There really wasn’t anything too spectacular going on in April. I did manage to write 102,864 words, which was quite low, my lowest of the year in fact, but which includes the 10,000 I pumped-out today.
Still, that puts me up to 464,280 for the year. I bet I’ll get halfway to a million here in two weeks. Should I do a special post on how you can write half a million words in 4.5 months?
Other than that I did some work for other people and also got some eBooks finished. If you’re on my mailing list you’ll get a full report, as well as the chance for a free social media marketing guide. But more about that later.
Here are some of the highlights of April.
Still, that puts me up to 464,280 for the year. I bet I’ll get halfway to a million here in two weeks. Should I do a special post on how you can write half a million words in 4.5 months?
Other than that I did some work for other people and also got some eBooks finished. If you’re on my mailing list you’ll get a full report, as well as the chance for a free social media marketing guide. But more about that later.
Here are some of the highlights of April.
A New ESL Book
Each month I put a new ESL book out, and this month was no different. Bilingual Teaching: Making Your Students Ready for America Fast is on sale and has had zero sales.
I’m going to put another one out here in another week or two. Will this one do any better? I sure don’t think it could do any worse than the ESL book I’ll put out in June, or July…or August for that matter.
I’m going to put another one out here in another week or two. Will this one do any better? I sure don’t think it could do any worse than the ESL book I’ll put out in June, or July…or August for that matter.
A New G.I. Joe Kindle Worlds Book
I really had a hard time getting going again on the third volume of my G.I. Joe series on Amazon’s Kindle Worlds program.
Then all of a sudden one day things just clicked and I started going strong. I got about 7,000 more words in a couple days and had it finished. I’d wanted to put it out on the 11th, but that didn’t happen, so it came out on the 15th instead.
It’s called After Infinity and I wrote a blog post about it, and also chastised Amazon for their poor covers.
A higher-level manager got back to me a few days later saying that 36 new images will be added to the cover catalogue and that the white borders from the covers will be removed.
He also asked what images I’d like to see, so I included a few links to the G.I Joe fan site that I think is the best, 3DJoes. Those are the images I use when I write the books.
I also mentioned the possibilities of using the G.I. Joe franchise as a launching ground for Amazon’s new video streaming service, a way they could combine the politic of Netflix’s House of Cards series and the bloodshed of HBO’s Game of Thrones series into a ratings and revenue juggernaut. I’m not sure the idea will get too far, however.
Didn’t hear anything and then this week the head of Kindle Worlds, Nick Loeffler, emailed me. He wanted to know what could be done about this situation. I said I didn’t think anything could be done.
See, without that ability to upload a cover that a designer’s worked on, and with the standard six templates of layout choices they have, there’s no way those books will look good. Even a $500 image won’t look good with the tools they give you.
He thanked me and that was that. We’ll see what changes come down the pike in a few weeks or months.
As of now my latest G.I. Joe book has sold exactly zero copies. I should have volume four out in the next week or two, volume five in June, six in July…
Then all of a sudden one day things just clicked and I started going strong. I got about 7,000 more words in a couple days and had it finished. I’d wanted to put it out on the 11th, but that didn’t happen, so it came out on the 15th instead.
It’s called After Infinity and I wrote a blog post about it, and also chastised Amazon for their poor covers.
A higher-level manager got back to me a few days later saying that 36 new images will be added to the cover catalogue and that the white borders from the covers will be removed.
He also asked what images I’d like to see, so I included a few links to the G.I Joe fan site that I think is the best, 3DJoes. Those are the images I use when I write the books.
I also mentioned the possibilities of using the G.I. Joe franchise as a launching ground for Amazon’s new video streaming service, a way they could combine the politic of Netflix’s House of Cards series and the bloodshed of HBO’s Game of Thrones series into a ratings and revenue juggernaut. I’m not sure the idea will get too far, however.
Didn’t hear anything and then this week the head of Kindle Worlds, Nick Loeffler, emailed me. He wanted to know what could be done about this situation. I said I didn’t think anything could be done.
See, without that ability to upload a cover that a designer’s worked on, and with the standard six templates of layout choices they have, there’s no way those books will look good. Even a $500 image won’t look good with the tools they give you.
He thanked me and that was that. We’ll see what changes come down the pike in a few weeks or months.
As of now my latest G.I. Joe book has sold exactly zero copies. I should have volume four out in the next week or two, volume five in June, six in July…
A New SEO Book
Perhaps the greatest accomplishment of the month was finally getting done with SEO & 80s Movies. As I’ve said in numerous recent posts, this book was a real pain in the ass. Maybe that’s why I finished it five days early (or a month late if you want to look at it that way).
But it’s done now, and I think the book’s quite good. It’s got lots of new ways of looking at social media marketing and content marketing from an old school perspective.
If you’re writing a website and no one could give a damn, this book might give you some ideas. If you’ve seen the films in the book it will really, really help.
As of now it’s sold – you guessed it! – zero copies, but since it’s only been out for six days I’m not too concerned. There are no plans to make another SEO or marketing book anytime soon. But then I say that every time.
But it’s done now, and I think the book’s quite good. It’s got lots of new ways of looking at social media marketing and content marketing from an old school perspective.
If you’re writing a website and no one could give a damn, this book might give you some ideas. If you’ve seen the films in the book it will really, really help.
