The Day Of The Wave by Becky Wicks
Publication date: May 1st 2015
Genres: Adult, Romance
Based on real life events, The Day of the Wave is a story of healing, learning to let go, and figuring out when to hold on with everything you have left.
"What is the biggest mistake you made while self-publishing your book? How did you learn from it?"
That’s a great question! I wouldn't say there’s been one ‘biggest mistake’ because in my experience, self-publishing is one constantly evolving experiment and you’re going to mess up a lot, the same as you’re going to learn a lot. It’s an industry that’s changing daily with more options for authors than ever, but here are a few things that come to my mind about self-publishing!
Where are my reviews?
I guess a big mistake all authors make is to expect readers to leave us reviews. Reviews can make or break an author, especially a new one, and we all try to gather up as many as possible but the truth is, most readers won’t bother. Even if they love the book, they won’t go back to Amazon to say so, even if you ask nicely. It’s sad and frustrating but people are busy and they forget things, too. Blog tours are a great way to get reviews and to get the word out – I’m a huge fan of Giselle over at Xpresso – she is always awesome. Don’t get mad – get marketing!
Why give away free stuff?
Giving away my books for free raises awareness and bumps me up in the Amazon rankings but one thing I learned is that you’re only as good as your books, really. You’ll soon drop again if no one’s interested, or if no one knows about your book! Advertising is important. Marketing is important. I tweet a lot, and update my Facebook page. I also blog and run the occasional ad, but it was a big mistake to think paying for Facebook advertising could help (don’t bother!). I give away bonus chapters on my blog in exchange for newsletter sign ups, and run competitions to keep up interest.
Why is time is more important than money?
Before I published my first self-published book ‘Before he was Famous’ I spent literally 16 hours a day at the laptop reading everything I could about how to make it sell. Time was more important than money. I spent about $500 on tours, advertising, formatting, prizes for my Kindle giveaway, etc, but it was the hours I put in learning how to do all that with the greatest effect that proved most valuable.
Why doesn’t everyone love my awesome book?
It’s always a mistake to think that just because we’ve written what we think is a great book, everyone else out there will agree. They won’t. Everyone has an opinion and Goodreads will probably make you ugly-cry at some point. Nothing’s a bestseller overnight – even 50 Shades took time, and Harry Potter was rejected by lots of publishers before it was picked up. I always try to put the best possible work that I can out there, so that when I get a bad review (not if – when – because we all get them) it doesn’t sting so much because I know that what I’ve done is the best I could’ve done, and that’s all that matters.
Keep writing because you love it. Your passion will shine in your work and eventually, it will pay off. Self-publishing is one of the most enjoyable things I’ve ever done and I hope I can inspire other writers to try it, too. x
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25040673-the-day-of-the-wave?ac=1
Purchase:
(Will be found here come release day)
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=The+Day+Of+The+Wave+wicks&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3AThe+Day+Of+The+Wave+wicks
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WT6SBZY
Author links:
http://beckywicks.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Becky-Wicks-Author/242645109127479
https://twitter.com/bex_wicks
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4658054.Becky_Wicks
Thanks for being on the tour! :)
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ReplyDelete"Why give away free stuff?" is the question that reached to me. Like any human being, the dynamic of give and take "will" apply, but just not anymore with The Representative.
I spoke of it before, Aimee, if you recall.. the fragility, and the struggle of life.
I'm more than happy to stop selling The Representative, and to just let anyone have free access to it (I've pictured myself, in actual fact, laying the texts' sheets across the ground - anywhere ground, ground of the street, the ground of nature, the ground of wherever - and then in perhaps some annual context proceeding through, in front of other people.)
Becky's reality doesn't apply to me any longer, but, I'd be lying were I to say that in reading her interview I didn't contemplate the labour of her answers; the respect, that she deserves for her willpower.
I'm looking forward to your review Aimee.. What you'll be reviewing is what I understand to be the quintessential political story.
I think there's nothing wrong with giving work away for free. It's all about the endgame. For some people it's just about having other's read their stories.
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