When I was younger, I thought about growing up to be famous. I imagined that the Bubby series would go on to sell countless copies and that multiple movies would be made. Since the stories are so short, I assumed that the first two episodes would be one movie, episodes three and four would make up the second film, and book five would round out the trilogy (since the most popular movie series always seem to need to be in multiples of three).
However, recently The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released. As you may or may not know, the book, The Hobbit, was intended to be divided into two films, but they later decided there was enough material for three films.
Naturally, that got me to thinking. If a short book like The Hobbit can be divided into three films, then why not each of the Bubby books?
So, without further ado, I urge all of you to create a massive viral social media campaign with the hashtag #5books15movies.
Do I think it will work? No, not really... but that's why I'm relying on all of you to spread the word, so I don't have to have my heart broken when my unrealistic dreams are dashed.
So remember, with all the tweeting you do today, push the idea of #5books15movies.
Thanks!
Monday, December 24, 2012
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Give the Gift of Bubby
Look, we all know that Bubby is the gift that keeps on giving. If you were to ask him, Bubby would tell you that he has more than enough love to go around.
Alas, this Christmas season you probably have a limited budget. With that in mind, I am proposing a compromise: If you promise to buy The Complete Bubby Anthology on Smashwords, I will give you a coupon code to enter to save you 50% today through Christmas. In other words, you'll end up getting $3.99 worth of a book for only $1.99.
Agreed?
Okay, the code is "LL77E" (without quotes).
So what do you get for 50% off? You get access to multiple file types of The Complete Bubby Anthology, meaning you can read it on a Kindle, a Nook, an iPad, a Nexus 7, your personal computer, or pretty much any other type of eReader.
And you can even click the "Give as a gift" option on Smashwords so that your friends will be able to get their own copies of the book and then unanimously call you "the worst gift-giver ever."
So follow this link to Smashwords, and use coupon code "LL77E" (without quotes) to buy The Complete Bubby Anthology today!
-----------------------
For those of you wanting a paperback copy of the book, you can still get it for the unbelievably low price of only $10.99 on Amazon.com.
Alas, this Christmas season you probably have a limited budget. With that in mind, I am proposing a compromise: If you promise to buy The Complete Bubby Anthology on Smashwords, I will give you a coupon code to enter to save you 50% today through Christmas. In other words, you'll end up getting $3.99 worth of a book for only $1.99.
Agreed?
Okay, the code is "LL77E" (without quotes).
So what do you get for 50% off? You get access to multiple file types of The Complete Bubby Anthology, meaning you can read it on a Kindle, a Nook, an iPad, a Nexus 7, your personal computer, or pretty much any other type of eReader.
And you can even click the "Give as a gift" option on Smashwords so that your friends will be able to get their own copies of the book and then unanimously call you "the worst gift-giver ever."
So follow this link to Smashwords, and use coupon code "LL77E" (without quotes) to buy The Complete Bubby Anthology today!
-----------------------
For those of you wanting a paperback copy of the book, you can still get it for the unbelievably low price of only $10.99 on Amazon.com.
Monday, November 12, 2012
Women and Men
I recently saw the following clip from The Colbert Report that reminded me of my mentality when I was a high schooler writing the tales of Bubby:
After watching this video, it made me rethink how into James Blunt the girl was that he was singing about.
Also, Mr. Colbert reminded me that Bubby has the sort of mentality that believes that women think as highly of him as he does of them. In high school I was convinced that girls would be thinking about me the way I thought about them (even though I could never seem to find any that did). Thus, in early stories, Bubby has no difficulty getting the girls. It isn't until around episode five that Roseli challenges him a bit on it (which shows that I must have been maturing somewhat by then).
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| The Plight of Platonic Relationships | ||||
| ||||
After watching this video, it made me rethink how into James Blunt the girl was that he was singing about.
Also, Mr. Colbert reminded me that Bubby has the sort of mentality that believes that women think as highly of him as he does of them. In high school I was convinced that girls would be thinking about me the way I thought about them (even though I could never seem to find any that did). Thus, in early stories, Bubby has no difficulty getting the girls. It isn't until around episode five that Roseli challenges him a bit on it (which shows that I must have been maturing somewhat by then).
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
So Your Candidate Won/Lost...
Depending on your feelings about the outcome of last night's election, I have prepared one of three personalized messages for you.*
Democrats:
Congratulations, President Obama has won re-election. I'm sure you're overjoyed to know that your health care coverage will be taken care of for the remainder of your days. Hey, since we're sliding towards a Communist society any way, and you won't be needing to work anymore, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology to read while you're sitting around your house eating bon-bons and collecting welfare checks?
Republicans:
It must have been very sad when you first heard the news that Governor Romney was unable to carry the necessary swing states to win the election. Fortunately, you're all rich, so you can afford to wipe away your tears with the $100 bills you use as tissue paper. Hey, since you're throwing away money anyway, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology? You don't even have to read it, you can just document it as some sort of charitable deduction on your 2012 tax forms.**
Undecided Voters:
You must be taking a lot of flak for having still not made up your minds about which candidate to vote for. Sorry, that must be difficult to deal with. Hey, while you're having difficulty making decisions, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology - it isn't as if you can make up your mind not to.
-----------------------
*Yes, I am joking when I stereotype the three groups. No, these stereotypes are not really how I feel about each of these groups. And, no, I don't know why I find that perpetuating stereotypes is funny. In fact, it's not. Never mind.
**A purchase of The Complete Bubby Anthology is not actually tax deductible.
Democrats:
Congratulations, President Obama has won re-election. I'm sure you're overjoyed to know that your health care coverage will be taken care of for the remainder of your days. Hey, since we're sliding towards a Communist society any way, and you won't be needing to work anymore, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology to read while you're sitting around your house eating bon-bons and collecting welfare checks?
Republicans:
It must have been very sad when you first heard the news that Governor Romney was unable to carry the necessary swing states to win the election. Fortunately, you're all rich, so you can afford to wipe away your tears with the $100 bills you use as tissue paper. Hey, since you're throwing away money anyway, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology? You don't even have to read it, you can just document it as some sort of charitable deduction on your 2012 tax forms.**
Undecided Voters:
You must be taking a lot of flak for having still not made up your minds about which candidate to vote for. Sorry, that must be difficult to deal with. Hey, while you're having difficulty making decisions, why don't you buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology - it isn't as if you can make up your mind not to.
-----------------------
*Yes, I am joking when I stereotype the three groups. No, these stereotypes are not really how I feel about each of these groups. And, no, I don't know why I find that perpetuating stereotypes is funny. In fact, it's not. Never mind.
**A purchase of The Complete Bubby Anthology is not actually tax deductible.
Friday, October 12, 2012
A Nobel Prize? For Me?
Yesterday the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature was revealed. To be honest, I did not even know there was a Nobel Prize in Literature. So imagine my surprise when I learned that Mo Yan had won the award for 2012.
What surprised me most was not that Mo Yan is a Chinese citizen... I think that's great. What surprised me was that the Swedish Academy described his work as having "hallucinatory realism."
When I heard those words, it was as if the Swedish Academy was describing my own book, The Complete Bubby Anthology. Seriously, how could anything in The Complete Bubby Anthology be described as real without the aid of some sort of hallucinogen?
So, for anyone reading this blog who might be considered a "Qualified Nominator" by the Swedish Academy, I submit for your consideration a book with true "hallucinatory realism," The Complete Bubby Anthology.
In the meantime, I will await the Swedish Academy's phone call in October next year to inform me that I have won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature.
What surprised me most was not that Mo Yan is a Chinese citizen... I think that's great. What surprised me was that the Swedish Academy described his work as having "hallucinatory realism."
When I heard those words, it was as if the Swedish Academy was describing my own book, The Complete Bubby Anthology. Seriously, how could anything in The Complete Bubby Anthology be described as real without the aid of some sort of hallucinogen?
So, for anyone reading this blog who might be considered a "Qualified Nominator" by the Swedish Academy, I submit for your consideration a book with true "hallucinatory realism," The Complete Bubby Anthology.
In the meantime, I will await the Swedish Academy's phone call in October next year to inform me that I have won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Ask A Stupid Question Day
According to the folks that are in-the-know, today is Ask A Stupid Question Day.
Now, you may be thinking, "But, Mr. Draper, there is no such thing as a stupid question."
To which I would reply, "Actually, there is... have you ever sat in a classroom of children or teens? There are tons of stupid questions."
Then you might say, "Well, can you give me an example of a stupid question?"
And I, ignoring that your question (by itself) was stupid, would answer that anyone asking whether The Complete Bubby Anthology was truly a good deal at only $3.99, would be asking a stupid question.
At which point you would say, "You're right, Mr. Draper. You're always right."
So go ahead and buy a copy today. Because nothing honors stupidity as well as The Complete Bubby Anthology does!
Now, you may be thinking, "But, Mr. Draper, there is no such thing as a stupid question."
To which I would reply, "Actually, there is... have you ever sat in a classroom of children or teens? There are tons of stupid questions."
Then you might say, "Well, can you give me an example of a stupid question?"
And I, ignoring that your question (by itself) was stupid, would answer that anyone asking whether The Complete Bubby Anthology was truly a good deal at only $3.99, would be asking a stupid question.
At which point you would say, "You're right, Mr. Draper. You're always right."
So go ahead and buy a copy today. Because nothing honors stupidity as well as The Complete Bubby Anthology does!
Friday, September 7, 2012
One Thing We Can All Agree On
Now that the Republican and Democratic National Conventions are over, it has become increasingly clear that there is only one thing all Americans can agree on: The Complete Bubby Anthology is a stupid book... but ridiculously funny too!
So vote in favor of the American dream by choosing to download a copy today!
