Podcasts about sell more books show

Send us a textToday is a bonus episode of the Cops and Writers Podcast I shall name, Author Spotlight. Think of it as an offshoot of the Cops and Writers Podcast, with more of an emphasis on giving writers actionable help with the authorly side of things. Not a bunch of fluff or theories. Concrete things that will help you build your author career. Think of this as an experiment, for now.I am not abandoning the Cop side of Cops and Writers! I will continue to bring you the best police or criminal guests to entertain, compel, and inspire you. For today's episode, I brought in a friend of the show and a publishing heavy hitter, Bryan Cohen. Bryan Cohen runs Best Page Forward, a company that helps authors to learn, profit, sustain, and scale their author careers. He's helped over 30,000 authors through his Ad Challenges and his Sell More Books Show Podcast has run every week for over a decade. Bryan's Author Ad Agency manages ads for authors selling millions of dollars in book sales per year.Bryan knows his stuff and has helped me throughout my writing career! Please enjoy my chat with the most awesome, Bryan Cohen!In today's episode we discuss:.·      How much of the experience of doing standup comedy at a young age helped you later on in life? · Real-world experience! Many authors don't have it. How do you overcome that?·      Bryan's book, “How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis.”·      What are the most common errors you see in book descriptions and how do we get better at writing them? What are the “must have's” in a book description?·      Will AI take over your best page forward blurb writing business? Or will you use it to help your business?·      The Sell More Books Show Podcast. I have been a long time listener and it was super helpful when I was new to the biz. Long time with Jim, some time with Claire, and now the rotating hosts and cut down on the length of the show. What is the future of the show? Why get rid of Patreon?·      How do we grow sustainable author practices? It can be a grind, but there is no silver bullet. Every profitable author I know has worked their butts off, especially the first few years and built up a big catalogue. There is no getting around that. I think it comes down to your own definition of success and what you want out of writing. ·      Speaking of success, how are you helping authors build a six-figure business in publishing? Things authors are doing right, and not so right.·      Author ad challenge. What is it and how does it help?·      What are some best marketing practices for fiction/nonfiction/memoirs?  ·      A.I., the cows are out of the barn! Where do you see it going and as authors, how do we use it to help our author careers? The Atlantic Article regarding Meta taking author's work and training their AI with it.Visit Bryan over at Best Page Forward! Check out the new Cops and Writers YouTube channel!Check out my newest book, The Good Collar (Michael Quinn Vigilante Justice Series Book 1)!What would you do if you lost the one you loved the most? How far would you go to quench your thirst for vengeance?https://a.co/d/2UsJPbaSupport the show

Looking for the best podcasts to boost your writing skills in 2024? Curious about where authors get top-notch publishing advice? Tune in as we reveal the 10 must-listen podcasts for writers! - Book Award Pro - https://DaleLinks.com/BookAwardPro (affiliate link) Podcasts Mentioned: - The Indy Author Podcast - https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html - Sell More Books Show - https://www.sellmorebooksshow.com/ - Brave New Bookshelf - https://bravenewbookshelf.com/ - Self-Publishing with ALLi - https://selfpublishingadvice.org/podcast/ - Indie Writers Club - https://www.indiewritersclub.com/ - The Creative Penn Podcast for Authors - https://www.thecreativepenn.com/the-creative-penn-podcast-for-authors/ - Self-Publishing Insiders with Draft2Digital - https://www.draft2digital.com/blog/category/self-publishing-insiders-podcast/ - Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing - https://starkreflections.ca/ - Publish & Prosper - https://www.publishprosperpodcast.com/ - Fully Booked: The Hidden Gems Author Podcast - https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast/ Subscribe to The Self-Publishing Hub - https://TheSelfPublishingHub.com Subscribe to my email newsletter - https://DaleLinks.com/SignUp Join Channel Memberships - https://DaleLinks.com/Memberships Join Me on Discord - https://DaleLinks.com/Discord Check out my main YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/@DaleLRoberts My Books - https://DaleLinks.com/MyBooks  Where noted, some outbound links financially benefit the channel through affiliate programs. I only endorse programs, products, or services I use and can stand confidently behind. These links do not affect your purchase price and greatly helps to building and growing this channel. Thanks in advance for understanding! - Dale L. Roberts

In this week's episode, I answer a reader's question about whether or not I will use KDP's new Virtual Voice program to create AI-narrated audiobooks. This coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of DRAGONSKULL: SHIELD OF THE KNIGHT (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills) at my Payhip store: SPRINGSHIELD The coupon code is valid through April 30th, 2024. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Update Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 196 of the Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is April the 12th, 2024 and today we are talking about whether or not I will use Amazon Virtual Voice to produce audiobooks. Before we get to our main topics, we will have Coupon of the Week, some writing updates, and then a few random questions from readers. First up, let's do Coupon of the Week. This episode will go live on Tax Day in the US, so let's have a discount on an audiobook. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Shield of the Knight, as excellently narrated by Brad Wills, at my Payhip store. That code is SPRINGSHIELD and that is SPRINGSHIELD again and that of course will be available in the show notes. This coupon code is valid through April 30th, 2024, so you need a new audiobook for spring, we have got you covered. Now let's have some updates on my current writing projects. I am very nearly almost done with Wizard-Thief. I'm hoping to finish up edits shortly and actually publish it on either April the 15th or April the 16th. So when this episode goes out, I may be publishing it literally as you are listening to this. This book, like Half-Elven Thief, will be available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited. Next up, my next main project after Wizard-Thief is published, is going to be Cloak of Titans, the 11th book in the Cloak Mage series. It's not the end of the series; I'm planning that there's probably going to be about 15 books with four more after this one. But we are going to be blowing up a lot of the subplots in this book. So while this is not the end of the series, it will definitely have the feel like the end of a lot of plot arcs. I'm 22,000 words into it, and if all goes well, I'm hoping it will be out sometime toward the end of May and will be available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, Apple Books, Smashwords, and Payhip. In audiobook news, recording is underway for Ghosts in the Veils and if all goes well, that should be out sometime toward the end of May. So those are the updates on my current writing projects. 00:02:09 Reader Questions and Comments/Question of the Week Before we get to the Question of the Week, let's have a couple of unrelated questions from readers. Cameron wrote in to ask: I'm just interested in knowing how the name Calliande came about and does it have any meaning? I originally thought up the name Calliande because I wanted a unique and distinctive sounding name for the character, and so I was looking at various French and Welsh names that started with C and were about that length. I was rearranging the letters and swapping the vowels out and I came across that name and I thought, you know, that works, we're going with that. Amusingly, when I first wrote Frostborn, in my head it was pronounced Callian-DAY. But then when I did the first couple of Frostborn audiobooks from Podium way back at the end of the 2010s, Steven Crossley, the narrator pronounced it Calli-AND and ever since then, because that's where the direction he went, the official pronunciation has been Calliande and that's been the way it's been pronounced in all subsequent audio appearances of that character. Our next question is from Scott, who asks about a screenshot of the PC game Pillars of Eternity I posted on Facebook the other day. Scott says: that's on my Steam Wish List, but I haven't gotten to it yet. What do you think of it? I like it. I am enjoying it. I've had it since 2014, but I've decided the time has finally come to buckle down and finish it. If you played the original Baldur's Gate back in the ‘90s or Knights of the Old Republic or Icewind Dale or Planescape: Torment back in the ‘90s, then you will enjoy Pillars of Eternity. It's definitely worth playing. It's also an old enough game now that should work on most systems, and if you have Xbox Game Pass, the game's owned by Microsoft now, so you have Xbox Game Pass so you can play it as part of your subscription on your Xbox. Now it's time for Question of the Week, which we ask to have interesting discussions and maybe find out some good suggestions for things we might not have thought of otherwise. And so this week's question: if you listen to podcasts, what podcasts do you listen to most frequently? No wrong answers, obviously. MacKenzie says I have four podcasts on consistent subscription: The Art of Manliness, The Black Pants Legion, A Delta Green actual play podcast (content warning for very dark humor), and of course The Pulp Writer Show. Thanks, MacKenzie. Maaike says: currently just one, Kick in the Creatives posted by Sarah Busby and Tara Roskell. Through them I discovered a few more, but I haven't really found the time to really listen to them just yet. I don't know whether I can write or not, but I do know I can draw and paint, so that's what I'm focusing on. Thinking of doing NaNoWriMo though to see how my writing is. It's definitely worth trying NaNoWriMo just for once for the experience so you can see how you enjoy it or not. Michael says only two regularly, The Pulp Writer Show (thanks, Michael!) and the Legend of the Bones, which is an epic, gritty D&D solo play narrative where the dice rule. Perry says The Pulp Writer Show (not sure if you've heard of it) and The Self-Publishing Show (currently on episode 33 of 400 plus). Anne Marie says Cabinet of Curiosities by Aaron Mahnke. Jesse says: mostly Critical Role. Justin says: I didn't start listening to podcasts until I went full time with my current job in 2021. I listen to a bunch now, but most of my regular listens are The Glass Cannon Network, What Culture Wrestling, What Culture Gaming, and Adeptus Ridiculous. It's interesting how I actually haven't heard of most of these podcasts, which I guess goes to show how diverse and widespread the podcast ecosystem is, where if you have a podcast that can be very famous in a specific niche, it might be like THE podcast in that niche, but anyone who's not familiar with that particular subject of interest may have never heard of the podcast. For myself, I did not really start listening to podcasts until 2019, which is when I started listening to some of the self-publishing ones. In the past few years. I have also discovered retro video game podcasts. In that time, I've mostly listened to The Sell More Books Show and the Remember The Game podcast about retro video games, which is quite funny (but it does have some foul language, so if you check that out, be aware of it). 00:06:40 Main Topic: Amazon Virtual Voice Audiobooks Now on to our main topic of the week: Amazon Virtual Voice audiobooks. This was prompted by a question from Reader PML, who wrote in to ask: several of my favorite authors have opted to use AI Virtual Voice to release some of their older titles in audio format. I emailed you a while back hoping for more audio releases for Caina and Nadia. You indicated that audio publishing is expensive and you preferred to release the titles that were not short in length. I totally understand, but I wondered if you have considered releasing your back titles using Virtual Voice. The performance is not bad and I would really enjoy listening to all the books featuring Caina and Nadia. I don't know what the pricing scale is, but it's probably quite a bit less than a live reader. So thank you, PML for that question and for listening to all those audiobooks. If you are not familiar with the term, Virtual Voice is Amazon's new program for creating AI narrated audiobooks. Will I be using Virtual Voice to turn some of my older titles to audiobooks? No. Why? So there's three levels to my answer here. One, is it ethical to use AI for audiobook narration? Two, is AI narration good enough for audiobook narration? Three, does this help visually impaired listeners? I should mention that I have in fact experimented quite a bit with AI narrated audiobooks. Part of the reason I did this was because I wanted to understand the technology so I had an informed opinion about it. Google Play beat Amazon to the punch about two years ago, and I experimented with turning the Silent Order series into audiobooks with their technology, since I don't think the Silent Order series sells well enough to support audiobooks. After that experiment, I didn't think the AI generated audiobooks were good enough to sell in good conscience and just because you're selling something doesn't mean anyone will buy it. More on that to come. So instead, I put those AI narrated audiobooks on YouTube for free. That said, I did turn on AdSense for the audiobooks, so I made a satisfactory, if small bit of money from YouTube ads in 2023. Overall, the response from people who listen to those audiobooks seemed to be that they loved the story (thanks, everyone!), but they hated the artificial voice. Like if they had actually paid for it instead of listening to it for free on YouTube, I could just imagine the complaints. I think a lot of the authors who create Virtual Voice audiobooks and audiobooks using similar products from Google Play or other companies will be disappointed by the response they get for those audiobooks. Like I've said before, audiobooks are basically self-publishing on hard mode. But if you're coming to the market with an AI generated audiobook, it will be even harder to sell than one voiced by a human who knows what he or she is doing. So with that sort of background in mind, let's go on to the details for the answer to my question. One: is it ethical to use AI for audiobook narration? Ethics in AI is a bottomless quagmire of an Internet discussion. Overall, in my personal opinion, I think AI technology creates vastly more problems than it solves and is really nothing more than a very fancy autocomplete. I also suspect there's a bit of a speculative bubble to AI technology like there was with cryptocurrency and NFTs. For a while, all the Galaxy Brain influencer people thought crypto and NFTs were the future, and then the bubble burst and a significant portion of everything connected to crypto and NFTs turned out to be a big old scam and all the Galaxy Brains migrated over to touting AI. I suspect a lot of the AI technology rushed out now has the same speculative bubble effect and when the bubble bursts, some companies are going to be out billions since they spent all that money building infinite crap generators. A lot of people are rushing to shove AI into stuff because it's trendy and not because it's useful, like how (this is a 100% true story), the Washington State Lottery decided for whatever reason to put an AI image generator on its site, which it had to pull down hastily when that image generator started creating deepfake nude images of its users. It is also amusing how some of the really pro-AI Galaxy Brains like to say that the US needs to develop AI or else the Chinese will get it first, as if having an infinite crap generator to make deepfake nudes will somehow determine geopolitical dominance in the 21st century. But all that said, I don't think AI is going to go away. The US courts seem (so far at least) consistent in their opinion that AI is in plagiarism but isn't copyrightable, and there's a wide range of useful activity in the not copyrightable but not plagiarism space. This might change if something gets all the way up to the Supreme Court or if Congress passes some legislation on that or the EU  puts out new regulations that the companies have to follow because the EU is such a big part of their market. But for now, that seems to be the position. AI can do useful things that crypto and NFTs can't. Like for example, suppose you're applying to 40 different jobs and you can use ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot to crank out 40 different customized cover letters for your job applications. Given how messed up the job market is at the moment, I could hardly blame someone for doing that. And you see examples of people using generative AI not to create artwork, but to handle data processing type chores (like the cover letters) in clever ways that don't seem to cross any moral or ethical boundaries. So I suspect everyone will have to examine their own consciences and decide where their own line is for generative AI. For me, I decided I'm not going to sell anything that I didn't make myself, or in the case of an audiobook, was made by a human I hired. If I'm selling something, it was 100% written by Jonathan Moeller or 100% narrated by a human I hired, and the cover image doesn't include any AI generated art elements. This is also true of books and stories I give away for free, like my permafree series starters. That's where I've decided my line is going to be with AI usage. I have used AI images for Facebook ads, since ads are low resolution anyway and you often have to change out the image every week or so. Ad images are essentially disposable, and I've heard people say AI art is also disposable, so why not use the disposable products of AI art for ad images? Number two, is AI narration good enough for audiobook narration? All of my criticisms of AI aside, AI voice or Virtual Voice isn't a new technology. It's just improved text to speech synthesis technology and text to speech has been around since the late 1960s. The AI part just makes the synthetic voice sound closer to an actual human voice than the more obviously artificial tones of older technology. It's also pretty good at imitating the real human voice by now, which is why you can go on YouTube and see comedy videos of President Biden trying to make his way through Skyrim or something. Is this AI narration good enough to support creating a paid audiobook? Well, kind of, sorta. It's good enough now that it creates a near perfect imitation of a human voice. The trouble is that the voice is so perfect that it triggers the uncanny valley effect, which is when you encounter something that almost seems human but isn't. It's also really bad at emotion. The best narrators make it sound like they're telling a story, and that means varying the emotion of the voice at appropriate times, even if you're not trying to create a distinctive voice for each character. Text to speech simply isn't very good at that. That's part of the reason I won't use Virtual Voice. I don't feel the end product is of high enough quality to sell. Give it away for free on YouTube? Sure. But sell? Definitely not. It would be good enough for very dry nonfiction things like legal casebooks, geological and oil surveys, that kind of thing. A nonfiction book that required varied emotion like a war memoir, for instance or comedic travelogue would not work at all well with AI narration. And finally, number three: does this help visually impaired listeners? While I don't want to use AI nourish and create paid audiobooks, I would like to see the technology become more ubiquitous and more integrated with ereader apps and operating systems. I think the mission of technology is to help us overcome or ameliorate the inherent frailties of the human condition. That is the best and most ethical use of technology. So I would like to see AI narration eventually become just a button in the ereader app for visually impaired listeners. Like you hit the read aloud button and then the computer reads to you in a voice of your choosing. You'll still have the option to buy a human narrated audiobook if available, but the option to have the device read to you would be there if you want or need to use it. We're already kind of there, technology-wise. All the major operating systems for computer and mobile have read aloud functions. It's just not implemented consistently across the platform and the voices aren't always very good. I won't use Virtual Voice or AI narration to create any audiobooks for sale. Unless something drastically changes in the field, I don't think I'm going to change my mind on that, though of course anything is possible. In the spirit of full disclosure, as of right now (as of this recording on April 12th 2024), I have agreements with four different narrators to produce four different audiobooks, so I think I am literally putting my money where my mouth is. So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all back episodes on https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.

