Breaking News for Publishers and Authors

I thought I'd let you know that this information will be in my next SharingwithWriters newsletter. I thought you might want to know about it before the issue's August release.

In the News:  The LA Times reports on that Amazon.com may be testing a new feature based on Scribd’s subscription model. For $9.99 a month what once showed up on the site as “Kindle Unlimited” would allow those who sign up to choose an unlimited supply of books including some well-known ones like Water for Elephants—a full 600,000 choices (many from smaller publishers) as well as thousands of audio books. It appears this program is still being tested. The LA Times does not say  how authors would be paid their royalties, presumably because “Amazon…did not return a call seeking comment.”  (See the flash below posted on 7/18 am.)

If you would like to receive each issue in your e-mail box, subscribe at http://howtodoitfrugally.com. The subscription box is at the top right corner of every page on the site. You will also receive a free booklet of Wordtrippers with your subscription.

FLASH! In my next day's e-mail box came this notice directly from Amazon: "KDP Select authors and publishers will earn a share of the KDP Select global fund each time a customer accesses their book from Kindle Unlimited and reads more than 10% of their book-–about the length of reading the free sample available in Kindle books-–as opposed to a payout when the book is simply downloaded. Only the first time a customer reads a book past 10% will be counted."

FLASH #2: If your e-book is already on Kindle's Select program, it will automatically be part of Kindle Unlimited. And, yes, it may feel a bit chintzy not to pay authors upon download, but I get that it's a hedge against cheating.  And, yes, I still think this is a coup for authors selling e-books on Kindle!

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Debating Kindle Select with a Google + Follower

Debating KDP Select (Kindle’s Promo Track) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

QUESTION

Ester Benjamin Shifren is one of my Google + followers who tell me, "I'm debating whether to do KDP Select which requires exclusivity for six months, or put my book out there with all the other e-readers. I'm leaning towards the latter. I think some of the magic of Select is wearing off. What's your opinion or thinking on the subject."

 

ANSWER

I did just the opposite, Ester, though I do think some of the novelty is wearing off. I also see that there are many more support sites out there for e-book freebies and that’s a big plus. Also B&N has pulled support for the Nook and the other platforms require another kind of language/format from the one Kindle uses. That means Kindle will not have that competition in the future.

It does get to be quite a time-consuming project for indie authors to reformat for all the different e-reader platforms. I had begun to get ready to do it for Kindle and am kind of relieved I don’t have to do it now. And Smashwords only pays you through Paypal which I distrust. Other authors also say that their royalties with Smashwords is negligible.Thinking back to my marketing theory that even promotions have to be promoted, that sounds about right. People usually go to buy your book where you send them and none of us can promote six to a dozen different e-book sites. Focus. Focus! (A warning here. Don't focus on  paperbacks only.  We need to cater to readers who prefer digital, too.)

 

Of course, there's always an alternative. Use Kindle Select for six months. Promote it. Reap the benefits. And post on the other platforms once your commitment is up. 

 

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Kindle's New Matchbook a Pay-It-Forward Feature

 

This Matchbook program from Amazon and Kindle has not yet been rolled out, so it isn't too late to be among the first to use it.  Keep reading for reasons why I see it as an excellent marketing tool.  One that gives your reader extra benefits while improving your sales position at the same time.

I Think I’m in Love with Kindle Select’s New Program . . . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 . . . because it’s a real service for people who love a real book but may also want to read your book as an e-book when they travel or on their screen as they work. Here’s what Amazon says about it in their newsletter:

Introducing Kindle MatchBook: A New Program to Help you Sell More Books

Kindle MatchBook is an innovative new program which enables you to offer a Kindle book at a discount when readers purchase your print book. It is a great opportunity for you to sell more books. Here's how to get started:

1. Select "Publish on Kindle" in your CreateSpace member dashboard and follow the easy steps to create your digital book with Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) or simply sign in to your KDP account.
2. Select your title on the KDP Bookshelf and check the enroll box for Kindle MatchBook on the "Rights & Pricing" page.
3. Set the discount for your Kindle book by choosing a promotional list price of $2.99 or less and "Save" your Kindle MatchBook preference.

By enrolling your book, you will be among the first to be able to take advantage of this new program. The Kindle MatchBook discount you select will not appear on Amazon.com until the program is fully launched in the coming weeks. KDP will notify you by e-mail as soon as your Kindle MatchBook discount is live. Your readers will soon have an easy and affordable way to read your book in both print and digital formats.

Visit KDP today to enroll your books in Kindle MatchBook.

     Learn more

 

So, why do I love it?

1.   It rewards people who want to buy your paperback book.

2.   It encourages people to buy your paperback book.

3.   It gives you choices for your e-book (Kindle) offer—from free to $2.99. Example, Magdalena Ball and I love to have people buy our chapbooks in our celebration series (http://howtodoitfrugally.com/poetry_books.htm) in paperback because the artists who have contributed to our covers and some internal photos make them into keepable little treasures that can be used as greeting cards. At the same time, we know that poetry isn’t the bestselling genre on the block so our Matchbook program for those booklets makes them all free a paperback has been purchased.

4.   When you choose to set a 99 cent or $2.99 price on the e-book edition of your book, it can mean more profit (royalties) for the author, not fewer.

