At the $1.99 price point, I sold 19 books on Saturday and none before the price went up to $2.99 on Sunday.
I sold two books in the late afternoon on Sunday at the $2.99 price point.
I also had people read at least 2800 pages in the KU program or about 5.5 books - which I kind of attribute to people reading the ENT ad, borrowing the book, and reading it. I don't know if that was actually 6 people reading five and a half books or 11 people reading half the book or 100 people reading a small portion of the book. I prefer to think the first scenario.
I also sold two Dying Embers yesterday - after not selling any in the prior days of July - so I could count those as residual sales from people snagging AD and looking for other books I've written. Could just be a coincidence, though.
I picked up one new Amazon review. 5-stars. Thanks for that, whoever you are. I also got an awesome Goodreads review. You know who you are and you totally rock.
Since ENT has a policy that they won't take another ad for the same book for 90 days, I can't repeat this experiment for a while. I know when Wish in One Hand is ready, I will place an ad there for that book, too. The ad did what I wanted it to - pay for itself, get me some nice sales, and push my book into the rankings so more people might discover it. That's really all one can ask from advertising, really.
I hope that helps put things in perspective. And as always, this is my journey. What happens here might not be indicative of what will happen with your advertising and your books. You could sell tons more. Or maybe less. That's your journey. Write the best book you know how, put together some snazzy cover copy and a good cover, and see what happens for you.
And good luck! None of this is easy, but it's been worth it for me. Even if watching the sales data has become somewhat addictive. ;o)
*technically all of my mentions of 'sales' in the above post are really 'orders'. Some of them still have to clear the buyer's bank before they count in my royalty report, and I didn't feel like parsing all that out before this post went live. Suffice it to say, most orders turn into sales within a few days, so it all comes out on the good side.
Monday, June 8, 2015
Checking In With the Numbers Again
Hey folks!
It's been a while since I checked in and gave you the numbers on this wild ride. Keep in mind that this is me. Your mileage may vary.
115 days since I launched Dying Embers and got my first pre-order (February 12th through yesterday)
In that time, I sold* 366 copies of DE at various prices. I've also sold 46 copies of Accidental Death., bring to the total of all books sold to 412.
That's an average of 3.58 books a day.
My biggest sales day was after my ad went live on Ereader News Today. I sold 129 books that day, and saw a nice follow-through that kept me in the rankings for 10 days. My best sales ranking was #9 on the Kindle Suspense/Serial Killers list.
Dying Embers currently has 10 reviews and 18 rankings on Goodreads with a 4.39 star average. It has 13 reviews on Amazon with a 4.8 star average.
Accidental Death currently has 1 review and 2 rankings on Goodreads with a 5 star average. No reviews at Amazon.
In its first partial month, Dying Embers sold 26 copies. Accidental Death sold 40 in its first partial month.
To date, I've spent about $1600 on Dying Embers and about $650 on Accidental Death. Not quite sure what that means yet. I do know a $30 ad gained me the most sales, but since DE was .99 through most of that sales spike, it didn't gain me that much fundage. Later this month, I will try an ad for AD and I'm looking into other advertising venues that won't break the bank.
I'm not breaking any records here, but I'm pleased. If this stays on track, our goal of this venture funding itself within the first year should be met. It depends on how much I spend putting each book out there and how sales for the subsequent books go. When the third book launches in August, we'll have an even better idea - but the third book is a different genre - paranormal suspense - so it might skew things a bit. We'll see.
So, there are the numbers for one debut, self-published, independent novelist. Hope that helps those of you thinking about jumping into the fray and that it provides some insight into this world for you readers. It ain't easy. It certainly ain't guaranteed. But damn, it's fun.
Any questions? As always, I'll answer what I can.
*Sales are primarily Amazon and include Kindle Unlimited borrows and regular ebook sales. A small percentage of those numbers are hand sales of paperback copies and wider ebook distribution through Draft2Digital.
It's been a while since I checked in and gave you the numbers on this wild ride. Keep in mind that this is me. Your mileage may vary.
