Why I Love Kindle

by 224 replies
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It's the most successful way I've found to make money online. Yes, it has a lot of drawbacks (which I'll mention in a minute), but holy s*** do the rewards ever make up for them! I only seriously started attempting to make money with Kindle ~3 months ago. I wrote, prepped, and released a book a week, until I figured out a better outsourcing system. I now have 20 books up and am averaging a new book every 2 to 3 days. My latest book was just released last week and, well, since then it's sold 500+ copies. I know, I still can't believe it when I look at the reports, but it's not going away. At even $2/book profit, that's not too shabby.

Okay, this isn't to say that this is easy or there aren't cons. There are. Lots of them. Which is why, I imagine, there's not a lot of Kindle talk around this forum.

Con #1: It's a LOT of work. Even if you're outsourcing. I started by doing it all myself: research, writing, formatting, cover design, uploading, marketing. Everything. It's a huge time investment, and I suspect this is the step that scares most people off.

Con #2: It's NOT instantaneous. We're always looking for quick money in the IM world. Kindle is not that. It takes time and effort to build up an audience, to learn how to outsource correctly, to streamline the process for efficiency. It's worth it, but it does take a great deal of time.

Con #3: Kindle is not PLR friendly, is not article spinning friendly, is not black hat friendly, etc, etc. This probably also scares a lot of people off. Mess with Kindle, and it will blacklist you. But even playing by the rules has gotten me much more than black hat stuff ever did.

Okay, it's not all doom and gloom. Let's see some pros.

Pro #1: Once you've uploaded a book, it's (nearly) set, forget, and earn. My very first book took me a long time to research, write, format, etc. It was a pain. But you know what? Since I uploaded it 2 months ago, I have done zero marketing, zero promotion, and have spent zero effort on it. Guess what: it's still averaging about 10 sales per day. That's with zero work on my part. IMO, that's well worth the initial effort. A few days pain for recurring money daily - I'll take that any day.

Pro #2: Tied in with Pro #1 is the fact that, if you sign up for KDP Select, you hardly have to do any marketing (unless you want, of course). I have a series of books in a non-fiction, educational sort of niche. I have done zero marketing on them. No blogs, no twitter, no fb, nada. All 4 books are in the Top 10 in their Kindle category. If you create a quality book, Amazon will market it for you. It will start showing up in people's feeds, in "people who bought X, also bought Y", and all that type of stuff. It's beautiful. Set and forget.

Pro #3: Once you get a system down, you can easily produce a book a day. Even if you only make one sale a day, that's $2. You have 10 books? That's $20 a day. You have 50 book? Hello, $100 per day. The possibilities are endless. Literally.

Okay, okay, enough of the rant. Just wanted to share what (I think) is an under-looked market on this forum. Yes, it's not black hat. Yes, it's not quick and easy money. But it's sustainable and, if done right, really profitable.

My tips:

Do your research (I'll post more on this later, if wanted)
Produce (or outsource) quality content.
Enroll in KDP.
Set a goal of 1 book per month, per week, or per day even (if the quality doesn't suffer).
Use the same pen name for similar books, to build up an audience and make each book easier to find.
Put links to your books at the end of all of your other books, to make them easier to find.
Sit back and enjoy.
Rinse, Lather, Repeat
#main internet marketing discussion forum #kindle #love
  • Good stuff, thanks for the read.
  • I've released some things on Kindle quite a while back, but haven't done anything with it lately. I do agree that it's pretty cool in that it's set and forget. For me, it just didn't add up enough to be worth it. I'm glad to hear about your success though.

    I would like to point out that I've learned something about KDP Select that some people may want to consider. Amazon has a rule that says that if you have a book in Select, and they catch it ANYWHERE else, they'll hold it against you. I believe what they do in that case if I remember correctly is that they'll take the book down.

