Matthew Culberson's Blog

Year one of my adventure into the online self-publishing world has officially passed. It's been a year of ups and downs, hopes and dreams, elation and disappointment. But overall I am happy with the results.

I have published exclusively through Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing program and overall I have enjoyed the ease of use and low cost to entry. The market is saturated, though, and that would be my most frustrating takeaway from my first year.

Self promoting sucks! There's just no other way to put it. I am a writer, not a self-promoter, and while I have done my best, I must say that is my least favorite part of the self-publishing process.

It's necessary, though. Because with all of the options out there the only way to get anyone to read your work is to tell them about it.

I wanted to take this moment to thank all who have read my book and taken the time to rate it or review it (positive and negative). The knowledge that I have finally gotten my work out to the masses (though they be few at the moment) is encouraging. And I know that with patience and determination, and maybe the funds to publish a decent paperback version, the readership for my novel will grow.

Patience. Patience. Patience.

And never give up.

That's me talking to myself and reminding myself of the two keys to making it in this business. That, and as I see it, a book cover with an awesome set of abs plastered on the front. (How can I compete with that?)

But I digress. I look forward to what the future holds for After Life and for future works. Although I will never give up on getting published through the traditional route, having the option to self-publish so easily has helped fuel the fire, knowing that no matter how many agents discard my query letters, someone out there might still get a chance to read my work.

I will be celebrating the one year anniversary of the release of After Life on July 6th. To celebrate, the book will be free from July 4th through the 8th!

Happy 4th of July everyone!

MC

After Life actually made a Top Ten List for 2016 at Bookoftheday.org

Thanks to everyone who has read and supported my novel. It's a long and wonderful process finding an audience, and I am simply thankful to finally have my work read by others.

Here's to an exciting 2017!

Happy New Year to all!

Here's the list if you want to check it out:

http://bookoftheday.org/top-ten/

I just love when I see someone is reading my book on here. Such a cool feeling. Sometimes I feel like I'm looking over their shoulder as they read, though, waiting to see their reactions as I anxiously await a comment or review to post.

Thanks to all that take the time to check it out!



After Life

Here is another trailer for After Life. I enjoyed making it and hopefully it will attract readers to my book!

Have a great night!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SYMp...

Like anything else worth having, finding an agent and eventually getting published through a traditional publisher is tough work. Writing and editing the book is only half the battle. First you have to write the query letter and convince a literary agent to read your book. If you beat the odds (1 in a 100 is the number I’ve heard) and make that happen, the next step is said agent feeling like they can sell it. And even if they take you on, there’s no guarantee they will find a publisher for your work.

It’s a long, drawn out process that can take several months or even years. And then, if you’re lucky enough to find a publisher, you’ve got up to a year before your book hits the shelves. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m willing to wait for all this, and I have. I’ve gotten an agent to read my work. I’ve gotten the positive feedback only to be told it wasn’t for them. And I still have query letters wandering around in the great abyss (i.e. sitting in a stack of some agent’s slush pile/email inbox).

But as a writer, I simply want people to read my book! Is that too much to ask?

So in steps Kindle Direct Publishing. And by direct, they really mean direct. You write the book, design your cover, and upload your book for all to see. Seems simple enough. And it is. But that’s just the first step. The next challenge is actually getting someone to read it.

And that’s where the self-promotion comes in, the hard job of finding readers, raising your hand and getting noticed in a crowd of people, trying to be the stand out needle in the haystack. The internet is filled with, “Read me! Read me!” billboards everywhere. The competition is tough.

I never wanted to self-publish, because I always felt that, in a way, it was giving up. There’s a stigma about the quality of the self-published book, which in some cases is deserved. But that’s not to say there aren’t the diamonds in the rough, the rare success stories of quality novels making it into the hands of readers. And I’m hoping my novel is one such success story.

So that’s where I am today. On July 5th, I released AFTER LIFE to the world, and although I was excited to do so, my hope is that it's not just a tree that falls alone in the forest for no one to hear. Anything worth having is worth working for, and I’ve done the work, I’ve made the sacrifices, and now I just want someone to sit down, perhaps with a nice glass of wine, and enjoy my book. Nothing more, nothing less.

Is that too much to ask?

Until next time.

The first three days of my free promotion have certainly been a roller coaster. The first day was slow going. Then overnight the downloads came in like gangbusters (I'm guessing UK customers). The downloads kept coming in the next day, so much so that I made it all the way up to #39 in the Literary Fiction (Free) category by the end of Tuesday.

I had initially planned on only having two free days, with the idea that I would use the other three promotion days KDP gives you for another time. But after Tuesday's success, I wanted to keep the momentum going and extend it out for the next three days.

Today has been a little slow going, but still getting a download here and there. Maybe it will be like before and tomorrow will pick up. Perhaps it has something to do with how Amazon promotes each title, I don't know.

All I know is, I am happy overall with the success of the promotion. The more eyes on my book the better, and if just a small percentage actually take the time to read it, then all the better still.

The entire self-publishing process is a marathon, not a sprint, and I just have to keep telling myself that. I am proud of my novel and my hope is that more people will get to enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Until next time,

Matt

Okay, so I know it's not that big of a deal, and it is FREE after all, but I woke up and my book was #46 on the Literary Fiction best seller's list for FREE downloads.

Really cool to see and I am excited for the reviews to start pouring in. Thank you for all the support!

I've decided to use up all 5 of my KDP promotion days and have extended the FREE promotion through the rest of the week. Hopefully I can ride this momentum. The more readers the better.

See you on the other side,

Matthew Culberson

I am almost in Top #100 for free downloads in the Literary Fiction category. I am sure it's a small category, but it's something to shoot for. I am currently #128. It would be great to be in the Top #100 of something for at least awhile.

Thanks to everyone who has helped get me there. And if you haven't downloaded it yet, it's free! And I think you will like it too. What do you have to lose?

Available for FREE August 8th and 9th:



a novel that is free, gratis, libre, frei, Бесплатные, 免費, 無料, wolna, bure, leitha. Need I say more? Well, of course I do. It’s a good read. But there’s no reason to take my word for it. It’s free to try. No obligation. No hidden shipping costs.

Also, I am donating a smile for every FREE download so you can feel like you are giving back as well. Smiles are contagious, so who knows what this will do. We could start a smile epidemic. Fancy that.

Seriously, though, please check out my book. It’s about death, family, life, and is a unique take on the world beyond. I am proud of it and would love for as many people to enjoy it that would wish to devote their valuable time.

Thanks and have a wonderful day. And don’t forget, admission to the afterlife is FREE for the next two days.

Thanks,

Matthew Culberson