200 Boosts for Indie Authors: Empowering Inspiration and Practical Advice: Writer's Craft, #36

By Rayne Hall

Have you indie-published books, and are wondering how to get more traction and sales? Do you want ideas on how to make your publishing venture a success?

 

This guide is bursting with suggestions you can use. I've compiled them based on what I discovered from publishing more than 50 books, learning through trial and error. I'll guide you to take shortcuts, bypassing the tedious, time-wasting chores and go straight to what works.

 

This isn't a how-to manual, but a collection of creative prompts. Don't just read them, but use the prompts to get your own thoughts going: 'How can I apply this to my books, my situation, my publishing business?' After each suggestion, I'll ask a question to kick-start your train of thought.

Treat this as a workbook which prompts you to research, assess and plan your projects and find the solutions which are right for you.

 

Some of my suggestions are unconventional, and you may find it refreshing to simply ditch the book marketing efforts you dread, and have fun instead. Attract new readers with activities you enjoy.

 

I've mixed the topics up, so we'll explore publishing strategy one day, quality another, then cover design, money saving, font choices and much more. We'll circle back to some subjects several times, approaching them from new angles. By dancing from topic to topic like a butterfly collecting pollen, your mind gets a fresh perspective every day. This will prevent your thoughts from going stale.

 

You'll get the most out of this book if you have already self-published at least one book, are familiar with the challenges and want to take a leap forward. This volume doesn't contain how-to-publish instructions, so if you're a novice in this field, you may find some of the boosts too advanced.

 

While I've designed the book so you can tackle a prompt a day for 200 days, feel free to adapt the pace to suit your needs. If a topic isn't relevant to you at the moment, do the thought exercise anyway, because the insights will help at a later stage.

 

Are you ready to delve in?

 

Rayne Hall

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rayne Hall Ltd
• Release date: Feb 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201053550

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Have you indie-published books, and are wondering how to get more traction and sales? Do you want ideas on how to make your publishing venture a success?

This guide is bursting with suggestions you can use. I’ve compiled them based on what I discovered from publishing more than 50 books, learning through trial and error. I’ll guide you to take shortcuts, bypassing the tedious, time-wasting chores and go straight to what works.

This isn’t a how-to manual, but a collection of creative prompts. Don’t just read them, but use the prompts to get your own thoughts going: ‘How can I apply this to my books, my situation, my publishing business?’ After each suggestion, I’ll ask a question to kick-start your train of thought.

Treat this as a workbook which prompts you to research, assess and plan your projects and find the solutions which are right for you.

Some of my suggestions are unconventional, and you may find it refreshing to simply ditch the book marketing efforts you dread, and have fun instead. Attract new readers with activities you enjoy.

I’ve mixed the topics up, so we’ll explore publishing strategy one day, quality another, then cover design, money saving, font choices and much more. We’ll circle back to some subjects several times, approaching them from new angles. By dancing from topic to topic like a butterfly collecting pollen, your mind gets a fresh perspective every day. This will prevent your thoughts from going stale.

You’ll get the most out of this book if you have already self-published at least one book, are familiar with the challenges and want to take a leap forward. This volume doesn’t contain how-to-publish instructions, so if you’re a novice in this field, you may find some of the boosts too advanced.

While I’ve designed the book so you can tackle a prompt a day for 200 days, feel free to adapt the pace to suit your needs. If a topic isn’t relevant to you at the moment, do the thought exercise anyway, because the insights will help at a later stage.

Are you ready to delve in?

Rayne Hall

BOOST #1: SKIP THE TEDIOUS PROMOS

Do you dread book marketing and promotion? You’re not alone. Many writers find marketing a chore, but they feel forced to do the things they hate.

The good news – you don’t need to!

Churning out social media promotions, paying for advertisements, begging and manipulating people to buy your book, pestering reluctant purchasers... it doesn’t work. Readers find this as off-putting as you do, so these methods push potential buyers away instead of attracting them.

Do you really want to spend time, money and energy on something that hinders instead of helps your sales?

Just stop it. You’ll feel better once you don’t have to torment yourself and can instead focus on what you enjoy, such as writing.

Yes, you need to market your book – but not with those mind-numbing, soul-destroying, reader-repelling chores.

We’ll explore some alternatives later. For now, just give yourself permission to stop the self-torment.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

What kind of marketing activities do you dislike most? Think of at least three specific activities you dread or hate. Write them down – and then cross them out.

BOOST #2: NOT JUST IN BOOKSHOPS

Bookshops – brick-and-mortar and online – may be the obvious places to sell your book, but they are not the only ones. Think creatively: what other businesses could be interested in this particular book?

Here’s an example. My writers’ group published an anthology of members’ stories set in the English county of Sussex. A delicatessen company in our town sold Sussex-themed gift hampers. They already had Sussex cheeses, Sussex fish and Sussex wines, and were looking for a non-food product to add. When we approached them, they were delighted: a real Sussex product, with Sussex stories by Sussex writers! They immediately placed a big order for several hundred books.

I know writers whose books are sold in souvenir shops, in museums, garden centres, or bakeries.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

Consider your book from different perspectives – not just as a book, but as a product. The content can provide connections to a town, a region, an industry sector, a profession, a hobby... Might your survival adventure novel appeal to shops selling survival gear? Could your glamorous Chicklit novel about fashion design grace the display of upmarket boutiques? Come up with three ideas.

