Do you wonder why your book is not selling?

I like to post articles or posts that benefit my readers, so today I am sharing a site that is full of good advice for writers. In this post, the writer tells us, with humor, why our books are not selling and what we must do to sell at a time when reading books has fallen as a major entertainment for people.

I have been reading Kristen Lamb for a long time and I have learned so much from her articles. Do you subscribe to Kristen? If so, what do you like about her site?

https://authorkristenlamb.com/2019/02/how-to-sell-more-books-a-tale-of-fishing-catfishing/

What do you think about her suggestions on how to sell books?

Retired Mountain Journalist Writes Mystery/Thriller Novels

          Murphy, NC novelist Wally Avett got a Christmas surprise early this year, when he was notified that Amazon will include two of his books in their annual  Holiday Gift Guide listing.

          MURDER IN CANEY FORK and LAST BIGFOOT IN DIXIE will be among books recommended by Amazon as downloads at $1.99 each during the entire month of December.

          “I’m very happy about the opportunity for sales and exposure,” Avett said this week. “Last year Amazon picked CANEY FORK for its Daily Deal for just one day and it spiked for a week, selling several thousand copies.”

          A graduate of the UNC Journalism School, Avett worked on several Tar Heel daily newspapers before settling in the extreme southwestern tip of the state as editor of the weekly CHEROKEE SCOUT newspaper for the decade of the 70’s.

          He served as Murphy’s town manager during the 1980’s and then pursued a career in sales – outdoor advertising, manufactured housing and then real estate, selling mountain homes to Florida retirees.

          Along the way he did some magazine writing but always dreamed of writing fiction.  He still writes a regular column, HILLBILLY   RANGER, for the local paper in Murphy.

          In the past three years he found an agent, Jeanie Loiacono of Houston, and his four completed novels were published.  They are available at Amazon Books and also at several sites in Murphy.

          “I love a good story,” he says.  “And therefore all my writing is inspired by true incidents, molded to fit my fiction.  CANEY FORK , for example, is based on the true story of a vigilante slaying in a Southern state during World War II.”

          BIGFOOT is a wild rollicking tale written for the homefolks in Murphy with a gentle love story, a little humor and a cast of characters often recognizable to local readers.

          REBEL BUSHWHACKER and COOSA FLYER were both published in 2015, both heavily inspired by local history.

          BUSHWHACKER is a bloody tale of the partisan raiding in the mountains during the Civil War, a number of true incidents included in the fictional treatment, especially the atrocities of real-life southern guerilla, John P. Gatewood.

          FLYER is pure fiction but was inspired by the life of pioneer Georgia aviator Micajah Clark Dyer, who invented and flew a primitive aircraft at least 20 years before the Wright Brothers.

          Avett lives with Dean, his wife of 52 years, on a large creek just outside Murphy. He is a gardener, outdoorsman, Sunday school teacher, gospel singer and reluctant handyman who sometimes tells funny stories.

Avett has joined NCWN, and we welcome him to NCWN-West.

On December 12, Saturday, 1 - 3 p.m. at the Moss Memorial Library in Hayesville, NC, Wally along with Tom Davis and Deanna Klingel and Glenda Beall will present a panel discussion on publishing and marketing. This is a free event held by NCWN-West and is open to the community at no charge. 

         

          

NCWN-West at Festival on the Square

Our weekend at the Festival on the Square was delightful except for the high temperatures on Saturday. Deanna Klingel and Miriam Bradley drove down to Hayesville from Sapphire and from Hendersonville, NC. Both write books for children but have non-fiction books for adults as well. See their websites for more of their books. 

We all promote reading for children and it was heart-warming to see the kids visit Deanna and Miriam with their parents and then come back later with cash in hand to purchase the mystery series books from Miriam’s table or the Avery books from Deanna.

Deanna Klingel

Miriam Jones Bradley

Our many volunteers this year made it possible to have a booth at the Festival on the Square sponsored by the Clay County Historical and Arts Council. Deanna and Joan Gage carried tables and chairs and boxes as we loaded up Rob’s truck on Friday afternoon and set up our tent. I counted on Joan all weekend to help me and to be there when I could not.  She also presented her books of inspirational and motivating poetry for women. Water Running Down Hill, Empowering Your Inner Cheerleader and her most recent, A Redhead Looks at 60.

Joan Ellen Gage

Karen Holmes and Carole Thompson volunteered so that on Saturday and on Sunday we had someone at the main table to give out brochures, answer questions about NCWN and NCWN West, discuss writing with visitors and give them information about local literary events and places where they can receive instruction.

Carole Thompson author of Enough

Valeria Nieman visited with us Sunday afternoon with her new poetry book, Hotel Worthy and her very interesting novel, Blood Clay. We are always happy to see Val here in our neck of the woods.

I want to thank Don and Marti Long for their help on Sunday afternoon. Although we were tired by Sunday afternoon, I had fun with my two guests, Deanna and Miriam at my house for the weekend. It is always great to see so many local friends at the festival on a typical summer weekend in a small mountain town in the beautiful western NC mountains. 

What Should We do? Deanna Klingel, author, answers.

We have as guest writer today, Deanna Klingel, successful author of five books published by different publishers with three more to be released soon. Deanna lives in Sapphire Valley, NC with her husband and a rescued golden retriever. She is a member of NCWN West as well as other literary organizations. She admits she was a late starter in the world of publishing, but she hit the ground running and was a quick learner. Her advice is for all of us who write and want to write. Take note.

