Puzzles, chaos and planning.

n the midst of all this chaos is a writer trying to sell books. I have a book promotion running with Best Indie Books for my novel, HELL’S GATE, but how successful has it been up to now, or will it be? Well, it’s been running for a couple of weeks and I have sold zero. I suppose it all comes down to marketing again. Without a professional approach, or at least a pseudo professional approach, I suppose my sales will reflect my ability as a market man and not the quality of the book. So now it’s about a plan, and this is something I have to leave on the back-burner until we are settled in UK again. I need to bear in mind that the weeks leading up to Christmas, and the few days after, are a good time to promote. So once we have arrived in UK, and I can sneak into my room without my wife knowing, then I can bury my head in promotional work. But it’s not all about paying for an advert to appear on someone’s website: it’s also being able to get the best out of social media marketing. And if, like me, you are a bit of a web dummy, there will be plenty of hurdles to overcome, and most of them will have you calling for help. For example: I tried to download a social media app for my other website (www.michaelparkerbooks.com), hosted by Wix. The e-mail advertising the app came from Wix. When I was asked to enter my e-mail address in order to download the app, I was told that I wasn’t recognised on their system. So how did they manage to send me the e-mail in the first place? But it might be that I have misunderstood the process and hence the need for professional help. I’m waiting for a return message now from Wix.
My next difficulty is trying to upload a book jacket to CreateSpace for my title: The Eagle’s Covenant. This is a book that was available on Amazon kindle and Createspace, but because I have taken over the rights for this book, I have had to renew the files. So what’s the problem? I used the original jacket file; one that was used by Createspace, but now they tell me it is unacceptable because there is a bleed problem or something, and I have to adjust it. I’m struggling to do that, and no doubt will have to ask my son, who designed the original jacket, to help me out. All this takes time and often sees me sitting in front of my laptop for hours. And have you noticed how the experts respond when you ask for their help? If it isn’t a list of FAQs that they encourage you to search, it’s an explanation of how to achieve what you want that can only be deciphered by a university graduate or a ten year old grandson or grand-daughter. One day I will be master of all this. I may not be able to sell any books, but as sure as the sun rises I will be able to use the social media like a pro.
I often smile at my own disingenuousness (is that a word?) when it comes to competing with my fellow peers in the book world. I thought a blog tour would be a good idea and signed up for one until I discovered I had to read someone’s pornographic romance. I pulled out in the nick of time, particularly when I realised I would have to read the book, promote the author and only get a mention myself. So it has to be a case of back to the drawing board and think seriously about spending some money and giving books away. I’ll do that when I’m back in UK. Now, where was I? Oh yes; back to the plan. Wish me luck!