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My keys to future success

PaulineMRoss

Inkling
I also noticed when one of your books was for free, you mentioned it on reddit and got loads of responses. I've posted some there, but it's probably right below Facebook and Twitter for places I frequent the most (besides this forum).

Yeah, I was surprised by the level of interest. And several of them went out and bought all three books, not just the free one, which was amazing. They're a great bunch of people, and very open to self-pubbers, so long as they don't spam the place with self-promotion. But announcing a discount or freebie is fine.
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
Pauline,

A couple of the marketing books I read focused a lot on keywords. Have you explored using those at all? I'm still trying to figure out it they're amazingly effective or snake oil.

Thanks.

Brian
 

PaulineMRoss

Inkling
A couple of the marketing books I read focused a lot on keywords. Have you explored using those at all? I'm still trying to figure out it they're amazingly effective or snake oil.

Some people swear by them, some say it makes no difference. I don't stuff the keywords space to capacity, but I do try to use as many likely words and phrases as possible.

These are the keywords I use for The Fire Mages (7 slots separated by commas, but you can have as many words as you want in each one):

Coming of age teen teens ya young adult girl, Spells fire mage mages heir ruler law scribe, Epic fantasy adventure post-apocalypse, Mystery powers quest, Love triangle romance, Magic school wizard scribe, Magic city tunnel library stone sphere

But I haven't noticed any change, good or bad, since switching to use more keywords. :) And I don't know whether the duplication helps or not.
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
Some people swear by them, some say it makes no difference. I don't stuff the keywords space to capacity, but I do try to use as many likely words and phrases as possible.

These are the keywords I use for The Fire Mages (7 slots separated by commas, but you can have as many words as you want in each one):

Coming of age teen teens ya young adult girl, Spells fire mage mages heir ruler law scribe, Epic fantasy adventure post-apocalypse, Mystery powers quest, Love triangle romance, Magic school wizard scribe, Magic city tunnel library stone sphere

But I haven't noticed any change, good or bad, since switching to use more keywords. :) And I don't know whether the duplication helps or not.

Maybe I could loan you my copy of Supercharge Your Kindle Sales. I would love to see what would happen if you followed the book's advice on keywords.
 

PaulineMRoss

Inkling
Maybe I could loan you my copy of Supercharge Your Kindle Sales. I would love to see what would happen if you followed the book's advice on keywords.

Is that the Nick Stephenson one? Already read it. I'm not mad keen on his advice of looking for categories that are easy to get into, and targeting the keywords at that. With fantasy, there really aren't that many category options.

The part I really liked was about titles. His thinking is that you need to get important keywords into the title of a book, too, and I really think there's something in that. One of the reasons I think The Fire Mages has done so much better than The Plains of Kallanash is possibly because the title is so much more immediately 'fantasy'. So I changed the title of the next book. It was going to be 'The Mines of Asharim', but now it's 'The Magic Mines of Asharim'.

You should be OK, Brian, you have 'Mages' in the title. :)
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
Is that the Nick Stephenson one? Already read it. I'm not mad keen on his advice of looking for categories that are easy to get into, and targeting the keywords at that. With fantasy, there really aren't that many category options.

The part I really liked was about titles. His thinking is that you need to get important keywords into the title of a book, too, and I really think there's something in that. One of the reasons I think The Fire Mages has done so much better than The Plains of Kallanash is possibly because the title is so much more immediately 'fantasy'. So I changed the title of the next book. It was going to be 'The Mines of Asharim', but now it's 'The Magic Mines of Asharim'.

You should be OK, Brian, you have 'Mages' in the title. :)

Yes. That's the book.

I was thinking more, though, about these two pieces of advice:

1. Determine relevent keywords employing the procedure he detailed in the book.
2. Use those keywords in your pitch.
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
For the latest word on self-pubbing and marketing from people who've done it (and are making money from it, in many cases), go to the Kboards Writers' Cafe. Lots of people (including me) give blow-by-blow breakdowns of promotion campaigns with actual results and costs. Just remember that it's a public forum.

Pauline,

Thanks you for this recommendation!

I'm loving the discussions over there (though I'm mainly lurking).

MS is a fantastic community, but there just doesn't seem to be a ton of interest in the business side of writing. I always feel that posts in the publising and marketing forums get very little attention.

Now, I see why. Writer's Cafe is a fantastic resource. From my experience reading about authors actually making money here and on Goodreads, I came away with the impression that it's highly unlikely anyone can be any kind of success. At the cafe, there are tons of people who are making real $$$. Cool stuff. And it's neat to see people like Hugh Howey actually interacting.

Thanks again!

Brian
 

PaulineMRoss

Inkling
Writer's Cafe is a fantastic resource. From my experience reading about authors actually making money here and on Goodreads, I came away with the impression that it's highly unlikely anyone can be any kind of success. At the cafe, there are tons of people who are making real $$$. Cool stuff. And it's neat to see people like Hugh Howey actually interacting.

Yeah, it's a great place to find out what works and what doesn't, and also get technical or legal information. And plenty of those people are making a good living from their books. Plenty more are making a sizable contribution to household income. It really is possible.

Just remember that it's a very public place. A lot of the biggest earners have gone anonymous because their books got 1*-bombed whenever they got confrontational. It's not a place to be fearlessly opinionated (unless you're as big as Hugh Howey). Play nice, and they'll help and encourage you, and even buy your book.
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
My plan is to do a lot of lurking unless I have something relevant to add.

Again, thanks for the tips!

Brian
 
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