Justin Timberlake wrote a letter to his fans. Because I think Justin Timberlake IS pop culture, and this blog is partly about pop culture, I wanted to post about it. This is a link to his web site.
The last time I wrote you an open letter, it was in January and I promised that it would be a "Big 2013."
Since then, from The Grammys to the release of the first part of The 20/20 Experience to the crowd's response at the VMAs, it's been a wild ride. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have.
This letter is to tell you that we're not done...Not even close.
On Sept 30th, the second half of The 20/20 Experience, "The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2", comes out. Since all these songs were written together over a year ago, it's been so hard to wait this long to release them. I can't wait for all of you to hear The 20/20 Experience in full.
So..below is a short clip of the recording of the experience so you can get a feel of what those 20 days were like. It was like no other time I've ever had in the studio.
Catch your breath, TN Kids. We've still got the 3rd and 4th quarter to go.
This is too much fun.
He's a very good businessman.
Women Love Gay Romance
The title of this book is just too long for a blog post title, but I wanted to post that The Women Who Love to Love Gay Romance will be released this Friday, August 30th. I'll also be posting more about it this week, with excerpts and other pieces of info. The book will be a .99 e-book for the initial release, and may go to print. I haven't decided on print yet. This one will be distributed in as many places as I can get it, and will not be part of KDP select because I don't want to lock into the Amazon exclusive this time. I not only like to support web sites like Allromanceebooks.com, but I think readers need choices.
Table of contents for Women Who Love to Love Gay Romance. The book is 60,000 words.
Table of Contents
Introduction by Ryan Field
The College Years by Bella Stanberry
Graduation by Bella Stanberry
Sienna Rose by Bella Stanberry
Fallen Angel by Anna Black
Baby Got Bach by Giselle Renarde
A Touch of Therapy by Morgan Honeyman
Changing Curses by Li Blaine
The Facilitator by Tilly Hunter
The Courage to Jump by Oleander Plume
Lustful Wishes by R. Noir
She's Not Happy with Kobo
There's a post over at The Passive Guy blog today where an author of Christian books claims she's not happy with Kobo and she's thinking of leaving. Among other silly issues, this is one thing that she's not thrilled with:
Too much hassle, too few sales. A few months ago, I responded to a survey put out by KWL and added numerous comments about how difficult it is to market to owners of Kobo readers. Since then, their monthly newsletters have included tips on marketing. However, none of those articles specifically addressed marketing to Kobo readers. This continues to be a point of frustration for me. Either no one owns a Kobo or they aren’t following the same book blogs, reader websites, and social media as Kindle and Nook readers are. Less than 0.5% of my sales are through Kobo, compared to 7 – 10% on Nook, and 85% Kindle. (The rest is spread out over Sony, iTunes, and Smashwords).
Most of my books are on Kobo, here. These are my books out with publishers, and the books I have indie published through Ryan Field Press. I have never had a single issue with Kobo with the indie books, and from what Tony tells me the people at Kobo are very easy to work with on tech issues. I own two Kobo e-readers myself, and I've posted here about Kobo multiple times in the past two or three years. I love them. In fact, I do read a great deal on my iPad, but I still prefer my Kobo e-readers to the iPad for reasons that range anywhere from comfort to book purchases. As far as sales go, I'm not unhappy with them and as a businessperson I believe in supporting as many retail web sites where e-books are sold as much as possible so that readers have choices. In other words, if only 100 of my readers buy my books on Kobo, I want them to have that choice. Surveys are a waste of time.
I also think authors really need to stop thinking so emotionally and start thinking more like business people...especially if you're going to indie publish. This isn't about a popularity contest, or what makes you feel more comfortable. This is about getting a product...a book...out to as many people as you can so they can have the freedom to buy your book in places that make them feel comfortable. It's their comfort zone that matters the most, not yours.
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