Do you have to be Emotionally Connected to your Writing for it to be a Success?

I've given this question some serious thought now while the excitement and anxiety of releasing my book has finally settled down. And I do believe this topic will generate a mixed response.

Some writers write what is in their heart and therefore their main focus is to write stories that they want to write. But other writers only write what they think will sell.

I am a writer who writes from my heart. That doesn't mean I don't consider my readers when I write these stories. Quite the opposite: my readers are my pivotal focus. But I think writing from the heart is far easier than writing what I think will sell.

There are two main reasons for this:

1. I don't have any experience of writing sci-fi, paranormal romance or dystopia because I don't read these sort of books.
2. I am not about to start chasing the trends on the off chance I may get rich, famous or hugely successful. Again there are two main reasons for this. Number one: I am never, ever that lucky and number two by the time I have written books in these genres another genre will be hot. I figure I may as well stick to what I know I write well.

The stories I tell always have a personal connection and I believe this passion is what carries the readers through. If I don't write with this connection, I don't honestly know if there would be a story to tell. I know a lot of writers are like me and they basically write about something in their life experience.

This isn't always literal of course. Writers could just write fiction with only a vague element of truth but their stories often come through from some sort of life experience.

What do you think? Are you a writer who writes from their heart?

A List of Book Promotion Sites

Before I get into this post, I'd like to wish all my followers and everyone else an extremely Happy New Year. May all your wishes and dreams come true during these next twelve months.

If you're a writer like me here is a list that might make this year your best yet. I know the number one goal for many authors is to write as many books as they possibly can and for them to sell like wildfire.

Now writing books may seem hard but I can assure you that getting people to buy them is so much harder. As a writer you may feel like most of your work is over once you have a finished product to sell but in fact your work is only just beginning.

I've seen established writers argue that the best promotional tool you can use is to write another book. And although I am not arguing with that advice, I think it would be a shame to ignore all the book promotion sites.

When I first start to market my first book I really struggled. There's an overwhelming amount of advice out there and most of it is conflicting. This daunts a novice writer who is only just starting out on their exciting adventure, and for some they'd rather bury their head in the sand rather than face any promotion.

If you're a new writer starting out now then I think your journey into publishing may be even harder. There are so many books out there now that cyber space is becoming increasingly swamped. This makes visibility so much harder, and many writers will claim that simply tweeting about your book amongst your followers who are probably trying to do the same thing is more than a little pointless.

So if social media sites aren't working then what does work?

The key to making sales is to get your book in front of the eyes of readers. This sounds so simple on the surface but finding these people can be tougher than you first think. There are hundreds of book clubs out there dedicated to specific genres but most of these clubs do not allow promotion of any sort. So it's a Catch 22 scenario. You want to find readers but when you do you can't mention your book to them. How do get round this obstacle?

The trick is not to hound readers yourself but to find sites that have newsletters sent out to their plethora of subscribed readers. You upload your book onto their site and you have your book mentioned in the monthly/weekly/daily newsletter. Some sites are free but some are paid. I know many writers swear by BookBub - http://www.bookbub.com/partners but this is the dearest site I've found so far.

So, here is a list of sites that I've promoted my books with. In a month I will report any increase I've seen with sales - fingers crossed there will be some significant findings. As my followers know I have just released my third book so I'm trying desperately to promote that.

I hope you find these sites handy.

• http://awesomegang.com/ A mixture of free and paid promotion. Vinny is very helpful indeed.
• http://www.bookdaily.com/authorsignup For increased author visibility.
• http://www.ebookbargainsuk.com/ A U.K version if BookBub. I will be using them in the future.
• http://askdavid.com/ They are an affiliate of Amazon and are very reasonable.
• http://creativedesignerswriters.com/ Advertise on this site for ten years for $5. Brilliant exposure.

Once again Happy New Year to everyone. I hope you find my post useful. I'm off to eat a cake like the one shown above this afternoon.

The Components of a Bestselling Book

Okay, so I have been thinking about the above question quite a bit recently. After all, in the digital age of electronic books and the explosion of self publishing, it is hard not to hope for J.K. Rowling success by some small miracle.

However, dreaming about making a massive small fortune and actually doing it are two very different things. Anyone who thinks they can slap a book together and whack it on Amazon in the space of just one month is going to be very disappointed indeed if they expect it to sell well or even sell at all. There's a lot of competition out there these days and every book has to fight its way to be noticed.

But success is possible if you're prepared to work at it.

A lot of writers' success comes from their books selling modestly. They may not write a book which has three million sales in the first week but they will write enough books to make a living if they can get several of their books to sell regularly.

I believe this method works or at least I hope it does because I am prepared to write for the rest of my life.

