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Do Giveaways Help Promote Books? #giveaway #writingadvice

Birthday promo 3I often see tweets “#RT for a #Giveaway” or similar, scrolling through my Twitter feed. It seems every day, authors are eagerly offering not just signed copies of their books, but other goodies to boost sales, sometimes even huge hampers of gifts, from £100 Amazon vouchers to promises of putting winner’s names into the next novel.

Most of us will have tried this. We’ve offered books, purchased out of our own pockets. We’ve signed them and posted them to far-flung places, again at our own cost, to those fortunate enough to win. Yet, how much does a giveaway influence a book’s performance?

We’d love to believe offering a signed copy of a book will garner interest in it, and those unlucky enough not to win your book will race off instead to purchase it.

Websites like Goodreads would also have you believe it is imperative to offer free books and run a giveaway campaign several weeks ahead of release. Some virtual book tour companies also advise you to offer free copies of your book to run alongside reviews, and bombard you with statistics of how many people read and respond to such posts.

Do giveaways sell more books?

After numerous giveaways held on various websites, I have had mixed results. Goodreads campaigns yielded no increase in sales, nor did I have much success offering giveaways on virtual tours or Rafflecopter prizes on blogs.

This might have been due to the timing or poor promotion on my part or simply not doing it properly,  but if you are considering doing a giveaway you should remember that a lot of people you attract are simply looking for freebies. They might or might not even read or review your book. They could well tell their friends how great it is, but the reality is you will spend a lot of your hard-earned money on promoting and the financial rewards are unlikely to outweigh the cost.

Are giveaways pointless?

In brief – no. They are a terrific marketing tool and success is not always based on number of book sales.  Much depends on your expectations. Gear your giveaway to create a social buzz, gain more followers on your social media platforms and increase your email or newsletter list, and all of those will eventually lead to sales. You are playing a long game and building up your author platform.

If you get your promo right, your name and book will get massive exposure, which is again great news. I learned recently, a reader needs to hear of and see a book about seven times before they click to buy. A promotion will increase those chances.

The key to a giveaway is to decide what you want out of it. If you are creating a name for yourself then they are worthwhile. If you are hoping for an immediate increase in book sales, be prepared to be disappointed. (Having said which, I know of authors who have had a spike after a big giveaway.)

The Internet is stuffed full of giveaways so target your promotion carefully. You need to be heard and stand out among other giveaways.

Results of recent giveaway.

My new thriller THE BIRTHDAY is due out on September 27th. Pre-sales have been decent but I wanted to raise interest prior to the actual release.

I offered two notebooks (see above) as prizes. I started my campaign Sunday afternoon because that seems to be a time when many people are online. I offered one notebook on Twitter for merely following me and retweeting. I offered a second book using my Facebook page for anyone sharing my post and commenting.

Given my goal was purely to raise awareness of the forthcoming release, I was pleased with the results.

My Facebook page post reached 1011 people and was shared 124 times.  The Twitter post received 2,080 impressions and was shared 104 times. In total, 3091 people saw the post and are aware of my book. I’m pretty happy with that. I can’t say if any will convert into sales but for now I’m satisfied to know THE BIRTHDAY has been paraded in front of these people and the icing on the cake is that before I ran the giveaway yesterday at 2 p.m. THE BIRTHDAY was at #630 in the UK Amazon charts. By 8 p.m. it had risen 250 positions to #380.

The giveaway runs until Thursday so you have time to win one of these fabulous notebooks. If you’d like to do so, pop along to my Twitter page and retweet the link here or my Facebook author page which you can find by clicking here

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A Writer’s Life #writing #inspiration

LGL RABBITMy mother always knew she’d die of cancer – that or a heart attack. She’d been a heavy smoker since she was 18 and I mean heavy. At one stage she was smoking over 60 cigarettes a day.

It was no surprise when, after a bout of pneumonia, doctors found the tell-tale signs on a chest X-ray and diagnosed stage four lung cancer. The surprise was she was already 81 years old and had outlived my father by almost fifteen years.

I raced down from Staffordshire to Hampshire to find her in good spirits. The doctors had told her she had a few weeks left or maybe a couple of months, and she shrugged at the news. “I’ve had a good life. I’m fine about it. I’m ready to go,” she said.

