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

June 2014
S	M	T	W	T	F	S

1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30

Wed, 25 June 2014

Episode 12 - The Personal Connection Show

While Jim spent all day recording videos for a college course, Bryan and guest co-host Shelley Hitz from TrainingAuthors.com stepped in to deliver this week's news. There was a big focus this episode on forging a personal connection with your readers whether it be through encouraging fans to email you, using social media or contacting librarians to get your books in the stacks. Other topics included using Microsoft Word to create book covers, Google Alerts, the news analysts are missing about the publishing industry, getting featured on BookBub and the myth that authors have missed the indie publishing boat. We also debuted a new feature: The Question of the Week. How do you connect personally with your readers? Let us know via email or through the comments on our website.

Direct download: thesmbs12.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:30am EDT

Wed, 18 June 2014

Episode 11 - The Overnight Success Show

We discussed several internal obstacles to becoming a successful indie author this week, including a lack of focus and a belief in the myth that you need to become an overnight success. Jim also talked about his new book and Bryan shared some results from his Facebook events. Other topics included mailing lists, the image creation tool Canva, the shame people feel when reading certain genres, diversity in publishing and self-publishing numbers in the U.K.

What You'll Learn:

The pros and cons of using contests to build your email lists
How to promote future content to gain email subscribers
How to use Canva to develop your author platform
The frequency with which you should email your subscribers
Why Kindles make it easier to sell certain genres
How indie publishing is providing new opportunities for minority authors
Seven habits to avoid to become a successful indie author
How much the self-publishing industry is growing in the U.K.
Why the need to sell books quickly is a myth

Direct download: show11smbs11_fini.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:29am EDT

Wed, 11 June 2014

Episode 010 - Removing Barriers to Entry

We reached the double digits this week as we focused on ways authors and publishing platforms are making it easier to reach readers. The Audible and Apple were two examples of companies who have succeeded in removing barriers from entry to reading. Other subjects this week included Flipboard, Craigslist, Amazon categories, indie author fangirls, hard work and the success of author HM Ward.

Direct download: SMBS_Episode_10.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:35pm EDT

Wed, 4 June 2014

Episode 009 - Joanna Penn - The Creative Penn

We got very classy this week with our guest co-host, thriller and non-fiction author Joanna Penn. The three of us chatted about karma, selling direct and the full-time writing success of hundreds of indie authors. Other topics included box sets, walking podcasts, author crowdfunding, contests, the Amazon-Hachette conflict and apps for authors. Big thanks to Joanna for teaching us how to say Hachette correctly!

What You'll Learn:

How a new service lets you trade promotion for karma
How a little organization goes a long way with box sets
What some authors are doing to directly connect with readers
How you can give away part of your royalties for funding
What Joanna, Jim and Bryan think about Kirkus Reviews
What happens when the Passive Guy gets active
How romance writers are directly reaching their audience
The kind of money some non-superstar indie authors are making

Links:

Direct download: show9.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT