Authors, Writers, Publishers, and Book Readers

New to the world of Authorship

Hello there, fellow Authors!

5 days ago, I officially entered the realm of public publication, introducing my first novel "Mirage - The First of the Nascentian Chronicles" as a kindle-exclusive on amazon.com

( http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AY7G2AG )

I have to admit, I am a little nervous about the entire ordeal, and never really thought it would get here...yet there it is plain as day, and I can't stop staring at it sometimes.

My fear now is, however, that it will get lost in translation (so to speak) and that now my main focus has to be on the upkeep of the exposure of my book to the world. If this is the case, it's going to put a serious dent in my schedule for the progression of book 2 in my series.

So...what are everyone's thoughts? What has worked for you in recent years, especially in digital sales? Bear in mind that I am on a next-to-nothing budget (bordering on the side of nothing)

Eden

http://www.facebook.com/nascentianchronicles

http://www.nascentia.net

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Permalink Reply by Craig Brummer on January 14, 2013 at 1:17pm

Hi David,

Looking at the above I think you did a great job on the cover which is always a huge factor in grabbing attention. My own book will not be ready for a few months but I have heard that setting Amazon to where readers can download the first couple chapters is a good way to get people started. In trilogies and other series some authors are giving out the first book free and then charging for the follow up books. I've found a couple new authors that way myself and have bought their other books. A key point of that is they had 5 to six books available. Other than those type things I think authors do better promoting their books online and through Twitter than by paying companies; most of those seem to be rip offs. Good luck with your sales.

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Permalink Reply by Craig Brummer on January 15, 2013 at 12:58pm

Hi David,

By the way, who did the cover art for your book?

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Permalink Reply by David J. Eden on January 15, 2013 at 10:10pm

Her name is Nathalia Suellen and she is amazing! You can check out her site at http://ladysymphonia.com/

She's really easy going, extremely patient with her clients, charges a very fair price (my cover was $150 USD), but she's Brazilian and so her native tongue is Portugese, which sometimes means a few things can get lost in translation. So if you wish to commission her, I recommend you be as specific as possible. ;)

As to your first response:

"I have heard that setting Amazon to where readers can download the first couple chapters is a good way to get people started." - Yup. Unfortunately, only the American Amazon (.com) has that option, and it is available on mine. The other sites, such as the Canadian and UK Amazons (.ca and .co.uk) do not. I do, however, also have a sample chapter available for reading on my book's own site www.nascentia.net

"In trilogies and other series some authors are giving out the first book free and then charging for the follow up books." - There are a few complications with that idea for me. 1) I only have book 1 (of 5) completed 2) I can't personally afford to dish it out for free, but I will when book 2 or 3 is complete and out. HOWEVER, I did enroll the book in Amazon's Kindle Select Program which gives me 5 days of my choosing where the book will be available for free. So it will show up on Amazon's main page under the "Hot Deals" category or however they feature it. I will also be writing a series of short-stories involving a 5,000-year war that takes place in the world of my book series that will be available free-to-read on the nascentia.net website. After maybe 20-ish of these short stories are completed, they will also be released for sale as a compilation, while remaining free to read individually on the site.

"A key point of that is they had 5 to six books available." - lol again...not an option with me for at least a few years.

"I think authors do better promoting their books online and through Twitter than by paying companies; most of those seem to be rip offs." I've noticed that myself. I have a small following on Twitter (@Nascentian) and a slightly larger one on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/nascentianchronicles) but to be honest, I'm a little taken aback that its nearly as much work (or more) to market your own book than it is to actually write the damned thing! :P

Thanks for the pointers, Craig! If you plan on getting in touch with Nathalia, I HIGHLY recommend it!

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Permalink Reply by Craig Brummer on January 16, 2013 at 5:18am

Hi David,

I wrote to Nathalia and described, in detail, what I'm looking for so we'll see what she comes back with. I'm novel is SciFi and it appears she mainly does fantasy but I don't think its that big of stretch to switch between the two. Thanks for the information.