She was ready to depart this life until she found out I was writing a thriller. My mother was a huge reader and although she’d read and enjoyed my comedies to date, especially the early ones where she’d been the inspiration for Amanda Wilson’s partying mother, the thought I was writing a thriller – her favourite genre – made her eyes light up. “Tell me about it,” she said, patting the settee next to her. I did. I was setting the book part in Staffordshire and part in Hampshire where I’d spent many years. Her eyes shone as we discussed the places I mentioned, each bringing back happy memories. ‘Tell me more when you visit next time,’ she said, as she settled down for the night. “I want to read this book of yours. When will it be published?”

“January 2017,” I replied.

‘I’ll try and make it.”

Days turned into weeks. I would travel down to Farnborough by train, go through the book with my mother and we’d reminisce. Each evening, I would stay at a nearby hotel because she didn’t want me to hear her coughing all night, and I would type for several hours, sometimes all night, ideas fresh in my mind from talking to Mum and emotion running high as I worried about her.

Weeks turned to months. “I don’t think I have cancer at all,” she’d say, dressed in her best blouse and lips painted fuchsia pink. “I feel fine.” She seemed well although she was losing weight. I took her out for her 82nd birthday and we drank wine. “I haven’t had wine for months,” she said, with glee. Back home she insisted I read some of the draft to the book. I never normally read my drafts to anyone but I did. “I like Robyn Carter,” she said. “She has guts. She’s a good character.”

In brief, my mother became my supporter for what was to become LITTLE GIRL LOST. She listened to each idea, chapter, and characterisation and praised or suggested alterations.

The month I was due to submit the script – my first ever thriller, I was working flat out day and night. Travelling to and from Farnborough and lack of sleep was taking its toll on my own health. Anxiety at what was to come, ate at me. Mum, however, was in good form, determined she was going to Cyprus in September to visit friends as she did every year, and was trying to get clearance from the doctor to fly.

The first week of August she wasn’t too well. She sounded tired and vague. I said I’d catch a train and visit her. ‘No. Finish that book. I want to read it,’ she said. ‘I’m fine.’

I went anyway and it was clear she wouldn’t be able to go to Cyprus. She’d taken a turn for the worst. She was glassy-eyed as I talked to her and not really listening. When I stood to leave, with promises I’d be down again the following week. She shook her head. ‘No. Don’t come down. I’m too tired for visitors. I want to read your book. It sounds wonderful. Finish it.’

By now, the book was behind schedule and I’d missed my deadline. I had to get it to my editor. I typed well into each night, changing, rewriting, remembering what Mum and I had talked about. Fuelled by medication and emotion, I poured my heart and soul into every word.

August 23rd 2016, at 4.30 p.m. I pressed the send button. My manuscript had gone. I booked a ticket to travel to Farnborough for that weekend. Fifteen minutes later I received a call to say my mother had just passed away.

It seems too great a coincidence to me that she hung on until the very day LITTLE GIRL LOST was submitted. Not even the same day but only a quarter of an hour after I pressed the send button. Maybe I read too much into it all, but I see my mother as the book’s good luck charm. It was the book that made me a name. It was the book that soared up the Amazon charts and brought me success and it is the book that will forever be the book I wrote for my mother.

* * * * *

LITTLE GIRL LOST became the #2 best-selling book on Amazon UK charts #9 best audiobook, a top ten best-seller in Pocket Shop bookshops, and was a top 150 best-seller in USA Today charts.

 

 

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Getting Your Book Published Part One #writingtips

Writing Mag

I regularly get emails from new authors asking for advice about getting published. I’m not an expert on the subject but am happy to share my thoughts and experience, so here are a few (I hope helpful) suggestions to assist you.

When I first started out, it was much more difficult to find a publisher. The optimistic wannabe author had to purchase a copy of the latest edition of The Writers Handbook, track down agents or publishers willing to accept unsolicited scripts, then print off hundreds and hundreds of pages, charge down to the local post office, weighed down by the precious manuscripts, and then part with life savings to send them on their way.

Fortunately today it doesn’t cost you a small fortune in printer ink and postage.

