The Sell More Books Show: Book Marketing, Digital Publishing and Kindle News, Tools and Advice

What do the next four years look like for you? This week is Bryan’s Amazon Ad Challenge its never too late to follow along! Claire is finishing up her series up! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is  Bill Cokas. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The 30-Day Writing Challenge, Stalked, and SMART Social Media. The Top Tips of the week include what you need to do to sell your book, why Instagram is your friend, and how the public domain has changed. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include was has changed in the RWA, how Janna Penn manages her time, why getting a coauthor may refuel your fire for writing, who will be charting books, and what S.W. Hubbard is going to do in 2020. Question of the Week: When you think ahead to what you'll have accomplished in four years, what will you do to get the most out of your awesome backlist in 2024?

Direct download: SMBS_302.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

What will your new year’s resolution help your productivity? You’re going to learn a little more about our new host Claire. How she spends her days and what she's done this year! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Jerri Williams. The Top Tips of the week include how to promote your new book, how StoryOrgin can help you track yourself, and what Kells Mcphillips recommends to keep up the productivity. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why Refined Fool Beer is the place to publish, what ebooks lost out on in the 10s, what scam you need to avoid, why the Rita Awards were cancelled, and why you shouldn’t be like Laura Burton. Question of the Week: Going into 2020, what changes will you make to your routine to save more time and get more accomplished?

Direct download: SMBS_301.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

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?

Direct download: SMBS_300.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

What story did we miss in 2019? Episode 300 is next week! Bryan is visiting family and Jim is getting ready for life after SMBS. Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she is five-feet ten-inches tall. Be on the lookout for Bryan’s new Amazon Ad Challenge coming up in January. The 5 News stories that mattered most to indies in 2019 include what Barnes & Noble did to stay in business, the struggles and successes of Amazon, how many wonderful options exist outside of the Audible exclusive option, why some indie community success stories sound so familiar, and what are the biggest changes in the Amazon Ad dashboard. Question of the Week: What's the biggest news story of 2019 that we didn't cover in today's episode and why?

Direct download: SMBS_299.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

What does the year 2039 look like for the publishing world? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she is obsessed with ghost adventures. Two more weeks with Jim! Be on the lookout Bryan has a new Amazon Ad Challenge coming up in January. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Guillaume Sauvé. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Get it Done, How to Pick Up Women with a Drunk Space Ninja, and Leah’s Choice. The Top Tips of the week include what your last minute gift can be, how you can revisit this years 20books event, and Smashwords' new feature. An honorable mention goes to why the Big 5 may be changing. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how podcasts are going to change, why 2039 may be the year with no books, how libraries are bringing the people back, why your upticks may actually be old, and How Kobo is changing and growing. Question of the Week: Do you think paper books will be dead by the year 2039? Why or why not?

Direct download: SMBS_298.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

When should an author change up how they do translations? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she has written over 20 novels. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Patrick O’Donnell. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Planet Dead One Shot, How to Sex Your Snake, and Excelsior. The Top Tips of the week include how to improve your cover, what ways you can spruce up your older books, and why you should maybe get a mentor. An honorable mention goes to why you need to make an audiobook. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why you don’t need to worry about AIs, how to be more successful when publishing wide, how social media may not be the key, why your ads won't get old, and when you should change your translations. Question of the Week: At what point in an author's journey do you think he or she should try this new system for creating translations of their books?

Direct download: SMBS_297.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

How do you build confidence? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she lives in the United States! Both Bryan and Jim are going to story shop sumit in Texas! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Julie. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Guild of Tokens, Awakening Forever, and Mayhem & Murder. The Top Tips of the week include how to manage your time, what new tool is at your fingertips, and how to get your book on library shelves. An honorable mention goes to why trademarks may be in for a dark road. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how the prison system is trying to make money, why you may need a smart speaker, what your verified review might really be, why you still can make it big, and how library ebooks are backfiring. Question of the Week: How do you deal with self-doubt when you're trying to put your words out into the world?

Direct download: SMBS_296.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

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?

Direct download: SMBS_295.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

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

Direct download: SMBS_294.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

What genres seem to have the most success with paid promotions and why?Episode 300 is so close! Now it's Bryans turn to be away, he is in Vegas at 20 books to 50K. Jay Thorne in the guest host of the week Early Bird tickets for his Self-Publishing Live are on sale now! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Darren Sapp. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Chicago Blue, "What Am I?", and  WordPress Security 101. The Top Tips of the week include why and how you can create a facebook author page, how you can get unblocked, and why you may need to start a podcast. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what fancy new gadget Amazon is releasing, why you can actually write under noisy conditions, what new genre or subgenre readers are excited about, what new feature Findaway Voices is rolling out, and why you might want to wait for the BookBub deal. Question of the Week: What genres seem to have the most success with paid promotions and why?

Direct download: SMBS_293.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT