Finding Traction in Other Markets

Good Morning. I've been watching my sales figures since the day I first published (Sept. 28, 2011). I have spreadsheets galore, tracked sales numbers incessantly, checked my stats two, three, four times a day. Yes, I am somewhat OCD about this. (I wish I could say the same for housework, but that's another post.)

I found my footing at Amazon back in the hey-day when indie/self-published authors were given the same algorithms that every one else had. If more than 10 people bought your book on any given day, you shot up in the ranks, and if you made it into the top 100, you were SEEN and BOUGHT and all was glorious in your little world.

I'd also published on Smashwords, not wanting to limit myself to only Amazon. Once I figured out how to format properly, it was just a matter of uploading. However, back then, they weren't a major player. Smashwords was considered an upstart and would fail within the year. (HA!)

Then in February of 2013 all that changed. Amazon changed its algorithms, pushed the indies out and concentrated on the BIG 5 books. I had just released THE EARL'S ENGAGEMENT and watched it go from #19 on its debut to #3,798 in a matter of days. I was crushed, floored, and had no idea why. Then I read a blog where an insider told us all that the Mighty Zon was pushing us indies out. We had done our duty to the megalith by giving them cheap books to fill the coffers of their e-readers thus giving them the monopoly on e-reading.

Okay. Well, it's business. People ranted and raved how unfair it all was, how the Zon was going to destroy publishing, destroy indies, destroy the universe. I got over it. It's business. Jeff can run his business any way he sees fit. He's a smart man, did what he had to do, and is now a multi-billionaire. Good for him I say. He had a clear vision of his company and knows how to make his machine work.

On the other hand, I am a smart woman. This new e-publishing thing has a long tail. We've all heard that at one time or another. What you publish today may not find readers for two years, or ten years. What you publish today is just the beginning of, hopefully, a long and fruitful career.

When Amazon changed its algorithms, I changed my tactics. I had also published on Smashwords and gotten into Barnes & Noble through them. However, I wanted more control over my books. (Not that Mark Coker isn't as brilliant as Jeff Bezos -- more so I think because Mark gives us more venues to publish with, more international stores, more of pretty much everything us indies need -- and if you're not publishing on Smashwords, well, you're losing out). However, I opted out of B&N through Smashwords and published through B&N PubIt!

Sometime late last year, PubIt! went through a restructuring and became Nook Press. Same store, only better. They built a model for uploading, with the added bonus of being able to correct mistakes in your book right there on the page -- instead of fixing the ms. uploading through various epub machines, and then reviewing everything all over again and waiting the required 48-72 hours for the book to publish. I just used this feature the other day when I found the last (I hope) mistake in the Captain's Coincidence. I went to the page, fixed the mistake, and voila, the book was reviewed in less than an hour and the new version uploaded. No fuss, no muss, and I sold a copy the same day.

Nook Press has also just expanded its market share and gone global. Not only are they selling in the UK, but now they have stores in France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, and Belgium. (I've always wanted to go to Belgium.) The outlook for this expansion is phenomenal. I've been reading about Barnes and Noble's imminent demise for years, but this expansion shows they're not going anywhere.

In thinking about all this, and looking at my numbers for the last few months, I've found that I've sold just as many books on Nook, as I have on Amazon. (US only). On some days, quite a few more. I don't know if they have algorithms. I don't know if they feature new books on their website or flash "new releases" in front of your face. (I've never bothered to actually go to the Nook Store and look.) I don't really care. All I know is the margin between both stores is closing in. And that, my friends is the name of the game.

The way I look at it is, if I can't keep my traction at Amazon, then I need to find someplace else to get it. This is business. Kobo is going through another major restructuring with the takeover of Sony. (I am installed over there, but haven't published through them as yet.) Apple is great if you can get through the Mac hoops to publish. Smashwords is a great aggregator for other markets, (Apple itunes and Kobo, not to mention B&N, FlipKart, Oyster, and Scribd, and I think six more) and they have a nifty gadget on their dashboard that tells me how many times my 15% sneak peek has been downloaded.

Therefore, for me, Nook is the up and coming place to be. I remember the Barnes and Noble store at the mall when I was a kid. I'd go through the stacks, wishing and hoping someday I'd be published. Okay, fast forward 30 years, and there I am. Yes, I understand it's only virtual reality, but hey, if it pays my electric bill, I'll take it.