So, your script is ready and you don’t want to go the route of self-publishing. You want to find a publisher. Where do you start? This is going to sound odd, but begin by raising your author profile. You can be checking out publishers while you do this. Follow the advice I laid down in my last post and ensure you are actively building an author platform. The connections you make online will prove invaluable and if you join writing groups on Facebook, you will get a great deal of advice.

It’s also a good time to put together your biography. Chances are a publisher will want know something about you, so write down salient points and if you have not yet had anything published, send articles, stories, poems to magazines or websites who might publish them. You might also want to enter a couple of writing competitions. Publishers like to know you are in for the duration and intend making a career out of writing. If you are working on a second script, make sure you have a synopsis for it too and you mention it.

Okay, now you can get your teeth into it and seek out a publisher.

Sign up to and go to author events and get known, not just by potential readers, but other authors in your genre. There are huge crime and romance writing events all over the country. I met my first publisher at the Festival of Romance in Bedford, which I attended with a group of romance writers. My books didn’t technically fit into the romance category and the event was stuffed with Mills & Boon fans, but I made contacts and friends, and as luck would have it, was on a table next to a small publisher called Safkhet. During the long gaps when no visitors came to buy our books, I got chatting to the publisher herself, who at the time published the fabulous Sheryl Browne (who now writes for Bookouture too). As we were about to pack up for the day, the publisher said, ‘You’re the only person who hasn’t tried to pitch a book to me. Do you have anything else you’re working on?’ As it happened, I had a non-fiction I was considering self-pubbing. She asked me to send it to her which I did on my return home. The same afternoon she offered me a book deal. It was the start of my journey.

Author events are great places to pitch your ideas as well as making new contacts. I know of several successful authors who have secured deals thanks to pitching events.

There are also online pitching events such as the one Canleo Publishing (my other publisher) offered on Twitter recently. In this age of digital publishing it is wise to consider these opportunities and keep an eye out for them. Again, if you are building a brand, you ought to follow some publishers, agents and other authors in your genre. Tweets and retweets can be the source of valuable information.

If you would prefer to approach a publisher directly, you MUST (yes, I’ve used the shouty capital letters) read their guidelines before submitting. Be sure they are a) accepting unsolicited scripts (that is from authors not agents) and b) they are looking for books in your genre.

Search engines will provide all the information you need to find a publisher. Be sure you choose a publishing house you feel comfortable with. Don’t be tempted to go to a small publishing house because you think you’ll stand more chance with them. They are often the ones who close their doors. Check out the authors they already represent and maybe even contact one or two of them on Twitter or FB to ask what their experience has been like.

Once you’ve chosen a publisher, go to the submissions page on their website. Some sites ask for a synopsis and three chapters, others for a five word summary and 10,000 words, or even the full manuscript. Whatever they request, send it in. You might find yourself having to submit the information onto an online form on their website, in which case, plan your words carefully beforehand on a Word document or equivalent, so you don’t send in something full of errors.

Writing Mag coverAs soon as you’ve submitted to a publisher you should get an automated email from them, letting you know how long you can expect to wait for a response. It can take months! It is a frustrating and angst-ridden time but please wait it out and once again, work on social media, your website or your blog, or write something else. In fact, it’s a very good time to submit short stories to competitions in magazines so you can get some writing kudos.

Some may disagree, but I don’t hold with applying to a whole bunch of publishing houses at the same time. Try one or two at most. Editors in one company do actually talk to other editors in another, so they will probably soon find out you’ve submitted to every publishing house possible and that won’t work in your favour.

If you are sending a covering letter or email, you must give a publisher clear reason to consider your work. Tell them why you would like them to publish it? Have you heard about them from a fellow author? (Good – recommendations help.) Are they the best digital publishing house for your genre? Don’t go overboard though.

If you haven’t heard back within the period of time they stated on the website or email, then don’t be afraid to ask if they’ve got to your submission yet. However, don’t leap in a couple of weeks after you sent it. You will have to exercise patience.

