I think I'll probably add Unbound to Amazon by this weekend. The down side for those reading it at Smashwords is that it can't be free once I list it at Amazon. Amazon does not allow that option and the language in their agreement requires that you not list it below the listing price at any other retailer. Only Amazon can discount a book and offer it for free. No, I don't like that but for now, those are their rules and yes, while I may be stubborn, obnoxious, and sarcastic, I'm still a rule follower (most of the time). The thing is, I agreed to their terms when I started selling there and I'm the type of person that once I accept the rules, I don't go back and change my mind. Few things frustrate me more than to be around people who don't believe that the rules really apply to them. I'm related to some of those people. I don't want to be one of them.
Casey
Really. It's just me. I see it. I read it. I respond to it. No one else ever sees it. I don't share it. I don't talk about it. I don't do anything else with it. I only respond and then only if you indicate you want a response. You will not ever receive an unsolicited email from me in the future. If you ask, I will delete it after I respond to you. I don't even send notices about upcoming books because I haven't figured out a good way to separate those who want to be notified from those who haven't requested it. So, notices about upcoming books will be posted here on my website.
Casey
I made another of those executive decisions. Remember, I get to do that. As you can probably guess, it's hard as an author to know what people think if they don't tell you. I know some authors get friends and relatives to leave reviews but what good is a review if it's not real? I've heard from a few people that enjoyed Surrender and Unbound but I'd like to hear more. Whether you loved the stories or hated them, I really want to know the truth. How can I make them better if I don't know what's missing? So, if you'll send me an email (the address is in the drop down menu under Casey's ebooks) and let me know what you think, I'll send you a coupon so that you can get Friday Nights for free on Smashwords. Just let me know which one (or ones) you read and yes, I'll even send you the coupon if you hated the story. The only exception is if you hated it because it was too graphic. Since my stories are marketed to adults and they clearly indicate that they are adult fiction with graphic sex, I don't feel that that's a valid complaint. Sorry. By the way, the coupon code will be valid only through January 15, 2012. Just wanted to make sure you got that part. Thanks!
Casey
First, let me remind you that I said at one point that I didn't have a clue how to do the whole blog thing. Second, I missed your comment and I apologize. I'm glad you enjoyed Unbound. I hope you'll like Surrender too. Let me know. I'm still trying to figure out how to respond to comments. It's funny, I click on that damned "respond" button and nothing happens. I'm sure I'm missing something but I'll figure it out. Don't hold me to it but I'm hoping to have Tamed done within the next two weeks. It depends on those pesky kids of mine (kidding). I'll admit that the weather yesterday was much too pleasant to stay inside so I spent my afternoon riding my motorcycle. Cold and rain will insure that I'm indoors for a while so I'll probably manage my self imposed deadline.
By the way, if you'll let me know what you think, I'll see what I can do to get you a discount at Smashwords on Friday Nights (short story) or Tamed.
Casey
In case you missed it, not only do I love to write, I also love to read. Always have. I can read a novel in a day and a short story in minutes. I don't always have time but I own three different Kindles and I'm considering the Nook. It's just convenient to buy ebooks because they're easy to take with me and frankly, there's no more room in my home for the physical edition of every book I read. I do pick one up here and there but not often anymore. I read everything (well, almost everything). What I don't read makes for a shorter list. Lately though, as I cruise down the virtual bookstore aisles looking for a good read, I find book covers that I'm offended by and I can tell you, I'm not easily offended. Why have book covers gotten so graphic? I can't look for a book if my kids are in the room because I don't know what kind of images are going to show up on a webpage. Yes, I write adult fiction and yes I write explicit sex scenes but no, I don't put those images on my covers. Maybe those covers help sell more books. But they don't sell them to me. I absolutely will not buy a book that features a cover with what appears to be a teenager in a sexually explicit pose. It's just not happening. I personally, don't buy the ones that have adults in those same poses. Am I a prude? Absolutely not. But, if that's what it takes to sell a book, I'm not interested. Now I love the sexy covers (especially those that feature the naked upper bodies of gorgeous, muscular men, where do they find these guys?) but I don't want to look at the equivalent of soft porn when I'm shopping for a book. So, I'm curious, is it just me?