115 days since I launched Dying Embers and got my first pre-order (February 12th through yesterday)
In that time, I sold* 366 copies of DE at various prices. I've also sold 46 copies of Accidental Death., bring to the total of all books sold to 412.
That's an average of 3.58 books a day.
My biggest sales day was after my ad went live on Ereader News Today. I sold 129 books that day, and saw a nice follow-through that kept me in the rankings for 10 days. My best sales ranking was #9 on the Kindle Suspense/Serial Killers list.
Dying Embers currently has 10 reviews and 18 rankings on Goodreads with a 4.39 star average. It has 13 reviews on Amazon with a 4.8 star average.
Accidental Death currently has 1 review and 2 rankings on Goodreads with a 5 star average. No reviews at Amazon.
In its first partial month, Dying Embers sold 26 copies. Accidental Death sold 40 in its first partial month.
To date, I've spent about $1600 on Dying Embers and about $650 on Accidental Death. Not quite sure what that means yet. I do know a $30 ad gained me the most sales, but since DE was .99 through most of that sales spike, it didn't gain me that much fundage. Later this month, I will try an ad for AD and I'm looking into other advertising venues that won't break the bank.
I'm not breaking any records here, but I'm pleased. If this stays on track, our goal of this venture funding itself within the first year should be met. It depends on how much I spend putting each book out there and how sales for the subsequent books go. When the third book launches in August, we'll have an even better idea - but the third book is a different genre - paranormal suspense - so it might skew things a bit. We'll see.
So, there are the numbers for one debut, self-published, independent novelist. Hope that helps those of you thinking about jumping into the fray and that it provides some insight into this world for you readers. It ain't easy. It certainly ain't guaranteed. But damn, it's fun.
Any questions? As always, I'll answer what I can.
*Sales are primarily Amazon and include Kindle Unlimited borrows and regular ebook sales. A small percentage of those numbers are hand sales of paperback copies and wider ebook distribution through Draft2Digital.
Friday, May 29, 2015
News Updates
A couple of news updates...
First, Dying Embers is still at 99 cents - but only until Sunday night/Monday morning. Then the price will go up to $2.99. Now's your opportunity to get $2 off.
Second, the paperback copies of Accidental Death are here. They look lovely. A Goodreads contest should start Monday - I'm just waiting for approval from the Goodreads people.
Third, if you've read Accidental Death, I would love it if you would post a review. I have one at Amazon UK and Goodreads, but regular Amazon is kinda lonely.
Fourth, the ad at Ereader News Today did its job and got Dying Embers into the bestseller rankings in my category (Kindle/Mystery, Thriller, Suspense/Crime/Serial Killers) which seems to be getting me some nice residual sales. At the height, I hit #9 on the above list. As of the ad going live, I've sold 219 copies that I know of. (Some expanded sales outlets don't report for up to 60 days.) The majority of that was on the day of the ad, and I assume the sales since have been residual from the ad and from hitting the rankings.
Fifth, I heard from the cover artist for Wish in One Hand. I should see a mock up of the cover concept soon. Then we'll go back and forth a bit if things need tweaking. I can't wait to see what he's done.
Got any news or updates to pass along?
First, Dying Embers is still at 99 cents - but only until Sunday night/Monday morning. Then the price will go up to $2.99. Now's your opportunity to get $2 off.
Second, the paperback copies of Accidental Death are here. They look lovely. A Goodreads contest should start Monday - I'm just waiting for approval from the Goodreads people.
Third, if you've read Accidental Death, I would love it if you would post a review. I have one at Amazon UK and Goodreads, but regular Amazon is kinda lonely.
Fourth, the ad at Ereader News Today did its job and got Dying Embers into the bestseller rankings in my category (Kindle/Mystery, Thriller, Suspense/Crime/Serial Killers) which seems to be getting me some nice residual sales. At the height, I hit #9 on the above list. As of the ad going live, I've sold 219 copies that I know of. (Some expanded sales outlets don't report for up to 60 days.) The majority of that was on the day of the ad, and I assume the sales since have been residual from the ad and from hitting the rankings.