The art of blurbs, navigating Amazon Ads, and seeking help . . . Writing is a lonely craft, but it doesn't have to be. In this week's episode, Bryan Cohen gets candid about the necessity of help-seeking in the author space, sharing personal stories of how collaboration and networking transformed his business. He opens up about his personal journey, the lessons he learned, and his secret sauce for sustaining successful ventures.Bryan Cohen is the founder of Author Ad School, Best Page Forward, and the Author Ad Agency. He's also the co-host of The Sell More Books Show podcast which just finished its 500th consecutive week! Whether you're a novice in the publishing world or a seasoned author, the insights from this episode can be the game changer you've been waiting for. Question of the Week: How have you incorporated feedback and outside help into your author business?Follow Us! Bryan CohenWebsite: https://bestpageforward.netFacebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2230194167089012The Author Wheel:Website: www.AuthorWheel.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorWheelCommunity Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/856705052538168Greta Boris:Website: www.GretaBoris.comFacebook: @GretaBorisAuthorInstagram: @GretaBorisMegan Haskell:Website: www.MeganHaskell.comFacebook & Instagram: @MeganHaskellAuthorTikTok: @AuthorMeganHaskellSubstack: https://meganhaskellauthor.substack.com Support the showFREE Mini Email CourseHave you ever struggled to explain to others exactly what you write? Or wondered which of the many fiction ideas running through your brain you should tackle? If so, The Author Wheel's new mini-course might be your solution. 7 Days to Clarity: Uncover Your Author Purpose will help you uncover your core writing motivations, avoid shiny-thing syndrome, and create clear marketing language. Each daily email will lead you step by step in defining your author brand, crafting a mission statement, and distilling that statement into a pithy tagline. And, best of all, it's free. Click here to learn more!

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Categorically Insane. Question of the week: When have you experienced imposter syndrome in publishing and what did you do about it?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is K IOU. Question of the week: What do you think the readers in your specific sub-genre are likely to do in response to the KU price increase? And what actions (if any) do you plan on taking in response?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Printing Pressed. Question of the week: Will the price change for KDP Print alter how you currently sell and publish your paperback books?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Evil, Good, or Neutral? Question of the week: Are you AI Curious or AI Furious? And why?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Eyes Wide Open. Question of the week: If you have books in KU, then what is your threshold for saying “no more” and going wide?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is ALLi Author Survey Results. Question of the week: Are you surprised by the results of the ALLi survey? How does it make you feel looking over the numbers?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Clock App Books? Question of the week: Do you think that the new TikTok publishing imprint will doom indies on BookTok or will have a minimal effect on the ability to grow on TT?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is There Are Ads in My Audio. Question of the week: What would be the most amusing commercial to appear in the middle of your audiobook (give context & keep it PG-13 at most)?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Kobo Plus Has Arrived Stateside. Question of the week: Are there any drawbacks you can see in Kobo Plus? Do you plan on putting your books in Kobo Plus?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is AI Book Boom or Boon? Question of the week: How did you decide on the title of your last book?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Fin Direct. Question of the week: If you've started doing direct sales, what is a pro tip you've learned that you can share with newbies?

Have you ever wondered why the standard, run-of-the-mill author advice doesn't always work for you? Wish you could find a way to make it all make sense in a way that suits you? You're in for a treat! In today's podcast episode, I'm talking all things Enneagram with Claire Taylor! She's talking about her book, Reclaim Your Author Career, and how authors can use the Enneagram to not only craft an author career that fits them - but characters who are believable, too! Have a listen! Be sure to check out the show notes by going to https://authorrevolution.org/176.

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is What About AIs Needs?. Question of the week: What is one tactic that you are using to get people from social media to your email list?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Six-Pack Success. Question of the week: What book or series would you pitch for TV or movies, and what would be your elevator pitch for it?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Punishing the Victims. Question of the week: If you were to have your account taken down from Amazon, what would your plan-b be?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Why Some Authors Fail. Question of the week: What do you do when you realize your writer's block is stemming from fear?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Apple and training the machines. Question of the week: Have you not pursued a typical profitable publishing path because you didn't agree with the terms of a company or website. If so, what were the terms?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Pick a Lane. Question of the week: How do you decide which author lane to stay in, or do you move between more than one?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is Calling an Audible. Question of the week: What do you think the real reason behind ACX's price changes could be, and do you think it could end up being beneficial to authors?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is AI voices could win, despite being inferior. Question of the week: How would you use AI narration and human narration differently, and do you plan on trying AI narration this year?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Top story is do Amazon followers matter again? Question of the week: Will you be trying to build your Amazon Followers in the coming weeks?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Question of the week: Which features of AI are you most excited about and which are you approaching with caution?

Claire and Bryan embark on a new journey. Get excited for Season 2 of The Sell More Books Show. Question of the week: What have you done in the past when your work is met with negativity online? Did it help?

I'm happy to have returning guest Bryan Cohen on today's show. Bryan is the creator of Author Ad School, the founder of author copywriting agency Best Page Forward, and the MC of Self Publishing Live. He's also an author with eight novels self-published and over 150,000 books sold, as well as the co-host of The Sell More Books Show, a weekly podcast for self-published authors​In today's episode, we discuss:·      The hottest trends in book publishing, including TikTok.·      The long-running Sell More Books Show Podcast.·      Indie authors selling direct.·      Bryan's experience as a part of Pat Flynn's mastermind group.·      The rewards and drawbacks of owning your own company.·      Building a career around a lifestyle.·      Best practices for advertising your books.·      Dealing with rejection. ·      Bryan's success with his Kickstarter projects, including best practices.·      The importance of “Superfans!” And, how to keep them. All of this and more on today's episode of the Cops and Writers podcast.Check out Bryan on Author Ad School.Visit Bryan at his website. Enjoy the Cops and Writer's book series.Please visit the Cops and Writers website.If you have a question for the sarge, hit him up at his email.Join the fun at the Cops and Writers Facebook groupWould you like to buy me a coffee?Support the show

Mark interviews Bryan Cohen who runs Author Ad School, Best Page Forward, and co-hosts The Sell More Books Show. Prior to the interview, Mark thanks his patrons, reads comments, offers a personal update and shares a word about this episode's sponsor. You can learn more about how you can get your work distributed to retailers and library systems around the world at starkreflections.ca/Findaway. During their chat, Mark and Bryan talk about: Bryan's "Best Page Forward" book blurb writing business that started in 2016 Slowly growing the business by starting off with "bargain basement" pricing, and then eventually growing to having 8 writers and having written more than 5000 book descriptions The misconception that it's necessary for a blurb writer to have to read the book they are writing about Adding instructions for Amazon and Facebook ads to his repertoire The fact that even people who work on the Amazon Ads product can find it complex and confusing The quarterly free Amazon Ad Challenges that Bryan has been running for the past couple of years The hands-on approach to this challenge that begins right at step-one Who these free challenges and the full courses are for Opportunities that exist within email marketing The forthcoming book that Bryan is working on that follows the "story" of helping a fictional author named Nina Bryan's long-running podcast The Sell More Books Show The importance of regularly scheduled down-time for one's mental and physical health A little bit about Bryan's own personal writing career Bryan's final "hot potato of wisdom" (a shtick from The Sell More Books Show) And more... After the interview Mark reflects on the importance of downtown for an author, as well as Bryan's reminder about starting off focusing on one writing thing and one marketing thing.   Links of Interest: Bryan Cohen's Website Best Page Forward Sell More Books Show Podcast Bryan's Kick Your Email Kickstarter Episode 251 - The Author Journey with C.J. Anaya Findaway Voices Buy Mark a Coffee Patreon for Stark Reflections Best Book Ever Podcast Lovers Moon Podcast The Relaxed Author Buy eBook Direct Buy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for Authors An Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & Bookstores Wide for the Win Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story) A Canadian Werewolf in New York Stowe Away (Novella) Fear and Longing in Los Angeles Fright Nights, Big City Lover's Moon   Bryan Cohen runs Author Ad School, Best Page Forward, and co-hosts The Sell More Books Show. He's helped over 30,000 authors through his free Ad Challenges and has sold 140,000 copies of his own books as well.   The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 

Welcome to episode 171 of the Creative Writers Toolbelt. My guest today is the author, writing consultant, and presenter Claire Taylor. Claire will be known to many of you as one-half of the team at the Sell More Books Show with her co-presenter, Bryan Cohen. In this episode we talk about what narrative cohesion is and why it matters, the way in which characters operate on a physical, emotional, and philosophical level, and how to use, (and how not to use) tropes, this was a really fun conversation I enjoyed talking to Claire, I hope you enjoy listening to it, here it is.

Welcome to episode 171 of the Creative Writers Toolbelt. My guest today is the author, writing consultant, and presenter Claire Taylor. Claire will be known to many of you as one-half of the team at the Sell More Books Show with her co-presenter, Bryan Cohen. In this episode we talk about what narrative cohesion is and why it matters, the way in which characters operate on a physical, emotional, and philosophical level, and how to use, (and how not to use) tropes, this was a really fun conversation I enjoyed talking to Claire, I hope you enjoy listening to it, here it is.

Bryan Cohen runs the 5-Day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge, an online event that has helped thousands of authors understand the complex machine that is Amazon Ads. He's also a USA Today Bestselling author, the co-host of The Sell More Books Show, and the CEO of Best Page Forward, an author copywriting agency. His books have sold 100,000+ copies. You can learn more about Bryan at http://bit.ly/bookadcopy. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/blackrosewriting/support

Joining us today is none other than Bryan Cohen! Bryan takes us on his journey from being a college grad to trying to make it big in improv comedy in Chicago, to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Bryan is a true entrepreneur. He is the creator of Amazon Ad School, the founder of the author copywriting agency, Best Page Forward, and the MC of Self-Publishing Live conference. as well as the co-host of The Sell More Books Show, a weekly podcast for self-published authors. He's also an author with eight novels self-published and over 100,000 books sold.This episode is full of valuable information where we discuss how to write a great book description (including a killer hook) that will convert into numerous sales. We also discuss Amazon Ads where Bryan gives great advice to beginner, midlist, and veteran authors who want to make more money using Amazon Ads. If you want to sell more books, this is the episode for you!Join Bryan's Amazon Ad Challenge!Need better book descriptions? Want up-to-date self-publishing news? Want to become a description master?Enjoy the Cops and Writers book series.Please visit the Cops and Writers website.If you have a question for the sarge, hit him up at his email.Come join the fun at the Cops and Writers Facebook groupSupport the show (https://patreon.com/copsandwriters)

If you've been in the indie author space, chances are, you've already heard of today's guest. He's known as the book blurb guy, the ad guy, and the co-host of the Sell More Books Show. Yes, that's right... In today's podcast episode, I'm talking with Bryan Cohen, author, CEO of Best Page Forward, and founder of the Amazon Ad School. We talk about his journey, why book descriptions matter, and how to get in on the latest Amazon Ad Profit Challenge. Have a listen! Be sure to check out the show notes by going to authorrevolution.org/75.

Happy 7 Years of SMBS! We are so thankful for all of our awesome listeners and look forward to seven more years. Claire is holding a 5-Star Power Endings Masterclass this month and there are a few tickets left, you can find tickets at the link provided. Be sure to leave the show a review on Apple podcast. The winner this week is - Bill Cokas and our Honorable Mention is - Cops And Writers. Top Tips of the week include where to start when to make your author business a company, where to find daily write-ins, and why you need to let go of limiting beliefs. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how TikTok is boosting books for authors, where to find the new Nook, why self-promoting isn’t as icky as you think, what new platform Facebook is launching for authors, and what has happened with the Sell More Books Show over the last seven years. Question of the Week: How has the Sell More Books show helped you on your author career over the last 7 years?

In this interview, Bryan will share from his rich arsenal of copywriting experience how to optimize your Amazon ads and write better blurbs. Because blurbs are nothing else but stories, right? ------------------------------------------------- Here’s the Amazon Ads Challenge run by Bryan: http://sellingforauthors.com/january And this is the Sell More Books Show: https://sellmorebooksshow.com/ ❤️ [SUBSCRIBE]: https://bit.ly/346R4l9​

We have enjoyed this year of The Sell More Books Show and look forward to you joining us in 2021! Kick off the new year with Claire’s 5 Day Indie Author Alignment Course for free. Brian is also holding his 5 Day Amazon Ad Challenge on January 11th with a special offer of a speed pass that allows you to jump ahead. Be sure to check these out at the links provided. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how the pandemic has impacted libraries, why traditional publishing struggles are occurring, what the surge in audiobooks means for Audible, what new changes Amazon Advertising had in 2020, and how it’s possible that the Coronavirus lockdowns have changes the industry. Question of the Week: What do you think is the biggest publishing story of 2020?