So vote in favor of the American dream by choosing to download a copy today!
Friday, August 24, 2012
Clever, Clever
Sometimes I wish I had a criminal mind. Then I would find clever ways of selling books for more than double what I originally paid for them.
For example, I give you the case of a user named "Stork Media" on the Barnes & Noble store. He or she has a paperback copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology and are selling it for $24.07.
To be honest, I wish him or her luck, even though I won't be seeing a penny of the profit. However, if the copy does eventually sell, I might try their technique for myself!
In the meantime, if you want to buy a eBook copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology you can do so by clicking any of the links on Books tab at the top of this page. The book is now available at Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo, and Smashwords, with many more stores still to come.
For example, I give you the case of a user named "Stork Media" on the Barnes & Noble store. He or she has a paperback copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology and are selling it for $24.07.
To be honest, I wish him or her luck, even though I won't be seeing a penny of the profit. However, if the copy does eventually sell, I might try their technique for myself!
In the meantime, if you want to buy a eBook copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology you can do so by clicking any of the links on Books tab at the top of this page. The book is now available at Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo, and Smashwords, with many more stores still to come.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
The Big-ish Reveal
The Complete Bubby Anthology is now available for purchase at Smashwords, along will all five individual tales.
So for those of you that own a Nook, and couldn't read the Kindle versions, you are now in luck! To get your ePub version, click here.
Now, you may be wondering, "Hey, I've never heard of Smashwords. Is it safe to purchase from their site?"
The answer, of course, is "Yes. They have you pay through your PayPal account, so your transaction is completely secure."
To which you say, "Thank you for enlightening me."
To which I would reply, "Think nothing of it. It was my pleasure. I'm glad we had this talk."
If you're still unsure, you can wait until the book is distributed, by Smashwords, to major book stores, like Barnes & Noble and Apple's iBookstore (probably within 1-2 weeks).
In the meantime, I would like to thank the site, Bailey's EZ Reader Picks for promoting The Complete Bubby Anthology on day one of its availability at Smashwords. Usually I'm stuck at the bottom or middle of a mass of books on promotional sites. However, on Bailey's list, I'm #1. So, thank you!
So for those of you that own a Nook, and couldn't read the Kindle versions, you are now in luck! To get your ePub version, click here.
Now, you may be wondering, "Hey, I've never heard of Smashwords. Is it safe to purchase from their site?"
The answer, of course, is "Yes. They have you pay through your PayPal account, so your transaction is completely secure."
To which you say, "Thank you for enlightening me."
To which I would reply, "Think nothing of it. It was my pleasure. I'm glad we had this talk."
If you're still unsure, you can wait until the book is distributed, by Smashwords, to major book stores, like Barnes & Noble and Apple's iBookstore (probably within 1-2 weeks).
In the meantime, I would like to thank the site, Bailey's EZ Reader Picks for promoting The Complete Bubby Anthology on day one of its availability at Smashwords. Usually I'm stuck at the bottom or middle of a mass of books on promotional sites. However, on Bailey's list, I'm #1. So, thank you!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Free eBooks - Today Through Thursday
Yes, that's right, today, tomorrow, and the next day, you can download all five singular episodes of Bubby for just pennies. Well, less than pennies, actually, because they're free. FREE, I tell ya!
In case you need each of the individual links, here they are:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other
Bubby II - Freak Attack
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies
Update - Tuesday 6:00 a.m.:
First off, I would like to preface the following statement with a disclaimer. Outside of yesterday's post on this blog, I've done zero promotion for these books. Now, to the data:
Each book currently has one download each.
There, I said it.
Update - Tuesday 7:00 a.m.:
In all this time, I had never sold any copies of The Complete Bubby Anthology in paperback. Granted, there had been four sales of the Kindle edition, and one sale of Bubby I, but not a single paperback sale.
So you can imagine my surprise when I saw, over the weekend, that there had been a paperback sale and that, just yesterday, there had been yet another. This morning it stands ranked at #302,815 in the Amazon bookstore (I can't quite remember what it reached last night, though it was in the 200,000's).
Well, no new news to share about the current promotion, so I'll post another update later.
Update - Tuesday 4:00 p.m.:
Wow, it has been a busy day. Sorry for not posting an update sooner. However, in my defense, not much has been happening. Anyway, here is the current tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 12
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 15
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 15
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 15
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 15
As expected, episodes II through V are being downloaded more, since episode I already had been offered for free a month ago. We'll see how the numbers grow as people get off work and decide to download themselves some free books.
Update - Tuesday 10:00 p.m.:
I've just been alerted that Kindle Nation Daily, through no effort on my part, listed all five books on their free list, both in the Humor and YA / Kids categories (go see for yourself).
After you return from checking that out, here is the download count as it stands this evening:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 22
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 32
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 33
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 33
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 31
I honestly have no idea why a certain someone would download episodes III and IV, but skip episode II. I've been refreshing the page periodically through the night to see if the number ever catches up, but it never does. I mean, I can understand missing episode V, if you didn't know there was one. But II comes before III and IV... seriously, how do you miss a free download?!
I guess I'll just have a fitful night's rest trying to reconcile the issue in my head.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 a.m.:
What a relief! As I awoke this morning the download count made a little more sense:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 38
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 49
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 49
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 48
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 45
Now we just need to see if these books can reach the two day count The Complete Bubby Anthology achieved without any advertising (89). We're halfway there, I think it is manageable.
Also noteworthy: Bubby III reached the #1 spot on the Superhero chart. Hooray!
Update - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.:
We're doing pretty well. Even Bubby I has peaked at #1 (in the Superhero category) - and it has been downloaded the least of all five.
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 56
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 63
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 63
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 62
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 61
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
Gee, things have really tanked since yesterday evening. I'm rather at a loss for words. So, without further ado, here is the current tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 63
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 68
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 68
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 67
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 66
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
Things continue to go slowly throughout the afternoon and evening. Just yesterday I was thinking that each of the five episodes would beat (or at least tie) what The Complete Bubby Anthology accomplished in its last free run (which was 89 downloads). Alas, it does not appear to be likely anymore.
And now, the download tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 67
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 71
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 71
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 70
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 70
Update - Friday 8:00 a.m.:
Thursday was a lousy day for free downloads, as you can see from the ending tally below:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 70
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 74
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 74
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 73
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 73
Now we just have to wait and see if the promotion period results in any additional sales.
And, now that the KDP Select exclusivity period is over, the Smashwords ePub editions should be rolling out shortly (probably tomorrow). In the meantime, you can already pick up The Complete Bubby Anthology at Smashwords right now.
In case you need each of the individual links, here they are:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other
Bubby II - Freak Attack
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies
Update - Tuesday 6:00 a.m.:
First off, I would like to preface the following statement with a disclaimer. Outside of yesterday's post on this blog, I've done zero promotion for these books. Now, to the data:
Each book currently has one download each.
There, I said it.
Update - Tuesday 7:00 a.m.:
In all this time, I had never sold any copies of The Complete Bubby Anthology in paperback. Granted, there had been four sales of the Kindle edition, and one sale of Bubby I, but not a single paperback sale.
So you can imagine my surprise when I saw, over the weekend, that there had been a paperback sale and that, just yesterday, there had been yet another. This morning it stands ranked at #302,815 in the Amazon bookstore (I can't quite remember what it reached last night, though it was in the 200,000's).
Well, no new news to share about the current promotion, so I'll post another update later.
Update - Tuesday 4:00 p.m.:
Wow, it has been a busy day. Sorry for not posting an update sooner. However, in my defense, not much has been happening. Anyway, here is the current tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 12
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 15
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 15
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 15
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 15
As expected, episodes II through V are being downloaded more, since episode I already had been offered for free a month ago. We'll see how the numbers grow as people get off work and decide to download themselves some free books.
Update - Tuesday 10:00 p.m.:
I've just been alerted that Kindle Nation Daily, through no effort on my part, listed all five books on their free list, both in the Humor and YA / Kids categories (go see for yourself).
After you return from checking that out, here is the download count as it stands this evening:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 22
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 32
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 33
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 33
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 31
I honestly have no idea why a certain someone would download episodes III and IV, but skip episode II. I've been refreshing the page periodically through the night to see if the number ever catches up, but it never does. I mean, I can understand missing episode V, if you didn't know there was one. But II comes before III and IV... seriously, how do you miss a free download?!
I guess I'll just have a fitful night's rest trying to reconcile the issue in my head.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 a.m.:
What a relief! As I awoke this morning the download count made a little more sense:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 38
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 49
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 49
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 48
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 45
Now we just need to see if these books can reach the two day count The Complete Bubby Anthology achieved without any advertising (89). We're halfway there, I think it is manageable.
Also noteworthy: Bubby III reached the #1 spot on the Superhero chart. Hooray!
Update - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.:
We're doing pretty well. Even Bubby I has peaked at #1 (in the Superhero category) - and it has been downloaded the least of all five.
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 56
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 63
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 63
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 62
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 61
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
Gee, things have really tanked since yesterday evening. I'm rather at a loss for words. So, without further ado, here is the current tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 63
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 68
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 68
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 67
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 66
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
Things continue to go slowly throughout the afternoon and evening. Just yesterday I was thinking that each of the five episodes would beat (or at least tie) what The Complete Bubby Anthology accomplished in its last free run (which was 89 downloads). Alas, it does not appear to be likely anymore.
And now, the download tally:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 67
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 71
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 71
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 70
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 70
Update - Friday 8:00 a.m.:
Thursday was a lousy day for free downloads, as you can see from the ending tally below:
Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other - 70
Bubby II - Freak Attack - 74
Bubby III - Pessimists of America Unite - 74
Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence - 73
Bubby V - Napping With the Froggies - 73
Now we just have to wait and see if the promotion period results in any additional sales.