Is it just me or does anyone else see a wide range in the current prices for ebooks? I can't say what goes through the minds of authors and/or publishers when they decide to add that price tag. I for one, make my decision based on what I would be willing to pay. No, I'm not paying $2.99 or more for something that has less than 10,000 words. It's just not happening. That little bit of entertainment is simply not worth that much to me. Will I pay $.99 for it? Yes, I will and I have. I might even pay $1.99 for it but that would be my upper limit. I'll pay a great deal more for a full length novel. I read a hell of alot of books and I can honestly say, very little pisses me off more than to pay $3.0o for a short piece of garbage. And yes, I've done it. Unintentionally of course. I've found that it is sometimes very difficult to judge how long a book is when you're looking at it online. Not everyone includes a word count. So, I made an executive decision (I can do that since I get to make all of the decisions about my stories. It's the nice thing about being an independent author/publisher) and that decision was to start including the word count in the description. Do I think my stories are worth the prices I set? Yes, I do. In fact, the prices of the novellas will likely increase to $2.99 in the near future since that was the initial price I had in mind. Are they worth more than that? Nope, not at this time. Will you know how many words are in the story you're buying? Yes. If for some reason, the word count doesn't show up in the listing you're looking at, email me. I'll tell you what it is before you buy it. I really don't want unhappy customers. That's the same reason I try not to publish garbage. I'm sure not everyone will enjoy my stories no matter how much I'd like for them to. But, I always try to make certain they're well written. You won't find the five pages of fluff in between each event and hopefully, I won't butcher the English language. I absolutely will not put something out there that I haven't proofed. I guess that's my rant for the day. If you have an opinion one way or the other, feel free to share. If you prefer to keep your comments hidden, you can always send me an email. I will respond.
And by the way, Tamed: A Tale of Indulgence is still coming soon. I got stumped for a little while so I switched projects. I usually have four or five going at once. (I have a short attention span,) I think I have the problem worked out and will have it available as soon as I can. Remember, even once it's finished, I will still proof it repeatedly. I'll let you know how it goes.
I wish I'd known how hard it would be to actually market my own books. I've spent more time trying to figure out how to connect, register, network, etc. Today I finally figured out how to get the damn like button on my page. I know it's not perfect but it's what I've got. I also know it would help if I wasn't stuck in the stone age. Well, I'm probably not quite that bad but definitely close. I've never cared for the whole social network thing. My cell phone is still a cell phone. I don't text and I don't surf the web from my phone (partly because I can't see it when it's that small). But, I'm slowly figuring it out. And on my own. Aren't you impressed? I'm not. It's not that I can't figure it out, it has a lot more to do with the number of hours in a day. There aren't enough and I've already devoted 18 or 19 out of each day to my family, job, pets, riding, reading and writing. If I cut out any more sleep, I'll be running on caffeine alone. I'm already pretty close as it is. I've finished my first pot before anyone else in my house is even awake. Well, I said all of that to say this... marketing is hard work especially when I don't have a reputation yet. So if you feel like it and if you have a minute,
I would really, really, appreciate it if you could leave a review or click on the damn like button (I'm never going to actually like the button, it was way too time consuming and it made me feel extremely stupid). Just saying... Thanks.
Casey
Christmas is over but my house looks like a war zone. I think I need to hire help. In a perfect world, I'd have a full time maid (my kids seem to think we already have one) and a full time drill sergeant to hound the children until every toy, every book, and every freaking lego piece was where it belonged instead of under my feet. But, it's not a perfect world. That's why I don't have perfect children or a perfect home. Our home is what you might call "lived in" and it looks it. Things are rarely where they should be but hey, I guess I should be used to it by now. For a day or two, I'm going to let chaos reign. I'm going to (maybe) finish writing and start editing "Tamed". I haven't done anything in two days now and I miss it. Not to mention that I have the most time on my days off from my real job. Tomorrow, I'll return to said job and will have little free time. Maybe one of these days I can let that real job go. We'll see how it goes.
Hey, just curious, but am I the only one that needs a map and a compass to navigate my living room after Christmas?
Casey
Smashwords seems to be down temporarily. Maybe there are so many people downloading my newest novella that it was more than their server could handle! Yeah, right. Seriously, there have been quite a few downloads in the last two days and I'm pleased. Thanks.
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