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Showing posts from June, 2021

7 myths about reviews

I got a review.  Every author will be delighted by reviews of his book. It means someone read it and posted an opinion. Reviews are hard to get because competition is big. Also, readers in Amazon read books from famous authors, and we, indie authors are getting a piece of cake. Probably you heard about this magic number of reviews. 20-25 reviews, your book will be marked as "you might also read". 50 reviews will bring you to mention in the Amazon newsletter. It looks tempting and authors are struggling to get a huge number of reviews, but in reality, things look different. 7 myths about reviews: Bad ratings mean that book is trash, the same as bad reviews. It is not true, as tastes are different. Someone can spit on your book because of the genre you write, or because this person doesn't like the author. Also, many trolls are around, who can't wait a chance to ruin someone's rating. Excellent reviews mean that book is a bestseller. It is hard to please everyone, a...

How to find a good editor?

Your book is done. You wrote your story, but it is not ready for publishing. Why not? You need an editor. Before you assume it is easy to find, I offer some tips to save you from liars, cheaters, and opportunists. What kind of qualities a good editor should have? It must be an American or British editor. Don't think you can find a good editor in your country if you are not a native English speaker. Those who are Americans or British know the best about their culture, habits, phrases, and they will make a benefit for you. Your editor must have a testimony. It is praise from readers, usually made on their website, about their work. A good editor will communicate with the author. It is not like, I have done your book, give me the money. No! You must talk to your editor about your sentences, emptiness in your story lines, things that are not logical, and make a common agreement on what is missing in your book. It means, your book should go to the editor at least twice. A good editor...

Why some people don't want your success?

Jealousy and envy are followers of success. When you hear stories about friendships that broke because one friend is successful and the other did not manage, that is not a surprise. Marketing your book might lead you to some dark waters, where you can meet people who don't want your success. These categories you can meet: People who offer you to promote the book on their sites for a high price. You will just make your wallet empty. People who want your book free in exchange for a review. Many people will take a book, but you will not get a review. People who offer "favor for a favor" but there is a trap. You can read their book and they will never read yours. Trolls. Those people will rate your book with negative stars just to ruin your sales. You wonder, where is the cause, why this happens? It can explain by various reasons. Many people wish for success, and sabotaging their competition is their way to clean their path. Many people did not manage, so they wish the same ...

Basic mistakes in promoting your book in social media

You wrote a book. The next step would be to promote it on social media if you are an independent author. Promoting books is the way to reach visibility and potential buyers. This is important to find your reader's circle and get reviews. You are hungry for success, I know it. A huge desire to make sales could result in a negative effect. You might be blocked and deleted, even reported if you force your sales and annoy people. These are basic mistakes people do in promoting books: Randomly tagging people with your links. Who are you and do you know these people? You can't tag someone you don't know and offer your product. Sending private messages to unknown people. "Hi, I wrote a book and I would love to review or purchase. Click on the link, go and read it." Spam your page with the same links every day.  This is annoying, you are repeating yourself. Repeating the same things as parrot will not help you to reach a potential audience. Try to ask for money for your r...