SUMMARY:

  1. Make sure you have a brief but interesting letter about yourself and your publications so far. If you haven’t yet got any works published, write articles for blogs/magazine/papers – anything to show you can write and be able to mention them in your covering letter. Also send work off to one or two writing competitions such as those in the Writing Magazine.
  2. Choose one or two publishers you feel would be willing to publish your work.
  3. Apply and adhere to their guidelines. Ensure your forms are correctly filled in and your covering letter  (if they request one) is not too long.
  4. Be patient. I don’t know how many times I say this to writers but it really is a game of patience. The most successful writers are those who have a long game plan and keep building up their portfolio of work.
  5. Put together a biography, a photo of you, a list of works you’ve written, awards you’ve received, anything else relevant that a publisher might require.

I’ll expand on all of this at a later date but for now – good luck.

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How to Become a Best-Selling Author #writingtips

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When I first began writing, I typed the title of this blog post How to Become a Best-Selling Author into a search engine and spent ages scrolling through sites, looking for a magic formula that would help me become a recognised, reputable author. There was a lot of advise, a lot of encouragement from those who had sold millions and lot of adverts from people hoping to take money from hopefuls in exchange for offering a step up the ladder to success.

The truth is, there isn’t any such formula. If you want to be a best-selling author you need four things: tenacity, self-belief, hope and luck. Maybe five things – a darn good book.

The journey to publication is not an easy one. Yes, you may read of those first-time writers who hit the jackpot, but for the majority of us, it is hard work that produces results.

This is the first of several posts that I hope will help you along your way. I don’t claim to have all the answers but I do have experience – lots of it, from writing and editing to networking, marketing and publicity and oh, yes, I have tenacity.

I began writing for the adult market in 2009 and my first novel, Mini Skirts and Laughter Lines was aimed at women over forty who wanted to read something humorous that would resonate with them. Chick Lit was full of young women and sexy men and hot romance but I wanted to target a more mature market who had experienced the flush of first love and who had lived the maybe not-so-happy ever after ending, and were now scratching about for the next stage in their lives. My audience still felt they had a life to lead even though age, life and families were pulling at them from all angles. It was a brave move. After writing my novel, I proudly submitted it to several agents and publishers, only to be told there was no market for this type of comedy. It fell between the cracks of chick lit, romantic comedy and humour!

Deterred? Yes. Disillusioned? Yes. Determined? More so. I won’t go into lengthy detail of the next phase of how I finally became published yet, but it involved taking criticism on the chin. I submitted my first chapters to website, You Write On, that encouraged writers to read others’ submissions and in exchange for offering positive criticism, would receive equal and fair criticism of their own work.

Ouch! The comments came back thick and fast: Reader A hated this about my book. Reader B hated that. Reader C hated something else. Everyone hated everything. I was clearly the worst writer in the universe – or at least that’s how it felt. However, as my skin grew thicker, so I learned to consider the positive criticisms hidden within the scathing ones and because of those, I rewrote many of the chapters of the book and resubmitted it.

Once again, I was faced with rejection. I believed in the book. In spite of what I was being told. I felt my audience would love it. I decided the only course left to me was to self-publish.

Self-publishing is another topic I’ll cover at a later date, but all I’ll say here is be warned. There are many vanity publishers out there. It’s a minefield but I was fortunate enough to have my work taken up by the website I had submitted the first few chapters to for critical analysis. They became FeedARead who for a small fee and I mean, small, published my work in paperback.

Ha! I’d done it at last. Or so I thought. I was wrong. This was only the beginning.

1st edition
2nd edition
3rd and current edition

Would I follow that same path today? No.  I would not. There are better ways of becoming an author. I wish I’d had more patience. I made many mistakes and although I learned from them and my story is now one of success, I could have got where I am today sooner if I’d done it differently.

My advice to any budding author is the following:

  1. While you are writing your novel, build an author platform. Make sure you have a blog, a Facebook page, other social media accounts and most importantly, interact with other writers and readers. Engage with them. FB groups are the best for this so join a few online writing, reading or reviewing groups and chat!
  2. Once you finish your script, put it aside. Don’t look at it for at least a month. Concentrate on building your community. Wrote a few blog posts. Anything to make people aware of you.
  3. After 4-6 weeks read through your work and edit it. Repeat the procedure. I know you’ll be desperate to get your book baby out there and concerned somebody else will pip you to the post with your ideas, but don’t worry. Your book needs this time. Edit it once more and then send it to a professional editor for their thoughts. At the same time, send it to some of the people you’ve met online. By now, you should have made contacts who will be willing to be your beta readers. They’ll offer suggestions and might even spot errors for you too. They’ll do this for free or maybe in exchange for you offering the same service for their books.
  4. When the professional editor sends back changes, go through your script yet again and make them, and at the same time take up any of the suggestions offered by your beta readers.

