Tag: indie authors

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Thank You, English Person, Who Bought My Book and Put Me on the Map in the Amazon UK Store :)

Hehe, I am all giddy because I just made my first UK sale! This officially puts Swallow on the Amazon UK bookstore map since it now has a ranking – and believe it or not, is currently ranked number 2 in legal fiction and number 32 in literary fiction there! Just realized it’s also ranked in the top 50 in literary fiction in the US store as well, and this marks the sixth week that it’s in the top 10 in legal fiction here. I really couldn’t be more thrilled. I am so happy that people are reading my book and (most anyway!) are liking it. I am really curious to see how the Brits, and others outside of the US, like it, so am really happy it’s at least available in one foreign bookstore. My dream would be to get a big publisher and have it translated and mass distributed in physical bookstores and all that, but we’ll have to wait and see on that… In the meantime, I’m beyond thrilled with my e-book sales – am just about to reach a major milestone 😀

Also, I just received a really wonderful, detailed, well thought-out review from a new blogger, Media Mover, who is an American ex-pat living in Mexico and who I met on Kindleboards. In a short time, she’s already become a top 1000 Amazon reviewer, and has recently started this blog as well. She’s an excellent writer and reviewer (and not just because I love what she said about my novel ;)), so please read her other reviews as well. She’s posting one review every Sunday, and she’s reviewing indie books. Yes! We need more reviewers of indie books!!!

I’ve been very fortunate to receive lots of blogger reviews, for which I’m immensely thankful. I haven’t posted about every one so as not to sound like I was constantly pumping myself (I probably do sound like that sometimes anyway…sorry!), but am linking to them all now on the “reviews” page.

One other thing regarding my book and then I’ll shut up. I just wanted to call attention to this excellent program, Operation E-Book Drop, which another indie author (and former Army Sergeant) who I also met on Kindleboards, has founded and which I have just begun participating in. Authors join and give free ebooks to our troops overseas. If you happen to be an author, please consider donating. And, also, join Kindleboards!

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DRIVE-THRU INTERVIEW, AND SWALLOW MAKES LEGAL THRILLER BEST-SELLER LIST ON AMAZON

Today I have a short, “drive-thru” interview on fabulously wonderful indie author Jenna Elizabeth Johnson’s blog, Hello Kruel, Kruel World.

I met Ms. Johnson on the Kindleboards, where I’ve connected with a number of really kind and supportive indie authors. I joined Kindleboards after hugely successful indie-turned-traditionally published author, J.A. Konrath, suggested the site as an excellent way to connect with other authors and readers of Kindle books.

It seems to have worked in my favor sales-wise as well because last week, due largely I’m sure to my reducing the price of my Kindle book to 99 cents (for at least the duration of the summer), my Kindle sales skyrocketed, putting Swallow on a couple of Amazon top-seller charts: Anxiety Disorders, and Legal Thrillers. Sales have slipped a bit over the weekend but it spent nearly all of last week in the top 10 of those two lists, which was really surreal.

Funny thing is, strictly speaking of course my novel is not a legal thriller, but the way Amazon categorizes things, since it’s legal fiction and since Amazon reviewers have tagged it with words like “lawyer,” “legal,” and “criminals,” it was categorized as legal, and the only root category for legal fiction it seems is Mysteries & Thrillers. So I guess that’s how that worked. Others have mentioned they had the same thing happen: a legal comedy and a novel whose protagonist was a lawyer but had no other connection to the law were both categorized as a legal thrillers too. Anyway, it’s not like I don’t have a product description and several reviews for people to read before deciding whether or not to purchase.

And, even though my book focuses on the main character’s anxiety disorder, it is largely about her job as a criminal appeals attorney, and representing a certain segment of society. That’s one huge thing I was hoping people would come away knowing more about after reading. So, although I worried at first about it being mis-categorized, I think it’s actually a good thing that it ended up there; it’s a sign to me of what I should be writing anyway. The book I’m working on now is more in that vein – it’s about a shooting witnessed by various people, from different perspectives.

Anyway, I’m just so thrilled some people are reading it. Thank you again to all of my wonderful, wonderful blog readers who have been so supportive! And to my new indie friends 🙂