Join Autumn and special guest Bryan Cohen to discuss AMS ads, book blurbs, and, oh yeah, the worst advertising mistake authors can make. Bryan is an expert on book blurbs and his free AMS ad challenges have helped thousands of authors learn the ropes of using Amazon ads. Does that mean AMS ads are hitting saturation? What might be the next big move for self-published authors to connect with readers? We discuss that and more! Check out Bryan's podcast the Sell More Books Show at https://sellmorebooksshow.com/. And learn more about Bryan on his website: http://bryancohen.com/. Join Bryan's January 2021 AMS challenge at https://bryancohen.lpages.co/january-amazon-ad-challenge-2021-ov4/ Tune in for new episodes EVERY single Monday.   SUPPORT THE AM WRITING FANTASY PODCAST! Please tell a fellow author about the show and visit us at Apple podcast and leave a rating and review.   Join us at www.patreon.com/AmWritingFantasy. For as little as a dollar a month, you'll get awesome rewards and keep the Am Writing Fantasy podcast going. Read the full transcript below. (Please note that it's automatically generated and while the AI is super cool, it isn't perfect. There may be misspellings or incorrect words on occasion). Narrator (1s): You're listening to the am writing fantasy podcast in today's publishing landscape. You can reach fans all over the world. Query letters are a thing of the past. You don't even need a literary agent. There is nothing standing in the way of making a living from writing. Join two best selling authors who have self published more than 20 books between them now onto the show with your hosts, Autumn Birt, and Jesper Schmidt. Autumn (30s): Welcome to the am. Writing Tennessee podcast. This is episode one Oh five I'm autumn. And today Yesper has the recording session off and I have with the very special guest instead author and entrepreneurial Brian Cohen. Whoa. Welcome to the writing fantasy podcast. Brian, Bryan (50s): Thank you, autumn. I appreciate you having me. We had some nice technical difficulties figuring this out, but I'm so glad we were able to make it work Autumn (1m 0s): Well. It's always nice working with someone who is probably, I mean, you do live webinars and all these other things. So I have a feeling you can roll with the technical difficulties very well. I wasn't worried. Hey, that's the nice thing is, is with modern technology. There's always a workaround. There's at least like three or four, so we figured it out and you're here and I'm so excited for you to join us today. So I know you through these amazing AFS ad challenges you run, but I had of course heard of your name way before the AMS ad challenges, because you were known as like a guru of book blurbs, but I know that's not even close to everything you've done. Autumn (1m 43s): So if you could introduce yourself, that would be fantastic. Bryan (1m 48s): Sure. Of course. Well, of late, the big thing that I I've been doing is I run these free courses that we, we talk about them as challenges, these free challenges about Amazon advertising. One of the, the, the strangest weirdest little advertising platform is Kindle author them. And it's our goal to try to just make it simpler, but it also try to make them not spend all of your money. And those are the five day Amazon ad profit challenges and, and I've been running them and I have a really good team behind them and it's a lot of fun, but originally I would say some people might know me from my podcast, the some more books show, some people might know me from the author copywriting agency. Bryan (2m 47s): I run best page forward. We write book descriptions and ad copy, and I'm an author myself having written multiple young adult scifi fantasy. Depends on it. Depends on where you're placing superheroes. Amazon has a category on both sides. Autumn (3m 6s): Oh, that's so is it like more techie? So it ends up in this Saifai side or if it's more magic it's on the fantasy side or is that, Oh, Hey, that's excellent. Bryan (3m 20s): But yeah, so I am not currently writing fantasy, but I have been in the state of M writing fantasy in, in the past. So hopefully I still qualify. Autumn (3m 32s): Oh, absolutely. And I mean, just for your expertise alone, I think it's fantastic. I, I said, I've done at least two or three of your AMS ad challenges and I learn something new every single time. They amazing. And so it's great to have you on here, but yeah, you, you get some of the fantasy mindset and the world-building and the powers and making rules so that people, you know, aren't going crazy and can do anything in their God. And that just makes it so less tense and fun. Yes, this is true. Well, I mean, there's so many things we could talk about. It was hard to choose even a focus other than I know, you know, I know you threw AMS at challenges, but you help authors so much with the marketing. Autumn (4m 19s): And I mean, market from the book, blurbs to the AMS ads, are you aware when authors market books with all your experience and all the people you've helped, what do you think is the number one thing authors do wrong when they're trying to get their book out there in the world? Bryan (4m 37s): Well, I think it has to start with, with the foundation of the book. The, I don't know who invented it, but I'll, I'll borrow it and not take credit for it. But writing the book with the marketing in mind is so key. When I, the first, I think I remember it being like conceptualized for me when a few years ago, when Adam Croft a very successful mystery and thriller author, he talks started talking about writing the hook, the, the, the first line of the book description, the thing that could be used on ads, the copy, as some people call it to write that before the book. Bryan (5m 28s): And I just thought, well, how smart is that? If you don't even have a good hook, if you don't even have something that would get people excited about it, chances are you're going to have a hard time getting people excited about your book. So I loved the idea of writing that, that big one-liner, even before the book. And I've heard of some people writing the book description for a book before they write the book. And I think that that is a thing that a lot of people get wrong is they write the book and then they do all the marketing stuff after. Bryan (6m 14s): But really you might want to start by doing some of the marketing work first to make sure you're writing a book that you're going to put so much effort into that, that there will actually be people who are interested in, Autumn (6m 30s): Right. Oh, I should say whew. Cause I, I definitely one of those people who I do write little descriptions before I start writing, and then I refer back to it. Cause that's, it's one thing to come up with an idea and develop it with a description or a hook, but then you have to make sure you actually pay attention to it. Not you're like halfway through the novel and go, Oh, that's not even close to what I'm doing. It kind of it's, it should guide you not be this exercise that you put aside and don't even think about until you're done. And then you realize you're completely off the rails. Bryan (7m 1s): Oh yeah, no, absolutely. I was working with a friend of mine who was trying to write the market and trend. It was a paranormal cozy mystery and she sent over the book description and I read it and I thought, you know, I don't think this is paranormal cozy. At least not the way the book descriptions written. And I check in with her, you definitely want to write in this genre. Right? She says, yes. And I said, all right, well, let me connect you with someone who writes a lot of paranormal cozy and she can give you opinions on what would need to change. Bryan (7m 43s): And certain like setting pieces and character motivations and tropes as they are often referred to changing those in that early stage of the game has now made her a huge, like on the edge of five figure author per month access. And it start. And obviously I'm not taking credit for that. She, she has written out 13 books in that series, but when you take a minute, take a breath, share it with some experts, share it with some people in that early, early stage, it could be worth a lot of money, but it could also just be worth like helping you to write the book you were meant to write. Bryan (8m 39s): Anyway, Autumn (8m 40s): That's true. Or even just drawing out some of the, the tidbits. I like the tropes, like you mentioned, like, well, did you consider this? This is popular right now, or that's been overdone. So stay away from it. It could save you months of writing to write something. You could've gone a different way. And it might've been a little bit better. I have to been I've recently did read Chris Fox's book right to market. And we had him on the podcast, but of course we didn't. We talked about Kickstarter and not his right to market books, but it's wonderful. Pretty cool. But I do really appreciate the idea. I think a lot of authors, you know, they hear that right to market and they think, Oh, you know, you're, you're taking away the, the, the fun of it, the innovation of it. Autumn (9m 27s): But it's not really that it's sort of looking at it from a business perspective, saying I'm going to spend this many months of my life and probably give up some things like family time. So I can do this. And I want to invest that wisely with something that I really would like to do well, at least as well as the best chance it has. Bryan (9m 46s): Yeah. I have an analogy that might help those. So I used to do improv comedy. Anyone who's ever been to an improv comedy show, you know, that they often take suggestions from the audience and like a word or I've, I've been to a show where they use a title of a musical, or they use a news story that they have to read out loud and then they, they will take that inspiration and they will use that to inspire them for a scene. You might think you get some weird suggestion. Of course, people are always trying to use potty words, whatever, but at least drinking on a Friday, Saturday night. Autumn (10m 33s): So just setting the idea there. Yeah, Bryan (10m 36s): Exactly. But you've got this word that you think, Oh, this might constrain me, but I have seen words and concepts and titles and news stories inspire incredible things. Even though you might think that word or that concept would constrain you, it it's really what you do with it. What you do within that framework. That is where the creative process happens. I mean, Shakespeare's plays are nearly all adaptations and they have stood the test of time, even though they weren't his original idea. Bryan (11m 21s): He took these concepts, these other plays, these stories, these pieces of history. And within that framework created something we're still talking about 400 plus years later. Autumn (11m 37s): That's a great analogy. And it really does bring it home. I agree with you. I had never considered it in terms of Shakespeare. And I only have this complete work sitting on my bookshelf and I've read most of them. So that's Oh yes, I, yeah. That's a whole different conversation, but that is fantastic. Bryan (11m 58s): That and the Shakespeare podcast. Autumn (12m 0s): Oh, excellent. I will see you there. As soon as we find it. Bryan (12m 5s): Great. Autumn (12m 6s): Send me the link. So that's wonderful. And that kind of develops too. So obviously, I mean, I already know you, you like to, you're so good at writing blurbs. You even teach in the AMS ads, challenges, you teach a little bit of blurb writing and how to hone them and refine them. And I have to admit, so it's a nice to hear that you, you, you think that they should be part of like the original story development, it leads so much into your marketing and that's where you grow it. And you've seen probably thousands of blurbs. I mean, what do you think authors get wrong the most when they're developing it? Because I love you have a very solid strategy of saying, you know, sentence one, sentence two. I have it like copy and pasted in my Scrivener file when I'm developing my blurb. Autumn (12m 50s): I just already have it copied there so I can look at it and develop mine. Yeah. I really am thrilled to have you here today. Bryan (12m 58s): Oh well, I'm, I am honored, but I think the thing people th that they struggle with is, is I think partly it's not getting themselves in the right mindset in the right framework. And you might hear some buzzing. I, I am in a hotel rooms, a fear just came on, but it is what it is when you are trying to fit in a blurb in the 30 or so minutes that you've allocated for yourself and not realizing that this is a piece of marketing. Bryan (13m 42s): This is a piece of poetry's someone whoever created, just do it. The slogan for Nike probably hammered on it for eight hours. I mean, you aren't necessarily going to be able to complete something that is going to make every reader who stumbles upon it excited unless you give it the time that is needed and the space and for it to be your creative time, not your well, I do my writing in the morning and I do my marketing after three o'clock when I'm half falling asleep, you need your creative time to work on this piece of the marketing, because that piece of the marketing is something that requires creativity. Autumn (14m 35s): Yes. So you'd definitely recommend probably coming back a couple of times, not, you know, you're 30 minutes and you're done and never look at it again. Bryan (14m 45s): Yes, definitely. Don't do that. You don't know if you have any typos, you should check. Oh. And share your blurb with your editor when you are writing the book, because then they will catch the mistakes that you don't catch yourself. Autumn (15m 4s): Yes. That's a very good point. And I definitely have seen some what looked like very well sounding blurbs online, but then yeah, you read them and you notice, you know, sometimes it's little things come as a periods, but sometimes it is a word wrong. You're like, Oh, I can always, always do a good deed and let your author know so that they can figure it out. Yeah. Bryan (15m 25s): You see something about a blurb, say something about a blurb. Autumn (15m 28s): Yes. That's a very good idea. Well, I mean, we've mentioned the AMS challenges you've run. So just, just in case there's an author out there who is not aware of AMS ads and what they are. Could you give a quick description of what they are and how did you come up with doing these challenges? Bryan (15m 49s): Oh, that's a great question. So Amazon ads, AMS ads, whatever you want to call them. These are the ads that you see on Amazon. When you're searching for a book, when you type something into the search bar, you'll often notice there's some ads at the top. There's some ads kind of interspersed in the search results. And then there's also some ads that show up on every page, every book page, there's a carousel. You'll see a little sponsored icon when you know the hat. Those are, those are the ads. And those ads are placed by publishers or other authors who are run through the Amazon advertising platform. Bryan (16m 36s): And they will bid what they want to spend per click. They say, I want to bid 40 cents per click. And then someone, if, if a reader clicks on the ad and then goes to check out your book page, you get charged for that click. So you would get charged 40 cents or a little bit less for someone to click onto that ad. And the goal of course is to bid low enough so that you're not paying so much per click because you could bid $5 per cent. I know people who've accidentally bid $5 and get $5 clicks. Bryan (17m 20s): Chances are, if your book is selling for $2 and 99 cents, that is not going to be a effective use of your money. No. Yeah. And so if that's part of the game is bidding low enough. The other part of the game is, and it goes back to the blurb. It goes to the cover. It goes to how well something has been written to market. You want to get a sale for as few number of clicks as possible. Because even if you're, if you're getting clicks for 10 cents, if it takes 40 clicks for someone to buy your book, well, then you're going to be paying $4 every time you sell a book. Bryan (18m 5s): And if your book's two 99, and then you're, you're not going to be making that money. So you play the game of getting as low as you can and still getting traction and making sure that your book converts with as few clicks as possible. I like to say about six to eight clicks. I used to say 10, but now I say six to eight clicks because some books are shorter. Some books are standalones and, and ten one sale for every 10 clicks. Sometimes isn't profitable. So about six to eight, especially if the books in Kindle unlimited six to eight clicks per sale is a good ratio for profitability and then trying to keep that bid low. Bryan (18m 59s): So that was the, just the answer to the first question, answer to the second question is I I've, I've been pretty fortunate to connect with a few people who have really had success running challenges. One of the first challenges I ever joined as a participant was a challenge called the simple green smoothies. Oh, I know. And I was very fortunate to be in a mastermind group, which is a group of entrepreneurs or group of people trying to use their smarts together. Bryan (19m 45s): So it's the master mind. And this, this group had one of the co-founders of the simple green smoothie challenge in it. And one of the things that her name is Jada Sellner. And one of the things I learned from her was that challenge for spending $0 on marketing brought in over a million people. Wow. Oh, that's amazing. Or challenges. Sound cool. Yeah. So seeing that challenge and seeing other challenges, I knew I really wanted to do one and it was just a matter of trying to figure out, well, what about Amazon ads? Bryan (20m 32s): Could we do a challenge about, and really, I think that the thing a lot of people struggle with is the creation of these ads. And so if we could provide as much support as possible, the right documentation, the right to help people get over every technical hurdle, mental hurdle, just like a glitch hurdle, Autumn (20m 60s): Time hurdle, just making the time for it. Yes. Bryan (21m 4s): And getting over all of those in a short period of time. I think that I thought that people would, would really take to it. And we've been very fortunate that word of mouth is good. We, we do spend a lot of money on marketing, our own thing. And, and now we're on our sixth one and it's been over 20,000 people have taken the challenges. Autumn (21m 30s): That's fantastic. And they are, they're a great motivational. I mean, if you, if you're tempted to do AMS ads and you just don't know where to start, or you're just, you know, you can go find all this research in different places and just not take the time to synthesize it. And you just put it in front of you and you give a deadline and you have people supporting you and commenting on your stuff and, you know, helping you out. It's like, it's a whirlwind, but you get through it. And you do finally, if it's, if there's some hurdle for you to start, you kind of get beyond it. The next thing you know, you're doing AMS ads and it's amazing and it's been a month. And then the, you know, the next challenge comes up and you have to join that one too, because you always have something new to learn. And it's like nano Ramo. Autumn (22m 10s): You know, you're, you're joining with a bunch of authors. And I see a lot of faces that I I've known. You know, I've been an author since 2012. So there's a lot of other writers I know, and you connect and you lose touch over time and then you reconnect and I've seen them in the challenge. So it's also been a great, like, Hey, how have you been doing, I haven't seen you for two years. So that's very, it's fun. It's a fun group that you do run and they're informative and helpful. Bryan (22m 37s): We, we really enjoy it. And, and I love fostering those connections. We need community more than ever right now. And so if I can play and my company and the people I work with can play a small role in providing some of that community. We are absolutely all for it. Autumn (22m 57s): No, I definitely think you do. And yes, 2020, especially we need our community a little bit more sympathetic and a few more extra arms to support us all this year. So with the AMS ads, do you think, I mean, you've noticed that, you know, your, your, the number of clicks, you've dropped it from 10 to six to eight. So do you think as well that there any keywords or genres that AMS ads might be getting saturated in? Is this something you're concerned about in the future? That, cause I noticed like Facebook ads, I had a golden age and now they're a lot harder to get traction on. Do you think the same thing will happen with the AMS ads? Bryan (23m 39s): I think it's very possible. I was at the 20, 1920 to 50 K conference and I was talking about ads and I mentioned that Amazon ads are under priced right now because a lot of people can and do make profit off it. And I didn't realize at first I was hearing a noise from the crowd and they were sh people were shushing me. They were like, there's Amazon ad reps in the, in the room. And I'm like, Oh, okay, sorry. Don't raise our prices. Come on to this point, they are still under priced and people can still make money off of them. Bryan (24m 20s): I think the very, very popular genres, your, your paranormal, your contemporary romance, those are going to be more saturated. There's no question. But one of the things that currently is true here in December, 2020, because things are always changing. But currently right now, because Amazon doesn't just focus on the price of your bid, but also on how relevant your book is, how similar your book is to the things you're targeting. Bryan (25m 4s): It's not just a care. I used to think that it was a ranking system and it was the first place as a $2 bid and second place as a dollar 80 in third place has a dollar 60. I used to think that I think it was Janet Margo, who can, who, who had worked with Amazon advertising and developing the platform. She was the one who I think was the first to inform me that actually you could have a 40 cent bid, 30 cent bid and be the first in the carousel. Oh, I didn't realize this. How is this possible? And it's because relevancy is such a huge factor. Bryan (25m 46s): If your book is so perfectly a coming of age fantasy, it's got the right cover. It's got the right title. People are clicking on it. People are buying it. The conversion rate is very good. And at the conversion rate, particularly from the ads is good. It's going to be higher up in the rankings than a book that isn't as well marketed. Autumn (26m 13s): It has a higher bid price. So that's interesting. Bryan (26m 17s): Right? So that's why you always want to target books that are very close to your own and you don't want to try more is not necessarily going to be better unless you can come up with more and more, very perfect targets. Autumn (26m 35s): Okay. Well, that's, that explains a lot of the strategies. Even you teach a refining the key words and finding the right books to target, because that's really the key to not spending a ton of money, but also getting your books seen. Bryan (26m 51s): Yes, exactly. Exactly. Autumn (26m 54s): Like I said, every time I talk to you, I learned more. So this is really, that's a good tip. Now I'm 30 thinking. Well, you do definitely. Oh, that's interesting. So you think, so, that's good to know that, you know, AMS has, are not saturated because they are working now and it's always important to find a way we've gone past the, you don't need to market. If you want your book seen, you basically need to market in some way, these years, 20, 20, 20, 21. It's, that's just the reality we're in we're now, you know, the book, big book publishers are, they're still out there, but there's enough indie authors that we're running this as a business that we've got to consider advertising anymore. Bryan (27m 36s): Yeah. It, it, I, I, you are an author since 2012. I started in 2010 and it used to be easier. Autumn (27m 44s): Yes. Oh my goodness. Yes. I refer to those early years as the wild West where, I mean, you could just dash up a book dash up a cover dash up, you know, something you wrote as a blurb and people would find it and buy it. And even if you did a five K Kendall, K you unlimited countdown, I mean, people would download it by the thousands because there was less than a million books, but it's a little Bryan (28m 12s): And thought that those books were paid. So your sales rank would be like, number one, afterwards, those, those were interesting times for funny glitches to be discovered that made some people very well. Autumn (28m 25s): Yes, it was good for them. I did not get on one of those glitches, but that's okay. I'm still doing it. I still love it. And I love helping other authors as well. I mean, it's just, it's half the community. I think this is one of the nicest communities you can find online or other authors. So it's just a really wonderful place to be. I agree. I agree so well, do you think though Amazon is always going to be the King either for finding books or the ads? I mean, do you think there's going to be eventually, maybe down the road another way for readers to discover authors? I know a lot of, as Amazon grows and they don't even give away how many books they now host on their platform and on their servers, it's, you know, people are saying eight and 9 million books easily. Autumn (29m 15s): What's going on. Do you think it's going to get too crowded? Is, is there going to be something else other than Amazon that readers will be able to find other authors or is it just going to be, you know, like really crowded beach we're in doing Scott, they're a little square and that's about it. Bryan (29m 31s): We've been, we've been waiting and hoping for someone to just come out of the gate and be the next Amazon. And there's definitely lots of smaller pockets of, of some people who are having some success on Kobo or Apple or Barnes and noble, but I'm most intrigued by people selling direct and what, I've, what I, I, I remember Michael Scott aro, who was, I believe his books were taken down from Amazon. Bryan (30m 20s): Amazon had said that there were some rules violated. I have no idea everything I consider allegedly until I see see some documentation on it, but from what I hear, and he was doing very, very well, top hundred, one of the top hundred authors on Amazon at the time and making a lot of money. A lot of it was from Kindle unlimited. A lot of it was from, from Amazon type sources of income. But from what I hear, he has used more of the crowdfunding and direct sales models based on a very, very large email list to just say, well, if Amazon won't have me, then I'm going to do it myself and Chris on your podcast talking about his very successful Kickstarter. Bryan (31m 21s): Now I know his was with his RPG connected to his world's IP, but it's still connected. I have a student who crowd funds his, his comic books. I mean, there is just so much opportunity to branch, into connecting more directly with the consumer. And there's so many benefits. I think Alex peer Alex Jonty, who has had some amazing posts on the 20 bucks to 50 K group, he's had months of 50 to $100,000 a month selling direct from his, I believe he, he uses a Shopify store and I could be wrong about that, but I know he does it direct. Bryan (32m 13s): And he, and, and, and Michael and, and Chris and folks who do have that more direct relationship via email, they have the ability to pivot when something doesn't work as well on Amazon. And I think there may come a reckoning in 2021, 2022, if something funky happens with Kindle unlimited or audible, or what have you, the folks who have primarily relied on Amazon, who do not at the same time, grow their email list and their fan base, they could be in trouble. Bryan (33m 3s): I think that it's a really good idea to not put all your eggs in one basket and to always be growing your base of people and connecting with them. Autumn (33m 14s): Oh, I love, I absolutely love that message personally, because I'm wide. And I actually do sell off my website. I mean, it's small. I have a small list and I have a compared to these people you're referring to these other authors, but it is good and readers. I think I've gotten very savvy. Some, I mean, a lot of readers are also authors a little bit, so they know what's going on. But yeah, I do have some readers who will always go to my website and buy my books directly from me, or they'll at least asking what's the difference. And I just, I think that's fantastic. They understand a lot more about the marketplace than I think a lot of people realize. And that's good because it is, it is important that they're seeing a value in our writing and they want to support authors and have them write more books because that's the only way that they'll get more books is by supporting, you know, their favorites. Autumn (34m 6s): So that's, that's really interesting. So I did want to know. So we got into the author and writing conversation. So with everything you're working right now on the next challenge, which I'll have to ask you in a couple of minutes when that's going to happen. But first, so you're an author too. How much time do you get to write with all of these other things you're juggling, you have your own business and you have these challenges and so much going on. Bryan (34m 38s): Well, it's funny, I'm I, I sit in the hotel today, right? My it's funny. It's like, I've done this a few times now and now my, my three-year-old daughter says, let's go to your hotel and like Autumn (34m 56s): The hotel Bryan (34m 57s): Room that we can walk to, but yeah, it's adorable. So I sitting here working on the slides for the upcoming challenge, and I look at my I'm typing into a Neo two and I look, all right, well, how much have I written today? How much have I written? Then it's like 6,800 words after 6:00 AM onwards. And I write plenty, but I have not had much chance to write books of late. And it's been a couple years. And I, and I do miss it. Bryan (35m 39s): I think that I I'm hoping to fit them in, in 2021. I'm, I'm hoping to squeeze some in, but I also know that if I don't, I it's okay. Because as I often am telling a lot of the people, a lot of the authors I work with find the thing that is, is providing the most value. Find the thing that is providing the most profit, whatever your goal is, find the thing that is most achieving that. And then focus a lot more on that. Like if you have, you know, three readers from this series, you never finished from like five years ago and you have three readers who keep asking, don't do the old, well, people keep asking about it. Bryan (36m 34s): No, not people, not my readers, three readers, keep asking about it. And if only 20 people bought that series in total five years ago, then no, that is not the thing you should be working on unless it provides something else for you because you need to be working on the most important thing. The one thing as the Gary Keller book says, you need to find the one thing and you need to focus on that because it is so easy to be pulled in a million different contradictory directions. Bryan (37m 16s): And right now, writing a book might be a fun middle of the year project for me. But for now it's like, this is the thing that helps the most people. My, my goal in authored is to be at the point where if 10,000 authors emailed me on the same day, needing help of all different varieties that my team and I could actually handle that to me, could support basically the entire community at scale all at the same time. Bryan (37m 58s): And that is a goal that's going to take a long time to get. But the challenge right now is the thing that best fulfills that goal. And so everything creative, every I used airline points, but this hotel was not, was not cheap. Anything I can do to help that goal, that one thing, goal, that top priority goal I'm going to do. And I think everyone listening should do the same thing. That was just Autumn (38m 36s): Brilliant. And I just, so you know, you are already doing a fantastic job because I know any question that gets asked, any question I've asked in the challenge group, you or someone from your team has gotten back to. And usually several people have gotten back to and given tips and help, and actually spent the time where I know I've been in other places and challenges and other groups where, you know, you just kind of sometimes hear crickets when you ask that hard question. And yes, you even helped me once on a Permafree you trying to figure out what, what bid price to put in by the way it worked. So thank you for that. Yes, it's very good. Autumn (39m 16s): So when is this challenge you're working on, when is it going to be ready? When are you going to do your next one? You're sitting number six, Bryan (39m 24s): Number six, it's coming up January 11th. So Monday, January 11th and, you know, kicking off 2021. And as per usual, it'll be five days of videos. They're, they're not all contiguous. So they kind of do bleed in to the following week and there is a video of zeros, so it really ends up being six. And so just block out that whole, January 11th to about the 20th and, and that'll be a good time to, to work on it. And I can absolutely autumn give you the link to it. You can check it out. Bryan (40m 5s): And I'll probably put a link@sellingforauthors.com powers last January. Now that I'm thinking about it. And then, yeah, I I'm, the more the merrier, we always try to have like several dozen people at any given time just available to answer anything and everything so that we can help people at scale. Yeah. Autumn (40m 30s): I, one of my favorite things about your challenge is that it is not, it's five. You call it five days, but then, you know, with the zero, it's a six, but you give a break. There's always, I used to think it's usually between three and four, but you let people catch up on their homework and I've had to use that for sure. And it makes it a little less stressful. You don't, you don't feel so before behind you, you're like, okay, I've got the weekend. I can do this now. So that's always been wonderful. Bryan (40m 58s): Yeah. I, I know I would want the same. So I'm glad that you, Autumn (41m 1s): I found it helpful. It is. You're very, very kind to the authors. You help in many ways. Well, yes. So that's perfect. Cause this is going out on December 29th. So just 12 days from when this is live, it'll be time and you'll be done with it and you will not be in a hotel room. I'm pretty sure that's correct. Okay. Yes. So where else can listeners find you other than we'll put the links in show notes as well? Of course. Bryan (41m 37s): Sure. Well, I, if you like podcasts, you can also listen to the sell more books, show podcasts. We just did episode 340 something. I think. So. Thank you. That's that's been going for, I guess, six and change years. So we're happy to always keep doing that. And if you haven't listened to in like a year got a new co-host H Claire Taylor, who was just fantastic and definitely that, that, that is aside from the challenges. That's another great place to hang out with me. Autumn (42m 19s): Excellent. Well, thank you again for the time. Is there anything you would like to any last words of advice you want to give to authors out there for whether they're thinking of blurbs or marketing or AMS? Just some last bit of hope as we end 2020 as this will be like one of the last days of the year when this is released, Bryan (42m 44s): It's very, very, very likely that 2021 is going to be better than 2020. So please, if you have not taken into account that 2020 was very hard. If you've not taken that into account with your writing productivity, and you said I had a bad year writing, or if your sales have been down and you say I had a bad year of sales, just give yourself a little bit of, you know, leeway, give yourself a little bit of wiggle room because it was a hard year, very, very challenging for a lot of people. Bryan (43m 26s): And you should not hold yourself to the same high standards of the past when a generationally bad year comes around. So please be kind to yourself. And in 2021, continue to be kind as you do everything you can to snap yourself out of any funk and go do the work you need to do to be as successful as you hope to become. Autumn (44m 1s): That is a wonderful advice for the end of, I love that. A generationally trying your, it was, it was a doozy. It's one we'll talk about for a long time to come. So many means. Yes. Thank you again so much for joining us, Brian. We appreciate it. And I look forward to seeing you in just under two weeks in the AMS edge challenge. Bryan (44m 25s): Thank you, Adam. I'll see you there. Autumn (44m 27s): Bye. Join us next week when Yesper will be back and we'll be sharing some 3 (44m 32s): Great book ideas that we don't think we'll ever get around to writing, but Hey, maybe they will inspire you. Narrator (44m 41s): If you like what you just heard. There's a few things you can do to support the am writing fantasy podcast. Please tell a fellow author about the show and visit us at Apple podcast and leave a rating and review. You can also join Ottoman Yesper on patrion.com/and writing fantasy for as little as a dollar a month. You'll get awesome rewards and keep the M writing fantasy podcast going, stay safe out there and see you next Monday.

