tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post4744124137717625510..comments2023-02-21T00:26:51.051-08:00Comments on Why Isn't My Book Selling?: Dead Men Don't CryVictorinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06052077366367623323noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-19779582341901091272011-07-23T21:59:16.672-07:002011-07-23T21:59:16.672-07:00Too much black on the cover, it doesn't pull m...Too much black on the cover, it doesn't pull me, although I like the title. I agree with Vicki about the explanation upfront - you lost me right there. I'd prefer the stories to start right away, and read the explanation at the end.Jennyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10384070533603453713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-2846902083617432302011-07-23T03:14:27.143-07:002011-07-23T03:14:27.143-07:00Thank you again, everyone. This is extremely help...Thank you again, everyone. This is extremely helpful feedback.<br /><br />I've transmogrified the Introduction into an Author's Note at the end and am looking into a new graphic for the cover image. I may change the title somewhere down the road, too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-64752207291204536592011-07-22T04:28:44.660-07:002011-07-22T04:28:44.660-07:00How about "Dead Men Don't Cry and other s...How about "Dead Men Don't Cry and other science fiction stories" or "... and other stories". Then people would know that this is also a title of one of your short stories, and it would let readers know on the cover that this is a short story collection. I don't mind the title for sci fi -- with the space cover, I get a sense of lonliness from it, and it says sci fi to me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-86204936606768035142011-07-21T14:51:36.913-07:002011-07-21T14:51:36.913-07:00Nancy,
Of the list of short stories in this colle...Nancy,<br /><br />Of the list of short stories in this collection, the only that reads to me as having the most SF-friendly title is:<br /><br />The Breath of Heaven<br /><br />That would be a better title for the collection. Unless its the worst story of the lot, LOL.<br /><br />If not that one, then the second-best title is:<br /><br />A New Kind of Sunrise<br /><br />Both of those would get your genre across more effectively. :)Craig Hansenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16087185187054536025noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-34102111280900926232011-07-21T14:44:44.379-07:002011-07-21T14:44:44.379-07:00I'm currently reading this book, and I agree w...I'm currently reading this book, and I agree with a lot of the comments above, so I won't rehash them. I just want to add that Nancy's writing is good, and I like most of the stories so far. The thing that doesn't show up here but that readers would see on downloading a sample is is the enforced typewriter style font (at least in the Smashwords MOBI file). I find it off-putting and irksome, so it may help account for fewer sales. Nancy was very responsive when I pointed this out, and she is looking into correcting the problem.Ripleyhttp://www.jimiripley.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-4557874358341067472011-07-21T12:04:21.483-07:002011-07-21T12:04:21.483-07:00OK, I love the title...just not for this book. The...OK, I love the title...just not for this book. The title and the cover art are at total odds with one another, and confuses the heck out of me.<br /><br />I like the idea of including the backstory of how you came up with the stories, but include it as an author's note at the end, and instead go right to the first story at the beginning of the book.Amanda Bricehttp://www.amandabrice.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-79370175875408937732011-07-21T11:05:13.417-07:002011-07-21T11:05:13.417-07:00Agree with the others about the cover. While the i...Agree with the others about the cover. While the image is striking, I looked at it longer than I should have needed to to figure out the book was Sci Fi and the image was a spaceship.<br /><br />The title is pure mystery/crime fic.<br /><br />I also agree that you shouldn't start with the backstory of how you came to write the stories--and what doesn't work. That could put a reader off. However, that said, your writing in the opener is smooth and competent. In fact, your first sentence is lovely. I'd think all the backstories would be interesting to a reader AFTER reading the stories themselves.Toni Dwigginshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08966880370654948991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-90389101694926759902011-07-21T10:08:55.469-07:002011-07-21T10:08:55.469-07:00I definitely would like to see your writing at the...I definitely would like to see your writing at the start. I am very put off by samples where what I get is not a sample of the writing itself. A big no-no when I'm looking at buying stories.<br /><br />The rest, I pretty much second what's been said about the cover.J. R. Tomlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01109874615059334200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-38237215047188845902011-07-21T08:06:59.585-07:002011-07-21T08:06:59.585-07:00Just wanted to agree with changing the title to so...Just wanted to agree with changing the title to something more sci-fi, if possible, and switching your foreward to after :). Good luck!Jody W.http://www.jodywallace.