reading

Throw in a Little Swag

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

There were 690 words added to the dictionary in September! Why is this important for authors? 

If you are writing contemporary fiction, it is good to use contemporary words. And, if you’re not, then you should refrain from using them. This would be especially true if you write “historical.”

So, I have decided to read through the list of words (you can google them) and their definitions and select ten of them to use in my next book. I intend to use them in much the same way that writers use words in different languages and still get the meaning across to their readers.

A writer-friend read one of my critique group submissions. She suggested that instead of saying that my character received “freebies,” that I use the term “swag.”

Chances are my readers might not have heard that term. So, I will get the meaning across by using context clues. Here’s my example: When people pay two-hundred dollars for an hour long hot-air balloon ride, they expect to get a little swag thrown in. That little enamel pin and glass of champagne only costs us sixty cents, but goes a long way toward good PR.”

So, I have used the new slang word, “swag” in places of “freebies” and then continued the paragraph with another example so readers can deduce the meaning.

I hope you google this list of words because chances are you’ll choose to use some of them in your own reading and writing.

Discoverability

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

For the last few weeks, we have been talking about keywords and categories—and why you might want to change them.

I was contacted by someone this week who also republished his books with new covers and titles in order to garner more sales. He said it was well worth it.

However, if you want to save that time and expense, let’s review what you need to do in order to begin where you are and go forward.

Many readers want to “follow” an author. Others like to read “books in a series.” 

So, make sure there is a similarity in your book titles. I wrote a series a few years ago in which I used all titles of children’s games: Simon Says, Truth or Dare, Tug of War, and Cat’s Cradle. Sadly, these titles may not have been related enough. 

If I were creating titles, now, I would make sure that one or two of the words are the same in each title. For instance,  Playing Cards; Playing Sports; Playing Instruments. These aren’t intriguing. That’s not my point here. I am simply showing that just by using one or two identical words, the titles show readers these books are in a series.

Covers are much more obvious because we have all seen many examples of these. Even if you are not writing a series, your covers will help your discoverability if they are of a similar color and font. Or, you might have a similar landscape, romantic hero, or murder weapon on the cover. It will be easy to tell they’ve all been written by the same author.

Finally, let’s talk about branding. It you want to sell more books, it will help if you find one genre you like to write and stick to it. For example, A. Author, Writer of Extreme Gore. Though each book has a different story, as long as they contain “extreme gore,” your readers will be able to “find” you. 

Are Re-covering, Re-branding, and Re-titling good options for boosting book sales? I believe they can be. But if you’re not looking to do all that work and spend all that money, simply starting fresh where you are right now, may prove to be the perfect answer for you.

Try These!

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

Each day I receive a listing of new books free or for purchase. I enjoy looking at their covers, reading their summaries and titles.

This week, I saw a couple of really quirky titles that made me think of a website I saw last year which has a random generator of title ideas that are what I’d call “Far Out.” Most of them make no sense and I was certain that no one would really use one of them—until I saw a two titles this week that actually sounded like they must have come from there.

If you want to spend an hour or two (I say this because you’ll get hooked on reading them and won’t be able to stop laughing) I have given you links to some of these below.

Whether you actually want to use one, or will be reading for the entertainment value alone, they are well worth checking out!

www.semrush.com/goodcontent/title-generator

ahrefs.com/writing-tools/seo-title-generator

www.wix.com/tools/title-generator

www.title-generator.com

www.developmenttools.com/title-generator

tweakyourbiz.com/title-generator

 Are You Afraid of Getting Bad Reviews?

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

My dad always said, “Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad.” Nothing could be more true than in the case of book reviews.

Authors  know we need them, but we’re also fearful of occasionally getting less than the coveted 5 STARS.

What can we do about it? Or, better to ask, can we do anything about it?

First of all, we can write a book with a compelling story and make sure that it is free of punctuation and formatting errors. It probably goes without saying that the cover should be appealing and professional. Finally, the title should be attention-getting.

But, you ask, how should we respond to negative reviews if we get them?

First, don’t let negative criticism get to you. Read them with an open mind and see if there is something useful you can learn from them. BUT, don’t respond to them. It will only get you into an arguing match and the person and give others reading your comments online a bad perception of you.

Remind yourself that a negative review is just one person’s opinion and that not everyone enjoys the same thing.

Focus on the positive reviews—what readers enjoyed … what they say you did well.

And, by all means, don’t let it stop you from writing!

The Magic Month

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

Students, teachers, and parents know what the month of August means.

Back to School dominates television ads because in most states school begins in August.

So, what about authors? Should the month of August be on our radar, too?

The more times that I’ve heard it over the years, the more I am convinced that from mid-August to mid-December is a golden time of year for those who write and publish books.

