July 28, 2021
Day 300, Week 42
- Emotional State: Drowning in Post it Notes
I’m still struggling with layout. It feels like one step forward and two steps back. But I think we’re getting there. I still wish I could just go into the program and play with it myself, but that is not possible. One, because I don’t know the program; and two, because it’s not the way this works.
Darnit.
My author bio is complete and my book blurb is as well. I worried that it told the wrong tale, but my world builder said my other blurbs were too on the nose. I think that’s his favorite saying right now – it’s too on the nose. As if he could do better. (He probably could.)
I’ve been working on the pricing, on the BISAC codes (codes libraries use to shelve your book), and researching comparative titles and Amazon categories.
Don’t get me started on Amazon categories. It’s like the freakin’ wild west on there. If your book has even a corner of a rarer topic, you’re supposed to slot it in there for ‘bestseller’ status, which isn’t even a thing – it’s a vanity sticker. And I have absolutely no idea what categories my book falls into. Yes, it’s urban fantasy, but the main character is human. Yes, she deals with magic, but she doesn’t do magic. And…. there I go again, round and round.
How do you pick comparative titles for a book that doesn’t really fall into any specific category? I have no idea, but I’m going to give it my best shot. Why did I make it so hard?
In other news, I’ve been diving in to the core part of publishing the book – the marketing. And let me tell you…it’s a lot. It’s confusing and overwhelming. And it just never ends…
Marketing
I’ve done the work. I’ve created a loose plan. I’ve watched more videos and read more blogs and followed more Twitter threads than I care to think about. I feel like I’ve gone done a million rabbit holes and not found one rabbit or a carrot, but a hodgepodge of them all.
The one thing I have determined is there is a lot I can do after the book is published, but not before. Too many of the promotions require a set number of reviews or a set number of reviews + a certain number above 4 stars. And yeah, I’m rethinking my ratings for other authors – indies, in particular – based on that research. Why did no one tell me I should fudge my ratings so that more people can find those books?
They did by saying ‘be nice.’ Telling me my rating could block them from successfully marketing their book would’ve been more effective.
I’ve been researching TikTok as well and oh boy. It’s intense, that platform. It seems doable, but also very trend-heavy. You need to be on top of it all the time to make sure you’re formatting your videos the right way.
I’m not confident I’ll stick to it, but the plan is to do it for a month and see how it goes. If it’s fun and I like it, I’ll keep going. If it’s not, then I’ll stop.
I’m already tired.
The Second Book
I’ve made a bit of progress on the second book. I’ve written up a few more scenes, thought about how the general plot will fall. And then had an awesome idea yesterday morning after waking up. But it requires research and I’m already burnt out on marketing research, so it’ll wait.
But it’s moving slowly forward. I have a better idea of themes, arcs, and basic story plot points, which means I can sit down and write it.
Except.
Except now I’m procrastinating – SQUIRREL – by once again researching writing platforms and trying out Scrivener again, even though it doesn’t have the flexibility I need. Okay, it has loads of flexibility, but I like spreadsheets. I want to use spreadsheets… and it can’t do spreadsheets. But that’s not stopping me from playing with it anyway, instead of writing or researching or whatever else is supposed to be happening on this book.
The struggle is real.
Why did I decide to do this again?
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