The Results of My BookBub International Deal

The email newsletter

Finally...

About a month after releasing GLOVED HEART, my second book, I submitted the first book (in the same series) for a BookBub deal in all markets after not trying for a couple of years. I nearly fell off my chair when I got the email through saying I’d got a featured deal for THE VAGABOND VICAR. When I calmed down enough to understand the text in the message, I realised that the deal would exclude the United States – it was “international” only. (I put that in inverted commas because I live “internationally”.) This means it is sent to customers who are registered for the markets in Canada, Australia, India and the UK (who are interested in historical romance). I was actually a little relieved about the deal being more limited, as publishing an indie book is expensive and I was apprehensive about spending the huge fee for a US deal. This would be tipping my toe in the water.

I haven’t paid for any significant advertising before. I’ve only boosted a couple of Facebook posts on releasing my books. To be honest I want to wait until I have at least three books out before I start doing any regular advertising. But everyone says to keep trying for BookBub and I thought it might be a good way to have people read through to book two. So did it work? Did I sell enough to get my money back? And are there any long-lasting effects?

Time Pressure and Pricing

The first thing to note is that I was told about getting the featured deal on May the 9th. The deal was to be on May the 19th (US time). Ten days is not really enough time to plan much other paid activity to coincide with the deal (except AMS and FB). I looked at some other major websites like ENT, and I was well short of their deadlines. So I have no idea how people manage to coordinate everything, except that they must already be planning a deal and give BookBub fixed dates. The people at BookBub do say that being flexible with dates will help you get accepted – so it’s a catch 22. The only things I did to promote the deal was to post on Twitter and Facebook.

My feature in the email

While on the subject of getting accepted – the main thing I did different this time around was to follow Bella Andre’s advice and put lots of good reviews and write-ups in the comments part of the submission form. So maybe that helped? Don’t be modest! I also submitted a deal for $0.99, when I’ve only really tried $1.99 in the past.

Kindle Countdown and Royalty Fail

I set up a Kindle Countdown deal in the UK first, as keeping the 70% royalty sounded good. It also puts a countdown timer on your listing which must drive some urgency. This is my first term in KDP Select for either book, so this is the first time I’ve tried this stuff. Figuring out the UK time zone vs the US one was a bit of a mind-bend (particularly when you live in a different time zone again!).

When I went to change the prices in the other markets a few days before the sale, I found that in order to reduce my prices to $0.99 or equivalent, I had to change to the 35% royalty in ALL markets, including the UK. So the main benefit of doing the Kindle Countdown deal was taken away. The countdown deal was also quite stressful as you are relying on Amazon to change the price at the right time, and not being registered for Amazon UK I had to ask people over there to check the price for me at obscene times of the night. Being able to change the price yourself in advance (even though you may have to wait 72 hours) at least gives you a good chance of it actually happening for the sale date.

Of course I only got 35% for sales in the US as well during the promotional period, even though the deal didn’t apply there. I do wish Amazon would not apply a global royalty percentage to allow you to run promotions more effectively. Right! On to…

#1 bestseller in Canada and Australia

The Results

BookBub tells you how many subscribers the email will go to and the “average sales” for each book featured. (There is no information on clicks or anything else that might be more helpful.) Going by that average, I would have no problem breaking even on sales alone (not accounting for KU page reads). On the morning after the deal went live (about 12 hours in), I eagerly checked my phone expecting hundreds of sales. There were 80. Which is outstanding for me on a regular day, but less than I’d been hoping for.

When I finally managed to get to my computer and check on detailed category rankings (toddler wrangling taking priority for a few hours first), I was thrilled to find a “#1 bestseller” banner on my Canadian listing. Australia followed soon after. The UK peaked at #2. India never really fired – only a few sales (although it did get to #61). I got pretty high in the overall Kindle rankings too - 57 in Canada, 103 in Australia, 613 in UK, and 1,754 in India. I stayed high in the rankings all day, and for most of the next day.