Bryan Cohen is well-trained in the art of educating authors. With his forward-focused approach to teaching and emphasis on keeping students motivated, he has helped thousands of new authors understand the ins and outs of writing. In addition to teaching, Cohen has published a series of novels and dozens of writing guides. His most popular book, How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis, contains the secrets to attracting new readers and making a book sound good. His latest offering, “Amazon Ad School,” is available below.From Amazon.com:Bryan Cohen is an author, a podcaster, and a coach. He's published over 40 books, which have been downloaded over half a million times. His books include How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis and five novels in The Viral Superhero Series. He's the co-host of The Sell More Books Show and the head writer at Best Page Forward, a book description writing service.Whether you’re traditionally published or indie, writing a good book is only the first step in becoming a successful author. The days of just turning a manuscript into your editor and walking away are gone. If you want to succeed in today’s publishing world, you need to understand every aspect of the business - editing, formatting, marketing, contracts. It all starts with a good book, then the real work begins.Join international bestselling author J.D. Barker and indie powerhouse, J. Thorn, as they gain unique insight and valuable advice from the most prolific and accomplished authors in the business.In this episode, you’ll discover:Why successful people aren’t necessarily good teachersWhy self-paced courses don’t workThe importance of a feedback loopWhy most writers have multiple revenue streamsWhen to write for an audience vs. for yourselfLinks:J. D. Barker - http://jdbarker.com/J. Thorn - https://theauthorlife.com/Bryan Cohen - http://bryancohen.com/Amazon Ad Challenge (July 2020) - https://bryancohen.lpages.co/amazon-ad-profit-challenge-landing-july-2020/How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis by Bryan Cohen - https://www.amazon.com/Write-Sizzling-Synopsis-Step-Step-ebook/dp/B01HYBWOF6/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Amazon Ad School - https://selling-for-authors.teachable.com/p/amazon-ads-made-easy Secret Powers of the Author Mastermind: How to Transform from Struggling Writer to Career Author - https://books2read.com/authormastermindCo-writing a Book Mini Course with Joanna Penn - https://creative-penn-courses.teachable.com/p/co-writing-a-bookSave Indie Bookstores - https://www.saveindiebookstores.comMusic by Nicorus - https://cctrax.com/nicorus/dust-to-dust-ep Voice Over by Rick Ganley - http://www.nhpr.com and recorded at Mill Pond Studio - http://www.millpondstudio.comContact - https://writersinkpodcast.com/contact/ “Muggable” quote by Harley Christensen - https://www.mischievousmalamute.com/*Full disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Our guest this week was fantasy and non-fiction author Bryan Cohen from the Sell More Books Show. Bryan also runs Best Page Forward, a book description service for people who don’t want to write their…Continue ReadingSFA 033 – Amazon Ads and Book Blurbs That Convert to Sales with Bryan Cohen