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-9621004043780347472011-07-21T06:31:56.490-07:002011-07-21T06:31:56.490-07:00I guess I'd wonder how the sales are relative ...I guess I'd wonder how the sales are relative to other short story collections by indies? I think that's something to look at. Readers, in general, don't seem to like short stories as much. <br /><br />You might try breaking a few of the stories out and selling them as individual stories. The more product you have up, the better your chances of getting sales. In fact, since you have ten stories, you could pair two together as a $0.99 collection and get five of those out. Then raise the price of your collection of ten stories to $3.99. <br /><br />I also agree about the font on the cover. Not only bigger, but make it bolder somehow. It's too meek right now. Add some kind of effect to the font. And move the author's note to the end -- also a good idea. Some readers buy by sampling first, and you want them to jump into your strongest story with the sample. <br /><br />Anyhow, good luck!Asher MacDonaldnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-40569654351864901552011-07-21T05:25:21.197-07:002011-07-21T05:25:21.197-07:00I agree about the cover. It does say scifi to me o...I agree about the cover. It does say scifi to me once I stared at it for a while and got what it was. First, I had to read that line that said it was science fiction. <br /><br />The blub is good but I would start out saying it's a collection, otherwise I would think (and did) that it was one story.<br /><br />How you wrote the stories isn't important. In fact, it seems like the beginning is more of an apology rather than the story of your journey. I would eliminate it altogether, but if you feel you must keep it in, at least put it at the end.<br /><br />Don't forget, that becomes part of the sample and you want readers to get as much of your work in the sample as possible.Margarethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04832055618604176686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-15191518519259826832011-07-21T05:15:51.899-07:002011-07-21T05:15:51.899-07:00This is really great feedback. Thanks so much, ev...This is really great feedback. Thanks so much, everybody!<br /><br />Shaun, the stories in the collection are:<br /><br />Pastry Run<br />Dead Men Don’t Cry<br />Blue Ink<br />Backlash<br />Monument<br />Tammi’s Garden<br />All Praise to the Dreamer<br />The Breath of Heaven<br />Ghost Chimes<br />A New Kind of SunriseAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-49133247432252273442011-07-21T01:27:21.132-07:002011-07-21T01:27:21.132-07:00Have to agree that that cover and the title don...Have to agree that that cover and the title don't grab me. For a science fiction collection, I think that the title should reflect this more. What are the titles of the other stories in the collection? I saw a few of them in the story history that starts the book. From those I would prefer 'Backlash' or 'Monument', but I'd be interested in knowing the other titles. <br /><br />Also, perhaps the product description could start off with something like: Ten speculative tales by Nancy Fulda.Shaunhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17951707293674263179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-52169658492994593752011-07-20T22:47:13.873-07:002011-07-20T22:47:13.873-07:00My impressions:
The cover's a problem. The ar...My impressions:<br /><br />The cover's a problem. The art isn't bad, but the title font is boring and generic, while the "Science Fiction by Nancy Fulda" line is illegible even puffed up to Amazon listing size. It'd be even worse in thumbnail.<br /><br />Move the art up. Get a better title font. Put your name on it's own line, at the bottom, and puff it so it's legible.<br /><br />You don't need "Science Fiction by..." on the cover.<br /><br />Which brings me to the other major reaction I had:<br /><br />The title doesn't say science fiction to me.<br /><br />DEAD MEN DON'T CRY is a pure hardboiled detective fiction sort of title.<br /><br />It also doesn't hint that it's a collection of short stories. Though that's not always necessary.<br /><br />Bottom line? Get a more SF-friendly title, then fix the book cover.<br /><br />Those two things would help a lot. As it stands now, I would veer away from OneClicking based purely on the confusion of a detective-fiction-type title on a book that says it contains science fiction.<br /><br />But that's me.Craig Hansenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16087185187054536025noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-5399556634944139272011-07-20T22:31:58.602-07:002011-07-20T22:31:58.602-07:00Cover: Bigger font, make it clear that it's a ...Cover: Bigger font, make it clear that it's a short story collection.<br /><br />Excerpt: Nope, put the foreward into an afterword. I want to know what you wrote, not how you wrote it--at least not right off the bat. :)MeiLin Mirandahttp://www.meilinmiranda.com/noreply@blogger.com