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How I sold 800 E-books Last Month (Or Let's Make some Money, Honey)

3/1/2013

7 Comments

 
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When I look at that title above, it gives me chills. 800 books. I started this little adventure in August of this year thinking it would be great if a few people I didn't know read my book. How exhilarating to reach someone half way around country! As my sale began to pick up I thought, wouldn't it be cool to make a little bit of dough doing this? And, ta da! That started happening. What I could not predict is how much my sales have picked up since Christmas. I am on a tidal wave that just won't quit (hopefully it won't, please, please don't let it quit). But, I'm not here just to tout my success. I want to give you some tips to help you to sell right along with me if you aren't already. 

First of all, let's start with the numbers. Here's the breakdown of sales for February. The Breeders sold 552 and had 78 Amazon Prime borrows. Nessa sold 250. So, with only two titles on Amazon and one of them a novelette, I made roughly $1500. If I were to add one more title that sells like The Breeders, well, as Mater from the movie Cars would say, "Dag gum, dems some job quittin' numbers right dere." 

So, I'm selling well. The question is how? Well, I have a few good guesses as to why I'm doing well right now. I'll lay out the top five to give you an idea of what I think put me over the top. 

1. Write something people want to read. The Breeders is a cross-over YA/Adult dystopia. People are still out there looking for YA dystopias. So I am riding the crest of a Hunger Games wave and the odds are ever in my favor. I know other authors having similar success in genres like SciFi, Paranormal Romance and Erotica. That is the bonus of being an indie author. If you spot a trend that you are already comfortable in, you can write, edit and produce a book fast enough to ride the wave. Bottom line is no matter how good a book, if people aren't reading that genre, it won't get sold. 

2. Put out your best book. I took 18 months with The Breeders. I must've revised it 100 times. I am not exaggerating when I state that figure. I think I reread and changed that draft about 100 times. I had critic partners that were writers. I hired an editor and she did three passes on it. I have read a lot of self-published titles with my stint as reviewer for Underground Book Reviews. Most of them do not read like a book that has been revised 100 times. If you want a book to sell, it has to be as good as something sitting on a bookstore shelf. No short cuts. 

3. Reviews, reviews, reviews. I now have close to 80 reviews for my book. It has been a slow build, but now that I have amassed those numbers, the book is selling itself. This is something that takes time. Once you write the best book you can, be patient. If it's good, people will review it and momentum will build. 

4. Building platform. I read a great book called Platform by Michael Hyatt. I recommend it for any creative type that is trying to wheel and deal. From Michael's ideas I've been doing some major consideration in regard to my platform. I've tightened up my blog, posted more content and thought deeply about what topics might draw readers. I've started tweeting even though I didn't understand it. I've build a decent following on Facebook using an ad I bought for $50. I've also been reaching out to other authors in my genre, talking, sharing and cross-promoting. It's taken a lot of hard work, but I think I'm starting to see the fruits of my labor. Platform matters. 

5. Put out more titles. Nessa was an experiment to see if I could put out a quality short that would help sell my main title. As a novelette, or 30,000 words, it was quick to write (about a month) and it only cost me $100 for the cover art. I'm hoping since it is priced at 99 cents people will pick it up on impulse. I'm also hoping they'll like it and buy The Breeders or vice versa. So, each book is helping sell the other. Magic. 

So, there you have it, five ways I've found success selling books through Amazon. What about you, what's helped you make headway in selling your titles? 

7 Comments
Trina
2/28/2013 11:22:47 pm

I stumbled upon your book The Breeders by accident. I read a few YA dystopia books out of boredom. Some were excellent (starting with The Hunger Games) others were meh. Amazon does this thing where they see a trend in your reading style (mine is all over) and they suggest books. Yours was a suggested buy. I loved it. Honestly I was expecting to like it or just feel passably ok about it, but I truly LOVED it. I felt tense reading it the ENTIRE time. Which was excellent. That is how fast paced it was for me. My point? I stumbled upon your book, fell in love, instantly (and frantically) began to search for sequels and other titles and also found you on Facebook. I love that you not only are having success (that is much deserved) but that you are willing to share an insight to that success as well. My love for you as an author and I as your reader is growing quite quickly. I look forward to all your future titles!

Reply
Katie French
3/6/2013 03:11:05 am

Trina, you make me do the dance of joy! Thanks for letting me know you liked the book. If you get a chance to do a review if you haven't already, that would be awesome. You are also awesome.

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H.S. Stone link
3/4/2013 02:41:37 am

Congratulations on your sales of THE BREEDERS! I thought it was a great book and well-deserving of all the success it's gotten! I also bought NESSA, and I'm looking forward to reading it. :-)

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Katie French
3/6/2013 03:10:07 am

Thanks, H.S.! I appreciate the support.

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11/10/2013 05:12:29 pm

You always write fabulous. This is third time I am reading any of your blog and again finding it inspirational one. And I am sure this number is going to be increased.

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    Katie French is the author of The Breeders, a Young Adult dystopian adventure and Eyes Ever to the Sky, a sci fi romance. Nessa: A Breeders Story, a prequel novelette is available on Amazon for FREE. Sign up for notifications, or like her on Facebook. 

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