#1 in Regency Romance

Sales continued to trickle in for the rest of the first day, reaching 110. Page reads were 1,182, which was a few hundred better than I’d achieved in the few months I’d been in KU. The next day, sales dropped to 53, but page reads went up to 3,296. It was quite frustrating seeing the tiny royalties with the 35%, but I just had to think about the visibility I was getting as the main bonus. Days 3-6 (the rest of the sale) were at much lower levels for sales, but the page reads stayed consistent between 2,200 and 3,200 every day.

GLOVED HEART did get a few sales/reads as a result of the promotion, I think. It also cracked the top 100 in the UK (#68 when I remembered to check).

Once it was over I could add up everything, convert the earnings to my currency (NZD) and figure out whether it was all worth it.

Return on Investment

When I look at how much it actually cost me for the deal including currency conversion and fees, and then converting the royalties back again – I almost exactly broke even. Sales accounts for 58% of the revenue, KU page reads 42%. (Of course I could only estimate the revenue from KU page reads based on previous payouts.)

Total sales during the period were 187, well short of the “average” 390. I’m figuring the BookBub average sales number accounts for authors who have their books available on all the retailers, not just Amazon. But given Amazon makes up at least 75% of the ebook market, I don’t think this would have made too much different – the KU reads would make up the gap for most authors I think.

So I didn’t waste money, which is nice, although it would have been nicer to make some!

The figures above include sales of GLOVED HEART which were 2 ebooks and 3,412 page reads.

Longer-term benefits

It’s three weeks since the featured deal ran. Sales have gone back to trickling in, but they are trickling in those other markets (not counting India) which is great to see. Most of my sales have been in the US in the past, so having this visibility in those other markets really has been valuable.

More reviews are coming in too. I have had bloggers posting features and reviews for book 2 in the meantime which would have helped things along.

What’s changed – my KU page reads have remained much higher, ranging from 1,100 to 3,000 daily (previously they were 0-700). This is not an income by any stretch, but it’s a nice base to build on if and when I do more marketing in the future. And I can see that people are reading my books which is quite rewarding in itself.

The Amazon algorithms got to do their thing, with a lot of also-boughts popping up (when Amazon chooses to put them on and not just sponsored ads).

I got a handful more FB followers, email sign-ups and BookBub followers.

To sum up

It's nice to know that it doesn’t matter how long a book has been around for, you can always give it a boost with a targeted promotion. THE VAGABOND VICAR has been out since October 2014, but it now has many readers discovering it for the first time, and many of them also going on to read or purchase GLOVED HEART. I don't think book 1 not being a new release was any disadvantage.

Was it worth it doing the BookBub deal? I think undoubtedly yes. I didn't lose money during the deal, and I am still enjoying the benefits - mainly in page reads. I still think it would be more beneficial if I had more books out, but as it is I got to enjoy being a #1 best seller and some lovely feedback from readers. I'd encourage authors to keep applying for a deal, you never know when you'll get your moment in the sun.

Forging Ahead

When I published my first book in October 2014, I never expected it would be such a long time before the second one was done. What happened? Life intervened. In the best possible way.

I met my husband shortly before book #1 came out. My life was filled with dates and dreaming. Soon I was planning our wedding and honeymoon, then we renovated our house and sold it, while designing and building another. While I was pregnant. Then, after the baby came (and we moved house), I entered the brain-fog known as motherhood. It wasn't until I went back to work after a year that I managed to get some sort of headspace back, and the energy to write again.

And now here I am, with the final draft of the next book done and with an editor, and my cover ready to go. I am about to ride this crazy roller coaster all over again. And I hope to do it again before too long!

The second book in the series I'm calling "Hearts of Amberley" is entitled GLOVED HEART. It follows the stories of two of the minor characters from the first book, THE VAGABOND VICAR. 

GLOVED HEART is now available for pre-order, and I've just revealed the cover which you can see below this book description. Now, to work on getting the word out there!

