Posted in Books, Writing, tagged amazon, book promotion, books, creative writing, ebooks, free book, free kindle book, Kindle, novel writing, novels, publishing, self-publishing, Unraveling Time, Writing, writing tips on 08 Apr 2013| Leave a Comment »
I’ll admit it. I got nothing done this weekend. I was positively glued to my iPad, pulling up the growing stats on my promotion for Unraveling Time, watching the numbers click upward hour by hour, day by day.
It was fascinating, and it totally exceeded my expectations.
(And in case you missed it, no worries; it’s still available for free, thru midnight tomorrow. Don’t be left out. Go claim yours!)
So, instead of something pithy and/or insightful, let’s talk about the progress so far.
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged amazon, book promotions, creative writing, ebooks, free books, Kindle, novel writing, novels, publishing, self-publishing, writing techniques, writing tips on 06 Apr 2013| Leave a Comment »
Yesterday’s promotional campaign–offering Unraveling Time free of charge for an entire weekend– came under the heading of “It couldn’t hurt.” I thought it might get my book in front of a couple of new readers. It did, but it did more than that. There are secondary effects.
Unraveling Time is a time-travel/historical/adventure/romance (yep…it is) and as such, I listed it in two sub-sub-genres: Historical fantasy and Time Travel Romance (didn’t know there was a Time Travel Romance sub-sub-genre, did you?) Well, this morning, due to the free copies that people have downloaded, Unraveling Time is in the Top Ten for its genres. Now, I grant you, those are rather specific sub-sub-genres, but here’s the thing. At Amazon, there are people who subscribe to the RSS feed of top sellers in those genres. There is even an RSS feed for top free books in those genres. And that, my friends, is targeting your demographic.
Of course, it’s a free promotion, and I’m not making a dime off it, but as folks in another business say: The first taste is free.
Already, I’ve had emails from people thanking me for the free book, telling me that they’ve started reading it already and are enjoying it, and one email from a brand-new reader just to tell me that she really loved a line from the book (“…and the sand
beneath him that smelled of ancient anger.”)
I can’t tell you how big my grin was when I read that.
So, if you some friend or colleague or even just a blogger like me says, Here’s a book for free, go get it. Even if you don’t read it, you’ll help that person’s book reach new readers and that is, essentially, what most of us are striving for.
k
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged amazon, book promotion, creative writing, ebooks, free books, Kindle, novels, publishing, Unraveling Time, Writing on 05 Apr 2013| 1 Comment »
It’s out there. For free. Go get one!
Unraveling Time is free through Tuesday!
What are you waiting for?
While you’re doing that, I’m going to write up a review of the book I finished yesterday.
k
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Posted in Books, Writing, tagged book giveaway, book promotion, books, e-readers, ebooks, free book, Kindle, novels, publishing, self-publishing, Time travel, time travel adventure, time travel romance, Unraveling Time, Writing on 04 Apr 2013| Leave a Comment »
Attention, biblio-nauts! I’m kicking off a promotion for one of my recent novels.
Starting tomorrow (Friday, April 5), you can get a free copy of Unraveling Time for your Kindle-reader.
No gimmicks. No strings. From April 5 through April 9, this book is entirely free. Go, get it, and keep it forever. It is literally yours for the taking!
(Remember, you can read Kindle books on your PC, your Mac, your iPad, your iPhone, your Android phone or tablet…anywhere!)
Still not sure? Read an excerpt of the book right here on this blog! What can you lose (except a weekend spent with a good book)?
Want to know more? Want to know what it’s about? (more…)
Posted in Books, Fallen Cloud Saga, Writing, tagged amazon, ankylosaur, Beneath a Wounded Sky, creative writing, dinosaur, ebooks, Fallen Cloud Saga, FC:V, novel writing, novels, parasaurolophus, plesiosaur, pterosaur, self-publishing, T-Rex, Writing on 01 Apr 2013| 2 Comments »
It’s one of those things I dreaded. A reader of the Fallen Cloud Saga has asked me what species of dinosaurs I used in the series. Don’t get me wrong, it’s terrific that readers want this kind of detail and “behind the scenes” info, and I’m more than happy to provide it, but I know this will only give ammunition to Paleozoic anoraks to shoot holes in my world-building techniques. The row that ensued over my leaving Quebec under French control was epic. I can only imagine what will happen with this.
But, rather than just a cold list of species, I’ll give a little of my thinking to the scenario as well.
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged B&N, barnes and noble, bookstore chains, novels, publishing, S&S, simon and schuster, Writing on 26 Mar 2013| 4 Comments »
It’s a sad fact of life, but publishing is a business. Not only that, it’s a cutthroat business. So is bookselling.
With profit margins shrinking and the sudden surge in e-book sales, the entire industry is in an uproar, and nowhere more so than in good, old brick-and-mortar bookshops. Frankly, aside from a recent visit to the Mecca of Books (a thoroughly unsatisfactory visit, too, I might add), I can’t remember the last time I was in an actual bookstore.
Well, it just became a shooting war.
Stephanie Burgis, author of the beloved Kat books for young readers, recently posted about major developments between Simon & Schuster and Barnes & Noble (lots of ampersands there…sorry). She refers us to articles posted in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (both of which are worth a read), but here’s the bottom line:
Barnes & Noble has reduced [Simon & Schuster] book orders greatly, to almost nothing in the case of some lesser-known writers.
This, in my opinion, is the death-knell for B&N. If they don’t back off of this stance, I give them five years, at most.
Posted in Books, Fallen Cloud Saga, Seattle, Writing, tagged amazon, Beneath a Wounded Sky, books, creative writing, Fallen Cloud Saga, FC:V, novel writing, novels, publishing, rain, Seattle, self-publishing, weather, Writing on 20 Mar 2013| 2 Comments »
It’s pissing down rain in Seattle. The lecherous wind tugs and young women’s skirts as they tick-tock their high-heeled way to work, and the few who bothered with umbrellas wish they’d left them at home. The sky is locked down in gunmetal grey and the sun is a dim memory, consumed by the overhead drear. It’s already been a long work-week for me, having put in three days’ worth before the end of Day Two, and I haven’t slept well for worrying about my family, still roiling from our matriarch’s recent death.
And yet, inside, I’m sunny. (more…)
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 