And, now that the KDP Select exclusivity period is over, the Smashwords ePub editions should be rolling out shortly (probably tomorrow). In the meantime, you can already pick up The Complete Bubby Anthology at Smashwords right now.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Project Cast Away
First off, what is Project Cast Away?
Well, from Tuesday to Thursday, I will be giving away free copies of all five Bubby stories on Amazon.com. This is to use up the remaining KDP promotional days before my contract ends and I am able to publish all of these stories in other online stores, such as Barnes & Noble and the iStore.
So, in case you missed out on getting your copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology when it was available for free last week, you can get all five stories for free beginning tomorrow. The only thing you won't get is the interviews that come with the complete anthology edition. Come to think of it, maybe you actually do want to pony up the cash and pay for these stories in their commemorative, collective edition.
At some point this Saturday I plan to have all the books available at Smashwords. So, if you've been holding out for an ePub version of the stories, you'll be in luck soon.
Well, from Tuesday to Thursday, I will be giving away free copies of all five Bubby stories on Amazon.com. This is to use up the remaining KDP promotional days before my contract ends and I am able to publish all of these stories in other online stores, such as Barnes & Noble and the iStore.
So, in case you missed out on getting your copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology when it was available for free last week, you can get all five stories for free beginning tomorrow. The only thing you won't get is the interviews that come with the complete anthology edition. Come to think of it, maybe you actually do want to pony up the cash and pay for these stories in their commemorative, collective edition.
At some point this Saturday I plan to have all the books available at Smashwords. So, if you've been holding out for an ePub version of the stories, you'll be in luck soon.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
$5.99... Are You Out of Your Mind?
There has been debate for some time among indie authors as to what price point is the best for selling eBooks. Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords, did some analysis and noted that authors receive the greatest profit from book sold between $2.99 and $5.99. (as seen on slide 58 of the embedded slideshow below:
He also noted (on slide 61) that most books do not sell well (The Complete Bubby Anthology being part of that category).
Since I have nothing to lose, I figured I would try a weekend or two at the $5.99 price point, rather than $3.99. Likewise, the individual tales are now listed at $1.99 rather than $0.99.
If the experiment fails, then so be it. As I said, I've got nothing to lose.
Of course, those of you actually reading this blog are probably wondering why I'm screwing you over. Well, as a reward to you, I can give you a 99.9% guarantee that the prices will revert. The 0.1% gives me an out in case I sell a ridiculous number of copies at $5.99. Since I don't believe that will actually happen, I can pretty much guarantee that the $3.99 price point will return shortly.
One thing I can promise is that all the original price points will be available when I publish on Smashwords next week. If Amazon's bots are doing their job, they'll recognize the cheaper price and adjust Amazon's price accordingly (though it might be another week or so before they do).
He also noted (on slide 61) that most books do not sell well (The Complete Bubby Anthology being part of that category).
Since I have nothing to lose, I figured I would try a weekend or two at the $5.99 price point, rather than $3.99. Likewise, the individual tales are now listed at $1.99 rather than $0.99.
If the experiment fails, then so be it. As I said, I've got nothing to lose.
Of course, those of you actually reading this blog are probably wondering why I'm screwing you over. Well, as a reward to you, I can give you a 99.9% guarantee that the prices will revert. The 0.1% gives me an out in case I sell a ridiculous number of copies at $5.99. Since I don't believe that will actually happen, I can pretty much guarantee that the $3.99 price point will return shortly.
One thing I can promise is that all the original price points will be available when I publish on Smashwords next week. If Amazon's bots are doing their job, they'll recognize the cheaper price and adjust Amazon's price accordingly (though it might be another week or so before they do).
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Operation Smash Begins... NOW!
What is Operation Smash? Well, there are a few meanings.
1) It refers to the fact that The Complete Bubby Anthology will soon be available through Smashwords.
2) It refers to the hope that we will smash the total number of free downloads from last month's promo.
3) Finally, it refers to your ability to download a copy of the book for free on Amazon, right now (which our British readers might describe at "simply smashing")!
If Amazon is as on top of things as it was last time, the free promotion for The Complete Bubby Anthology should be live. However, I'm asleep right now, so I can't really check it myself. I'll find out in a few hours, at which point I'll update you on the progress, just as I did last time.
Update - Wednesday 7:00 a.m.:
We have yet to be featured on any of the sites I mentioned in Monday's post. However, it is still early and many of them have yet to do their morning posts for the day.
My KDP sales reports is a tad slow today, stating, "There are no sales to report during this period." Nevertheless, copies are being downloaded, as The Complete Bubby Anthology is currently ranked #17,807 Free in the Kindle Store. As well as #3 in Superheroes and #4 in Comedy.
I'll try to update again when the KDP system gets back up and running.
Update - Wednesday 1:00 p.m.:
Well, I suppose this is why other indie authors recommend waiting at least one month before putting your book up for free a second time... we have only 7 downloads so far. That's right, just 7. We were doing much better last time around.
Nevertheless, since the only paid sales for the book have come on the weekends, I don't feel like I'm losing anything by using up the rest of my KDP freebie days today and tomorrow.
In the meantime, I should probably note that 7 sales gets a book up to #11,076 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 4:00 p.m.:
Here is some interesting math for you. We now have 9 total downloads (yes, I know it looks pathetic). However, with those two "sales," The Complete Bubby Anthology jumped to #5,639 Free in the Kindle Store.
That's right, the book jumped 5,437 spots with just two more downloads. I can only imagine that there are a lot of books with only 8 downloads today. It's sad really, but there it is.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 p.m.:
5 more downloads in the past hour has pushed us to 14 total downloads. This also takes us to #5,006 Free in the Kindle Store.
I was surprised to see five downloads in two hours, when it had taken well over half the day to get just nine. At first I thought we'd finally made one of the promotional lists, but it seems I was mistaken. Perhaps the two five-star reviews of the book were not enough to entice the sites to promote The Complete Bubby Anthology. Oh well, I suppose there is still a possibility of it happening this evening or tomorrow.
Update - Wednesday 8:00 p.m.:
We are now sitting at 18 total downloads. Intriguingly, while two sales caused The Complete Bubby Anthology to jump over 5,000 spots in the rankings just a few hours ago, four sales at the present moment led to falling back to #5,041 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 11:00 p.m.:
24 total downloads as the day draws to a close. That places us at #3,600 Free in the Kindle Store (such a strangely round number).
Still no love from the eBook promotion sites. We'll see what happens tomorrow.
Update - Thursday 8:00 a.m.:
Somehow, overnight, we've practically doubled the number of downloads. There have now been 47 total downloads, placing The Complete Bubby Anthology at #3,010 Free in Kindle Store.
Still no help from the eBook promotion sites, so I guess there are just a lot of late night shoppers in the world.
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
It's high noon - do you know where your favorite epic novel is? Well, assuming that your favorite epic novel-ish item is The Complete Bubby Anthology, then you might want to know that there have now been 54 total downloads, placing it at #2,263 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Thursday 4:00 p.m.:
There are presently 70 total downloads, bringing us to #2,143 Free in the Kindle Store.
If we can get to 100 downloads at the end of this promotion, I suppose I'll consider it a success - especially with a lack of promotional consideration.
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
With 83 total downloads, The Complete Bubby Anthology has reached #2,003 Free in the Kindle Store.
100 downloads is still achievable, depending on how the night goes.
Update - Friday 6:00 a.m.:
So the promotion ends with 89 total downloads. Not quite 100, but still a decent promotion. For now, we fall back to #473,514 Paid in the Kindle Store.
In the mean time, you may be wondering what to do with yourself now that the coolest book around is no longer free. Well, you could either pay for a copy in paperback. Or, if you're still looking for free stuff, order yourself a free sample of Jelly-Kids. Enjoy!
1) It refers to the fact that The Complete Bubby Anthology will soon be available through Smashwords.
2) It refers to the hope that we will smash the total number of free downloads from last month's promo.
3) Finally, it refers to your ability to download a copy of the book for free on Amazon, right now (which our British readers might describe at "simply smashing")!
If Amazon is as on top of things as it was last time, the free promotion for The Complete Bubby Anthology should be live. However, I'm asleep right now, so I can't really check it myself. I'll find out in a few hours, at which point I'll update you on the progress, just as I did last time.
Update - Wednesday 7:00 a.m.:
We have yet to be featured on any of the sites I mentioned in Monday's post. However, it is still early and many of them have yet to do their morning posts for the day.
My KDP sales reports is a tad slow today, stating, "There are no sales to report during this period." Nevertheless, copies are being downloaded, as The Complete Bubby Anthology is currently ranked #17,807 Free in the Kindle Store. As well as #3 in Superheroes and #4 in Comedy.
I'll try to update again when the KDP system gets back up and running.
Update - Wednesday 1:00 p.m.:
Well, I suppose this is why other indie authors recommend waiting at least one month before putting your book up for free a second time... we have only 7 downloads so far. That's right, just 7. We were doing much better last time around.
Nevertheless, since the only paid sales for the book have come on the weekends, I don't feel like I'm losing anything by using up the rest of my KDP freebie days today and tomorrow.
In the meantime, I should probably note that 7 sales gets a book up to #11,076 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 4:00 p.m.:
Here is some interesting math for you. We now have 9 total downloads (yes, I know it looks pathetic). However, with those two "sales," The Complete Bubby Anthology jumped to #5,639 Free in the Kindle Store.
That's right, the book jumped 5,437 spots with just two more downloads. I can only imagine that there are a lot of books with only 8 downloads today. It's sad really, but there it is.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 p.m.:
5 more downloads in the past hour has pushed us to 14 total downloads. This also takes us to #5,006 Free in the Kindle Store.