Can she ever trust again?

Amy Miller is struggling to come to terms with her new life as a mother, while being a reluctant guest in a rigid gentry household. A victim of abuse, she is determined to never trust a man again.

Henry Russell has loved Amy for as long as he can remember, but his family want nothing to do with her. A chance encounter with Amy rekindles a friendship which might save both of them.

The discovery of a secret which holds the key to Amy’s past will change them both forever, and jeopardise any chance they have for happiness. Can Henry show Amy that true love will give her everything she could ever need?

How to Get Reviews for your Book from Bloggers

Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net - Stuart Miles

I've spent the last five months promoting my debut book. Aside from regular social media, my intent was to get as many book bloggers as possible to review the book. I decided to go it alone (without using a blog tour company) and here are the things I learned.

So far I have secured reviews or features on sixty-three different websites You can find a list of the websites I've been or will be featured on here.

Has it been worth it? To get the reviews, definitely. While they haven't all been 5* (your book isn't going to be to everyone's tastes), it has both improved my listings on Amazon and Goodreads, and also driven spikes of sales. Some of the interviews/guest posts have results in sales as well (but not all). I don't think I can put a price on the relationships I've built, and the new fans I've gained as a result.

I don't necessarily recommend this approach (there are many blog tour companies who will save you a lot of time) but if you do want to go DIY here are my tips...

How to Find the Book Bloggers

Your problem won't be finding the book bloggers. It will be narrowing them down. Once you start, you'll find an ever-expanding web of blogs until you find yourself wallowing helplessly through the mire. Focus.

Don't just fling your review request at every single website you can find. It's a waste of your time. If you check a few things first, you'll save yourself the time and energy of emailing book bloggers who won't reply because they aren't accepting your type of request.

It can be addictive, just like querying (I can stop anytime I want, honest...). At some point though, you will get request fatigue. So focus your efforts on where you'll get the best bang for your buck.

There are heaps of websites which list bloggers. I don't need to tell you how to use Google. First, focus on those which review your genre exclusively.

A good shortcut for finding the most relevant bloggers is to find a book like yours that has been released recently and been on a blog tour. In most cases you should be able to find a list of all the blog tour stops. Simply click on each of the websites and follow the process below.

Another approach is to google reviews for a popular author in your genre - one who is too well-established to be doing blog tours, but is being reviewed widely by the bloggers.

Most blogs will have a blogroll, or list of their favourite blogs, usually in their sidebar. This will prove irresistible (more blogs! more reviews!). By all means, click on them. But continue to be ruthless and follow the guidelines below. And make sure you deal with all the websites you have open before you go opening more from the next blog. I know, it's hard! But it will wear you out eventually.

Determine Whether to Submit for Review

Okay, so you're on the blog. The first thing you do is check that it's still active - have they posted in the last couple of weeks, preferably in the last few days? If yes, the next thing you do is:

Check their review policy. Sometimes finding the policy can be a mission. If you draw a blank but find their email address, use your judgement as to whether to send them a request - do they review books like yours, from indie authors?

Things to check on the review policy:
1. Are they currently accepting review requests? Sometimes bloggers will leave their whole policy in tact but put a note somewhere (hopefully at the top of the page) that they are currently closed.
2. Do they review books by indie-authors? (no point getting excited about everything else if this is a No)
3. Do they review books in your genre?
4. Do they review e-books? (ignore if you are willing to supply your book in print)
5. Do they have specific submission requirements which mean you'll need to tailor your request in a certain way? Some websites want you to fill in a form instead of emailing - follow their instructions in each case.
6. Most good bloggers will note that they are not paid for reviews, and that they will not distribute your work to anyone else.
7. Note any other information such as the standard response/review time, where they post their reviews (some post more widely on request, such as to Amazon and Goodreads), and if they will post a negative review.

