Isis Sousa's Blog: Tragic Books' news - Posts Tagged "epub"

I have a Gothic Short story coming this Halloween: Eleanor's Gift. It is Victorian Gothic, like The Night of Elisa - but with more elements of Classic Gothic Horror to it.

And here is an excerpt, the story's opening.

.:Eleanor’s Gift
.:The darkness

A downpour washed the dark pointed roofs, old cobblestone roads and woods surrounding Rivercrook. The strong wind shook the plants and carried away their yellow leaves. It howled at windows and doors, scaring infants and their mothers. Lightning flashed around the town’s monuments and sculptures, distorting stone faces and casting twisted shadows.

On the old cemetery road there was not a soul to be seen, yet the shadow-play of the storm made the graves seem to dance without rhythm or grace. Soon there came a wagon, pulled by two horses running for their lives and tormented by the lashes of a mad coachman; only a mad person would dare to travel in such conditions.

Inside the wagon, in complete darkness, a lady held tightly to the bench. Her breathing was shallow, her heartbeat so strong she could feel it in her throat. The wagon rocked terribly and threw her belongings in all directions.

The wagon hurried along that road and then took an exit onto an earthy countryside bridleway, narrower than the roads across Rivercrook and much darker, as the trees grew tall on each side and formed a natural roof of branches and leaves. The only light the coachman could count upon was the faint reddish-yellow glow of his lamp. He knew they needed to make their way along the bridleway to the clearing. It wouldn’t take too long, but still he lashed the exhausted horses to run even faster.

They were almost there when the dying light flickered one last time. Now there was nothing but the darkness amidst the trees. The coachman saw the clearing when it was illuminated by lightning. Once they crossed it, it wouldn’t be long until they reached their destination, just a day or two more of harsh travel.

The terrain was uneven and soaked, making it difficult for the horses to stay on course. The storm obscured the moonlight and the frightening flashes were now resting in the clouds so the travelers could not see where they were going. The coachman was forced to slow the horses against his will. He had a calling, a duty to fulfill, and it could not wait any longer.

But the powers of nature can go with you or against you, and that night, despite having come so far – already such a great victory – nature was indeed against the struggling man. All it took was a slide of the left-hand horse to drag the other horse and the entire wagon with it, down the soft, muddy cliff that gave into the river. The horses, the coachman and the lady struggled against the darkness and the waters.
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>>Anyone who subscribe to the Tragic Books' newsletter will receive a Smashwords coupon to download a free copy in their fav format (KIndle or Epub). http://tragicbooks.blogspot.no/

>>> Anyone interested in reviewing it until Halloween , drop me a message :) And I will provide you a free e-book :)

Enjoy your autumn! ^.^

First of all, this is a post where I share the experience of what has worked for me so far. My books have a very specific niche, they are not for everybody – and each book out there may have tactics that may work better than those here…

The other thing is that I am a brand new author myself (author by accident) and am still trying to find my spot in the light – and note I sell very few copies a month as such - , however, these few tips I am sharing are starting to build up positive results for my work. Without further ado… Hope it helps you as well!

On Publishing:

- Publish your work on multiple platforms – Amazon, Smashwords, LULU, Blurb, Draft2Digital, etc. Plan your book distribution globally. Doing that, you will open the doors to potential readers from several countries, who are able to buy your work from their favorite shops and webshops. (When you make your work available at one channel only, such as Amazon, you give your potential readers no options, no freedom in choosing where she /he would like to buy your book.)

Have no budget? No problems! I never have one as well. I publish my print books via LULU. It means the only expense I need to have (once the manuscript is ready and edited) is to purchase a proof copy for approval. (In my case, I like to have the print copy proofed, too. But if you can’t pay a person to do that, take it easy and do it yourself, ask a friend, or exchange services with another author.)

- Multiple formats are important. When you publish your work as only ebook or only paperback, again, you limit the options for your readers. Everyone or most people like to read in a favorite format or specific format in a specific situation. For example: I like to read ebooks, but some days, due to eye fatigue, I like to read only print books. By making your book out in different formats, you make your work more desirable to potential readers.

- If you publish only ebooks, remember to make them available as Epub as well (not only as Kindle, as I see many authors doing). On the book giveaways that I do, 60% + of the winners always request Epub. It is only in the US that I’d say 50% of the winners on my giveaways request Kindle format. Not everybody has a Kindle or Kindle app – so get your book on LULU, Smashwords, Draft2Digital – these are free and will distribute your book worldwide as Epub + you can set a Kindle, too, of course, and have both formats!

Marketing:
Here are some free or very affordable ways to make some nice marketing to raise awareness of your title and get some reviews:

- Giveaways – Set up a print book giveaway on GoodReads, there are very cheap ways to do it, as for example, giving away one print copy to people in your country, if you don’t have a budget.

Can’t make a print giveaway? No problems, chap! Make ebook giveaways (remember to have both Kindle and Epub freebies available!). Two great sites for ebook giveaways are LibraryThing.com and BookLikes.com - it won’t cost you a thing, other than sending the files to the winners! Voi lá!

- Are you part of GoodReads groups? There are many groups where you can make a thread and offer free copies of your book in exchange for a review and those copies can be ebook :)

- If you have a little extra, you can purchase a Blog Tour service, or Blitz for as little as 30$, the smallest packages. Blog tours are a nice way to do some PR and reach new readers. You can use it also to giveaway free e-books.

- Partner with other authors and bloggers, by exchanging links or paying/trading ads in their blogs

- If you have a little extra budget, partner with a Facebook group, magazine, newspaper, website where you can place an ad. Remember to select those according to your niche. If you write horror, you may advertise with a partner that has a horror audience/readership, for example.

- Fair price: I have seen some author selling their books at horrible prices. If your book is too expensive, less likely people is going to buy it. A fair price makes readers happy :)

- Social media (my opinion, feel free to disagree): keep the bloody social media social! There’s nothing more annoying than people trying to sell books - or whatever –on social media :P

Write a new book
This is something I first heard and learned of Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords: Your new book is the best marketing tool for your other books. Write something good, great, and after some books, your titles will market each other. Don’t forget to include samples of previous books on your new books :)

If it takes too long for you to write a novel, don’t get stuck: write a short story, then, heh!

That’s all, folks!

I was surfing on Twitter enjoying the page of Zombie Sam, who makes soundtracks for films and the like, when I discovered the cool giveaways he posts exclusively for his fans and followers. (hint!)

They were cool handmade drawings, done by Zombie Sam himself, picturing Tim Burton's universe. The giveaways are engaging and personalized, making them one of a kind.

It was then I got very inspired by his ideas and realized... I had never done such intimate giveaways JUST and DIRECTLY to my followers & friends.

An artist/author like ME can only thrive with the support of cheerful, positive, fun people like YOU and I am very blessed to have you around...

So, here's to YOU, my GoodReads follower:

*..:1 Hardcover copy of The Night of Elisa - SIGNED and with DEDICATORY.:..*
Will be shipped if you live in the UK, Scandinavia, Europe, CA and the US.

Do you live outside those regions? You can still participate - but you will win an Ebook on your fav format, Kindle or Epub! :D

All you have to do is to leave a reply or "hello" on this blogpost ^.^ The winner will be announced on 3rd April, 2016.

Don't be shy :D

Good Luck and have a nice day!