So How DO You Get Your Book on Amazon When Your Publisher Forgets?

Sometimes I include questions and letters I get in the Letters-to-the-Editor feature of my #SharingwithWriters newsletter so that all my subscribers can benefit from others. Sometimes--when the question comes from an author who wants me to link their question to their book or online bookstore page, I do that. Sometimes--like this one--they're anonymous.

QUESTION

Carolyn:

"How do I get the book posted on Amazon.com? My other books just magically appeared there."

ANSWER: 

I get this question in one form another from my newsletter subscribers, my clients, and my blog visitors but almost never from those who have (and read!) my The Frugal Book Promoter. That's because I believe in the power of Amazon so thoroughly that I included an entire section of the magical things that Amazon.com does for books and authors. Still, I don't mind answering the question many times:

Dear Rebecca:

One of the beauties of having a publisher is that one doesn't have to worry about this--publishers, including subsidy publishers--do this for you--or should do this for you!

 However, I happen to know the secret. I learned it by joining e-groups and talking to fellow authors.  It is my belief that the more any author knows about publishing, the better off she is--the better partner she makes for her editor, publisher, or going it on her own (sort of the best partner you can be for yourself). 

Also know that when your book starts selling well on Amazon, other online bookstores begin to pick it up without you doing a thing.

But right now, in this minute, you can get help by going to the AuthorConnect (along with some other names like AuthorCentral) program on Amazon and/or the Advantage program and use the contact links to get help directly from Amazon. When you Google “Amazon” you get a list of links that take you to specific places. One of the above is sure to be right for your particular needs.

At one point the first edition of The Frugal Book Promoter was on Harvard University's online bookstore! Yep, just like magic. But there is a whole list of things you can do to help get that kind of exposure on Amazon and I share those secrets in second edition of The Frugal Book Promoter (http://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromo) and share the new things they do (like Kindle's new pre-sale program) on this blog and in my newsletter as they are introduced. 

And here's the best thing: Those resources are all free for starving (or frugal!) authors.

Best,

Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Multi award-winning novelist, poet, and author's advocate.
http://howtodoitfrugally.com

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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 multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; 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 .

Q&A a la Ann Landers: Amazon's Mysterious Disappearing Books

Question:

Bruce Henrickson asks My novel, After the Floods, was available at both Amazon and Barnes&Noble.com--now it has been dropped from both. What do you suppose has happened and what can I do about it?


Answer:

Amazon has been not-so-quietly refusing to sell books that are published by POD presses other than those published by their own BookSurge. However, Amazon isn't aren't removing those renegade books from their site. Amazon is offering POD-published books from other companies through second-part booksellers or through their used book program. So that probably isn't what has happened to your book.

Perhaps your book is not POD published. Keeping your book prominently exposed on Amazon should be your publisher's job. Approach him or her first to see what's up. I sure wouldn't let them brush off my concerns lightly.

If you don't get satisfaction from your publisher or if your book is POD-published by someone other than BookSurge, become an Advantage member of Amazon on your own. Use the link you find on the home page of the Amazon site. Explore until you find the advantage program that suites your needs. You'll only have your own book(s) to worry about so you should choose a lower level program. Once a member, you can put your book on Amazon on your own.

Having your books on Amazon is more important than most new authors realize. Whatever Amazon does, other online stores follow suit. Online stores from Fat Brain to Harvard bookstore borrow listings from Amazon. Once a book is up on Amazon, it can magically appear on many other sites. Further, Amazon is one of the best places in all of bookdom for your book to be seen and considered for purchase. Someone once (famously) said, "It's the economy, stupid." Well, when it comes to selling books, it's the sheer number of eyeballs that see your book or hear about it.

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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 two how to books, The Frugal Book Promoter: How To Do What Your Publisher Won't and The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure success. She is also the author of the Amazon Short, "The Great First Impression Book Proposal." Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com and AuthorsCoalition.blogspot.com, a blog that helps writers and publishers turn a ho-hum book fair booth into a sizzler.