A large percentage of people begin their Christmas lists in August. Many actually begin their online shopping.

So, I’m putting the advice I’ve received to the test. 

On August 15th, I published my latest book, Justice for Jessie, and advertised it at a reduced price on Amazon for the first week. (Both e-book and paperback editions).

I will follow its sales through the end of the year and compare those sales with those of my other books which I published in the spring. And, while I am waiting on those statistics, I will be writing for another release in August of 2024.

(By the way, a few blog posts ago, I mentioned I’d soon be publishing, Blinded. However, I discovered that there were already A LOT of books by that title. I renamed my book right before publishing to Justice for Jessie, which I actually like better!) 

There Are Words, And There Are Keywords

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

I admit that I am only beginning to learn why keywords are so important in selling our books.

Keywords are aptly named. They are the words a person types into the search bar when looking for a book to read. 

So write the blurb to be placed beside your book cover on Amazon using the words you think readers will type in their search bars. 

So many of us, including myself, wrote our blurbs to be interesting and clever in order to garner sales. However, the readers have to get to that page first. 

And the way they do that is by using the search bar.

If they are interested in fiction, they will probably type the word fiction in. However they will type additional words in order to refine their search.

For example: Fiction>Westerns>Native Americans>New Mexico and so on until they pinpoint exactly what they want.

So if you are writing about Native Americans in New Mexico, and you want readers to find your book, you must work those words in your blurb. (Challenging, to say the least).

Previously, I put my allotted keywords on the page where I uploaded my manuscripts onto Amazon. But I failed to write these words into the book description (blurb), failing to take advantage of that marketing tool.

I just finished writing my blurb for my new book, Justice for Jessie, using my keywords. And, as time permits, I will be rewriting book descriptions for my previous books.

It is never to late to learn something—and put it into practice.

Choosing Your Subtitle

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

A subtitle should tell the consumer additional information that cannot be conveyed by the title alone.

You’ll want to choose one, if possible, because it gives you an additional chance to add more keywords on Amazon.

Keywords are simply the words a person would type in the search bar to identify the kind of book they are looking for.

Authors are allowed to choose ten keywords. These will come from the title, subtitle, back cover blurb, and book description you write for your Amazon sales page.

I wrote down dozens of ideas for the subtitle for my soon-to-be-released book, Justice for Jessie. I decided on Forgiving the Unforgivable because it further described my book, along with being “catchy”—at least to me. It was also short and sweet, making it more memorable. 

Remember: Your subtitle should represent the genre in which you write, mine being Christian Suspense.

What Now?

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

So you think you’re done with your book when you’ve written the last line?

Not so fast, my friend.

There’s still the title page, dedication page, biography, Dear Reader page, copyright page, “Other Books by this Author” page, and anything else you’d like to include to personalize your book.

If you don’t have one by that point, you’ll need to purchase an ISBN. Then, being the search for an editor, publisher, publicist, and so on.

When should you do these things? 

Look way back to the top of this blog. Do them before you ever get to that point. At least four months ahead.

It’s hard to do all these things while you’re writing that final chapter, but if you don’t, you’re giving up prelaunch publicity, hype, and presale revenue.

One big thing you can do to help the success of your book is choosing the right subtitle. I’m doing that for my own book right now, so please read my blog next week to find out why and how I’m choosing to include one.

Until then, Happy Fourth of July!

Those Critical First Three Chapters

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

Shopping around for an agent and/or publisher? 

If you are fortunate enough to get a positive response, you’ll most likely be asked for a sample of your writing.

Whether you’re asked for one chapter or three, “put your best foot forward”—as parents often say.

Self-publishers bear the same burden for excellence. Those first chapters are critical in order to hook readers, give them a sense of what the book is about, and introduce the hero’s struggle.

It is from that sampling that you will be offered a contract or earn a sale. But keep up the pace and make sure you continue writing with that same level of quality right to THE END.

Every Instinct is Telling Me To Do This

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

I am struggling with the last chapter of my book. Fighting every instinct to kill off my hero at the end!

Who would do such a thing?

Wouldn’t it be akin to giving your book the “ax”?

Is there ever a time it’s appropriate to take such drastic action?

I think there are some considerations we must take before we can answer that question for you and me.

1) Has the character successfully ended their character arc? Is the plan to develop another journey for them to take in the next book of a series?

2)    Is there another character from this story that we’d like to bring forward as the hero in the next book in the series?

3) Is the goal to pack a powerful punch that readers will not see coming?

There are other questions to be answered, too. Let’s think about the means by which their life will be taken. An act of nature? A murder? Suicide?

There must be a good, plausible reason for the character to die at the end. Do they allow their own death in order to save the world? Or it could be something much simpler will send the book to the top of the charts?

Look for my newest book, Blinded, at the end of summer to read which ending I chose.