How Should You Take Bad Reviews as an Indie Author?

You suck!

Bad Reviews, Everyone Gets Them

Bad reviews are inevitable. It is the natural way of things, because people are different and tastes are different. Early on in my writing, I got slammed by readers on B&N. The reviews were harsh and made me question myself as a writer. It forced me to decide why I was writing. Was I writing for others or was I writing for my own enjoyment?

Turns out, I am writing for me. I love bringing my characters to life and seeing how their stories unfold. It is a high like no other. At the time, I chose to ignore the reviews even though they hurt. I chose not to let someone else decide what I would do with my life.

Had I listened to those depressing reviews Luke and Tesse, Dan, Jenny and Ryan, and sassy little Brie would never have been born into the world. Their voices would have remained silent.

Follow you heart, authors. Ebooks allow us to write without anyone losing money if we fail. We have the freedom to let our imaginations soar. Yes, look at the bad reviews to see if there is something you can improve on. You should always be willing to grow. However, don't let it kill your dream if you know you are meant to write.

Something else to keep in mind: The people who write bad reviews are generally not your audience. It is okay if they don't like your work, because they aren't the people you are trying to reach. 

* If you want to check out my nasty reviews (you know you want to), here's a link. FYI, Amy does NOT do her cousin.

Should Indie Authors Charge $2.99 for Short Books?

You Want to Charge $3 for 35 Pages???

I charge .99 because I am a reader as well as a writer, and I want to make my books affordable. However, I wonder if am I losing potential readers because of my price.

I really want to know what readers think on this one. If you are familiar with my work, you know I normally write novelettes (between 12,000 - 18,000 words). I personally like erotica at that length and feel comfortable charging .99. I am confident it is worth at least that much for the hot sex scenes. ;)

I have been noticing other erotica authors charging 2.99 for the same length novelettes and I am a little shocked, especially if it is part of a series. If an author charges that much for five novelettes within a series, he/she has just made the reader pay $15 bucks for what ends up being a simple novel by the end. That is a lot of money!

* For those not in the industry, an indie author makes 35% for books under 2.99 and 70% for any books sold 2.99 or higher on Amazon. There is a financial incentive for charging more.

However, I think 2.99 is too much for books under 20,000 words. Yet if you look on Amazon's erotica list right now, you will see the series Anything He Wants is doing VERY well, even though reviewers are complaining about the price of the last two novelettes.

So, my question is this:

Do you generally feel that a book is more viable if there is a higher price attached to it - no matter the length?

Let me put it more bluntly...

Do you feel a  .99 book is normally not worth reading?

June Numbers for Red Phoenix on Amazon

If you write with love, it will show up in your work similar to when chefs bake love into their creations.  You can just taste it...

I was excited to see what June would bring. May had been such a good month, but I must admit that part of me feared it was a fluke. I am happy to say June exceeded all my expectations. The most I hoped for was to double my sales, but they tripled and I have my many readers to thank for that!

Not only did I publish the fifth in the Brie series this June, but I was also able to release the third in the Blissful Series. Two accomplishments I am proud of. Based on the reviews for both, I am thrilled that readers are happy with my newest work. :)

Again, all of my books are getting attention (sales/downloads) and that is gratifying. I love the characters I write about, so it's awesome that my older work is getting more notice now. Again, thank you.

For the Month of June 2012:

18,021 Total books sold
60,329 Total Freebies Downloaded

Best Sellers for the Month of June:

Paid - Brie Learns to Obey  4799, Brie Lives Her Fantasy 4134, and  Brie Learns Her Power as a Submissive 3766

Freebies - Deeper Baby! 17,317, Brie's First Day of Submissive Training 14,816 and Blissfully Snowbound 8550

* For the month of June I added two books on Amazon and another book went FREE. 

   (I now have a total of 11 freebies on Amazon.)
 

Quick Recap of Past Months:

Brie #5 is doing well.

May 2012:
6,079 books purchased
71,212 freebies downloaded

April:

878 books purchased         

29,879 freebies downloaded 

March:

693 books purchased
27,571 freebies downloaded 

February:

298 books purchased         

12,386 freebies downloaded


What I am Learning:

You can see that my freebie downloads are starting to slow. (Although, who can complain when the paid ones jumped up so high?) However, what it tells me is that an author needs to keep writing and moving forward. You can't sit back and expect your older books to carry on like they have. Bring something new to the table but always, ALWAYS have fun in the process. I think if you start to overwork yourself to the point of resentment or publish a book too soon due to pressure, it will only end up hurting you.

Here's an example: I was set to publish Blissfully Broken in May. I thought I was ready but my editor, Tameika Ortiz, and my beta reader both said it was lacking. I postponed the release and retooled it. My readers expect and deserve only my best - deadline or no deadline.

I shall update you next month to see how July pans out. Thanks for joining me on this journey. I hope it will encourage other aspiring writers to take the leap. :) 

Why This Erotica Author Loves Smashwords

I remember talking to a friend and fellow writer last year who said she was using Smashwords. I scoffed, because I wanted to be published by traditional means and I'd heard bad things about their formatting. She really liked it, so the company name stuck in my head.

Publishing with Smashwords

Well, after being told by publishers and agents that my stories were hybrids and not market worthy, I checked out Smashwords for myself. I thought I would get my feet wet by publishing a few short stories. The instructions Smashwords gave in their little eBook, Smashwords Style Guide, was invaluable and easy to understand. The book walked me through the process and even made me feel that I wasn't an idiot if some of it seemed confusing. I got my stories to meet Smashwords' standards so that they were eligible for premium distribution (meaning my books would go out to six online bookstores, including Barnes & Noble and Apple).

I've sold a few books on Smashwords and put up a few for free (wanted people to get a taste of my writing style). It's been exciting seeing how many people download my "sensual quickies" and getting reviews from actual customers is a thrill.

I like Mike Coker's approach to running his company. I feel supported, appreciated, and informed. A recent issue arose in the erotica arena. He sent out (and continues to send) email updates while he negotiates with PayPal.

Using Smashwords Helped Me Publish on Amazon

A fellow author from Smashwords gave me tons of information and support, suggesting that I also publish on Amazon. Because of the experienced gained by using Smashwords, I was able to work Amazon's publishing process. I would have struggled without that prior experience. Plus, I know that if my file has no errors with Smashwords' formatting, it will work for Mobi as well.

Making Money

I was surprised a month later when I looked at my statement on Smashwords (payments are made quarterly - but you can check out your ongoing totals) and found that I was making money from B&N. The next month’s statement showed that Apple was also providing sells.

I finally understood the power Smashwords affords me as a new writer. I am out in the market, able to decide what price I want to sell my books for and I don't have to worry whether my books are "hybrids"or not. My success is in my hands!

Benefits to Publishing on Smashwords

By using Smashwords, I can create a clean eBook and have it distributed to the major bookstores (excluding Amazon at this time). I also am able to determine my price. On top of that, I can choose to make some books free so people are able to sample my writing and determine if this indie author is worth their reading time. Using them is a win/win for me. I LOVE Smashwords and recommend it to any indie author who wants to control his/her own success.

FYI - I am an indie author of erotica who started publishing with Smashwords in December 2011.