    But why would this be a problem for anyone abiding by the rules and only uploading to Kindle Select and nowhere else? Well, here's the thing: people often pirate books, and all it takes is for someone to pirate something once, put it up on a website for free, and for Amazon to find out about it. That could endanger your whole account, and it's a real shame, cause I agree that Select can be an awesome marketing tool.

    It still may be worth putting your books in Select for some people, but I decided against it.

    Anyways, I decided that since I wasn't going to put anything in Select, I would go ahead and take advantage of Barnes and Noble's PubIt, and Smashwords distribution. I have to be honest, even those two combined only make up a small portion of my ongoing earnings from publishing, but it's at least worth the effort if you decide not to use KDP Select anyways.

    One thing I've always wondered though is how anyone could make any money outsourcing the writing of Kindle books since most of them earn so little every month. Wouldn't it take at least 50-100 dollars easily to get a half-decent writer?

    By the way, Amazon's Writer Central allows up to 3 pen names, so if anyone wants to write in different niches, keep that in mind. It could come in handy.
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    • Thanks for the comments. As for this part:

      What I do (and this maybe just works for me, because I actually enjoy writing) is I'll outsource only part of the project. Either the outline/sketch of the book, or the finer details. Sometimes I'll have an idea that I need someone else to expand on, sometimes I'll give an outsourcer a general idea and then I go in and expand on what they give me.

      It's more time-intensive this way, but I really like having control over the final product. And it's a lot cheaper than outsourcing an entire 100+ pages (which would easily run $100+, if you want a decent writer).

      Again, might just work for me, but thought I'd share.
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    • Kindle Select is not mandatory and not required to sell books on Amazon. However, in order to do free promotions you need to be in the Select program. I choose to participate in Select because it helps to boost my books within specific keyword categories upon launch. I then do follow up promotions depending on how a book is doing. Select promotions work great if you know how to choose keywords that give your book more exposure.

      While free promotions are no guarantee of sales, it helps many of my books remain viable. I know that each person makes the decision to enroll in Select based on their own views and marketing goals. There is no right or wrong answer on this issue.

      In exchange for doing free promotions on Amazon I cannot promote my books elsewhere due to the exclusivity requirement of Select. That's something that I've decided is okay for my purposes. I remember I had posted two of my earliest books on Google Books and forgotten about it, because I made 0 sales on that platform.

      KDP contacted me to inform me that they found such and such titles online and I would have to remove them from those other sources in order to keep these titles in KDP. So, I removed them from Google. And, one of those titles makes sales every month. That was my choice and it worked out good for me.

      I consider the pirating thing a rare occurrence for most authors. If someone has an IM/MMO book that they have put online, or feel that it might be pirated, I would suggest rewriting that book for the Kindle audience. Make it a completely different book and it shouldn't be a problem.
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    • It is true that you can set up 3 separate Writer Central pages per account for 3 pen names. However, in my experience, you can write and publish books under as many pen names (and niches) as you wish under a single account, but they won't be able to have a Writer Central page, that's all.

      Use your Writer Central pages strategically for your top branded pen names. Author Central allows you to list all of the books written under a single pen name. This helps fans of that pen name easily find more books by that author.

      As for those additional pen names without an Author Central page, use keyword category positioning to get exposure and sales. I have found that a book title that gains enough popularity shows up when typed into the Amazon toolbar - cool!
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    • First of all, congratulations to OP on his success with Kindle and thank you for sharing it with the community here. It does makes a difference and makes this forum what it is today.

      Now as for my personal opinion about kindle, this is something that worries me the most:


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  • GobBluthJD, thanks for sharing your kindle success.....your post made me pumped up
    and excited again. Been doing book cover designs for other, I think I need to start doing
    kindle book for myself.

    Once again, thank you. Your tips are highly appreciated.
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    • My one tip: write about something your passionate about. It's the only way to push through the times when you'll feel burned out and that it's not worth it!
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  • Good stuff, and I definitely agree about wanting to have the final say on what's in the ebook.

