tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post8759931784961385706..comments2023-02-21T00:26:51.051-08:00Comments on Why Isn't My Book Selling?: Happy HourVictorinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06052077366367623323noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-45953324854325719592011-09-16T12:21:54.217-07:002011-09-16T12:21:54.217-07:00I have to agree. I am your target market. I adore ...I have to agree. I am your target market. I adore women's fiction and only buy books I can get on kindle unless it is for a class. I'd go with a better stock photo. I don't know what the ladies look like or I'd link to one for you. If your reader is younger try a vector if your reader is older go with a real person as close to the fit of your protagonist as possible. The blurb is too long. I didn't get past the first paragraph.What kind of marketing are you doing?Shawnedahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04089646682108732138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-57573544285947566102011-09-15T20:39:26.036-07:002011-09-15T20:39:26.036-07:00"Go to girls" is all that's needed i..."Go to girls" is all that's needed in the first paragraph. It's clear and doesn't need 4 descriptions of what a go-to-girl is among a group of women friends, so a cut could be made here. The opening chapter doesn't have a hook and didn't grab me - it's a very ordinary scene. I don't like the cliches in the last paragraph - pot of gold, silver lining. Also agree 500 sales is decent indeed in the time frame.Jennyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10384070533603453713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-80007354710322253912011-09-15T14:42:44.378-07:002011-09-15T14:42:44.378-07:00500 since March? at $2.99? What on earth are you w...500 since March? at $2.99? What on earth are you worried about? That's pretty good sales considering how awful the summer was for most people.Debbie Bennetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06761474820689143835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-45112713994580182172011-09-15T11:57:23.758-07:002011-09-15T11:57:23.758-07:00The cover - I would warm it up with some humanity....The cover - I would warm it up with some humanity. It's a little cold the way it is now, and like others have said, doesn't tell me as a reader what to expect to find inside. I'd look at that cover and think "Oh, whodunit murder mystery reprint from the eighties". Don't know why, that's just what comes to my mind. I could see something like a table with wine and cheese, set against a backdrop with a meadow and four women walking through the grass away from the table.<br /><br />The description - Again, agreeing with everyone. It's way too long, and splits the reader's focus. I kept reading (skimming, sorry) long enough to see that each paragraph was about different women. Who am I supposed to focus on here? Any one of them or all of them? That makes me wonder if the prose inside is that split.<br /><br />The excerpt. Oh, boy. As someone who does not have children, this completely turned me off. Now, not being a mom, I can't say with 100% certainty, but if I had a child who acted like that older child? There would be no arguing over video games because his butt would be grounded. That Kat let's him talk to her like that irritated me. I wouldn't think that's the reaction you're aiming for. <br /><br />Now, how do I say this next part? In addition to the boy making me want to pass the mom Self-Esteem and Parenting 101 books, I'm not particularly interested in reading something that deals with sulky children. I imagine that, even if readers are parents, this might not be the best foot to start out on for them, either. A lot of us read to escape, and starting out with a mom who is struggling, especially if it's been a long day for your readers who might be dealing with their own sulky teens, could be hurting you a little. Could you start the book out with a different character, perhaps?<br /><br />All that being said, 500 copies is pretty darned good. Like J.R. said, you're doing something right. :)T. L. Haddixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14053211675970745419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-13943338359177002922011-09-14T18:19:41.866-07:002011-09-14T18:19:41.866-07:00Actually that's quite decent sales for the fir...Actually that's quite decent sales for the first 6 months so you must be doing something right. I agree about the blurb: too wordy. And the cover is nice but might could be better.<br /><br />Mainly the blurb. Tighten that. I actually rather like the snippet but I'm not your target audience because I hate "women's fiction" so my liking it might be a bad thing. LOLOJ. R. Tomlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01109874615059334200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-74786266432807289232011-09-13T16:57:01.818-07:002011-09-13T16:57:01.818-07:00I loved the cover but must agree it doesn't fi...I loved the cover but must agree it doesn't fit the genre. The opening is good, with the exception of the one typo/misuse, and you need to take a chainsaw to that blurb. :)<br /><br />Otherwise: My goodness, 500 copies in six months is nothing to sneeze at, my dear! :DMeiLin Mirandahttp://www.meilinmiranda.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-71009485723840761712011-09-13T16:36:27.384-07:002011-09-13T16:36:27.384-07:00Beautiful cover but I agree with the other comment...Beautiful cover but I agree with the other comments. Your blurb is all about women and the cover should be about that. As a matter of fact, it took me a minute to realize those were glasses of wine.<br /><br />I also did not read past the first paragraph of the blurb. If you want to mention all of the women, one line for each is enough.<br /><br />I immediately identified with the first woman. I take care of my 13 year old grandson a lot and he is definitely moody and hooked on video games. Raising kids on your own is exhausting. She's a newly divorced mother without a job, which adds to the frustration. <br /><br />500 books in the first six months is pretty good. Tighten up the blurb and redo the cover and I think you'll have a winner.Margarethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04832055618604176686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-17621109763475675892011-09-13T16:28:23.191-07:002011-09-13T16:28:23.191-07:00Okay, I'm writing my comments without reading ...Okay, I'm writing my comments without reading Vicky's. I usually find that she is spot on and then I have nothing to say. So, I'll just say what I want and who cares if I repeat. The cover doesn't strike me as women's fiction. It looks like a book a wine tasting. It doesn't look like fiction at all. I think you need people on the cover. The blurb is too long and doesn't draw me in. After a while I just started skimming. I like the first 300 words. I love books that get right to the dialogue.Sybil Nelsonhttp://www.sybilnelson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5142930702674170471.post-18129532163615114312011-09-13T15:59:22.645-07:002011-09-13T15:59:22.645-07:00Cover: I agree with our hostess, a book about a wo...Cover: I agree with our hostess, a book about a woman and her friends should have a cover photo of said women. Something more dynamic than a few glasses.<br /><br />Description: I agree, way too long. I didn't read past the first paragraph. Long bios on 4 characters is too much. I recommend focusing on just the main character.<br /><br />First 300: I don't love the narrator's voice. There's too much of this: "this, that, the other, or whatever it was." It makes her seem exhausted and detached and apathetic, like she really doesn't like or care about her family, and barely even wants to be telling her story.Joseph Robert Lewishttp://josephrobertlewis.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com