Bryan Cohen is a two-time USA Today bestselling author. He loves to keep up with the publishing world through The Sell More Books Show. As the CEO of Best Page Forward, Bryan and his team have written over 2,000 book descriptions. Bryan's books have sold over 100,000 copies.   What We Discuss with Bryan Cohen: His writing journey and his experience in the Kindle space  Writing fiction vs nonfiction books From writing books to helping other people on their writing journey The elements of a powerful book description How your Amazon ads work and why they're so important The step that 99% of authors skip when running ads Why reading and understanding your numbers are critical The importance of keeping up with the trends so you become relevant Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

What is Jim going to do with all this new free time? Episode 300 is here! We say goodbye to Jim and welcome Bryan's new co-host. The Top Lessons we learned, Consistency is Key, Be UnSkippable, and Reward fans with Callbacks. An honorable mention goes to how to get your books viewed. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why writers aren’t able to keep up, how amazon made this author raise her price, what has happened since Christmas in the romance novel world, why Author Brady Frost did better than expected, and what changes are coming for Rakuten. Question of the Week: What do you think Jim will do with his Tuesdays now that he's not recording the Sell More Books Show?

Your first big success, what do you remember? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan is back home in Pennsylvania with family for Thanksgiving. Jim has five episodes left, but the Sell More Books Show will continue. Jim explains how to catch a turkey! Bryan is having a Black Friday Sale! Tickets are still available for Self-Publishing Live 2020. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Thomas J. Sullivant. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Nolan Walker And The Superiors Squad, Sales Success Stories, and How to Self-Publish A Children's Book. The Top Tips of the week include how to publish your book in audio, what you need to do on reading days, and how reviews may be cheaper. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what the most recent YA scandal is, how amazon is updating again, how to increase you read-through, what the pros of traditional publishing are, and what novelist Rob Billiau is doing right. Question of the Week: What do you remember about the first time… you sold more books than you expected?

How about a little Jim Kukral nostalgia? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan's back from 50 Books! Bryan has an Amazon Ads Makeover coming this Friday. Jim has BIG news at the end of the episode! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is J. Thorn. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Prometheus Rising, The Unknown Devil, and Flotsam. The Top Tips of the week include why you may need MyNoise and not Noise cancelling headphones, what 38 free things you need according to Shaunta Grimes, and how to keep moving forward. This week's Honorable Mention goes to, why Instagram may be bringing poetry back. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why amazon is ordering fewer books, what is happening with ACX, why you may not want to get Klingon married, and how you may be able to have your own bookshop. Question of the Week: What's been your favorite Jim Kukral moment from Sell More Books Show history

A two-time USA Today bestselling author, Bryan Cohen loves keeping up with the publishing world through The Sell More Books Show. As the CEO of Best Page Forward, Bryan and his team have written over 2,000 book descriptions. Bryan's books have sold over 100,000 copies.

Here's the live episode from this year's Sell More Books Show Summit in Chicago! This is from a few weeks ago and contains a major Live Math gaffe, but we think you'll enjoy it. Stay tuned for your regularly scheduled Episode 20 in the next 48 hours. Thanks!

This week, J. and Zach come to you live from The Sell More Books Show Summit in Chicago. A big announcement as well!Thanks to all of our newest Patrons.Get exclusive bonus content by supporting The Career Author Podcast on Patreon at www.patreon.com/thecareerauthorWant to work with us? Get the details at https://thecareerauthor.com/services/Links:2020 Events - https://thecareerauthor.com/events/The May Giveaway is up now! - http://www.thecareerauthor.comThe Career Author - http://www.thecareerauthor.comThe Career Author YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmIYVcr1UdWgSvYpb3Ol3xgStory Levels - http://www.storylevels.comMolten Universe Media - http://www.moltenuniversemedia.comEvents - https://thecareerauthor.com/events/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week I have a special guest: actor Paul James (aka my brother). Known for Greek, The Last Ship, and The Path, Paul shares his perspective on creating characters by bringing a writer’s words to life. This week’s best thing: my birthday! + Game of Thrones! Links: The Hot Sheet – https://hotsheetpub.com/ Ran Walker, 2019 Indie Author of the Year – https://indieauthorproject.com/2019-indie-author-of-the-year-award/ Kboards – https://www.kboards.com/ The Passive Voice – https://www.thepassivevoice.com/ The Sell More Books Show – http://sellmorebooksshow.com Paul James on IMDB GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict by Deb Dixon   Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Website: https://www.lpenelope.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelopeTwitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelopeFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit:Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate DisclosureI may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

In this solo episode, Mark plays clips from a couple of other podcasts, shares some personal updates related to his own audiobook products, and goes neck deep into his thoughts about audiobooks for authors. The episode is sponsored by Findaway Voices.. . . you can learn more about how you can get your work distributed to retailers and library systems around the world at starkreflections.ca/Findaway. Some of the topics Mark covers in this episode include: How much he still loves the 1987 song "Somewhere Down The Crazy River" by Robbie Robertson A FreeBooksy promo he recently ran on an erotic horror title called SOMETHING WICKED (Nocturnal Screams 7) A BookBub promo he ran with his pal Sean Costello for the book HERE AFTER A new computer synth version of his book The 7 P's of Publishing Success that is now available and why he is pricing this version at 99 cents A sample from his new VocoCraft computer synth version of the book, as well as the same sample from the human self-narrated version of the book The recent Public Lending Right Program check he received for the appearance of his books in Canadian libraries and why authors in Canada, the UK, Australia and other countries that have a PLR program should take advantage of that His recent guest appearance on The Sell More Books Show with Jim Kukral (Mark stepped in at the last minute to replace co-host Bryan Cohen who was ill) A short clip from Episode 255 of The Sell More Books Show talking about a new "choose your own audio" project from Amazon A couple of clips from The Creative Penn podcast episode 417, where Joanna interviewed Will Dages from Findaway Voices The reveal of the new Voices Share program from Findaway Voices Mark also welcomes new Patron Sherilyn Decter and thanks all patrons who support the show and have access to additional audio content (Stark Reflections on Other Podcasts) and other material at www.patreon.com/starkreflections. He also thanks those who commented on Episode 62 and draws the name of two winners for the Mythulu creation cards.   Links of Interest: Written Word Media (BargainBooksy, FreeBooksy, etc) BookBub The 7 P's of Publishing Success The VocoCraft Computer Synth Version VocoCraft Public Lending Rights Program (Canada) YouTube Video The Sell More Books Show (Episode 255) The Creative Penn Podcast (Episode 417) Mythulu Superstars Writing Seminars Patreon for Stark Reflections Stark Reflections Survey Something Wicked (Nocturnal Screams 7) Killing It On Kobo The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Here we are, at the very beginning of the third season of Write Right. We're joined this month by Elayna Mae Darcy, during which we'll be talking about beginnings and newness. This time, we talk about new podcasts each of us is hosting, and podcasts we love. Here's a complete list of our recommendations: Elan's new podcast: The Warbler Weekly Elan's recommendations: Steal the Stars, Writing Excuses, Crooked Media's many podcasts Elayna's new podcast: The Convention Kid Elayna's recommendations: Shmanners, Spirits, Esoteric Oddities Craig and John's new podcast: Deep Desires Podcast Craig's recommendations: Sell More Books Show, Lore, The Secret Life of Canada John's recommendations: Tides of History, The Fall of Rome, Revolutions

Nate Hoffelder has been building and running Wordpress sites since 2010. He blogs about indie publishing and helps authors connect with readers by customizing websites to suit each author’s voice. You may have heard his site, The Digital Reader, mentioned on podcasts such as The Creative Penn, Wordslinger, or Sell More Books Show. In his spare time, he fosters dogs for A Forever Home, a local rescue group. Learn more at https://the-digital-reader.com/, find his Facebook group @TheHelpDesk, and find him on Twitter and Instagram @thDigitalReader. To find out more about Laura and her work please visit her website at www.laurapowers.net. You can also find Laura on twitter @thatlaurapowers, on Facebook @thatlaurapowers, and on instagram at laurapowers44.

It's Episode 10 of Excelsior Journeys, and host George Sirois gets to enjoy this milestone by speaking with author Katherine Bogle. In addition to a healthy amount of name-dropping (Hello, Sell More Books Show!), they discuss Katherine's early fan fiction that pushed her into pursuing writing as a career, her experiences with National Novel Writing Month, the rapid release plan she put into motion to give her books the maximum exposure that resulted in a huge jumpstart in sales, and more! 

It's Episode 10 of Excelsior Journeys, and host George Sirois gets to enjoy this milestone by speaking with author Katherine Bogle. In addition to a healthy amount of name-dropping (Hello, Sell More Books Show!), they discuss Katherine's early fan fiction that pushed her into pursuing writing as a career, her experiences with National Novel Writing Month, the rapid release plan she put into motion to give her books the maximum exposure that resulted in a huge jumpstart in sales, and more! 