I was surprised to see five downloads in two hours, when it had taken well over half the day to get just nine. At first I thought we'd finally made one of the promotional lists, but it seems I was mistaken. Perhaps the two five-star reviews of the book were not enough to entice the sites to promote The Complete Bubby Anthology. Oh well, I suppose there is still a possibility of it happening this evening or tomorrow.
Update - Wednesday 8:00 p.m.:
We are now sitting at 18 total downloads. Intriguingly, while two sales caused The Complete Bubby Anthology to jump over 5,000 spots in the rankings just a few hours ago, four sales at the present moment led to falling back to #5,041 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 11:00 p.m.:
24 total downloads as the day draws to a close. That places us at #3,600 Free in the Kindle Store (such a strangely round number).
Still no love from the eBook promotion sites. We'll see what happens tomorrow.
Update - Thursday 8:00 a.m.:
Somehow, overnight, we've practically doubled the number of downloads. There have now been 47 total downloads, placing The Complete Bubby Anthology at #3,010 Free in Kindle Store.
Still no help from the eBook promotion sites, so I guess there are just a lot of late night shoppers in the world.
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
It's high noon - do you know where your favorite epic novel is? Well, assuming that your favorite epic novel-ish item is The Complete Bubby Anthology, then you might want to know that there have now been 54 total downloads, placing it at #2,263 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Thursday 4:00 p.m.:
There are presently 70 total downloads, bringing us to #2,143 Free in the Kindle Store.
If we can get to 100 downloads at the end of this promotion, I suppose I'll consider it a success - especially with a lack of promotional consideration.
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
With 83 total downloads, The Complete Bubby Anthology has reached #2,003 Free in the Kindle Store.
100 downloads is still achievable, depending on how the night goes.
Update - Friday 6:00 a.m.:
So the promotion ends with 89 total downloads. Not quite 100, but still a decent promotion. For now, we fall back to #473,514 Paid in the Kindle Store.
In the mean time, you may be wondering what to do with yourself now that the coolest book around is no longer free. Well, you could either pay for a copy in paperback. Or, if you're still looking for free stuff, order yourself a free sample of Jelly-Kids. Enjoy!
Monday, July 30, 2012
Smashwords Countdown
The Complete Bubby Anthology ends its KDP Select run on August 3rd. However, since the individual books were not uploaded to Amazon until a week later, I cannot make the books available on other platforms until after August 10th. However, when that day comes, I plan to have an ePub version available through Smashwords, which will distribute the book through all the other major eBook stores.
So, until then, I've decided to throw a farewell party to KDP Select and offer The Complete Bubby Anthology for free for two additional days.
My promotional efforts will include opportunities for repentance for the eBook promotion sites that ignored the book previously. These include:
Pixel of Ink
Free Books Hub
Bargain eBook Hunter
Ereader News Today (Skipped previously due to not having enough 4.0+ reviews)
Free Kindle Books and Tips (Also skipped previously, for the same reason)
However, I am not giving the various "free stuff" websites another chance. Last time I tried to promote through them, I got zero support from them. If they want to post a link to the freebie, so be it, but I'm not sending out multiple notices to them again.
So join the party this Wednesday. If you didn't get a free copy last month, here is your last chance. If you did get a free copy, then encourage your friends to get one. If you don't have any friends, then join Facebook and poke Mark Zuckerberg.
So, until then, I've decided to throw a farewell party to KDP Select and offer The Complete Bubby Anthology for free for two additional days.
My promotional efforts will include opportunities for repentance for the eBook promotion sites that ignored the book previously. These include:
Pixel of Ink
Free Books Hub
Bargain eBook Hunter
Ereader News Today (Skipped previously due to not having enough 4.0+ reviews)
Free Kindle Books and Tips (Also skipped previously, for the same reason)
However, I am not giving the various "free stuff" websites another chance. Last time I tried to promote through them, I got zero support from them. If they want to post a link to the freebie, so be it, but I'm not sending out multiple notices to them again.
So join the party this Wednesday. If you didn't get a free copy last month, here is your last chance. If you did get a free copy, then encourage your friends to get one. If you don't have any friends, then join Facebook and poke Mark Zuckerberg.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Nobulescence
An astute reader from Hawaii recently observed that, when you search for the term "Nobulescence" in Google, Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence tops the results page. In fact, it is all of the top 7 results, as Google gives you the option to view the book on Amazon's international pages as well.
I gotta say, that feels good to see... even though Google asks me if I really mean "Noblessence." It just puts a warm feeling in my heart to know that I added a jibberish word to Google's search engine.
When I replied to the reader, he noted that, as a professor at one of the universities in Hawaii, he decided to add the term "Nobulescence" to a recent multiple-choice quiz (I can only assume it was the *correct* answer).
So not only is Nobulescence a Google term, it is now associated with higher learning. In other words, you should buy Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence today. You just might feel smarter for doing so.
I gotta say, that feels good to see... even though Google asks me if I really mean "Noblessence." It just puts a warm feeling in my heart to know that I added a jibberish word to Google's search engine.
When I replied to the reader, he noted that, as a professor at one of the universities in Hawaii, he decided to add the term "Nobulescence" to a recent multiple-choice quiz (I can only assume it was the *correct* answer).
So not only is Nobulescence a Google term, it is now associated with higher learning. In other words, you should buy Bubby IV - Return to Nobulescence today. You just might feel smarter for doing so.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Free eBooks - The Aftermath
So, many of you may be wondering what the result of free giveaways is when a book is enrolled in KDP Select (and whether KDP Select is worth doing for your book).
Two weeks ago, on Friday and Saturday, Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other was given away for free, generating 47 downloads. Prior to that time, it had sold 1 copy at regular price over the course of two months. It is interesting to note that one sale jumped the book to #114,587 in the Kindle store. That means that there are about a million books on Amazon that are not selling anything on a regular basis.
Since the promotion, the total sales has been: 0.
It is currently ranked #701,526 in the Kindle Store and #100 in the Superheroes category (so it will probably fall off tomorrow).
Last week, from Wednesday through Friday, The Complete Bubby Anthology was given away for free, generating 227 downloads. Prior to that time, it had sold 2 copies at regular price over the course of two months.
When I checked the book on Sunday, there was one sale, which led to a big jump in the paid rankings:
Since that time, it has dropped to #286,634 overall and down to #38 in the Superheroes category. It has completely dropped off the Top 100 for Comedy.
So, is enrolling a book in KDP Select worth the hassle?
For me, yes... with some conditions.
I will probably continue to launch my books first on Amazon for the 90 days required by KDP Select. My hope is that doing so will build some word of mouth, after which point I will spread out to additional platforms, such as Smashwords, which distributes to Barnes & Noble, the Apple iStore, and more.
For people already selling well on other platforms, I don't see any real benefit to unlisting your book on other platforms (as required by KDP Select), as it appears that your sales on Amazon will remain about the same following your free promotion as it was before.
If there is a sudden dramatic increase in sales over the course of the remaining month that my books are enrolled in KDP Select, perhaps then I will re-evaluate my recommendation - though I will probably still only enroll my own books for the first 90 days after publication.
Two weeks ago, on Friday and Saturday, Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other was given away for free, generating 47 downloads. Prior to that time, it had sold 1 copy at regular price over the course of two months. It is interesting to note that one sale jumped the book to #114,587 in the Kindle store. That means that there are about a million books on Amazon that are not selling anything on a regular basis.
Since the promotion, the total sales has been: 0.
It is currently ranked #701,526 in the Kindle Store and #100 in the Superheroes category (so it will probably fall off tomorrow).
Last week, from Wednesday through Friday, The Complete Bubby Anthology was given away for free, generating 227 downloads. Prior to that time, it had sold 2 copies at regular price over the course of two months.
When I checked the book on Sunday, there was one sale, which led to a big jump in the paid rankings:
Since that time, it has dropped to #286,634 overall and down to #38 in the Superheroes category. It has completely dropped off the Top 100 for Comedy.
So, is enrolling a book in KDP Select worth the hassle?
For me, yes... with some conditions.
I will probably continue to launch my books first on Amazon for the 90 days required by KDP Select. My hope is that doing so will build some word of mouth, after which point I will spread out to additional platforms, such as Smashwords, which distributes to Barnes & Noble, the Apple iStore, and more.
For people already selling well on other platforms, I don't see any real benefit to unlisting your book on other platforms (as required by KDP Select), as it appears that your sales on Amazon will remain about the same following your free promotion as it was before.
If there is a sudden dramatic increase in sales over the course of the remaining month that my books are enrolled in KDP Select, perhaps then I will re-evaluate my recommendation - though I will probably still only enroll my own books for the first 90 days after publication.
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Free eBook Today Through Friday!
If Amazon is on the ball, the free promotion for The Complete Bubby Anthology should be going live right about... NOW.
As I have done more research on the KDP Select Program in which I'm enrolled, I've learned a disturbing new truth - free "sales" no longer count equal to paid sales in Amazon's best-seller rankings. This has been the case for nearly two months now, as Edward W. Robertson pointed out. His estimation is that all of the free downloads will count for about 1/10 of a paid sale.
So, Bubby Nation, take heart! Spread the word and let's get The Complete Bubby Anthology selling like hotcakes today, tomorrow and Friday (delicious, hilarious hotcakes)! Instead of 100,000 copies, we'll just "sell" 1,000,000. That's totally do-able... right?
I'll plan to keep updating this post throughout the remainder of this promotion to let you know how we're doing.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 a.m.:
So far we have 4 downloads. Though, to be fair, it is early and none of the sites dedicated to promoting eBooks has gotten around to posting their listings for today. Hopefully things will leap forward to 1,000,000 by noon (or at least by Friday).
I suppose it may be a blessing in disguise, as The Complete Bubby Anthology is still listed as non-fiction (I should really get around to reminding Amazon's KDP Support to update that).