Fifth, I heard from the cover artist for Wish in One Hand. I should see a mock up of the cover concept soon. Then we'll go back and forth a bit if things need tweaking. I can't wait to see what he's done.
Got any news or updates to pass along?
Monday, May 25, 2015
ROI: How Do You Know Your Marketing is Working?
ROI = Return on Investment. Which basically means how much money are you making from the money you already put in. (Bear with me here, I only took one business class in college and that was pre-accident, so the majority of that sucker is gone and what I do know is self-taught.)
Simply put, you pay $15 for an advertisement, you should expect to at least get that much back and, if all goes well, see profits over and above that $15.
In order to make $15 from a $2.99 ebook, you need to sell about 8 books. Sounds simple, right?
It is for the most part. Especially if right after the ad appears, you see 8 books get purchased. What makes it a little sticky is when you don't see 8 books fly off the proverbial shelf. You see 2. Then the next day, you see 3. Maybe you have a couple dry days and then the weekend hits and you see another 4 books sell. You've hit your advertising goal of breaking even, but how can you know for sure if the ad brought you those sales or if those readers found your book another way?
Throw in the fact that you also did a Twitter campaign and maybe a free ad also rolled out or a reader talked about your book on their blog or you got a nice new review, and you're pretty much toast for having any actual data from which to base your next advertising purchase.
Oh, you could do the annoying thing and try to poll your readers. "Where did you find out about my book?" But I think only a few readers actually answer polls, so it skews the numbers. (And I'm totally not a fan of polls or statistics because they can be skewed so many ways, they're hard to depend on.)
To put it more into perspective, I ran a couple free events this month - one before Accidental Death launched and one after. Pre-order sales were flat, so I'm pretty sure my 'before' event didn't get the folks clamoring to read my book. The 'after' event hit and that day was pretty much crickets, but then Friday, sales shot up to a record high (record for me - which wasn't high by anyone else's standards, I think, but it worked for me). Since it was also 'launch week', I did some FB things and Twitter things, so I'm not really sure exactly what made the sales soar. Hell, it could've been that people were waiting until Friday to buy my book because that's when their paycheck hit their account, so they had fundage to buy the book - which would account for the slow rest of the week. :shrug:
Today, I'm scheduled to have a paid ad in the Ereader News Today for Dying Embers. (Long story as to why I'm pimping DE instead of AD here. I might go into that another day.) Since Dying Embers is currently 99 cents, I will need to sell roughly 85 books to break even. The hope here is that sales of DE lead to sales of AD (of which I would need 15 sales to cover the cost). I'm also hoping Friday's sales of AD lead people to buy DE, but that's neither here nor there.
And then there's the fact that DE is now available through most other distribution channels, and they don't give real time numbers on sales, so I won't know if the advertising worked there for like 60 days...
See what I'm saying? How does one know when the marketing is working? As long as the sales are there, something is working. right? There's the old phrase 'time will tell', but I doubt it's telling me what I need to know.
I guess I'll just have to keep writing the next book and the next book and the next book, and let the sales sort themselves out. (Still, the business person in me wants a better metric...)
I'd do a poll right now, but I'm pretty sure if you're here, I know how you discovered my books. If you're new here, though, tell me how you stumbled across me and my books. The data might be skewed, but skewed data is still data. =o)
Simply put, you pay $15 for an advertisement, you should expect to at least get that much back and, if all goes well, see profits over and above that $15.
In order to make $15 from a $2.99 ebook, you need to sell about 8 books. Sounds simple, right?
It is for the most part. Especially if right after the ad appears, you see 8 books get purchased. What makes it a little sticky is when you don't see 8 books fly off the proverbial shelf. You see 2. Then the next day, you see 3. Maybe you have a couple dry days and then the weekend hits and you see another 4 books sell. You've hit your advertising goal of breaking even, but how can you know for sure if the ad brought you those sales or if those readers found your book another way?
Throw in the fact that you also did a Twitter campaign and maybe a free ad also rolled out or a reader talked about your book on their blog or you got a nice new review, and you're pretty much toast for having any actual data from which to base your next advertising purchase.
