Hello and Welcome to the Focused on Story Blog
AND the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop
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| Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog Hop |
Always on the first Wednesday of the month.
#IWSGbloghop
Happy IWSG Blog Hop Day!
What is the Insecure Writer's Support Group?
Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, a Facebook and Instagram group, Twitter, and a monthly newsletter. To find out more, click this link: Insecure Writer’s Support Group
The purpose of the group is
* to share and encourage.
* Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.
* Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance.
*It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
You're invited to become a member of this supportive group. Click here to sign-up and join.
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Thank you to the awesome co-hosts for the June 2 posting of the IWSG: J Lenni Dorner, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, Lee Lowery, and Rachna Chhabria!
June 2 question - For how long do you shelve your first draft, before reading it and re-drafting? Is this dependent on your writing experience and the number of stories/books under your belt?
The quick and easy answer to this question is, "I don't know." I never thought about planning on a time to re-visit the first draft. Again, I don't know if the timing depends on my writing experience. I believe it depends more on how frustrated I am with the finishing of the draft. If it has been difficult, then I leave it until I can't sleep because ideas of how to fix it keep me awake at night!
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Money and Marketing
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| Money and Marketing Bag of cash Image by Mudassar Iqbal from Pixabay |
My memoir was released in January. I was pleased it reached #1 in the new releases category, so I decided while the buzz was around the release, I would pay a person to do the promotion for me. I added my humble attempts of doing it too. I did sell copies with the paid marketing. Plus I bought a FB ad and ran it for 5 days. I broke even after splitting the royalties with my publisher.
The virtual book tour ended in February. Big thank you to my friends I have met through IWSG for getting the word out about the release. The hoopla around the release has disappeared even though I have been pretty consistent in shouting about the memoir on FB groups. But, sales have dropped, really dropped.
I have a few presentations scheduled for this summer and am considering attending craft fairs and festivals. But to reach readers on a larger scale, I have pretty much reconciled I will have to spend cash to get the book in front of them. But will it be worth the expenditure?
I have seen reports on how much the NY publishers spend on making their books into best-sellers and how much successful indie authors allocate 1000s of dollars to advertising to make their books #1.
Do authors have to pay their way to sell books? I guess I have been naive all these years thinking a well-written story, a well-designed book cover, catchy description and the right keywords will do it. But, I am doubting that assumption now.
Selling books is like selling shampoo or cars. The more advertising, the more sales. We have to recognize we are in business, and our books are our products.
What are your thoughts on this? Do you rely on free, organic, word-of-mouth advertising or do you pay for ads? Where is the best place to get the most bang from your marketing buck? Thank you.
Click here to visit more bloggers in the IWSG Hop.
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| Arranging a Dream: A Memoir by J.Q. Rose Heart-tugging and Inspiring |
And speaking of marketing...😊😎😉
My books, released by BWL Publishing, are 30% off with the code RK43L during the Spring into Summer Smashwords event during the entire month of June!!
Click here to download them now!
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