Update - Wednesday 7:00 a.m.:
No real changes to report. I've also been looking over the free stuff sites and it seems to be a bit early for them to have posted anything yet. On the plus side, I learned that today (7/11), you can get a free 7.11oz Slurpee at 7-11. Also, you can get a FREE National Feral Cat Day® Magnet. Enjoy!
Update - Wednesday 10:00 a.m.:
We are now ranked #6,683 Free in the Kindle Store after having 20 downloads. Still no posts on the major eBook promotion sites. On the plus side, it is ahead of where Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other was at, and that promotion started on a Friday. Since more sale occur on Fridays than Wednesdays, The Complete Bubby Anthology is in pretty good shape. Once word spreads, we'll probably explode (not literally though - that would probably hurt!)
Update - Wednesday 11:00 a.m.:
Finally got a listing on one of the major sites: Free eBooks Daily. Thank you, Sharrel.
Update - Wednesday 12:00 p.m.:
The Complete Bubby Anthology is also now listed on Indie Books List.
Thanks to this initial publicity, we have had 34 downloads and are ranked at #4,433 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 2:00 p.m.:
In 12 hours we have stormed past the number of downloads that Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other took 48 hours to get! The Complete Bubby Anthology is ranked #2,866 Free in the Kindle Store and has been downloaded 52 times.
Also, I finally heard back from KDP about my category change request. It has been completed, so hopefully within a few hours the updates will appear in the system and we should show up on some Top 100 lists.
Update - Wednesday 5:00 p.m.:
We're doing well thus far today. As the work day comes to a close, we're sitting at #1,928 Free in the Kindle Store after receiving 72 downloads. Hopefully everyone getting off work will take the time to download a copy to read when they get home.
Update - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.:
I received an e-mail from a friend today noting that Mr. Sulu has no love for Twilight. Essentially, George Takei argues that "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" fans should band together, because both series deal with heroism, camaraderie and epic battles. In comparison, he notes that "In 'Twilight,' the only message that rings through loud and clear is: 'Does my boyfriend like me?'" In other words, do we really want epic tales being over-run by such sissy tales?
So join me in supporting heroism and epic battles by purchasing your copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology for FREE right now.
Currently, we are up to #1,733 Free in the Kindle Store with 81 total downloads. It is a far cry from the goal of 1,000,000 downloads we were shooting for, but I suppose there is always tomorrow (though if we could reach that number tonight, that would be fantastic).
Update - Wednesday 8:00 p.m.:
The promotion continues. With a quick Google search, I found that The Complete Bubby Anthology has been promoted on Slick Deals, CheapCheapCheap.com, and eBooks Free Free Free. Thank you to everyone getting the word out.
Update - Wednesday 10:00 p.m.:
Good news! The Complete Bubby Anthology has reached exactly 100 downloads! It is also ranked #1,587 Free in the Kindle Store.
Now, even though Amazon has finally recognized the book's true categories when you search for the book, Amazon's Top 100 has yet to kick in for either category. To refresh your memory, the book was recently moved to the following categories:
Humor > Comedy
Children's eBooks > Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror > Superheroes
How do I know that the book should be in the Top 100 in each category? Because there are only two other books listed as free in both categories. So that question is, where does The Complete Bubby Anthology fit?
Comedy:
1. The Shrew Untamed by James Carter, Bonnie Van De Ven (Ranked #752 Free)
2. Total Moisture (The Toby Series) by Robert MacLean (Ranked #810 Free)
Thus, The Complete Bubby Anthology would come it at #3.
Also, in the "Humor" category, it should be #41.
Superheroes:
1. Wandering Koala rides The Phantom Coach comic 1 by Jeff Thomason (Ranked #2,544 Free)
2. Invisible Justice (Justice Series) by Kim Jewell (Ranked #4,136 Free)
In other words, The Complete Bubby Anthology is the #1 Bestselling Superhero book on Amazon!
Also, in the "Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror" category, it should be #55.
But, back to the big news: We're #1!
Now I just need the Amazon computers to figure that out so I can take a picture of this fact. (If anyone knows how to get Amazon to recognize this fact - other than suggestions to be patient - please let me know!)
Update - Thursday 7:00 a.m.:
Good morning everyone! Thanks to night owls, we are now sitting at 131 downloads and a ranking of #1,334 Free in the Kindle Store.
Hopefully we can crack the #1,000 ranking barrier today (although the top 10 barrier would be cool too).
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
Sad news to report. From 6:00 a.m. to noon yesterday, we had 30 downloads. Today, during that same time, we have only had 10. That's right, the total download count currently stands at 141. As a result, the ranking has dropped 50 spots to #1,384 Free in the Kindle Store.
I feel like an NPR station manager when I say this, but The Complete Bubby Anthology really needs your support if it is going to maintain the pace needed to get in to the top 1000 Free books in the Kindle Store. Please help!
Update - Thursday 3:00 p.m.:
Time for your friendly NPR update: There have been 9 copies sold in the last three hours, for a grand total of 150. That places us at #1,618 Free in the Kindle Store. In other words, we are headed in the wrong direction.
We cannot move forward while averaging only 3 downloads every hour. Using the benchmark of 131 downloads in the first day, we will need to average 7 downloads every hour through 7:00 a.m. tomorrow to match yesterday's pace. So step it up Bubby Nation! I know you can do it!
If you need extra inspiration, how does this look?
That's right! The Complete Bubby Anthology is officially the #1 Superhero book and the #3 Comedy book on Amazon! Spread the joyous news by telling all of your friends, acquaintances, and random strangers!
For those of you who wonder such things, The Complete Bubby Anthology also comes in #53 in Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror and #40 in Humor.
Update - Thursday 5:00 p.m.:
9 more copies sold in the last two hours bring our total to 159, with a ranking of #1,719 Free in the Kindle Store. While we've picked up the average, we are not quite on the pace we need to be to reach our total yesterday. Hopefully the new crown of being the #1 Superhero book and the #3 Comedy book will bring more customers around to Bubby Nation.
Update - Thursday 7:00 p.m.:
170 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,751 Free in the Kindle Store.
I should also thank Danielle Kazemi for promoting the book on Twitter yesterday.
She refers to the book as "Worth a read." Frankly, that is probably the best review of the book ever written. I don't know who she is, but you should all start following her to show your appreciation.
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
180 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,737 Free in the Kindle Store.
On an interesting side note, Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other is ranked #85 Paid in Superheroes. Buy yourself a copy for just 99 cents (or download The Complete Bubby Anthology right now for free and get Bubby I plus the four episodes that follow.
Update - Friday 7:00 a.m.:
200 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,505 Free in the Kindle Store (so at least we're headed back in the right direction today).
Update - Friday 10:00 a.m.:
202 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,459 Free in the Kindle Store.
I'm not really sure how having only two downloads over the course of three hours helped the book move up the rankings, but I guess I'll take it.
Update - Friday 1:00 p.m.:
208 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,741 Free in the Kindle Store.
The slowdown in downloads seems to finally be taking a toll.
Update - Friday 4:00 p.m.:
215 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,884 Free in the Kindle Store.
It appears that the dream of cracking the top 1,000 in the Kindle Store will not come to fruition - barring a miracle, like Ereader News Today accepting the book for their evening listing now that there are two 5-star reviews for the book. I suppose we'll have to wait and see.
Update - Friday 7:00 p.m.:
218 total downloads, with a ranking that seems to have mysteriously disappeared...
I do not know why, but the book seems to have reverted to the paid rankings, even though it is still free. I have written to Amazon Support, but I am not anticipating a prompt response, as it is the weekend, meaning sales will likely be hurt for the remainder of the 7 hours of the promotion.
Update - Friday 10:00 p.m.:
221 total downloads, with a ranking of #2,016 Free in the Kindle Store.
The Amazon support people are going to respond to my e-mail and call me crazy... oh well, I suppose they wouldn't be the first.
Update - Saturday 6:00 a.m.:
Well, we ended up with a total of 227 total downloads. How that will bode for sales of The Complete Bubby Anthology will remain to be seen. Hopefully those who got the book will spread the word of its excellence.
However, if there is anything to be learned from all this, a book's success appears to depend almost entirely on luck. I say that now, and I'll continue to say that if any of my future books actually ever become a #1 Best Seller.
In the mean time, we are back into the paid side of Amazon's rankings, with a ranking of #834,416 Paid in Kindle Store.
Thanks for all your support these past few days. I'll try to post again within a week to discuss the aftermath.
As I have done more research on the KDP Select Program in which I'm enrolled, I've learned a disturbing new truth - free "sales" no longer count equal to paid sales in Amazon's best-seller rankings. This has been the case for nearly two months now, as Edward W. Robertson pointed out. His estimation is that all of the free downloads will count for about 1/10 of a paid sale.
So, Bubby Nation, take heart! Spread the word and let's get The Complete Bubby Anthology selling like hotcakes today, tomorrow and Friday (delicious, hilarious hotcakes)! Instead of 100,000 copies, we'll just "sell" 1,000,000. That's totally do-able... right?
I'll plan to keep updating this post throughout the remainder of this promotion to let you know how we're doing.
Update - Wednesday 6:00 a.m.:
So far we have 4 downloads. Though, to be fair, it is early and none of the sites dedicated to promoting eBooks has gotten around to posting their listings for today. Hopefully things will leap forward to 1,000,000 by noon (or at least by Friday).
I suppose it may be a blessing in disguise, as The Complete Bubby Anthology is still listed as non-fiction (I should really get around to reminding Amazon's KDP Support to update that).