It’ll need another read-through for errors before you submit it, so make sure you do even though by now, you’ll be sick of it. If you truly can’t wait any longer at this point, ensure the first three chapters, or 10,000 words, are error-free and submit them.

If you are submitting to an agent or publisher, make sure you follow their guidelines.

And now, cross your fingers and work on your second book. Good luck.

Posts to come:

Getting Your Book Published – Building an Author Platform and Brand – DIY Publicity for your Book – Getting to Grips with Marketing – Networking – The Next Step

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CAROL WYER – AUTHOR, BLOGGER and STAND-UP

 

Carol Wyer - Fence

Winner of The People’s Book Prize Award, Carol Wyer is an award-winning author and stand up comedian who writes feel-good comedies and gripping crime fiction.

A move to the ‘dark side’ in 2017, saw the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in LITTLE GIRL LOST, the #2 best-selling book on Amazon, #9 best-selling audiobook on Audible and Top 150 USA Today best-seller.

A second series, featuring DI Natalie Ward, quickly followed and to date her crime novels have sold over 600,000 copies and been translated for various overseas markets, including Norwegian, Italian, Turkish, Hungarian Slovak, Czech and Polish.

Carol has been interviewed on numerous radio shows and on BBC Breakfast television and Sky News. She has had articles published in national magazines ‘Woman’s Weekly’ featured in ‘Take A Break’, ‘Choice’, ‘Yours’ and ‘Woman’s Own’ magazines and the Huffington Post.

She currently lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband Mr Grumpy… who is very, very grumpy.

You can find out more about Carol and her best-selling books at

www.carolwyer.co.uk

Or follow her on:

Facebook

Twitter

Carol blogs at http://www.grumpyoldmenopause.com which featured in The Mail on Sunday

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Canelo acquires two novels from bestseller Carol Wyer

Carol Wyer smaller versionCanelo Digital Publishing Limited is delighted to announce the acquisition of two heart-warming women’s fiction novels by bestselling author Carol Wyer. The first new book – What Happens in France – is to be released on 4th February 2019, with an as yet untitled second book provisionally scheduled for April 2019.

In What Happens in France, Bryony Masters isn’t one to shy from a challenge, so when her father falls sick she makes it her mission to find her long-lost sister and reunite their family. With the help of handsome friend Lewis, she snags a coveted spot on a primetime game show set in beautiful France – the perfect, public platform to launch her search!

With a social media star dog, a high maintenance quiz host and a cast of truly unique characters, Bryony and Lewis have their work cut out for them to stay on the show and in the public eye. Yet as the audience grows and the grand prize beckons they find that the search that brought them together may just fulfil more than one heart’s wish…

What Happens in France will delight fans of Fiona Gibson, Daisy James and Jo Watson.

Carol Wyer said ‘To say I am thrilled to be joining Canelo is an understatement. I’m so looking forward to working with the wonderful Hannah Todd and the rest of the team on two new comedies and can’t wait to share them with you.’

Hannah Todd, Assistant Editor at Canelo, said ‘I am absolutely delighted to be working with Carol on her hilarious women’s fiction. Carol’s novels are like a conversation with a friend; you sit down for a good giggle and leave feeling better for it! I can’t wait to share them with her fans.’

As a child, Carol Wyer was always moving and relied on humour to fit in at new schools. A funny short story won her popularity, planting the seed of becoming a writer. She won the 2015 People’s Book Prize Award for non-fiction, and can sometimes be found performing her stand-up comedy routine Laugh While You Still Have Teeth. Now writing full-time, Carol has several books published alongside journalism in many magazines.

Canelo are a digital publisher based in London, specialising in commercial fiction.

Press enquiries to Ellie Pilcher: ellie@canelo.co

ORIGINAL POST: https://www.canelo.co/company/blog/canelo-acquires-two-novels-bestseller-carol-wyer/