This post will be part one of a series on social media changes from 2018. This doesn't JUST include social media, but also touches on Amazon and blogging and more.  It can be SO hard to keep up with all of the changes that happen on the internet in a WEEK, much less a year. But I want to go over some of the big news and social media updates that you need to know. Most of these took place in 2018, while some were a little earlier and some are currently rolling out or have been announced, but haven't taken effect! HOW TO KEEP UP WITH SOCIAL MEDIA As a tip to start, if you find yourself overwhelmed trying to keep up, the best thing you can do is follow people and sites that do a good job of keeping you apprised. Here are a few sites or emails that will help you keep up: The Quick Fix - my weekly email with news, tips, resources, and more   The Sell More Books Show - podcast with news related to writing & publishing (especially indie publishing) The Digital Reader - more writing and publishing news, updated daily For tech and social news, I check Mashable, The Verge, Product Hunt, and Social Media Today. As far as experts, I follow Madalyn Sklar for Twitter updates, Jenn Hermann for Instagram, and Sarah Ahl for Pinterest. Let's dive into those links!! FACEBOOK CHANGES I'd sum these up by saying privacy and groups. Because of the Cambridge Analytica issue, FB has made some changes with regards to privacy that affect ads. Business manager required for custom audiences - If you have targeted by uploading your email list to Facebook (yep, you can do that), this will now need to happen in the Business Manager. Which is its own special circle of heal. MORE HERE. New square images for ads - Um, yes please! Older versions of FB may not show these, but Facebook let me know in my ads manager that I can choose a bigger image. Can't wait for this! Posting within groups as your PAGE - So we're clear, your PAGE is what people can LIKE, as opposed to your personal profile, where you ad friends. FB is rolling out the option to post as your page, but the group has to okay it. I haven't had this rolled out to my groups yet. READ MORE. Groups may have mentors and mentees - This is a weird one and I've seen it happening more in a testing way, with it being added by FB to a group without the owner's permission. Members can sign up to mentor or be mentored. I feel like this is a disaster of smarminess waiting to happen where people in a group trying to get clients will sign up as mentors and try to "help." READ MORE Groups can now be paid - This is another rolling out change where you can have a paid Facebook group. This has previously been against terms of service, so all those courses with a bonus group had to be careful how they worded that to avoid violating TOS. READ MORE Groups can have learning units - Going hand-in-hand with paid groups, this would make a group function as a kind of course. READ MORE INSTAGRAM CHANGES New app for IGTV - Instagram added Instagram TV, which allows you to broadcast within the separate app for up to an hour. Word on the street is people are underwhelmed. READ MORE I big-time love Kami Huyse and she has a fabulous show on IGTV. Here's a link to the show notes, which have updates on social media as well! CHECK IT HERE! New shopping features - I don't know how this will trickle down to people like you and me, but this is fun. MORE HERE New quick replies to DMs - If you want to reply fast, you can do this much more easily now. Nametags - This works like Snapchat ghost codes, from what I gather. Because Instagram has copied everything else... IGTV previews can be shared in Instastories - Oh, and Instastories can be longer now too. READ ABOUT THE 2018 UPDATES TO INSTAGRAM HERE! BLOGGING CHANGES Gutenberg is coming to Wordpress - This is the biggest change to Wordpress since...uh...forever? You might want to stick with the Classic Editor til they fix some bugs. READ WHY HERE   EMAIL CHANGES GDPR happened and we didn't die - I would love to never talk about this again. But the privacy policy enacted in the EU had worldwide repercussions. Mostly things are fine. You can read my posts about it HERE and HERE.   AMAZON CHANGES Createspace morphed into KDP Print - If you used the print on demand company Amazon owned, it's now gone and merged into the same dashboard with your ebooks in KDP. This will in the long run be great, but it's been a bumpy transition. Affiliates can share their influencer page link in email - Amazon doesn't allow sharing affiliate links in email. But they did update (maybe in 2017) to allow Amazon Influencers to share a link to their page in email. This is a separate program within the affiliate program. APPLY HERE. Curious? Check out my influencer page! All those links are affiliate links, to provide disclosure.   TWITTER CHANGES Maybe we'll finally get to edit tweets - This has been the most-called-for feature by users and Twitter is "thinking about it." I'll believe it when I see it. READ MORE Have live audio - This is a neat feature that works on the app or in Periscope. It's like a live video...but audio. READ MORE.  Twitter will let you use a chronological timeline - Go under your settings & privacy and uncheck the "see best stories first" thing. Testing new desktop features - You can check out screenshots HERE.   GOOGLE PLUS CHANGES Google Plus is dead - If you've still been using this, you can chill and have one less thing to do. READ MORE. 

Bryan Cohen talks the do's and don'ts of book marketing for both aspiring and established authors on today's podcast. This is a must-listen for speakers and experts preparing a book for release!   In This Episode, You'll Learn…   The ‘cardinal sins' of book marketing How the book description is more important than the book cover Taking control of your book sales Bryan's ‘Something Nice to Say' Podcast and its separation from his branding Brian's podcast: ‘Sell More Books Show' Why you should write more than one headline and survey peers for the best one   Links and Resources Mentioned in This Episode   Bryan's Website 'Something Nice to Say' Podcast 'Sell More Books Show' Podcast

On this week's episode, Zach and J. reflect on some of their big takeaways from the great talks at Sell More Books Show Summit 2018, which was last weekend in Chicago. They also make a big announcement.Special thanks to Jim Kukral and Bryan Cohen for co-hosting SMBSS 2018 with us, and to the awesome summit sponsors: Kobo, Draft2Digital, BookFunnel, and VellumThanks to our newest patron: Barbara Kamm, David Powell, Michael Coon, Barbara McCollough, Joshua Harkin, and P.T. HyltonGet exclusive bonus content by supporting The Career Author Podcast on Patreon at www.thecareerauthor.comLinks:Night of the Writing Dead - http://www.nightofthewritingdead.com Authors on a Train - http://www.authorsonatrain.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's episode, Zach and J. talk about their struggles to shut off their brains, separate work from personal time, and offer solutions that have helped them feel less overwhelmed.There's no Choose Your News segment this week, as Zach and J. were guests on this week's Sell More Books Show where they discussed five publishing news stories. You can hear that episode at http://sellmorebooksshow.com/episode-208-subtitles-amazon-reviewers-and-up-lit/Get exclusive bonus content by supporting The Career Author Podcast on Patreon at www.thecareerauthor.comOther Links:Sell More Books Show Episode 208 featuring Zach and J.: http://sellmorebooksshow.com/episode-208-subtitles-amazon-reviewers-and-up-lit/When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel Pink - http://www.books2read.com/u/3RoA1vDaniel Pink on the Tim Ferriss Podcast - https://tim.blog/2018/03/25/daniel-pink/Authors on a Train - http://www.authorsonatrain.com Sell More Books Show Summit - http://www.sellmorebooksshow.com/summit See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bryan Cohen is a two-time USA Today bestselling author with over 40 books and 100,000 copies sold. He's also the head copywriter at Best Page Forward, a book description service, and he's the co-host of The Sell More Books Show, a weekly publishing industry news show.MENTIONS:Bryan last appeared on the Wordslinger Podcast in WPC-055 - Ninja Book Descriptions with Bryan CohenPick up a copy of Kevin Tumlinson's newest Dan Kotler archaeological thriller The Girl in the Mayan Tomb - https://books2read.com/mayan-tombCONNECT ONLINE:Website(s):http://www.sellmorebooksshow.comhttp://www.bestpageforward.net/blurbs Twitter handle(s): @bryancohenbooksAmazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Bryan-Cohen/e/B004I9WJTY/THIS WEEK’S INDIE PUBLISHING NEWS:No Love Between Audible and Romance Authors — Is Audible ripping off romance authors? Yes. But that’s my opinion. It is, of course, based on the latest information coming to us about Audible’s new subscription package for romance titles. It was hailed as being similar to Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited program, which pays authors for pages read. But where KU pays authors something comparable to the royalty they would have gotten for a sale, Audible’s program is paying only pennies per listen. Compounding that is the fact that the program only pays the author once they’ve reached a $50 threshold, so for many authors it could be YEARS before they see a very meager return on thousands and thousands of listeners downloading their books. So I’m standing firm on this one—Audible is ripping off romance authors. You may feel free to disagree in comments. It’s a free country. Especially if you’re listening to someone’s romance book. https://goodereader.com/blog/indie-author-news/is-audible-romance-ripping-off-authors Uppity author thinks authors should be paid for their work — According to author Philip Pullman, there’s something a bit unbalanced about the fact that profits and margins are increasing in the publishing industry while the share given to the author is diminishing. In a quote from The Guardian, Pullman said, “To allow corporate profits to be so high at a time when author earnings are markedly falling is, apart from anything else, shockingly bad husbandry. It’s perfectly possible to make a good profit and pay a fair return to all of those on whose work, after all, everything else depends. But that’s not happening at the moment.” This would seem a good time to point out that indie authors keep a much bigger share of their royalties. True, they work for it, in terms of marketing and platform building. The disparity between what authors make versus what shareholders and stakeholders make is astounding: About three times what the authors makes for his or her work. My take: The industry has to make a profit, and that’s why this disparity exists. The solution, then, is to excise your career from the meat grinder of traditional publishing as much as you possibly can. If the trad industry can embrace a hybrid model, where the idea is to assist the author in increasing their reach and growing their platform, everyone can win. Agree? Disagree? Answer in the comments. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/mar/05/philip-pullman-calls-for-authors-to-get-fairer-share-of-publisher-profitsBarnes & Noble’s comeback will be a slow burn — BN hasn’t been feeling so well, and the road to recovery is going to be long. Following a lackluster holiday season and a series of unexpected layoffs in February, Barnes & Noble has released details of its “long-term strategic plan.” The idea is to improve customer satisfaction and profitability by going back to book sales as the focus. It looks like they’re finally waking up to the fact that no one buys music or DVDs from Barnes & Noble (or anywhere, really), so those will likely fall out of the offering. They’re putting their money on gifts and stationary. Because that’ll work. This feels an awful lot like “same thing, new name” to me, but I’m hopeful that BN will see the kind of growth it needs. If they do, in fact, start focusing on the customer more and on defunct product offerings less, it could … well, do nothing, honestly. Truthfully, I don’t see any way that will help. But the new prototype stores, which have been rumored to have offerings such as wine bars and restaurants … ok, no, I just don’t see that working either. Maybe it’s time for Barnes & Noble to sell out to Amazon and get it over with. Comment with your take. https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/76213-no-quick-fix-for-b-n.htmlTHIS EPISODE OF THE WORDSLINGER PODCAST IS SPONSORED BY:Draft2Digital—Convert, publish, and distribute your book worldwide, with support the whole way. https://draft2digital.com/wordslingerWordslinger Press—This is your chance to start your indie author career right. Pick up books and other products to help you build and grow a successful writing career. Start growing at http://wordslingerpodcast.comSupport this show: Subscribe and share!Support us on Patreon: https://patreon.com/wordslingerpodcastPick something up to read that will be tough to put down—Archeological Thrillers, Science Fiction, YA Fantasy and more, at https://kevintumlinson.com/books ___GOT A QUESTION FOR KEVIN AND HIS GUESTS?CALL 281-809-WORD (9673)

In the introduction Mark talks about the newly announced Book2Pod service announced by Jim Kukral on the Sell More Books Show podcast and shares two of the voices available (Nigel and Jessica) to talk about one of the things he likes best about it (freeing authors to be able to work on their next book). Authors interested in testing the service out can do so at https://www.book2pod.com/testdrive/ The main content of the podcast is an interview with Scott King, writer, photographer, podcaster, overall creator. Scott has worked as a college professor teaching photography, digital arts, and writing related classes. He now works full time as a game photographer and author. As a board game photographer, he shoots games for websites, online stores, and for other marketing needs. Scott has also served as a reporter for the school newspaper and although another student was assigned the article about the movie King was determined to write it, demonstrating his willingness to break down barriers (like the ones in traditional publishing), he snuck into a press conference where Gary Marshall was meeting with local media. The next day Scott was hired and he's been working in the entrainment industry ever since, and continuing to work relentlessly at producing the many novels and non-fiction writing projects that he continues to create. --------- This episode has been sponsored by Findaway Voices. Findaway Voices provides all the tools that an independent author or small publisher needs in order to get into the digital audiobook market. Check them out at www.starkreflections.ca/findaway. --------- In the interview Mark and Scott discuss: How Scott balances the various creative endeavours that he engages in which include photography, various genres of adult fiction, YA fiction and non-fiction, a board-gaming calendar, among other pursuits Scott's school of thought of putting the story and the art first and not worrying about writing to market The board game photography that Scott does and how he leverages that for a unique board-game calendar project, producing a single mass-produced base version, and then, based on Kickstarter support levels, unique custom calendars where backers can choose their own unique 12 images from the hundreds available The joy of being a board game photographer and how, unlike a reviewer, where there will be criticism involved, Scott gets to celebrate new games by showing them off in interesting ways via the images he creates Elements from the photography world that have helped inform Scott's writing, including such concepts as contrast (ie, the dark areas making the lighter areas look brighter) The “problem with humans” in a photographer's life and how you really need to get a “performance” out of them for a good captured moment The way that Scott structures his work day for writing, marketing, publishing and photography Scott's favourite coffee shop when he lived in Houston, and how he went to try out the vibe of the neighborhood coffee shops in various towns just outside Pittsburgh to help determine where he and his wife would be moving to Scott's favorite style of coffee (because coffee is a huge part of his writing life) The origin behind Scott's Lovecraft-themed “Chooseable Adventure” young adult novel The Eye of Hastur How the book has been enjoyed by kids (particularly young boys) who don't like to read The learnings of using Kickstarter that Scott has reaped via the various projects he has run over the years An interesting new board game that Scott is looking forward to playing where the playing experience changes each time the game is played The steel mill industry crash and how that has affected the landscape and towns near Pittsburgh as well as the phenomenon of the “missing generation” The legacy of the Primanti Brothers Pittsburgh area sandwich/burger shop and the local fascination with French Fries on almost everything Scott's podcast, The Creators Cast and the reason why he started it How Scott's non-fiction projects were derived from his passion for teaching and how that helps him also continue to grow as a creator The multiple hats that a writer has to wear including the craft of writing, the business of writing, marketing, and how to balance all of those things   After the interview, Mark reflects back on something Scott mentioned related to balancing one's spending with income and then considering that a book that was published might not earn back its investment immediate, but it keeps on earning money over time. Mark takes a look at the finances involved in publishing a book using a range of realistic prices and the looks at how many units are needed to sell at various price points in order to earn that investment back.   Links of Interest: Scott King's Website Scott King's Podcast: The Creator's Cast Scott King's Books