Oh, you could do the annoying thing and try to poll your readers. "Where did you find out about my book?" But I think only a few readers actually answer polls, so it skews the numbers. (And I'm totally not a fan of polls or statistics because they can be skewed so many ways, they're hard to depend on.)
To put it more into perspective, I ran a couple free events this month - one before Accidental Death launched and one after. Pre-order sales were flat, so I'm pretty sure my 'before' event didn't get the folks clamoring to read my book. The 'after' event hit and that day was pretty much crickets, but then Friday, sales shot up to a record high (record for me - which wasn't high by anyone else's standards, I think, but it worked for me). Since it was also 'launch week', I did some FB things and Twitter things, so I'm not really sure exactly what made the sales soar. Hell, it could've been that people were waiting until Friday to buy my book because that's when their paycheck hit their account, so they had fundage to buy the book - which would account for the slow rest of the week. :shrug:
Today, I'm scheduled to have a paid ad in the Ereader News Today for Dying Embers. (Long story as to why I'm pimping DE instead of AD here. I might go into that another day.) Since Dying Embers is currently 99 cents, I will need to sell roughly 85 books to break even. The hope here is that sales of DE lead to sales of AD (of which I would need 15 sales to cover the cost). I'm also hoping Friday's sales of AD lead people to buy DE, but that's neither here nor there.
And then there's the fact that DE is now available through most other distribution channels, and they don't give real time numbers on sales, so I won't know if the advertising worked there for like 60 days...
See what I'm saying? How does one know when the marketing is working? As long as the sales are there, something is working. right? There's the old phrase 'time will tell', but I doubt it's telling me what I need to know.
I guess I'll just have to keep writing the next book and the next book and the next book, and let the sales sort themselves out. (Still, the business person in me wants a better metric...)
I'd do a poll right now, but I'm pretty sure if you're here, I know how you discovered my books. If you're new here, though, tell me how you stumbled across me and my books. The data might be skewed, but skewed data is still data. =o)
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Write What You Know, But...
In the writing world, there's this simple statement we're all supposed to follow:
Write What You Know
So, since what I know from personal experience is probably pretty boring to the rest of the world, I took what I knew and I embellished it, added to it, and fictionalized it. What came out became Accidental Death.
I took the wild imaginings of the wife of a city manager and put them on paper. And I had some wild imaginings. Especially after one of Hubs' acquaintances died of a heart attack. Thus Jillian and Scott's backstory came to life.
When a local man was found dead in his garage from an apparent suicide, I began to wonder how easy it would be to commit a murder in a town where the police weren't that well trained and weren't exactly inclined to investigate crimes. And thus the plot was born.
When my own neighbor almost accidentally killed me, my daughter, and Kira cat, by allowing her guests to run their RV all morning next to my house where the tailpipe was pointed toward my less-than-sealed laundry room - a piece of the pie fell into place. (Fun day. Lucky for me, I noticed I was getting woozy and that the house stank of exhaust.)
And the book that would eventually become Accidental Death was born.
This is the book that comes closest to 'write what you know', but...
Everything I knew has been changed to suit the fiction. None of the residents of Serenity are based on the residents of the town where I lived. I took pieces from all the people I've ever met where their pieces might fit into this scenario. I used snatches from this person and bits from that, added some stuff, twisted some stuff, and created the characters that populate my book.
Because that's what writing fiction is. It's making stuff up in your head and putting it down. Otherwise it's memoir. Or loosely veiled non-fiction - which is totally not my style. (Despite the one agent who wrote across a rejection letter years ago - for a totally different book - that I ought to write non-fiction and if I did he'd be happy to look at it.)
Oh, and Jillian is not me. And Scott is not Hubs. I played with real bits from us to make them more real, but in the end, they're their own people and so are we.
How much of your favorite writers do you suspect is in their writing? Or do you think it's like Alfred Hitchcock, who had cameos in the movies he made? (Stephen King does it, too, but Hitchcock did it first.)
Write What You Know
So, since what I know from personal experience is probably pretty boring to the rest of the world, I took what I knew and I embellished it, added to it, and fictionalized it. What came out became Accidental Death.