Tell me -- Do you publish through other companies or are you only at Amazon? And if you are, why? Do any of you keep track of your sales figures or do you just not care as long as the money flows in?

I have not been endorsed by any company. This is strictly a business opinion/observation. .


Anne Gallagher (c) 2014

My Smashwords Interview

Good morning. For those of you who publish with Smashwords, you're probably already aware of the new changes to benefit their authors. Mark Coker is doing an amazing job for indies and I'm so glad I decided to stop playing with KDP Select and jump over to Smashwords and diversify. 

One of the latest tools Mark has given us is the ability to do an interview. Now me, I'm a talker. Ask me about my books and I'll go on and on. However, nobody has asked me lately, so I played around with this on Saturday morning, and this is the author interview I gave myself. 

Interview with Anne Gallagher

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?

I grew up in a little ocean side town in Rhode Island. My teenage summers were spent working at the local ice cream parlour and getting a tan (before that became bad for you). We didn't have a television (by choice) and the only thing to do was read. I cut my teeth on historical romance, bodice rippers and Highlander stories, and Fabio graced every cover. I loved losing myself in different places, not to mention different eras. Somehow though, I found the Regency period and I've never looked back.

Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?

The first story I ever wrote was about a 70's rock band. I must have been seventeen. I still have it. Found it in a box of old papers when we moved. It totally stinks, is riddled with bad dialogue, and a horrible plot, but it means something to me because way back then, I knew this is what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to be a writer.

What is your writing process?

My writing process starts off in the wee hours of the morning. I like to get up at five, take a quick peek at emails and other social media before I start writing. Usually by my second cup of tea, I open my document and review/edit what I wrote the previous day. I write by the hour. If I can get to work by six, I'll stop writing around eleven and check my word count. Some days I can get in 1500-2000 words, others it's only 500 because I've stopped to do research.

During the school year, things are a little different. I still get up at five and check my social media, but then I take my daughter to school. I generally start to work writing by 8:30 and work until 1. Sometimes, if I'm particularly enamored of my story, I'll turn the computer back on after supper.

What do you read for pleasure?

Funnily enough, not Regency romance. Before I started writing, I must have read every Regency ever written. These days I'm finding myself drawn to women's fiction, cozy mysteries, and autobiographies.

Describe your desk-

In two simple words - a disaster. I have papers, books, research tomes, pens, pads, post-its, pictures, and two horseshoes on top of it right now. However, I'm in the middle of a writing my next book, so that's the way it will stay until it is finished. When that gets published, I will clean the desk and straighten out my office. Once I decide on my next project, it becomes messy again until I finish that. It's a vicious circle.

What motivated you to become an indie author?

I had written my first three Regency novels and sent out queries to agents. They all said they liked my writing, but the market was saturated so they couldn't place me. A good friend of mine had chronicled her foray into self-publishing on her blog, and I thought, "if she could do it, so could I". It was a decided learning curve, but I'm so glad I did it.

How has Smashwords contributed to your success?

Smashwords has given me markets that I don't think I would have gotten into. Their reach is global, with varied companies, which means varied devices to utilize. Sure there are other companies who are global, but they only have one or two e-reading devices. And not everyone owns one. With Smashwords, the opportunity to be read by millions of people all over the world is just awesome.

What do your fans mean to you?

My fans mean the world to me. I think with every writer, the first letter or review you get that says, "I loved your book" gives you the feeling that you've finally found your place in the world. And that in turn, spurs us to continue. Sure, I've had my share of bad reviews, but the good far outweigh them. And the first thing we have to learn is that not everyone is going to love everything we write. However, for those readers who continue to read what I write is like Manna from Heaven. It sustains me.

What are you working on next?

I'm trying to finish up the last four books in my series The Reluctant Grooms. I'm currently working on Richard's story (hoping I'll have enough of a word count to make a novel), and that's slated for release around Thanksgiving. I hope. Then by Christmas I'm hoping to get two novellas out (both are prequels to the last book) and then next spring, the final book in the series should be ready for publication. I tend to work on two or three books at a time, and the two novellas have already been started.



So that's it. I know it's not the best interview, but I'm not a writer for Rolling Stone.

Tell me -- Are you published on Smashwords? Have you seen any of their new changes? Have you done an author interview with yourself?

Anne Gallagher (c) 2013