So ... what makes a bestselling book?

• Well firstly the story has to be something Joe Public wants to read. If you like writing far out stuff for the world's tiniest audience then don't expect a life of endless money any time soon.
• Secondly, I think it must have a decent plotline to keep you on the edge of your seat. If a book is boring and predictable then why the hell should anyone want to read it? I always like a book with a good twist.
• Thirdly, I like to be impressed with the authors use of language. That's not the same as saying I like flowery prose but I like the author's style of writing to be unique to them. Writing which is distinct and compact.
• Fourthly, I like well rounded and believable characters with clear motivations and goals.

If you're a writer who writes books with these elements I believe your books will sell. You just have to keep writing them.

So, that leads me on to this ...

Drumroll please ...

It is with great relief, joy and a whole lot of trepidation and anxiety that I announce the arrival of my third book: A Step Too Far

'Caitlin O’Connor has the perfect life. Or so she thinks. In her late twenties, she already has a fantastic career as a trauma nurse with a gorgeous, rich, successful husband to match.

But when tragedy strikes on an exotic holiday, all this changes. Caitlin’s near-death experience makes her realise that she has to move out of her comfort zone and make the most of life’s opportunities.

But when she makes plans to have more of a work/life balance, she discovers far more than she bargains for. She fears her husband is about to have an affair, and this situation is made worse by her own current catastrophic failings at work.

Now things are going from bad to worse and Caitlin’s suffering panic attacks. Will she ever be sane again and manage to get her life back on track, or has she gone a step too far?'

It is a funny, light hearted chick lit so I hope you'll check it out.

If you'd like to make my dreams come true here are the links to follow if you wish to purchase it:

Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/1khDhcS
Amazon.co.uk: http://amzn.to/1cbks9t
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/388669

Thank you very, very much.

Happy holidays!

What's the Difference Between Advertising and Self Promotion?

A sudden thought struck me the other day as I'm getting ready to release my chick lit novel. As it's my first fiction book, I'm already planning to do more marketing than I've done with my other books. And I'm hoping my marketing efforts will be more noticeable as chick lit appeals to a broader audience. However, this does not mean I'll be going on any grand tour of blatant self promotion as I honestly don't believe this works.

So then I thought about the general concept of marketing and what certain terms mean. When someone mentions marketing what they're really saying covers a whole lot of other areas. Marketing is just an umbrella term that sometimes does nothing but confuse people trying to suss it out.

When I first started writing seriously, I thought marketing was just another word for blatant self promotion, or spam as some people say. And as a writer I knew this method was unlikely to work and what blatant self promotion I have done seems to have little affect on sales. So instead I concentrated on writing my next book.

But then I started to think about advertising. Advertising may be more expensive and it may take longer for the results to show but I think it's more effective on long term sales than just promotion. If for example you have your book placed in many different stores it is likely to sell more copies than just having the book in one store and constantly bleating on about it.

Having your book in many different places whether it's online or in real book stores will help increase sales without much blatant self promotion. Of course, you'll have to tell people where it's available but even then I think that's different to self promotion.

If you're looking for a short boost of sales giving your book away for free or offering a two for one offer is a great promotion tactic. But if you're looking for a longer boost then researching advertising strategies may be a better plan.

What do you think - is advertising a better strategy than promotion? What has worked for you?

Does Fear Hold You Back from Publishing Your Book?

I'm anxiously awaiting to receive my manuscript back from its editing process and already I'm feeling slightly terrified.

This is a big moment in my life because when I do get it back and make the necessary alterations and corrections, I'll have my first fiction novel ready to be published.

Naturally I'm very excited about this and I've already started to plan out my fourth book in an effort to take my mind off my third book. I figure that while I'm waiting, I may as well be doing something useful. Writers never stop writing so it's onwards and upwards with book number four.

But then I start to think about all the other writers I network with. Some excitedly tell me that they're working on their first novel and I presume they can't wait to get it published. And then they tell me that they've been working on it for the past sixteen years.

Unless they're writing an entire library, I don't think any book should take this long and I wonder what's holding them back. Many, many writers have other commitments such as other jobs and family issues but they still manage to publish a book every year or two.

Then I think to myself is it fear? Fear of the unknown and people writing reviews stating they can't write. Fear of being ridiculed for publishing a book that only sells one copy per year.

Thoughts like these go through every writers' mind, whether you're J.K. Rowling or a complete novice. But what separates these writers is that the J.K. Rowling's publish their books and try not to worry too much while they get on with writing their next novel. The other writers will dither and dither and make constant rewrites and corrections, consequently never getting their book published.

You don't want to rush your book and it's crucial to make it the best it possibly can be before you release it for the world to see. But what's important is realising when that time has arrived.