Once you are satisfied they will accept your request and are a good fit, go back to their homepage and check:

1. How many blog followers do they have? Facebook likes? Twitter followers? Goodreads friends? They should have at least a couple of hundred, maybe a couple of thousand (you decide what is an acceptable threshold). No matter how cool their blog is, if no-one knows about it your review won't get noticed.
2. Along the same lines, scroll down through their posts. How many comments does each one get? If there aren't any, it might not be worth your time submitting a review request.
3. At the same time, notice the types of books they are reviewing and the average ratings or types of comments they make. If you haven't already got enough information on the genres they read, looking at the actual reviews should clue you in. If necessary, check out their Goodreads profile.

So everything looks great with the review policy, their social presence and interaction on the blog. Time to get your submission ready.

How to Submit for Review

You should be able to write a template which you can use for most requests, except for those with very specific guidelines. Your request might include these parts:

1. The blogger's email address - send to only one at a time.

2. Your subject line with the words "review", "request" and the title of your book somewhere in it.

3. Address the blogger by name - their first name, e.g. "Dear Kathy,"

4. Introductory letter with the main pitch.
This may take the form of "I would like to submit my book [BOOK NAME] for review. It is a [genre and any other vital differentiating facts]. I have included more details about the book below." Then let them know the formats it is available in and if you have a deadline in mind (but don't sound demanding). Sign off with your pen name.

Be polite, courteous and professional. Sure, you're offering to give them a free book. But it takes time and effort to read and review a book, and if they're good at it they'll be in hot demand. Your tone should reflect your understanding of this.

5. Book details:
a) Title
b) Author
c) Publisher
d) Published date
e) Number of pages/words
6. Book blurb
Your synopsis or back cover copy. You should already have this to hand.

7. Book links:
a) Goodreads
b) Amazon
c) Other retailers

8. Your Bio
Short author bio (a few paragraphs). Again you should already have one on file.

9. Your links:
a) Your website
b) Facebook
c) Twitter
d) Any other social media of note

10. Attach your cover.

Proof-read several times. The last thing you want is the blogger thinking your pitch is sloppy and therefore your book will be too. Remember to include/attach anything else mentioned in the policy guidelines (although the above will cover off 99% of them).

Hit SEND!

Many bloggers will not reply if they are not interested. Expect to get a positive response from maybe one or two in ten. If a blogger expresses interest, continue to be respectful and whatever you do, don't beg them for a positive review. Your work should speak for itself. Just send off whatever file format they want and thank them for their time.

The good bloggers will be booked up at least a couple of months in advance. Ideally you should be contacting them 3-4 months in advance of your release - but this can be a challenge when all you want is to finish the damn book! Be prepared for the fact that your reviews/posts will be staggered if you do your promo post-release. This is not necessarily a bad thing.

In many cases a blogger may reply saying they are too snowed under to do a review, but the offer a guest post, interview or feature instead. This may mean some effort on your part but as a writer starting out any publicity (on reputable websites) is worth the effort. If they ask you to do a giveaway, consider it. They know best how to maximise the exposure for your book.

Note for sending directly to Kindle email address
Sending a mobi file directly to the reviewer's Kindle is a win-win. They get it straight on their device and you make sure it won't be distributed to anyone else. There are a few steps to follow though:
1. The reviewer needs to send you their Kindle address, which won't be the same one you're corresponding with. It will end in @kindle.com.
2. The reviewer needs to add you to their list of addresses within their Kindle account (type your email address into the body of the email so they can copy and paste it). Instructions of how to do this are here, point 2.
3. Once they have confirmed they've done #2, email the file to their Kindle address. You don't need to type a message.

Negative Reviews?
Not everyone is going to fall in love with your book, regardless of how similar you thought their tastes were. People make negative comments for all sorts of reasons you never could have anticipated. Maybe they weren't in the right mood for your book at that time, perhaps it wasn't quite the specific slant on the genre they like, they thought it moved too fast or too slow, or perhaps something about the characters irked them. You can't please everyone. If you get reviews with three or less stars, see if there is any constructive feedback in the review and then move on. There's no point dwelling - focus on the good ones. Pay attention though if there are common negative threads in several different reviews. Perhaps you should learn something for the next book.

