April 25, 2012
Smashwords: Can Ebook Data Reveal New Viral Catalysts to Spur Reader Word-of-Mouth?
Smashwords: Can Ebook Data Reveal New Viral Catalysts to Spur Reader Word-of-Mouth?
This is a study by Mark Coker which attempts to answer several questions about indie book sales. He has taken statistically significant data gleaned from Smashwords sales records over several years from 2009 for over 1 million titles, and done some analysis. The results are what common sense and my own 'gut' has been saying, but with a weight of certainty only possible when you have a comparable data pool.
There are several conclusions of use to me. Price and length of works that sell best are very useful items to know. Romance sells best; we knew that. $2.99 is the sweet spot pricewise, but around $0.03 per word is what sells best, which would mean ebooks of around 100,000 words. Shorter work sells, but rarely makes the top 100.
I, fortunately, am content if my stuff sells steadily in the midrange. Perhaps I should try Eland Dances free for a while, and see what happens. He also says free books 'outsell' by 100X their pace when they have a pricetag. I know 'Pink Jewel' gets over 1,000 downloads a month while free, and should sell around 10 a month at 99c. If I can sell 10 a month of Eland, I will be far ahead of where it is presently, so watch this space. I dont think Amazon Prime is where that one is going. I shall simply put it free on Smashwords around the time the print edition comes out.
April 18, 2012
Been a while, eh?
Yes, well, something I have neglected, this blog.
Let's see; I have assembled the four Sherlock Holmes stories that are located in Hampshire into a single e-book, The Hampshire Expedition.
I am almost done with getting Eland Dances into print. My daughter, Penny, is going through the proof print copy, which I've already done, and I shall make the needed corrections and upload that & the final version of the cover to CreateSpace, & whoopee, in print!
The Hampshire Expedition will follow into a Dead Tree Book version very soon after that, and then a 2nd edition of my very first little short story book, Heavy & Light Tales. There will be some stories chopped out & a few added in, plus some editing.
Finally, a print version of Stone Song.
That all seems like a lot of work, but actually it isn't, since the writing is done. All that is required is a careful edit and some formatting, and of course a cover that extends across the spine and back of the book.
I hope it will go smoothly,as all this is while spring does its thing, and I do my spring stuff, like gardening, getting the pond in shape, and redoing the wellhouse roof. The pond needs a new liner. I tried moving the old one so the visible holes were above the waterline, but it still leaks.
Let's see; I have assembled the four Sherlock Holmes stories that are located in Hampshire into a single e-book, The Hampshire Expedition.
I am almost done with getting Eland Dances into print. My daughter, Penny, is going through the proof print copy, which I've already done, and I shall make the needed corrections and upload that & the final version of the cover to CreateSpace, & whoopee, in print!
The Hampshire Expedition will follow into a Dead Tree Book version very soon after that, and then a 2nd edition of my very first little short story book, Heavy & Light Tales. There will be some stories chopped out & a few added in, plus some editing.
Finally, a print version of Stone Song.
That all seems like a lot of work, but actually it isn't, since the writing is done. All that is required is a careful edit and some formatting, and of course a cover that extends across the spine and back of the book.
I hope it will go smoothly,as all this is while spring does its thing, and I do my spring stuff, like gardening, getting the pond in shape, and redoing the wellhouse roof. The pond needs a new liner. I tried moving the old one so the visible holes were above the waterline, but it still leaks.
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