Update - Wednesday 7:00 a.m.:
No real changes to report. I've also been looking over the free stuff sites and it seems to be a bit early for them to have posted anything yet. On the plus side, I learned that today (7/11), you can get a free 7.11oz Slurpee at 7-11. Also, you can get a FREE National Feral Cat Day® Magnet. Enjoy!
Update - Wednesday 10:00 a.m.:
We are now ranked #6,683 Free in the Kindle Store after having 20 downloads. Still no posts on the major eBook promotion sites. On the plus side, it is ahead of where Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other was at, and that promotion started on a Friday. Since more sale occur on Fridays than Wednesdays, The Complete Bubby Anthology is in pretty good shape. Once word spreads, we'll probably explode (not literally though - that would probably hurt!)
Update - Wednesday 11:00 a.m.:
Finally got a listing on one of the major sites: Free eBooks Daily. Thank you, Sharrel.
Update - Wednesday 12:00 p.m.:
The Complete Bubby Anthology is also now listed on Indie Books List.
Thanks to this initial publicity, we have had 34 downloads and are ranked at #4,433 Free in the Kindle Store.
Update - Wednesday 2:00 p.m.:
In 12 hours we have stormed past the number of downloads that Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other took 48 hours to get! The Complete Bubby Anthology is ranked #2,866 Free in the Kindle Store and has been downloaded 52 times.
Also, I finally heard back from KDP about my category change request. It has been completed, so hopefully within a few hours the updates will appear in the system and we should show up on some Top 100 lists.
Update - Wednesday 5:00 p.m.:
We're doing well thus far today. As the work day comes to a close, we're sitting at #1,928 Free in the Kindle Store after receiving 72 downloads. Hopefully everyone getting off work will take the time to download a copy to read when they get home.
Update - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.:
I received an e-mail from a friend today noting that Mr. Sulu has no love for Twilight. Essentially, George Takei argues that "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" fans should band together, because both series deal with heroism, camaraderie and epic battles. In comparison, he notes that "In 'Twilight,' the only message that rings through loud and clear is: 'Does my boyfriend like me?'" In other words, do we really want epic tales being over-run by such sissy tales?
So join me in supporting heroism and epic battles by purchasing your copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology for FREE right now.
Currently, we are up to #1,733 Free in the Kindle Store with 81 total downloads. It is a far cry from the goal of 1,000,000 downloads we were shooting for, but I suppose there is always tomorrow (though if we could reach that number tonight, that would be fantastic).
Update - Wednesday 8:00 p.m.:
The promotion continues. With a quick Google search, I found that The Complete Bubby Anthology has been promoted on Slick Deals, CheapCheapCheap.com, and eBooks Free Free Free. Thank you to everyone getting the word out.
Update - Wednesday 10:00 p.m.:
Good news! The Complete Bubby Anthology has reached exactly 100 downloads! It is also ranked #1,587 Free in the Kindle Store.
Now, even though Amazon has finally recognized the book's true categories when you search for the book, Amazon's Top 100 has yet to kick in for either category. To refresh your memory, the book was recently moved to the following categories:
Humor > Comedy
Children's eBooks > Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror > Superheroes
How do I know that the book should be in the Top 100 in each category? Because there are only two other books listed as free in both categories. So that question is, where does The Complete Bubby Anthology fit?
Comedy:
1. The Shrew Untamed by James Carter, Bonnie Van De Ven (Ranked #752 Free)
2. Total Moisture (The Toby Series) by Robert MacLean (Ranked #810 Free)
Thus, The Complete Bubby Anthology would come it at #3.
Also, in the "Humor" category, it should be #41.
Superheroes:
1. Wandering Koala rides The Phantom Coach comic 1 by Jeff Thomason (Ranked #2,544 Free)
2. Invisible Justice (Justice Series) by Kim Jewell (Ranked #4,136 Free)
In other words, The Complete Bubby Anthology is the #1 Bestselling Superhero book on Amazon!
Also, in the "Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror" category, it should be #55.
But, back to the big news: We're #1!
Now I just need the Amazon computers to figure that out so I can take a picture of this fact. (If anyone knows how to get Amazon to recognize this fact - other than suggestions to be patient - please let me know!)
Update - Thursday 7:00 a.m.:
Good morning everyone! Thanks to night owls, we are now sitting at 131 downloads and a ranking of #1,334 Free in the Kindle Store.
Hopefully we can crack the #1,000 ranking barrier today (although the top 10 barrier would be cool too).
Update - Thursday 12:00 p.m.:
Sad news to report. From 6:00 a.m. to noon yesterday, we had 30 downloads. Today, during that same time, we have only had 10. That's right, the total download count currently stands at 141. As a result, the ranking has dropped 50 spots to #1,384 Free in the Kindle Store.
I feel like an NPR station manager when I say this, but The Complete Bubby Anthology really needs your support if it is going to maintain the pace needed to get in to the top 1000 Free books in the Kindle Store. Please help!
Update - Thursday 3:00 p.m.:
Time for your friendly NPR update: There have been 9 copies sold in the last three hours, for a grand total of 150. That places us at #1,618 Free in the Kindle Store. In other words, we are headed in the wrong direction.
We cannot move forward while averaging only 3 downloads every hour. Using the benchmark of 131 downloads in the first day, we will need to average 7 downloads every hour through 7:00 a.m. tomorrow to match yesterday's pace. So step it up Bubby Nation! I know you can do it!
If you need extra inspiration, how does this look?
That's right! The Complete Bubby Anthology is officially the #1 Superhero book and the #3 Comedy book on Amazon! Spread the joyous news by telling all of your friends, acquaintances, and random strangers!
For those of you who wonder such things, The Complete Bubby Anthology also comes in #53 in Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror and #40 in Humor.
Update - Thursday 5:00 p.m.:
9 more copies sold in the last two hours bring our total to 159, with a ranking of #1,719 Free in the Kindle Store. While we've picked up the average, we are not quite on the pace we need to be to reach our total yesterday. Hopefully the new crown of being the #1 Superhero book and the #3 Comedy book will bring more customers around to Bubby Nation.
Update - Thursday 7:00 p.m.:
170 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,751 Free in the Kindle Store.
I should also thank Danielle Kazemi for promoting the book on Twitter yesterday.
She refers to the book as "Worth a read." Frankly, that is probably the best review of the book ever written. I don't know who she is, but you should all start following her to show your appreciation.
Update - Thursday 9:00 p.m.:
180 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,737 Free in the Kindle Store.
On an interesting side note, Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other is ranked #85 Paid in Superheroes. Buy yourself a copy for just 99 cents (or download The Complete Bubby Anthology right now for free and get Bubby I plus the four episodes that follow.
Update - Friday 7:00 a.m.:
200 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,505 Free in the Kindle Store (so at least we're headed back in the right direction today).
Update - Friday 10:00 a.m.:
202 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,459 Free in the Kindle Store.
I'm not really sure how having only two downloads over the course of three hours helped the book move up the rankings, but I guess I'll take it.
Update - Friday 1:00 p.m.:
208 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,741 Free in the Kindle Store.
The slowdown in downloads seems to finally be taking a toll.
Update - Friday 4:00 p.m.:
215 total downloads, with a ranking of #1,884 Free in the Kindle Store.
It appears that the dream of cracking the top 1,000 in the Kindle Store will not come to fruition - barring a miracle, like Ereader News Today accepting the book for their evening listing now that there are two 5-star reviews for the book. I suppose we'll have to wait and see.
Update - Friday 7:00 p.m.:
218 total downloads, with a ranking that seems to have mysteriously disappeared...
I do not know why, but the book seems to have reverted to the paid rankings, even though it is still free. I have written to Amazon Support, but I am not anticipating a prompt response, as it is the weekend, meaning sales will likely be hurt for the remainder of the 7 hours of the promotion.
Update - Friday 10:00 p.m.:
221 total downloads, with a ranking of #2,016 Free in the Kindle Store.
The Amazon support people are going to respond to my e-mail and call me crazy... oh well, I suppose they wouldn't be the first.
Update - Saturday 6:00 a.m.:
Well, we ended up with a total of 227 total downloads. How that will bode for sales of The Complete Bubby Anthology will remain to be seen. Hopefully those who got the book will spread the word of its excellence.
However, if there is anything to be learned from all this, a book's success appears to depend almost entirely on luck. I say that now, and I'll continue to say that if any of my future books actually ever become a #1 Best Seller.
In the mean time, we are back into the paid side of Amazon's rankings, with a ranking of #834,416 Paid in Kindle Store.
Thanks for all your support these past few days. I'll try to post again within a week to discuss the aftermath.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Project Half-pipe Begins Tomorrow
What is Project Half-pipe? As proposed last month, I would like to see the sales chart turn back upward. So, beginning tomorrow, the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology will go on sale for FREE for three days.
My hope is that when my 90-day exclusivity agreement with Amazon ends (which is why I'm able to offer these free promotional days), I'll have built a big enough following that there will be a demand for the eBook version to be available at the Apple iBookstore, Barnes & Noble, Sony Reader Store, Kobo, among others.
In anticipation of this event, I've spent time focusing on promoting the free promotion, as I was directed to do by multiple sites, such as Pixel of Ink and author Laura Pepper.
Pixel of Ink suggested that the promotion run at least two days. Since I have decided on doing three days, I figure I'm in a good position.
Laura Pepper told of how her book was downloaded 350 times the first morning after her only promotional efforts were announcements on Twitter and Facebook. This is in comparison to the 47 downloads of Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other over the course of two days, with no promotional efforts.
Of course, there are a number of ways to promote your book. Since I have a budget of $0, I decided to stick with the free options. Each of the following sites will freely promote your book on the days that you are offering it for free (they also will take your money, if you want additional advertising). Assuming I did it right, each of these sites will have a listing promoting my book tomorrow:
Indie Books List
Pixel of Ink
World Literary Cafe
Free Books Hub
Bargain eBook Hunter
Free eBooks Daily
Kindle Boards - The Book Bazaar (forum)
Digital Book Today (Requires your book to have 10+ reviews and a 4.0+ rating. Since I do not have any reviews yet, I skipped this site.)