If you're a writer who find themselves worrying a lot about their book and you constantly change and rewrite it, I hope this post has helped you. I have a self help book about fear and anxiety and it's got one pivotal lesson:

Action brings satisfaction. No matter what the problem or fear is, doing something about it will always make you feel better.

So take action and have the courage to publish your book before you go completely insane.

Do Writers Sell More Books if they Cross Genres?

I've been browsing many best selling authors on Amazon this week after finally finishing my third book. I've been a little high when thinking that one day I might achieve this same status.

But despite these authors writing different categories of books, they all seem to have one thing in common: they write in different genres.

If you look for information regarding how to sell books on the internet, you're more than likely to discover discussions on author brands, and how it's crucial for writers to build their brand name on their platform to entice their readers. This advice is given so your readers will begin to trust what sort of books you produce. For example, everyone on this planet knows what books Stephen King writes and on his books you'll notice he'll have his name on the top of his book rather than the title. Not only is this more eye catching as usually it's the first thing you see, but the title on the bottom of the book will almost seem insignificant. The reader knows who the author is so therefore even without glancing at the title they'll know roughly what the book is about.

But what happens when writers do decide to cross genres? Will their existing brand be ruined if they decide to hop about all over the place?

I've often worried this myself because this question is going to affect me very soon. My first two books have been about travel, adventure and excitement with a little steam thrown in there too. Most people know me as a citizen of the world because I am open about the fact that I've been around it three times.

But what will happen when my third book is released and people discover it's not related to wild backpacking stories, and that it's just another chick lit book in an overcrowded market? Can I expect my current fans to have the same enthusiasm if I dare ask them to read it?

Then I stop to think a while.

Yes, I have fans for my two current books but I'm sure these people just don't like to stick to one particular genre, do they? Okay, some might but I'll probably discover readers like myself who like to read all sorts of different books. I like to read non fiction, biographies and memoirs. Books by Belle de Jour and real life stories of serial killers. That's the crime reader in me. I also like to read light hearted chick lit and comedy books by Sibel Hodge. Her Amazon author page is here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sibel-Hodge/e/B003H0Q4EQ/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

So then I wonder do these writers sell more books overall because they've branched out and attempted to reach a different audience?

A lot of successful writers will tell you more books will equal more sales because every book has the potential to find more readers. I blogged about this topic last week: http://lkwattsconfessions.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/has-marketing-lost-its-effect.html

You might be wondering why a photo of Terry Fox is on my blog. I posted this picture in an effort to inspire fellow writers. Terry was an athlete of great tenacity. He had determination and great courage. Terry died in his early twenties from cancer after nearly running the entire width of Canada on a false leg. Although he was ill he was determined to achieve his goal. He had qualities shared with successful writers. He didn't give up but continued his marathon, however much of a struggle it was.


So what do you think? Do writers brave enough to venture into a different genre sell more books overall? Please share your experiences with us.

Has Marketing Lost its Effect?

I've been in the self publishing industry a good couple of years now and one concept that's always baffled me is the issue of marketing.

When I published my first book, marketing it was all I could think about and I consequently felt overwhelmed by the contradicting plethora of advice on the internet. I spent months and months and months reading so much information and when I put it to practise none of it seemed to work.

So then I changed my tactic. Instead of spending my time doing all these marketing efforts with no real results, I started to follow writers like J.A. Konrath and Bob Mayer who have been in this industry for decades to see what advice they could give.

And they said one pivotal thing: no matter what you write and who you write for, the best marketing technique is to write another book.

When I read that advice it felt like a huge cloud had been lifted. Finally something I could do and I know I could do well and that is to write my next book. It sounded so simple.

Now four years on I have just finished my third book and for the last several years, I've always promised to put my writing first over any aspect of marketing. I really do believe that Amazon and other retailers have so much control over how our books sell than we'd like to think. I spend time in the Kindleboards writers' forum to hear other authors mention the direct impact Amazon's algorithms have had on their sales. No matter how much marketing they do sales seemed to be stuck at a certain number.

So many writers spend so much time trying different marketing techniques trying to keep up with these pesky algorithms. But not many of these writers can measure the effects of their marketing efforts with much success. Even writers like J.A. Konrath say that when they spend time promoting sales results often aren't instant. It can take weeks if not months for promotion to have any effect and I think that this is what makes it so difficult to have an accurate measure for these results.

One thing I'm not knocking is paid advertising. However, I still have to try that but I've spoken to many writers who have said that this method has had spectacular results for them. Maybe because it's paid - I don't know. But one thing I do know is this. Self publishing has become so popular these days anyone can put their rubbish out there and it takes a lot for any book to become visible.