As of now it’s sold – you guessed it! – zero copies, but since it’s only been out for six days I’m not too concerned. There are no plans to make another SEO or marketing book anytime soon. But then I say that every time.
Getting the Spring Cleaning Done
I feel on a roll with getting things cleaned up for summer, so I need to get things cleared away this next month of May. I’ll finish the Montana book here, something I will do this time. It’s been dogging me since, oh, probably January, and needs to be dispatched.
Just this week I added around 10,000 words to it and got a new cover made to boot. I also changed the title. You can read about that on the Montana blog if you’re interested.
After that the short (very short) non-fiction book on ancient Chinese history needs to be finished. I’ve got a good start on that, about 5,000 words, and if I can just expand it up to 15,000 or so I think it’ll be sufficient to pull in a few of the fiction readers for my novel series taking place at the same time.
Those are the last two non-fiction projects I have planned, besides my ongoing goal of getting one ESL book out each month this year. But then you’re not interested in that.
Just this week I added around 10,000 words to it and got a new cover made to boot. I also changed the title. You can read about that on the Montana blog if you’re interested.
After that the short (very short) non-fiction book on ancient Chinese history needs to be finished. I’ve got a good start on that, about 5,000 words, and if I can just expand it up to 15,000 or so I think it’ll be sufficient to pull in a few of the fiction readers for my novel series taking place at the same time.
Those are the last two non-fiction projects I have planned, besides my ongoing goal of getting one ESL book out each month this year. But then you’re not interested in that.
Focusing in on the Word Count Meters
I really should focus on some of the novels on the home page, the ones that have a zero on their word count meters.
These books need to be finished, and if I can’t get up to a novel length book then I just need to make novellas and get them out the door. They’re slowing me down on other things.
I guess they could be abandoned, but that doesn’t make much sense either. The “Published” folder is the only one where things go to sit, to die if you will, but at least their carcasses are pulling in money on Amazon. (Or are they? More on that below)
The “Current Projects” folder is just a way station, and those particular titles have been there much too long.
Like Tom Hanks in Terminal, these books….well, I’m not going to write about movies for awhile anymore either.
So what would I like to write? I’ve got plans for a summer blockbuster season, and this is what I’m thinking:
You’ll notice that there’s no non-fiction for the summer blockbuster season, so if you’re interested in that you’ll probably have to find a new site to look at for awhile.
These books need to be finished, and if I can’t get up to a novel length book then I just need to make novellas and get them out the door. They’re slowing me down on other things.
I guess they could be abandoned, but that doesn’t make much sense either. The “Published” folder is the only one where things go to sit, to die if you will, but at least their carcasses are pulling in money on Amazon. (Or are they? More on that below)
The “Current Projects” folder is just a way station, and those particular titles have been there much too long.
Like Tom Hanks in Terminal, these books….well, I’m not going to write about movies for awhile anymore either.
So what would I like to write? I’ve got plans for a summer blockbuster season, and this is what I’m thinking:
- The Jongurian Mission Prequel: I want to replace perma-free Book 1 which is long enough to be sold, and damn it, should be sold!
- Knowles & Haskell: This is novel I’ve got planned that will follow Ella Knowles and Henri Haskell, two early pioneer politicians in Montana in the 1880s and 1890s. I guess you could call it a romance novel.
- A Warring States Book: Alright, people buy these books. I’ve sold nearly 125 copies of the three books, and that means I need to either write Book 4 or do a short prequel to the series that could be listed as perma-free, possibly boosting the sales of the series as a whole. Since my writing has improved dramatically since 2011, this would be a better option than making the current Book 1 perma-free. Lots to think about.
- Flight 370: I only write one short chapter of this a week for Free Fiction Fridays, but once I get a few things off the ol’ plate I’ll do a lot more, probably putting it out in time for people to get sand in their Kindles.
- John Colter Novel: Chucks! This book has been on the word count meters for months and months and needs to be finished. I should just do 30,000 words and get it out the door, perhaps making it into a short series that could be boxed or bundled if there’s a demand for it.
You’ll notice that there’s no non-fiction for the summer blockbuster season, so if you’re interested in that you’ll probably have to find a new site to look at for awhile.
Flagging eBook Sales
Probably the worst news of the month is how poorly my eBooks are selling. Really, this means I’m a failed author...right?
This month I sold 55 books, down from 65 last month and my all time high of 153 in January. (To many that would be failed author as well – thanks Mom!)
Here’s a graph of my monthly eBook sales since I started sixteen months ago:
This month I sold 55 books, down from 65 last month and my all time high of 153 in January. (To many that would be failed author as well – thanks Mom!)
Here’s a graph of my monthly eBook sales since I started sixteen months ago:
Greg Strandberg's eBook Sales, 2013-14
Things really took off last fall, which gave me some pretty good paychecks these last couple months. Sales really dropped off after Christmas, however, and for July I’ll get less than $200 from Amazon.
That could force me to get a real job, which could sure put a dent in those summer plans. Oh well. I guess I’ll just keep putting out books and hope one of them takes off. Pretty good plan, huh?
That could force me to get a real job, which could sure put a dent in those summer plans. Oh well. I guess I’ll just keep putting out books and hope one of them takes off. Pretty good plan, huh?
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