Whatever you do, do not reply to the review on social media or contact the blogger privately to complain. It will only make the situation worse.

Goodreads
Readers on Goodreads seem to be particularly harsh. I've even had people put a lower rating on Goodreads than they put on Amazon or their own website (more than once!). Why? Who knows. Maybe they like to appear more harsh in front of their Goodreads friends. Just don't be surprised if your overall ranking on Goodreads is lower than the rest of the universe. It's still an important tool for word of mouth and can't be ignored.

A note on piracy
If you followed all the guidelines above, you can be fairly confident the bloggers you send your book to are legit. If they do end up passing it onto their friends - sure, you may have lost a sale... but you may have also gained a fan, which is so valuable for a writer starting out. Stay vigilant - google your book frequently and if it pops up on a pirate website, take immediate action.

What It's Like On the Other Side: Pondering Post-Publication

Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net: Serge Bertasius Photography

The five months since indie-published my debut novel have sailed by in a blur of thrilling reader responses, obsessive sales checking and frenzied promotion. So what's it like on the other side of indie publishing?

I am now an author. I am now earning money for my work. I can claim that title and that makes me happy.

I have had some readers contact me directly and praise the book, thanking me for writing it. That is gratifying beyond words!

I am also incredibly blessed to have a great network of writer friends who have celebrated all the little milestones with me and keep me motivated. I'm making new connections online as well which give me further support (and who I hope I can support), whether that's Facebook groups, bloggers, tweeps and other newbie authors who have discovered my book and my story.

Am I making as many sales and I hoped? No, of course not. This is a long road and as with anything in publishing, building your brand and revenues takes time and a truckload of patience and hard work. And although I've put a huge amount of effort into getting my name and this first book out there, all the wisdom on the interwebs tells me that I need at least a few more books for sale before I will gain real momentum.

Having said that, I have had some success at getting the word out (especially online). Apart from maintaining a social presence on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, Pinterest, setting up an email newsletter, redesigning this website and adding the books page, I have been organising a sort of DIY blog tour. I'm about to post a separate article on my learnings from soliciting reviews from book bloggers. I've 'met' some lovely people through the course of this experience, many of whom are now champions for my book.

Now I'm attempting to focus on getting the print edition done, and then... full steam ahead on books 2 and 3!

Here are the websites I have arranged appearances on:

Calico Critic (excerpt and giveaway)
My Jane Austen Book Club (guest post and giveaway)
Word Menagerie (review)
Austenprose (excerpt)
Austenprose (review)
Tome Tender (review)
Tome Tender (spotlight and giveaway)
Wishful Endings (guest post, review and giveaway)
Flashlight Commentary (interview)
Midnight Attic Reader (review)
The Long and the Short Of It Reviews (review)
So Little Time (review)
eBook Review Gal (review)
Love Saves The World (review)
Babblings of a Bookworm (review)
I Love to Read and Review Books (guest post)
Blue Eye Books (review)
InD'tale Magazine (review)
Gotta Write Network (review)
Gotta Write Network (interview)
Historical Novel Society (review)
Toot's Book Reviews (spotlight, excerpt and guest post)
Library of Clean Reads (review)
Unusual Historicals (interview and giveaway)
Unusual Historicals (excerpt)
VVB32 Reads (review)
Examiner.com (interview)
Portable Pieces of Thoughts (review)
Bibliosmiles (guest post)
Broken Teepee (review)
To Read or Not to Read (feature)
Postcards from Asia (review)
The Book Stop (review)
The Content Reader (review)
Stephanie's Book Reviews (review)
Getting Your Read On (review)
Fiction Zeal (review)
Books and Beverages (review)
The Emerald City Book Review (interview)
Katie's Clean Book Collection (review)
Cynthia Woolf (excerpt and giveaway)
Book Junkiez (review)