2/2020 NOTICE - To fight back against spam comments, I am closing comments to all older posts. Current blog posts will still have comments open. I apologize for this inconvenience.
This is a follow-up post to my February IWSG post in which I talked about my new release marketing efforts, specifically blog tours. In this post, I am discussing what happened with my free (for a limited time) eBook.
FREE EBOOK DILEMMAS:Along with the release of A FIGHTING CHANCE, I also released THE DISASTER CURSE, a short story that follows A Fighting Chance.
Planning out how to release that eBook was tricky, because I wanted it go be free during the blog tour. Except, you can't mark a pre-order as free and I had set up my blog tour to start on the exact release day for AFC. I also didn't want to publish TDC on release day because it would take time for it to show up on all the retailers' sites. I needed to be sure that it would be available online AND that it'd be free in time, so I set it up as a pre-order and had it published 6 days before AFC.
SIDE NOTE: I didn't want to have it published BEFORE AFC since it follows AFC, but I couldn't come up with another strategy. To (hopefully) remedy that, I didn't promote it at all. Of course, that didn't stop Amazon from emailing those who follow my Amazon page about it when it released. Thanks, Amazon! Usually, I appreciate those emails, but not when I'm trying to keep something on the DL.
I quickly changed the price to free on Smashwords so the price would change at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, etc. That same day, all the retailers updated the price to free. I then contact Amazon. And wouldn't you know it? They price matched the very next day. So much for 6 days in advance.
KDP ANNOYANCE: However, on day 2 of my blog tour, Amazon had reverted the price of THE DISASTER CURSE back to 99 cents on its US marketplace (it was still free on the UK, CA, etc. marketplaces). Big problem considering my blog tour was promoting it as being free. I quickly contacted KDP. Luckily, they put it back to free within hours. To be sure, though, I checked it every morning and every night for the full three weeks. 😓
Lesson #1:Don't trust Amazon/KDP. hahaha
Lesson #2: If I plan to have something free to promote during a blog tour, set the blog tour to begin a few days AFTER release day so I have time to change the price to free.
PRO:
-More downloads and exposure for this free eBook (it rose to the top 50 for a couple Amazon category lists) during my blog tour than if I'd published it at another time and announced it to my followers/readers. This could've lead to readers purchasing A FIGHTING CHANCE to go with it. Or it could lead readers to pick it up later, or start the series at the beginning. (That's kind of three or four pros in one.)
CON:
- Potential one-star reviews/ratings from people who one-clicked THE DISASTER CURSE because it was free, not realizing or bothering to look to see that it's a short story (despite the multiple places where I state as such) or that it is at the end of a series. I can't help that, though.
OVERALL:
It is a smart strategy to release a free companion short story at the same time as your new book. I'm not sure if I'll ever do this again, but I don't regret it.
Please help me to welcome Alicia Dean to Write with Fey. She's sharing a scene spotlight for Cupid's Beau, perfect for the month of February and to follow Valentine's Day.
SCENE SPOTLIGHT:
Her
eyelids drifted down, her pink tongue moistening her lips. Her voice was a
hoarse whisper. “Will you kiss me?”
A
groan left his throat, and he bent his head, touching his lips to hers. They were
warm…sweet…he could drown in her softness. She purred and lifted her hands to
wind around his neck. He dropped his hands down to her hips and tugged her
closer. The silky robe beneath his fingers gave just a hint of how her flesh
would feel. Her supple body molded to his. God. What was happening?
Afraid
he would be lost for eternity, he dragged his mouth from hers and set her
tempting body away from him. He faced her, breathing heavily, his heart
pounding so loudly, he could feel it in his ears.
She
lifted her fingertips to her mouth. “Oh my,” she whispered. “I’ve seen kissing,
but never knew it would feel so…so marvelous.”
Had
he heard her right? “You’ve never—never kissed anyone?” She was, what, late
twenties, and lovely, desirable. How was that possible?
“No.
Never. But I liked it. Thank you.”
He
bit back an oath and raked a hand through his hair. “Ivy.” He shook his head. “I
don’t know what’s happening. I don’t know why, but I can’t stop thinking about
you.”
“Nor
I you.”
He
gave a small smile. “So, what do we do about it?”
“What
do you mean?”
“I
have feelings for you. I don’t understand them, but I can’t ignore them.”
She
lifted a hand and cupped his cheek. Her crystal green eyes delved into his. “I
have had feelings for you for a long time.”
He
palmed her cheeks and placed a light kiss on her lips. “I’d like to take you
out. See what’s happening between us. I don’t know if it’s real, but I know I
don’t want to lose it.”
“Oh,
that’s very kind of you, but I’m afraid I can’t.”
He
dropped his hands and stepped back. “Are you seeing someone else?”
“No.
No one.”
“You
said you think you have feelings for me.”
“Not
think. I know I do. But I’m not your
Mrs. Right.”
“I
didn’t say I’m looking for Mrs. Right. I just want to spend some time with you.”
“If
you have free time, then you can spend more of it with Gretchen.”
His
gut twisted. “What are you talking about? I’m done with that nonsense.”
“No,
you can’t be. You made a deal. You agreed to give it a try until Valentine’s
Day.”