BOOST #3: THE EASY WAY TO GET REVIEWS

Book reviews are a powerful way to boost your book. The more reviews a book has, the more interesting it appears to future buyers.

Many indie authors despair over getting reviews. Some even stoop to buying, faking, bribing or swapping reviews – all of which are prohibited by review sites and cause a devastating backlash.

There’s a simple, legitimate, natural and effective way of getting genuine reviews: simply ask.

At the end of the book, write a short ‘Dear Reader’ message. Encourage readers to write and post a book review on Amazon or wherever they have bought the book or have posting privileges.

This works, because readers who have just finished the book are thinking about it and in a mood to share their thoughts. This method is far more likely to succeed than approaching reviewers who haven’t read the book yet.

Unlike traditionally-published writers, indie authors have full control over what they put in their books. Take advantage, and close yours with a review request.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

How will you phrase this request? Write a draft.

BOOST #4: ENTICE READERS WITH CHAPTER TITLES

Give your chapters titles as well as numbers, and make them as enticing as possible.

When readers are interested in your book and click ‘download free sample’ or ‘look inside’, they’ll see a long list of chapters:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Often, this list spans several pages – and it has zero grabbing power.

Chapter titles, on the other hand, have a chance to grab the viewers’ attention and whet their curiosity.

Chapter 1: The Stranger from Prague

Chapter 2: A Traitor in our Midst

Chapter 3: Escape from the Dungeon

Chapter 4: Laura Discovers the Truth

Craft chapter titles with words and phrases which have appeal especially to fans of your genre. Words like sheriff, deputy, settler, wagon train, stage coach, bank robbery, outlaw, lynch, cattle rustler and ranch will attract Western fans, while lovers of Regency Romance are drawn to rogue, governess, ball, elopement, manor, coming out, eligible and chaperone.

This applies to non-fiction books, too. For example, a ‘how-to’ type book benefits from chapter titles which include the phrases practical, how to, step-by-step.

The first draft of this book had numbered boosts without titles. While editing, I realised that I had to follow my own advice, so now each boost has a title. This makes the boosts more interesting and practical, doesn’t it?

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Today’s Thought Prompt

What chapter titles would appeal to your target readers? Play with ideas and come up with titles for at least three of your book’s chapters.

BOOST #5: HAVE FUN WRITING

Do you wish you could stop marketing and instead focus on what you enjoy – writing?

Rethink your strategy to do just that.

Some of the best promotional methods for any kind of product depend on strong creative writing skills – for example: brand storytelling, content writing, crafting product descriptions. You already have those skills, so use them.

With your passion for writing, you’ll enjoy crafting texts which draw readers to your author brand and your books. You’ll need to master some new forms of writing, which will be a fun challenge.

Many businesses actually hire freelance writers to write their brand story and product descriptions – you don’t need outside help because you can do it yourself.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

Are you willing to employ your writing (your passion, time and skill) to boost your book’s sales?

How do you feel about this idea? Write down three reactions. (This assignment may strike you as so easy that you’re tempted to skip it – but it is potent with the power to change your mindset.)

BOOST #6: FILL YOUR SAMPLE PAGES

Readers use the ‘Download Free Sample’ to see if they like a book before they buy.

They want to experience the content: does the story grab them? Does the style please them? Is the non-fiction content clear, practical, helpful? If the book is what they’re looking for, they’ll buy.

The sample consists of the book’s first pages – and with many books, these pages are taken up by copyright information, legal disclaimers, acknowledgements, dedications and a lot of blank space. Before the readers even get a taste of the actual book, the sample is over.

What a wasted opportunity! These readers are seriously interested, have jumped through hoops to experience the book – and aren’t even allowed a taste. Many sales are lost this way.

Don’t let this happen to your book. If people are interested in your book, give them a chance to get a taste, and better still, to get hooked.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

How could you format your book to avoid wasting the previous sample-page space?

(For example, could you condense the copyright information and legal disclaimers on a single page, or move the acknowledgements section to the book’s end?)

Identify three possibilities.

BOOST #7: SHARE A NEWSLETTER

Creating a newsletter is a lot of work. Consider sharing this work with other authors. Not only will this save you time and stress, but it will make the newsletter more interesting for the subscribers.

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Important: this works only if your partners’ books are aimed at the same kind of readers, so the newsletter content will be relevant to your fans.

Before you start, put your agreement in writing, clarifying responsibilities (who does what when) and rights (e.g. who will own the address list if you end the joint project).

Today’s Thought Prompt

With whom could you share a newsletter? Write down three ideas – either specific people, or ways to find suitable partners.

BOOST #8: HOOK READERS WITH THE NEXT BOOK

If you have a book series, or several books in the same genre, add the first chapter of the next book in the appendix.

Readers who’ve just finished one book are ready to start another... and many won’t be able to resist reading what’s before them just then. If the chapter is good, they’ll be hooked, want to find out what happens next, and buy that book.

So, add the first chapter of another book at the end of the first. The next book in the series is ideal, but one of your other books in the same genre also works.

If you don’t have another book in the same genre yet, you can team up with another author whose book is similar to yours (same genre, same target audience). Include the first chapter of each other’s books in the appendix, to bring new readers to each other.

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Today’s Thought Prompt

Which authors could you approach for this arrangement?

Think of three authors who write in the same genre, perhaps indie authors you’ve met in online