“So What’s it Like to be a Writer?” 

My signing table was inside the Low Country Museum in Yemassee, South Carolina. I’d had a lot of fun that Saturday talking to families and signing books for their middle graders. During a quiet few minutes a chubby boy wrapped in his puffy winter coat and toboggan hat paused and looked at my table. I guess he was eight, maybe nine.

“So, what’s it like to be a writer?” he asked. He caught me off guard and I didn’t have a quick reply. The usual question from precocious kids is “Do authors make a lot of money?” for which there is a quick answer.

“Well,” I thought aloud, “I spend a lot of time alone listening to voices talking in my head.”

“Yes!” he said. “That’s how it is for me, too. Whenever I get sent to my room alone, my head talks to me. When I get mad, it even talks more. And loud.”

“Hmm,” I said. “Maybe when you get mad you should write.”

“I guess you’re right,” he said. “That’s what I'll do. Next time I get sent to my room and I'm mad I'm going to write me a book. How many pages should it be?”

How many pages should it be? Whose voice should it be? What style should it be written in? What font should I use? New writers all worry about should. Should I send it to a publisher? Should I staple it? Should I get a Mac?

Even accomplished writers who participate on the online writers groups are often still asking should I? Should I change genre, should I use a pen name, should I have an agent, should I blog, should my main character turn out to be a bad guy? Should I use semi colons?

I’m not exactly an old timer in the publishing field.

I only started writing with a thought to publishing around 2005. My first book published in 2010. In the next few weeks book six, seven and eight will be released, all different publishers. That still makes me a relative newcomer. But I've had enough experience now that I can share some "what-I've-learned-along-the-way" suggestions.

The first thing I think you should do, is unload your shoulds. You can make yourself crazy with the angst of shoulds. There is no should. Your writing is a result of your writer voice. There can be no right or wrong to it. You should not should over it. Just write it.

Then there are things you must do. You must finish it. You must edit it. You must have another edit it. Then you must rewrite it. Then you must submit it. These aren't things you should do, these are things you must do. To submit you must do it exactly the way the publisher you’re submitting to instructs; not should, must.

Writing is easy for a writer. Writing for publication is not. It’s tedious, it’s lengthy, it’s lonely, it can get frustrating. There are so many things to learn, the more you learn the more you discover things you need to know!

You must go to conferences, workshops, take writing classes. You must. But you can make it easier on yourself if you relax and enjoy the entire process and not worry about all the shoulds. The voice in your head is yours and it must be heard. You should let it. You must. That's what it is to be a writer.

Deanna will be sharing her work at Coffee with the Poets and Writers at Blue Mountain Coffee and Grill on Wednesday, March 12, 10:30 a.m. This event is free and open to the public. 

Deanna Klingel's mini blog, Selling Books

Deanna Klingel, from Transylvania County, NC, is author of a number of YA books. Her books sell and she knows what to do to reach her audience.

Beginning Monday, Deanna Klingel's 30-second mini blog http://www.booksbydeanna.com will start a new mini series called "Selling Books." 

Deanna says, "Some of the posts will take more than 30 seconds, maybe a minute, but they are all taken from my journal, two years and 40,000 miles selling books. 

I've learned a lot about more than just selling books. Come join me. I'll post Mondays and Thursdays."   Deanna

Why should authors participate in book festivals?

At the risk of stating the obvious, if a book is to sell, the author needs to effectively promote it.
The question is how and where to do it. Does one hit the road and make individual appearances at book stores and coffee shops? Even a recognized author may find ten people in the audience and sell only a couple of books.
The disappointed author may have driven many miles and spent money on food and a motel. The host of the book-signing event offers all the usual excuses. "We don't know why people did not show up. We had a poster on the bulletin board for weeks and told lots of people about your coming."

There is an alternative to individual book-signing tours.
An author can participate in a book festival and share the large stage with dozens of other authors? Perhaps a shared stage is better than a tiny, empty one. There is the related opportunity to meet editors, reviewers, publishers and other authors making  it an enriching experience. Writers can attend free presentations on a variety of things like marketing, e-books trends and the effective use of industry professionals.  Mix with and talk to readers to see what they are reading and how they discover what they read. Ask questions that can guide both your writing and the most effective ways you can promote it.
There are about six active book festivals across North Carolina and others in adjacent states.  The closest to those living in western NC is the Blue Ridge Bookfest.

Fifth Annual Blue Ridge Bookfest

Your friends at the 5th annual Blue Ridge Bookfest invite you to attend on May 17 and 18, 2013 in the Technology Building on the Blue Ridge Community College campus in Flat Rock/ Hendersonville, North Carolina. Visit our website www.BlueRidgeBookfest.org and click on "Contact Us" to sign-up for our newsletter. Interested authors can request a table at a future festival by clicking on the drop down menu "Interested In".

Consider coming this year even if you are not exhibiting your latest book. Or you could just stay home and wonder why your books are not selling and why your writing is becoming more a task than a joy. What fun is writing if nobody seems to be reading what you write? Come play in our writer's sandbox; our book festival.


Bill Ramsey

Writers, these questions and comments are interesting

http://kathrynmagendie.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!

Read Kat's post and the many comments on why and how people buy books and what they think of book signings.