Ereader News Today (I skipped this one too, due to it requiring at least 2 reviews and a 4.0+ rating)
Free Kindle Books and Tips (Also skipped, as they require 4.0+ rating - though they don't specify how many.)
Of course, one of the options overlooked by both of the sites I took my inspiration from are all of the Free Stuff sites on the internet. I started off at Hey, It's Free! then went to Totally Free Crap. Each site had a number of similar sites listed on their side bars, allowing me access to numerous sites with which to promote my book. I then proceeded to compose a short message to each of them (probably about 10-15 in all). We'll see shortly who decided to take the bait.
I even managed to get promoted on Superhero Novels, meaning my fellow nerds will hopefully check the book out as well.
And best of all? All of this costed exactly $0.
So, now we just have to sit back and wait to see how well $0 of promotion pays off.
Anyway, I'll let you know how it goes after the promotion ends.
My hope is that when my 90-day exclusivity agreement with Amazon ends (which is why I'm able to offer these free promotional days), I'll have built a big enough following that there will be a demand for the eBook version to be available at the Apple iBookstore, Barnes & Noble, Sony Reader Store, Kobo, among others.
In anticipation of this event, I've spent time focusing on promoting the free promotion, as I was directed to do by multiple sites, such as Pixel of Ink and author Laura Pepper.
Pixel of Ink suggested that the promotion run at least two days. Since I have decided on doing three days, I figure I'm in a good position.
Laura Pepper told of how her book was downloaded 350 times the first morning after her only promotional efforts were announcements on Twitter and Facebook. This is in comparison to the 47 downloads of Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other over the course of two days, with no promotional efforts.
Of course, there are a number of ways to promote your book. Since I have a budget of $0, I decided to stick with the free options. Each of the following sites will freely promote your book on the days that you are offering it for free (they also will take your money, if you want additional advertising). Assuming I did it right, each of these sites will have a listing promoting my book tomorrow:
Indie Books List
Pixel of Ink
World Literary Cafe
Free Books Hub
Bargain eBook Hunter
Free eBooks Daily
Kindle Boards - The Book Bazaar (forum)
Digital Book Today (Requires your book to have 10+ reviews and a 4.0+ rating. Since I do not have any reviews yet, I skipped this site.)
Ereader News Today (I skipped this one too, due to it requiring at least 2 reviews and a 4.0+ rating)
Free Kindle Books and Tips (Also skipped, as they require 4.0+ rating - though they don't specify how many.)
Of course, one of the options overlooked by both of the sites I took my inspiration from are all of the Free Stuff sites on the internet. I started off at Hey, It's Free! then went to Totally Free Crap. Each site had a number of similar sites listed on their side bars, allowing me access to numerous sites with which to promote my book. I then proceeded to compose a short message to each of them (probably about 10-15 in all). We'll see shortly who decided to take the bait.
I even managed to get promoted on Superhero Novels, meaning my fellow nerds will hopefully check the book out as well.
And best of all? All of this costed exactly $0.
So, now we just have to sit back and wait to see how well $0 of promotion pays off.
Anyway, I'll let you know how it goes after the promotion ends.
Monday, July 9, 2012
Bubby Is Non-Fiction. Wait... What?! (or, How To Change Your Category)
Yes, all of the Bubby books are temporarily listed as Non-Fiction. Why? Well, I'm about to explain - then show all of the other Indie authors how to do it too.
When you're creating your Kindle title in Amazon KDP, you are able to select two categories from your book out of a listing of BISAC subject headings. The sad thing is, these subject headings are not the same as the categories offered on Amazon.
So, why do I care? Well, the more specific you can make your categories, the better change people who want to read your book can find it. Also, the more specific, the better chance of making a Top 100 list.
As an example, all of the Bubby books were listed in the following two categories. In parentheses I have listed the number of titles in each category:
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Children's eBooks (71,508)
Action & Adventure (9,974)
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Humor (31,198)
Going up against 9,974 and 31,198 titles makes it a challenge to be found and get into any Top 100 lists. However, by requesting more specific sub-categories, all of the books should be given a better chance. First I'll cover the sub-categories I wanted, then I'll get around to how to make the changes.
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Children's eBooks (71,508)
Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror (12,572)
Superheroes (133)
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Humor (31,198)
Comedy (639)
Under "Superheroes" and "Comedy" sub-categories Bubby stands a better chance of getting seen by customers.
So, how do you get your categories changed? Below are the directions given to me by KDP Support:
1. Visit https://kdp.amazon.com and log in.
2. Check the box at the left side of the book and then click on the "Actions" button at the top left, then click "Edit book details."
3. Scroll down to the "Target Your Book to Customers" section and click "Add categories."
4. Choose the categories on the right side of the screen, then click "Remove category."
5. Scroll down the category list on the left side of the screen, and choose the last category - "NON-CLASSIFIABLE."
6. Click on "Save."
7. Scroll down the page and click "Save and Continue."
8. You'll then be directed to the "Rights & Pricing" section. Check the box at the bottom of the screen to accept the Terms & Conditions, then click "Save and Publish."
After you have done this, send them an e-mail (or just contact them through support in your KDP account) with the exact path of the categories you wish to add (as shown in the example below), and they will add the categories for your title.
Example: Kindle Store > Kindle Books > Religion & Spirituality > New Age > Mysticism
Make sure the categories you request are already available in the Kindle Store - those are the only ones they will do for you.
So, with any luck, at some point later today (since I e-mailed them yesterday afternoon), all of the Bubby books should have more specific categories.
In the meantime, I've learned that marking your book as "NON-CLASSIFIABLE" apparently makes your title Non-Fiction in the Kindle store. Oh well.
When you're creating your Kindle title in Amazon KDP, you are able to select two categories from your book out of a listing of BISAC subject headings. The sad thing is, these subject headings are not the same as the categories offered on Amazon.
So, why do I care? Well, the more specific you can make your categories, the better change people who want to read your book can find it. Also, the more specific, the better chance of making a Top 100 list.
As an example, all of the Bubby books were listed in the following two categories. In parentheses I have listed the number of titles in each category:
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Children's eBooks (71,508)
Action & Adventure (9,974)
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Humor (31,198)
Going up against 9,974 and 31,198 titles makes it a challenge to be found and get into any Top 100 lists. However, by requesting more specific sub-categories, all of the books should be given a better chance. First I'll cover the sub-categories I wanted, then I'll get around to how to make the changes.
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Children's eBooks (71,508)
Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror (12,572)
Superheroes (133)
Kindle e-books (1,465,564)
Humor (31,198)
Comedy (639)
Under "Superheroes" and "Comedy" sub-categories Bubby stands a better chance of getting seen by customers.
So, how do you get your categories changed? Below are the directions given to me by KDP Support:
1. Visit https://kdp.amazon.com and log in.
2. Check the box at the left side of the book and then click on the "Actions" button at the top left, then click "Edit book details."
3. Scroll down to the "Target Your Book to Customers" section and click "Add categories."
4. Choose the categories on the right side of the screen, then click "Remove category."
5. Scroll down the category list on the left side of the screen, and choose the last category - "NON-CLASSIFIABLE."
6. Click on "Save."
7. Scroll down the page and click "Save and Continue."
8. You'll then be directed to the "Rights & Pricing" section. Check the box at the bottom of the screen to accept the Terms & Conditions, then click "Save and Publish."
After you have done this, send them an e-mail (or just contact them through support in your KDP account) with the exact path of the categories you wish to add (as shown in the example below), and they will add the categories for your title.
Example: Kindle Store > Kindle Books > Religion & Spirituality > New Age > Mysticism
Make sure the categories you request are already available in the Kindle Store - those are the only ones they will do for you.
So, with any luck, at some point later today (since I e-mailed them yesterday afternoon), all of the Bubby books should have more specific categories.
In the meantime, I've learned that marking your book as "NON-CLASSIFIABLE" apparently makes your title Non-Fiction in the Kindle store. Oh well.
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Project Solo
The countdown to when the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology goes on sale for FREE is just days away.
As suggested on multiple sites, I was encouraged to find outlets to spread the word of this free promotion. However, I'll leave that discussion for a future post.
In the meantime, I was curious to see what would happen if I gave away a book for free, but didn't tell anyone about it. Enter "Project Solo," in which Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other would be offered as the sacrificial lamb on Friday and Saturday to see what would happen.
Prior to the promotion, the book had peaked at #115,587 (in the Paid list).
When I looked at the book on Friday, shortly after noon, the book was already at #4,096 (in the Free list)!
By the end of the day on Friday, it had moved up to #3,307!
Imagine my joy on Saturday morning when I saw that Bubby I had reached #3,257:
Alas, it seems that Saturday morning was to be its peak. Slowly, Bubby I began to fall. At the time of this post, with about three hours to go, the book is at #4,644 (What the book will be ranked when it returns to the Paid list is difficult to determine).
As I saw the rankings slip, I was tempted to announce the promotion to build support. Alas, the scientist in me continues to want to see how this fares against the leap I hope The Complete Bubby Anthology takes (assuming that all my promotional efforts pay off).
Anyway, I hope to see you Wednesday, when we'll drive for #1.
As suggested on multiple sites, I was encouraged to find outlets to spread the word of this free promotion. However, I'll leave that discussion for a future post.
In the meantime, I was curious to see what would happen if I gave away a book for free, but didn't tell anyone about it. Enter "Project Solo," in which Bubby I - Wanted: A Hero like None Other would be offered as the sacrificial lamb on Friday and Saturday to see what would happen.