I took the wild imaginings of the wife of a city manager and put them on paper. And I had some wild imaginings. Especially after one of Hubs' acquaintances died of a heart attack. Thus Jillian and Scott's backstory came to life.
When a local man was found dead in his garage from an apparent suicide, I began to wonder how easy it would be to commit a murder in a town where the police weren't that well trained and weren't exactly inclined to investigate crimes. And thus the plot was born.
When my own neighbor almost accidentally killed me, my daughter, and Kira cat, by allowing her guests to run their RV all morning next to my house where the tailpipe was pointed toward my less-than-sealed laundry room - a piece of the pie fell into place. (Fun day. Lucky for me, I noticed I was getting woozy and that the house stank of exhaust.)
And the book that would eventually become Accidental Death was born.
This is the book that comes closest to 'write what you know', but...
Everything I knew has been changed to suit the fiction. None of the residents of Serenity are based on the residents of the town where I lived. I took pieces from all the people I've ever met where their pieces might fit into this scenario. I used snatches from this person and bits from that, added some stuff, twisted some stuff, and created the characters that populate my book.
Because that's what writing fiction is. It's making stuff up in your head and putting it down. Otherwise it's memoir. Or loosely veiled non-fiction - which is totally not my style. (Despite the one agent who wrote across a rejection letter years ago - for a totally different book - that I ought to write non-fiction and if I did he'd be happy to look at it.)
Oh, and Jillian is not me. And Scott is not Hubs. I played with real bits from us to make them more real, but in the end, they're their own people and so are we.
How much of your favorite writers do you suspect is in their writing? Or do you think it's like Alfred Hitchcock, who had cameos in the movies he made? (Stephen King does it, too, but Hitchcock did it first.)
Monday, May 18, 2015
Release Day! Plus!
Hey all!
It's the O-fficial release day for the Kindle edition of Accidental Death! (Yes, just the Kindle edition. I selected the Kindle Select program without thinking and now it's too late to back out. Sorry about that. I really did mean to let this one go across formats. :kicks self so you don't have to: The print book isn't ready yet. Soon.)
The 'Plus!' is that it's also my 45th birthday today. :Insert virtual balloons and streamers:
I scheduled my release today on purpose. Releasing this book is like my birthday present to myself. Yay! So, go eat some cake, buy a neat book about a series of accidental deaths in a small town that probably aren't so accidental, and celebrate my day with me.
Pretty cool, huh?
Murder doesn’t happen here.
Serenity is the safest, little town in Colorado. But residents are dropping like flies. No big deal. Accidents happen.
Or do they?
Detective Dennis Haggarty came to town to comfort his recently widowed sister, not investigate a homicide. However, finding a corpse means he can’t avoid doing his job—especially since the local authorities are determined to disregard the facts. Delving deeper, he finds a string of deaths everyone wants to ignore even when all the evidence points to murder. Lucky for the detective, only one person in town has means, motive, and opportunity.
Too bad he’s falling in love with her.
It's the O-fficial release day for the Kindle edition of Accidental Death! (Yes, just the Kindle edition. I selected the Kindle Select program without thinking and now it's too late to back out. Sorry about that. I really did mean to let this one go across formats. :kicks self so you don't have to: The print book isn't ready yet. Soon.)
The 'Plus!' is that it's also my 45th birthday today. :Insert virtual balloons and streamers:
I scheduled my release today on purpose. Releasing this book is like my birthday present to myself. Yay! So, go eat some cake, buy a neat book about a series of accidental deaths in a small town that probably aren't so accidental, and celebrate my day with me.
Pretty cool, huh?
Murder doesn’t happen here.
Serenity is the safest, little town in Colorado. But residents are dropping like flies. No big deal. Accidents happen.
Or do they?
Detective Dennis Haggarty came to town to comfort his recently widowed sister, not investigate a homicide. However, finding a corpse means he can’t avoid doing his job—especially since the local authorities are determined to disregard the facts. Delving deeper, he finds a string of deaths everyone wants to ignore even when all the evidence points to murder. Lucky for the detective, only one person in town has means, motive, and opportunity.
Too bad he’s falling in love with her.
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