Over at the Kindle Direct Publishing Forum I've been involved in a discussion of what it takes to be a successful author on Amazon. Marti Talbott provided this concise list of good advice. While the list could go on for a lot longer, this is certainly a good start. Thanks to Marti for permission to repost this.
1. A summary/blurb/description that is exciting enough to sell the book
2. A well written book people will tell others about.
3. Fairly decent cover art.
4. Using your real name in your promotions, or at least the same name over and over again. Name recognition is very important. If you have a common name, try a nick name.
5. Networking works. Golden promotion is when someone else recommends your book to others.
6. Polish it, get an editor, even if you think you have done your best. A bad first review is very hard to overcome.
7. Read, read, read everything you can on publishing, both in Kindle and other versions.
8. Never miss a chance to promote
So far, I have found selling my book in person has had the best results. Meeting people, talk about the book and either sell one that I have in paperback, or give them a card with all the information so they can buy it online in the format of their choice.
ReplyDeleteWord of mouth will follow.
Yes, the personal touch works best. Do you attend many conventions?
ReplyDeleteHaving an online presence is important too. Especially interviews such as this one:
http://ronin1999.blogspot.com/2011/09/meet-sb-jones-author-of-requiem.html