And certainly not least, the Matchbook widget or link offering this program that Amazon will place on participating authors’ buy pages means additional exposure and additional interest for your book

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Reminder: E-Book Sales Perks from Amazon

Kindle Select Gives You Money
When People Borrow Your Book
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Are you utilizing Kindle’s Book Borrowing feature? I love it. It provides a nice little check for my books each month, borrows sometimes become buyers, and borrowers often recommend your book to others. Here is Kindle’s announcement from their newsletter:

“KPD Select is an optional program for you to reach more readers and gives you the opportunity to earn more money. Once your title is enrolled, you will earn a share of the monthly global fund amount every time your book is borrowed from the Kindle Owners' Lending Library in the U.S., U.K., Germany, and France.

”For August, the KDP Select Global Fund amount is $1.1 million. In the month of July, KDP Select-enrolled authors earned $2.04 each time their books were borrowed.

“You can also promote your book as free for up to five days for each 90-day enrollment period in KDP Select. In addition, you can earn 70% royalty for sales to customers in Japan, Brazil, and India.

“Visit your Bookshelf to enroll your books in KDP Select, or if you are already enrolled, visit your royalty report to see your results. If you'd like to learn more, visit KDP Select or the Kindle Owners' Lending Library “

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Sample Media Release for Cross Promotion, Free KDP Promotion

I thought my SharingwithWriters readers would like a free e-copy of my Great First Impression Book Proposal to ring in the new year and maybe they'd download a copy of my husband’s new book, too. We’re both passionate about his new reference/how-to book because we think that it could help with many misunderstandings in the world, particularly for foreigners who must work with Americans.

His book is What Foreigners Need To Know About Americans A to Z by Lance Johnson (http://amzn.to/12JoVsa). It will be f r ~ ~ on Amazon from January 13^th to 17^th. It is serious stuff, but it reads light and easy sparing none of his dry humor about his own beloved US and the quirks of the English language.

 

My Great First Impression Book Proposal (http://bit.ly/BkPropKind) has been around a while. Even if you already have it, you will want to get the updated version.

They’re both available for almost any reader you prefer to read your e-books on—PC, iPhone, Android, Mac. You can download an app to make it work on your PC at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000426311

 I also thought this promotion might work for you as a sample of the kind you might use even if you write in a hard-to-promote genre. Here is the basic media release for you. It also serves as an example of how cross-promotion (the sharing of effort and files) can help you with your own book campaign. (Scroll down for the release!)

Won’t you please download and help us give my little booklet and my husband's truly amazing reference a chance at greater exposure and a shot at making Kindle’s bestseller list?

 

Sample Media Release for Cross Promotion, KDP Promo

Multi award-winning poet, novelist, and author of the famed HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers Carolyn Howard-Johnson and award-winning playwright and actor Lance Johnson have been married for far longer than the average couple worldwide and are still doing things together—in this case joining with Amazon’s Kindle Select program to give away e-copies of their books.

 

Ta Da! Two books for your Kindle (or your computer if you don’t have a Kindle—see the link for doing that below) with only a couple clicks. All you do is go to http://amzn.to/12JoVsa on Jan 13, 14, 15, 16 or 17^th, and click. Then go to http://amzn.to/UabAn7 and click. Both e-books will come directly to your computer or your Kindle.

 

Feel free to share this link with anyone you'd like to have a thoughtful—and fast—gift. Send Lance’s to a foreign student you know, an emigrant, or anyone who cut more high school civics (or English!) classes than they should have. Send the link to Carolyn’s book to any author you know. Every nonfiction author and even most fiction writers can use it, as it is becoming common for publishers to ask for proposals from writers of genre fiction.

 

Lance Johnson is an actor with national commercials, plays, and movies to his credit. He has also visited more than 90 countries and taught English and American culture abroad. His book has been endorsed by ambassadors to the US and ambassadors from the US to other countries.

Carolyn Howard-Johnson's HowToDoItFrugally series for writers has won multiple awards. She has studied writing at universities in the Czech Republic, Russia and UK, UCLA, and USC. And she has been an instructor for the world renowned UCLA Extension Writers' Program for nearly a decade.

For more information on these books or the authors visit:

http://AmericaZtoZ.com for Lance’s work and
http://HowToDoItFrugally.com for Carolyn’s.

PS: Free Kindle books are available for almost any format or reader you prefer. PC, iPhone, Android, Mac, etc. Just download the appropriate free app at
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000426311

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Support material available electronically or by post on request.

----- Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . 

Free Christmas Promotion Idea for About Anything Christmasy!

If you have a Christmas product (book), story, poem, cookbook, or artwork, you're going to love ChristmasDaddy.com. This tip will go in the December 18 issue of my SharingwithWriters newsletter, but I didn't want to make my blog subscribers and visitors wait.  What a way to drive traffic to your Web site.

PS: You just knew I couldn't send out a newsletter without a marketing tip in it, right? This is an example of how you can use a free service from ChristmasDaddy.com: http://www.christmasdaddy.com/christmas-news/north-pole-press/Poetry_for_Christmas.shtml. It's an example of how my poetry partner Magdalena Ball and I used it to promote our Christmas chapbook Blooming Red (http://amzn.to/BloomingRedKind ).

 

Christmas Daddy says: "Advertise for FREE! Submit an article for either Christmas Stories, Christmas Recipes, Christmas Decorating, or Christmas Event Ideas and we will place your article with links back to your site or charity site you designate. You can even submit a banner ad to be placed with your article. Click here to get the details. http://www.christmasdaddy.com/christmas-article-submission.html ."

BTW, if you'd like to subscribe to my free SharingwithWriters newsletter, put SUBSCRIBE in the subject line of an e-mail and send it to HoJoNews (at) AOL (dot) com.  I'll subscribe for you.


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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .