Well. 2 of them are easy, from the outside looking in… Method 1: Accidentally encapsulate the cultural zeitgeist which began defining a generation yesterday at 2.43pm Who knew that young adults, for instance, wanted a world of complete fantasy where your undead boyfriend is constantly resisting the urge to kill you, before Twilight came along? Method 2: Be controversial This…
Category: Sales & Marketing Techniques
On Assisted Publishing, Self-Publishing, And Insanely Optimistic Feelings
NaNoWriMo Word Count: 3 and a half, approx, give or take 1,000 So, even in the twilight hell that is NaNoWriMo, I’ve been exploring different publishing methods lately, mostly through the efforts of some very talented Dublin-based authors and their publishing experiences. And the results of these investigations are absolutely inspiring. I am a total pessimist (I have…
What The Hell Do Star Ratings For Books Mean, Anyway?
My post on the general uselessness of 5 star reviews generated a lot of interesting discussion, not least because of how passionately some people – both authors and reviewers – defended their 5 star reviews, and how violently other people – including me – dismissed them. But it does raise an extremely interesting point: what…
Why 5-Star Book Reviews are Utter Rubbish
I’m having a bad week in the non-fiction world, so I’ve decided to take it out on something inanimate. And that something would be the 5-star book review. Look. Book reviews have never been more important. If we want our books to become bestsellers, good reviews are essential. We live in an age when reviews themselves are…
Mathematical Mondays: The Effect of Blockbusters on Book Sales
…Exploring dubious theories by using real numbers to prove intangible arguments Today’s suspicious sum is for anyone currently fretting about whether the publication of their book might get eaten up, run over and spat on by the unfortunately simultaneous release of the blockbuster of the century. How Does A Runaway Blockbuster Affect Other Book Sales? Where: Sn = Normal/Achieveable Sales…
5 Reasons Why An Author Should Self-Publish
1. Your Book Crosses Genres Score!! An agent has expressed an interest in your book! But oh dear. She says they can’t take it, because they haven’t a clue how or where to pitch it. They just don’t know whether to shelve it in the Science Fiction section, or in Gardening. Look. A lot of people working in publishing are jaded, working…
How to Buy a Book
I can hear them now. “That Tara Sparling one. She’s some tulip.” “Come again?” “She tried to tell me how to buy a book. Feckin’ cheek of her. What’s next? How to get up in the morning? How to breathe??” Look – I know it seems simple. But this is more of an inquisitive How…
What Price is Your Bestseller?
I’ve been having statistics withdrawal symptoms (itchy percentage points, twitchy tables, etc) – and I’m going to satisfy that right here, right now. Today I’m going to have a look at 2011 (because lovely as they were, I’m tired of those 2012 statistics ) in terms of their recommended retail price (RRP) and actual selling price (ASP). With Amazon, the price of…
5 Extremely Annoying Book Reviews
Those of us shopping for self-published e-books have very little to go on. Short synopses and sample chapters lie all too often. There isn’t even a proper book jacket to tempt you. So how do you make the decision to buy? We’ve come to rely on reviews. And reviews make bestsellers. 2 websites seem to have…
5 Old Bookselling Rules which No Longer Apply
…and, from the emerging author’s perspective, are they a Woo-Hoo, or a Boo Hoo? 1. Back Catalogues Sell Slowly, Or Not At All Back in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, when a reader stumbled across a new author, their latest book was often the only one available. If the author were really successful, the bookshop might stock…
Tara Sparling writes 