1) My Q3 (July-Sept) goals (personal financial goals hidden as are family visits): https://self-publishing-journeys.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/q3-goals-819x1024.jpg 2) Sell More Books Show: http://sellmorebooksshow.com/ 3) MailerLite is my current recommended writing tool: https://self-publishing-journeys.com/ML 4) My courses on Teachable: How To Use Vellum On A PC: http://self-publishing-academy.teachable.com/p/how-to-use-vellum-on-a-pc/ Self-Publishing Academy: http://self-publishing-academy.teachable.com/p/self-publishing-academy/ 5) 20BooksTo50k Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/781495321956934/ [Highly recoemmended!] 6) Burden of Gult on pre-release: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Burden-Guilt-Paul-J-Teague-ebook/dp/B071XJKZMM/ 7) Caledonian Sleeper: https://www.sleeper.scot/ 8) WebinarJam: https://www.webinarjam.com/ 9) BookFunnel: https://bookfunnel.com/ 10) InstaFreebie: https://self-publishing-journeys.com/IF [My affiliate link]   

1) My Q3 (July-Sept) goals (personal financial goals hidden as are family visits): https://self-publishing-journeys.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/q3-goals-819x1024.jpg 2) Sell More Books Show: http://sellmorebooksshow.com/ 3) MailerLite is my current recommended writing tool: https://self-publishing-journeys.com/ML 4) My courses on Teachable: How To Use Vellum On A PC: http://self-publishing-academy.teachable.com/p/how-to-use-vellum-on-a-pc/ Self-Publishing Academy: http://self-publishing-academy.teachable.com/p/self-publishing-academy/ 5) 20BooksTo50k Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/781495321956934/ [Highly recoemmended!] 6) Burden of Gult on pre-release: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Burden-Guilt-Paul-J-Teague-ebook/dp/B071XJKZMM/ 7) Caledonian Sleeper: https://www.sleeper.scot/ 8) WebinarJam: https://www.webinarjam.com/ 9) BookFunnel: https://bookfunnel.com/ 10) InstaFreebie: https://self-publishing-journeys.com/IF [My affiliate link]    --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/self-publishing-journeys/message

In this episode of The Smarty Pants Book Marketing Podcast, authorpreneur Bryan Cohen shares the perfect recipe for book descriptions and gives advice to authors who are considering writing in a new genre. Show Notes: Bryan shares his background as a copywriter and how he got started as a writer. Why authors need to learn how to simplify their book's plot for a better book description. Why you need a call-to-action at the end of your book description. How writing in a popular genre you love to read can kick start your author business. Show Links: The usual suspects: SMART Marketing for Authors Facebook group (Chris & Becca on book marketing) Weekly Insider book marketing tips sheet (free book marketing super pack still available)  Links from our guest: Bryan's new book How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis Link to the Sell More Books Show podcast Cinderella Dreams of Fire (Bryan's new book under the pen name Casey Lane) Sell More Books Show bonus episode on Bryan's book launch experiment Selling For Authors Facebook group Best Page Forward copywriting service

Bryan Cohen is an author, podcaster, actor, and a freelance writer. He has written over 30 books, which have sold more than 30,000 copies.     These include 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts, The Writing Prompts series, and Bryan's “Ted Saves the World” books. He recently published the fifth book in the Ted series, Veil to the Chief.    He has an amazing background. Listen for him to tell you about his acting and writing experiences as well as his victory on a game show.    He is the co-host of a podcast called The Sell More Books Show with Jim Kukral which is one of my favorites. It is a weekly podcast where Bryan and Jim talk about current trends in self-publishing and the world of e-books. Bryan is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill but he currently resides with his wife and cat (Rocket) in Chicago. By the way, wait until you hear who the models were for his villains. Enjoy!  Connect with Bryan through the following links: Bryancohen.com  http://www.build-creative-writing-ideas.com/ http://sellmorebooksshow.com/ http://www.amazon.com/Bryan-Cohen/e/B004I9WJTY https://twitter.com/BryanCohenBooks https://www.facebook.com/bryancohenauthor Bryan Cohen Showen YouTube Watch Rocket vs the Laser Pointer Length: 43:13

  In this episode, Chris interviews Jim Kukral, one of the leading experts in online book marketing and founder of the Author Marketing Club. Jim and Chris debate the pros and cons of getting your book noticed in today's crowded marketplace and Jim shares his one smarty pants marketing tip that authors cannot do without. Show Notes: In today's show Jim shares his background in online marketing and shares his take on how book marketing has changed with the advent of self-publishing, Amazon, and social media. Also, you'll hear Jim's tips on the essential every newbie needs to start effectively market their books. Jim and Chris talk about how many social media channels authors need to be on and how to claim your digital land.  Hear the details of how The Author Marketing Club started and what kinds of services it offers. And finally, Jim shares his one tip that all authors need to sell their books--you'll have to listen to find out. Links for today's show: Author Marketing Club: http://www.authormarketingclub.com/ Sell More Books Show: http://sellmorebooksshow.com/ Click here for Jim Kukral's Amazon Author Page Click here for details on how to participate in the June Kickoff Contest and win great prizes for sharing the podcast with your friends - #SmartyPantsPodcast 

News:Lisa and I had a blast at BGG.Con and I give an overview of what the convention is like.Today's Chat:Bryan Cohen is the creator of the hit YA series “Ted Saves the World." He also does a podcast called The Sell More Books Show, he has dozens of books focusing on creative writing, and just recently he launched a description writing service called “selling for authors."To learn more about Bryan head over to http://bryancohen.com/

News:I'm back and I share what it was like to have a booth at BGG.con!Today's Chat:Bryan Cohen is the creator of the hit YA series “Ted Saves the World." He also does a podcast called The Sell More Books Show, he has dozens of books focusing on creative writing, and just recently he launched a description writing service called “selling for authors."To learn more about Bryan head over to http://bryancohen.com/

Bryan Cohen, author of Ted Saves the World, visits the WET Podcast this week. We talk about indie publishing, Young Adult literature, audio books, beta readers, podcasting and more. In addition to writing fiction, Bryan also cohosts two podcasts (Sell More Books Show and The Split) and runs a description-writing service called Best Page Forward. LINKS Bryan's Amazon author page Ted Saves the World on Amazon Alphasmart Neo - the little word processor Bryan uses Writership Podcast Bookbub Bryan Cohen Showen on Youtube Best Page Forward The Split Red Rising - The book series Bryan says is really good --------------------------------------------- Support WET: Patreon | Amazon Affiliates (click before shopping at Amazon and we’ll get a kickback on what you buy!) Subscribe to the WET Podcast in iTunes | Main page for The WET Podcast You can follow me at @emarsh. Music: “Double the Daily Dose” by Revolution Void (http://www.revolutionvoid.com)

Hi everyone and welcome to the tenth episode of THE WRITING PODCAST! On this episode Adam and Lindsay interview Bryan Cohen, an author of both fiction and non-fiction, as well as the co-host of the ‘Sell More Books Show'! Not only does Bryan fill us in on his self-publishing journey so far, he gives tips on how to make your writing career a priority (even among chaos), and reveals a new project that YOU can take part in!. You won't want to miss this one! Be sure to check out Bryan at his website – http://bryancohen.com If you'd like to comment or watch the video version of this podcast, please visit the show page at http://thewritingpodcast.com/10

I have a strange feeling that this episode is going to get me into a bit of trouble. Maybe. We'll see. I get into details and backstory in the actual episode, but it all started with a question (or, better, replies to a question) regarding the resale of "used" digital content---specifically ebooks---in an [episode of the Sell More Books Show](http://sellmorebooksshow.com/episode-46-digital-resale-vas-and-shorter-books), a podcast that's pretty prevalent in the indie publishing scene. This episode is a bit of a rant launched from that premise. Originally posted on [monsterjavaguns.com](http://monsterjavaguns.com/podcast).

Giveaway Celebration I am really happy to announce that last week my podcast passed 50k downloads. This may not sound too much for some, but for me it is very special. The reason is - when I was launching Write 2B Read the biggest fear I had was that no one will listen. That's what I was scared of most. So reaching 50k downloads is huge! To celebrate that (+ my birthday this month) I created a giveaway for writers, which you can see here. The winner will get Scrivener + 2 books, which will help become successful self-published author. Please check it out and share with those, who might be interested. Now let's get to the interview My today's guest is Bryan Cohen. Bryan is an actor, freelance writer, author and an occasional game show contestant. He has written over 30 books, which have sold more than 30,000 copies. His newest book is Ted Saves the World, the first book in a new YA paranormal/fantasy series.  With Jim Kukral from Author Marketing Club, Bryan co-hosts The Sell More Books Show. He’s also been keeping a blog to help creative writers find new inspiration for the last five years. Check out Build Creative Writing Ideas here. Bryan’s writing has appeared on over 100 blogs, including The Creative Penn, Helping Writers Become Authors, HughHowey.com and RachelleGardner.com. In this interview we discuss how to deal with 2 separate audiences, how to manage time,sell more books and prepare book launches. Interview Highlights How to deal with different audiences? Different audience should be approached differently. Bryan has 2 separate audience building approaches (blog fir non-fiction and videos for fiction), 2 separate websites and different e mail lists. How to Sell More Books? In order to sell more books, you need the three things mentioned below: 1. Get the fundamentals right (strong book cover, professionally edited text, catchy title, etc.) Everything about your book listing page online has to be indistinguishable from the traditionally published and professionally .... book. [spp-tweet "If your book looks like a self-published book it's unlikely that people will buy it. " 2. Mailing List 3. Building Relationships How to Launch a Book? From the first day you're writing your book, you're considering your marketing and planning your book launch. You need to plan everything way in advance. Food for Thought [spp-tweet "It is better to be rejected and sell more books, than it is to not be rejected and never try."] Don't Forget As you already know the podcast is sponsored by the Author Marketing Institute. AMI wanted me to let you know that their next event for authors is coming up at the end of Jan. It's called Author Marketing Live and it's a virtual conference. That means you can attend from your home or office and see all the presentations via your computer or tablet. Grab a seat today to learn from best sellers like Steve Scott, Joel Comm, Lewis Howes and Peter Shankman, and more. You can grab a ticket to the event for only $99 if you use the coupon code "ani" during checkout. That's $49 off the regular ticket price. Just visit http://www.authormarketinglive.com to register.

Welcome to The Horror Writer's Podcast where the pen is mightier than the gore. Join me, your host J. Thorn, as I discuss writing and publishing horror using strategies that work for all genres. The Horror Writer's Podcast keeps it lean, delivering concise information to the aspiring author.http://thehorrorwriterspodcast.comShow notes for "Choosing a Title and Why it Matters":--From the NN Group - http://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-l...--Via Amazon KDP - http://beyondpaperediting.blogspot.co...--Thesaurus.com - http://thesaurus.com/--Reversion - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00997VFHM--Preta's Realm - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FI5Z0W--The Seventh Seal - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ZRM02A--The Self Publishing Podcast - http://selfpublishingpodcast.com/--Sell More Books Show - http://sellmorebooksshow.com/--On Writing by Stephen King - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FC0SIM/--The Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell - http://www.amazon.com/dp/1582975906/--Horror 101: The Way Forward - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JZJQUYW/