He
grabbed her upper arms again, this time not as a lover’s caress. When she
flinched, he eased his hold. “What kind of game are you playing? You prime all
your clients for their dates, get them all hot and bothered?”
Moisture
filled her eyes, and she tugged away from him. “No, of course not.”
“You
want me to keep seeing Gretchen. But you let me kiss you. Kissed me back.”
“I
just wanted…” Her lips trembled. “…wanted to see what it felt like.”
“Well,
now you know.” He stalked to the door and slammed it on his way out. The bite
of the cold air felt good. Maybe it would cleanse him of the feel of her…of her
scent.
Damn.
He was all kinds of a fool. How could he fall for an innocent act like that?
Never been kissed? The girl was a pro.
Genre: Sweet Fantasy Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Release Date: February 1, 2021
BLURB:
Ivy Pierce is a Cupid who prides herself on doing her job
well. Except when it comes to a certain human male, Grant Crawford. Each time
she's supposed to shoot her arrow into his heart, her stomach hurts, her chest
hurts, and she feels….sad. Cupids are never sad.
Humans who are not looking for love only get three chances
to find it. And after Ivy sabotages Grant's last chance, her boss, Aphrodite,
sends her to earth to right her wrong. She has until Valentine's Day to help
him find his soul mate.
But the more she's around him, the more she wants him for
herself, even though she knows that can never be. A Cupid and a human? Unheard
of.
As V-Day draws closer, can she sacrifice her own happiness
to help the man she loves find his?
It
takes place in Ivy’s house, in my fictitious town of Castleville, Wisconsin. Since
it’s not real, I’ve provided an image of how I picture it.
2. If
this were a movie, what song would be playing in the background?
Angel,
by Elvis Presley.
3. What
do you love the most about this scene?
It’s
the first time that Grant is acknowledging and acting on his attraction to Ivy.
And it shows how innocent and naïve she is when she gets her first kiss from
the man of her dreams.
4. Did
you have to do research to write this scene?
Ha,
you would think, since I’ve never really been romanced and anything that was
even close to a romantic encounter was ages ago. I guess my ‘research’ was
watching romcom movies. Surprisingly, while I’m known for being into the dark
and creepy stuff, I do enjoy a good romantic comedy/chick flick. This story is
definitely a deviation from my usual genre.
5. If
you could rewrite this scene, would you change anything?
I
would get rid of some repetitive words. 😊
BIO:
Alicia Dean began
writing stories as a child. At age 10, she wrote her first ever romance
(featuring a hero who looked just like Elvis Presley, and who shared the name
of Elvis’ character in the movie, Tickle
Me), and she still has the tattered, pencil-written copy. Alicia is from
Moore, Oklahoma and now lives in Edmond. She has three grown children and a
huge network of supportive friends and family. She writes mostly contemporary
suspense and paranormal, but has also written in other genres, including a few
vintage historicals.
Other than reading and
writing, her passions are Elvis Presley (she almost always works in a mention
of him into her stories) and watching (and rewatching) her favorite televisions
shows like Ozark, Dexter, Justified, Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, and Vampire
Diaries. Some of her favorite authors are Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane,
Stephen King, Lee Child, Lisa Gardner, Ridley Pearson, Joseph Finder, and
Jonathan Kellerman…to name a few.
I had the pleasure of editing The Window by Dave Cole (a Dancing Lemur Press title). When I chose a guest post and needed to come up with a topic, there was one thing I was curious about...how did Dave come up with the idea for "the window" in the story?
Last month, I had a new release: A FIGHTING CHANCE. I did a lot for this release. And I mean A LOT. Rather than hash out my marketing plan here, you can visit my guest post at Victoria Marie Lee's blog.
What I want to share here are the results of my marketing. This post is long. If you want, you can skip to the conclusion.
Today I have Jacqui Murray on my blog talking about why readers quit books, an important topic for us all. Please help me to welcome her!
10 Reasons Why Readers Quit a Book
by Jacqui Murray
It used to be I almost always
finished any book I started. I'd think about all the work the author put into
writing it, figure it was my personal lens not their skill, and continue in the
hope I'd learn a different way of thinking. Over the years, I've changed. With
Kindle Unlimited, I can borrow a book, read a few chapters, and then return it
with no muss or fuss. Now, I quit about 10% of the books I start even after
spending the time to preview, read the blurbs, and explore reader comments.
I would like to welcome author Elizabeth Seckman and her character Maureen Privet for a girls' time author/character date.
On to you Elizabeth and Maureen...
1. Which character are you going out on a "date" with? Maureen Privet from Flip My Heart
2.Where are you going? (What will you be doing?) No, this isn’t a date-date. I mean it’s a real date as in you can write the place and time down on your calendar, but it’s not that kind of date. No romance, just the scheduling of always-valuable girl time.
Today is release day for A FIGHTING CHANCE!!! WOO-HOO!
I am also launching a new website AND have a new short eBook for free!
Why did I write a story for Thorn in the Disaster
Crimes series?
When I was writing Flaming Crimes (Book 4), which
featured Beth and Donovan, I was thinking ahead to Frozen Crimes (Book
5) and considering what would come after that. I had a hurricane, earthquake,
tsunami, wildfire, and would soon have a blizzard.
However, there was always one disaster I thought about and
wondered how I’d handle it…a tornado.