Prior to the promotion, the book had peaked at #115,587 (in the Paid list).
When I looked at the book on Friday, shortly after noon, the book was already at #4,096 (in the Free list)!
By the end of the day on Friday, it had moved up to #3,307!
Imagine my joy on Saturday morning when I saw that Bubby I had reached #3,257:
Alas, it seems that Saturday morning was to be its peak. Slowly, Bubby I began to fall. At the time of this post, with about three hours to go, the book is at #4,644 (What the book will be ranked when it returns to the Paid list is difficult to determine).
As I saw the rankings slip, I was tempted to announce the promotion to build support. Alas, the scientist in me continues to want to see how this fares against the leap I hope The Complete Bubby Anthology takes (assuming that all my promotional efforts pay off).
Anyway, I hope to see you Wednesday, when we'll drive for #1.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
It's Gonna Be Great!
First off, Happy Independence Day to all my fellow Americans! To my British friends, no hard feelings, eh? (the "eh" was for my Canadian friends).
Without further ado, your pleas have been heard (Well, assuming your pleas we're for a free copy of the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology
The excitement is building and the dates will be announced shortly...
The freebie promotion will run from next Wednesday, July 11 through the end of Friday, July 13 (How's that for "shortly"?!).
So spread the love by spreading the word!
Without further ado, your pleas have been heard (Well, assuming your pleas we're for a free copy of the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology
The excitement is building and the dates will be announced shortly...
The freebie promotion will run from next Wednesday, July 11 through the end of Friday, July 13 (How's that for "shortly"?!).
So spread the love by spreading the word!
Saturday, June 30, 2012
How Bad Is It?
Some people may wonder if The Complete Bubby Anthology is the worst book ever written. The answer is: "No; not by a long shot!"
That honor goes to the book, Atlanta Nights, by Travis Tea. The description on Amazon proudly proclaims," The world is full of bad books written by amateurs. But why settle for the merely regrettable? Atlanta Nights is a bad book written by experts."
So what is the deal with Atlanta Nights? Well, in response to a claim by PublishAmerica that they are not a vanity publisher and take the time to carefully screen submitted manuscripts, a group of authors "collaborated" to write the worst piece of junk possible. The best part is that PublishAmerica offered them a contract! You can read the tale of how it came to be at Travis Tea's webpage.
What exactly is so horrible about the book? Well, for starters, as the Wikipedia page for Atlanta Nights explains, there is a computer generated chapter, a skipped chapter (21), two chapter twelves, and two separate but identical chapters (4 and 17). On top of that, there isn't even a cohesive story line. In short, it is a mess - though I am told it is funny.
So, if you'd like to see what the fuss is all about, go buy yourself a copy of Atlanta Nights, by Travis Tea. And while you're at it, buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology (because if you're going to buy the former, then can you really argue that your standards are so high that you won't buy the latter?).
That honor goes to the book, Atlanta Nights, by Travis Tea. The description on Amazon proudly proclaims," The world is full of bad books written by amateurs. But why settle for the merely regrettable? Atlanta Nights is a bad book written by experts."
So what is the deal with Atlanta Nights? Well, in response to a claim by PublishAmerica that they are not a vanity publisher and take the time to carefully screen submitted manuscripts, a group of authors "collaborated" to write the worst piece of junk possible. The best part is that PublishAmerica offered them a contract! You can read the tale of how it came to be at Travis Tea's webpage.
What exactly is so horrible about the book? Well, for starters, as the Wikipedia page for Atlanta Nights explains, there is a computer generated chapter, a skipped chapter (21), two chapter twelves, and two separate but identical chapters (4 and 17). On top of that, there isn't even a cohesive story line. In short, it is a mess - though I am told it is funny.
So, if you'd like to see what the fuss is all about, go buy yourself a copy of Atlanta Nights, by Travis Tea. And while you're at it, buy a copy of The Complete Bubby Anthology (because if you're going to buy the former, then can you really argue that your standards are so high that you won't buy the latter?).
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Wheeeeeeee!
This is me (not literally... just use your imagination).
This is the latest sale ranking for the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology.
This is me having fun with the poor sales ranking.
Any questions? I hope not. Rather, I'm looking for solutions - like the solution where you buy my book (I'll even like you if you buy the paperback edition)!
C'mon, let's make this sales chart into a half-pipe for me and my penguin friend!
On the plus side, given that Amazon claims to have over 1 million Kindle titles, this book may still be in the top 50% saleswise!
This is the latest sale ranking for the Kindle edition of The Complete Bubby Anthology.
This is me having fun with the poor sales ranking.
Any questions? I hope not. Rather, I'm looking for solutions - like the solution where you buy my book (I'll even like you if you buy the paperback edition)!
C'mon, let's make this sales chart into a half-pipe for me and my penguin friend!
On the plus side, given that Amazon claims to have over 1 million Kindle titles, this book may still be in the top 50% saleswise!
Friday, June 8, 2012
Corrections to Look Inside
On 24 May 2012, I made some corrections to the manuscript, thanks to the help of one astute reader. While the Kindle version's Look Inside feature was updated immediately, it took until today for the paperback's version to update (though if you purchased it before today, you did receive the updated version).
Anyway, that makes 15 days for the Look Inside feature to update, versus only 13 days to create the original. Interestingly, both were updated on a Friday. Hmm...
Anyway, go out and buy yourself a copy today (or tomorrow, or the next day - I don't really care when, just as long as you do).
Anyway, that makes 15 days for the Look Inside feature to update, versus only 13 days to create the original. Interestingly, both were updated on a Friday. Hmm...
Anyway, go out and buy yourself a copy today (or tomorrow, or the next day - I don't really care when, just as long as you do).
Monday, June 4, 2012
Star Wars
Special Thanks to Mike at TheForce.Net, for mentioning The Complete Bubby Anthology in their latest installment of Star Wars Is Everywhere.
As the entry explains, there are multiple Star Wars references throughout the book. For example:
In Bubby II, there is a reference to the ridiculous idea of Darth Vader in a kilt.
In Bubby III, Bubby claims to sense a disturbance in the force.
In Bubby IV, there is a reference to 1138. If you don't understand why that is a Star Wars reference, you should read this.
In Bubby IV and Bubby V, Bubby wields a flame sword (perhaps comparable to a light saber?)
Also three of the villains in the stories shoot electricity out of their hands (Force Lightning, anyone?)
As the entry explains, there are multiple Star Wars references throughout the book. For example:
In Bubby II, there is a reference to the ridiculous idea of Darth Vader in a kilt.
In Bubby III, Bubby claims to sense a disturbance in the force.
In Bubby IV, there is a reference to 1138. If you don't understand why that is a Star Wars reference, you should read this.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Click to Look Inside
Well, the day has finally come! Amazon has finally enabled the "Look Inside" feature for the paperback version of The Complete Bubby Anthology. I'm impressed it only took 13 days for that to occur. I'm also extremely surprised to see how much more of the paperback version is made available for viewing, compared to the Kindle edition.
As for the individual Kindle editions, the process was much quicker. I believe the Look Inside feature was available the next day, which was rather nice. If you want to see them for yourself, click on the links below:
As for the individual Kindle editions, the process was much quicker. I believe the Look Inside feature was available the next day, which was rather nice. If you want to see them for yourself, click on the links below:
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Who Is Braden Erp?
One of the questions most frequently asked of me is, who is Braden Erp, and why did you accept his review of your book on Amazon?
Let's just say he is a dear friend. So, in spite of his backhanded complements of the Bubby Anthology, I chose his review to best describe the product.
Now, there are some that have claimed that Braden Erp is simply an anagram for myself. If that were true, why does this picture of him look so unlike me?
Let's just say he is a dear friend. So, in spite of his backhanded complements of the Bubby Anthology, I chose his review to best describe the product.
Now, there are some that have claimed that Braden Erp is simply an anagram for myself. If that were true, why does this picture of him look so unlike me?
Saturday, May 5, 2012
A Necessary Apology
I believe apologies are in order. If you are reading this, you are likely aware that The Complete Bubby Anthology has been published in paperback and Kindle formats.
To the diehard fans, I have to apologize for not publishing the stories sooner.
To those of you discovering the hero named Bubby for the first time, I apologize that the stories are so lousy.
Don't get me wrong, I still stand by the hilarity of the stories, but I fully recognize that they are not well-written. In my defense, the five stories were written beginning in my freshman year of high school.
Publishing Bubby has been an experiment for me. I wanted to learn how to publish in print and in ebook format. Using Createspace to self-publish in print (and some nerdy programming skills to self-publish for Kindle), I feel more comfortable being able to publish future books that I am wanting to write.
So, for those of you that find errors in any edition of Bubby that you purchase, please let me know and I will do my best to update the files and upload them to Amazon. When this quasi-beta test is complete, I will look at publishing the ebook version on Smashwords, which will make it possible for die-hard fans to purchase the stories on their Nook, iPad, and other devices.
To the diehard fans, I have to apologize for not publishing the stories sooner.
To those of you discovering the hero named Bubby for the first time, I apologize that the stories are so lousy.
Don't get me wrong, I still stand by the hilarity of the stories, but I fully recognize that they are not well-written. In my defense, the five stories were written beginning in my freshman year of high school.
Publishing Bubby has been an experiment for me. I wanted to learn how to publish in print and in ebook format. Using Createspace to self-publish in print (and some nerdy programming skills to self-publish for Kindle), I feel more comfortable being able to publish future books that I am wanting to write.
So, for those of you that find errors in any edition of Bubby that you purchase, please let me know and I will do my best to update the files and upload them to Amazon. When this quasi-beta test is complete, I will look at publishing the ebook version on Smashwords, which will make it possible for die-hard fans to purchase the stories on their Nook, iPad, and other devices.
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