    One thing I'd like to say to anyone wanting to release Kindle books (granted, I don't have near as much experience as GobBluthJD) is that covers are really important. You don't have to be a genius to design a good cover, but do take some time and make sure it looks really good.

    Get the free program Gimp, and practice with it for a few days. There's also places like 123rf and photodune where you can buy royalty free pics for super cheap and use them for your Kindle covers. Just be sure to do some nice looking lettering, etc. Just look at the most popular Kindle books if you need any inspiration.
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    • YES. Absolutely forgot to mention this. Covers are so very, very important. I know, your mother told you to never judge a book by its cover, but you know what? EVERY Kindle customer does exactly that. You can have a brilliant work, the next Great Gatsby, but if you have a poorly photoshopped cover, with the wrong dimensions, you'll never sell a copy.

      This is one step where, if you don't have any experience, it's definitely best to outsource this until you get the hang of it.
    • Agree with this. I'm not that good with graphics and even I can put together a simple book cover in GIMP - don't even know how to use all them other fancy tools on there.

      My book covers done on the cheap start with finding a great photo (I mainly use dreamstime) that expresses the concept of the book. This may require one or several photos. Look at other book covers in your niche to get inspiration for design styles, fonts and color schemes. Take time to find the right photo. That's super important because this is the image people will see first.

      When doing covers myself, I upload the photo to Gimp and then create a simple title to add. I may also include a banner.

      When outsourcing (I currently have a great cover designer on Fiverr) I pick the photo(s) and have a good idea of what I want. I find that the more detailed instructions you give to your cover designer, the better job they can do in creating a good looking cover that really captures your book theme perfectly.

      Another thing to remember is that you can always go back and redesign a book cover. KDP makes it easy to replace the old one. I've recently had to do this for several books.
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    • +1 on this. It's important to have a really descriptive, high quality cover.

      I have a kindle book in the seduction niche (and on createspace) and it took me a good 30 minutes to find the 'perfect' stock photo, and it cost almost $10! But you see it, and you know IMMEDIATELY what the book is about

      To the OP...

      If you take a break from publishing NEW books, and take your 3 best sellers and get them translated into a few other languages, AND put up paperback versions with CreateSpace, you can probably optimize your income significantly. :-)

      Something I learned from Scot Hallman on Eben Pagan's "Get Altitude".
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  • Congratulations on your Kindle success GobBluthJD

    I agree with everything you've said. While I'm not quite as successful as you yet, I'm building up a steady income based on niche selection, research, figuring out what people really want to buy and giving them quality.

    I do all the work myself, so I'm going slower, but it is still very rewarding. For anyone that can write well, Kindle is the BEST! I LOVE earning monthly residual income. Sure, the sales cycles for individual books fluctuate, but I've learned that its normal in the book selling business.

    I too don't bother with book promotion except for KDP Select, because right now my main strategy is to produce as many books as possible - stock those virtual store shelves. Having a substantial back catalog is how many Kindle authors are making great money.

    Another big tip is to create three or four books around a certain theme and then BUNDLE them together. You can sell these collections for more money, earning a second stream of income from work already completed. There are plenty of examples of box sets, etc. to look at for ideas.

    I've finally decided to stop chasing shiny carrots and focus on Kindle books while still doing some freelance writing part time. Eventually, I'm going to be ditching the freelancing gigs permanently. LOVE IT.
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    • This is a very important and helpful tip. Especially if you're writing fiction. Many of the best-selling authors are so successful because they have multi-book series. Then, you can offer the first one free on promotion, get people hooked, and they'll buy up the remaining 3 or 4 of the series.

      I don't do too much fiction, but this is definitely a great tip. Thanks!
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  • Very interesting... I have a few questions if you wouldn't mind answering

    1.) You said "Even if you only make one sale a day, that's $2." Does this mean the max amount you can make per book is $2? or does it depend on the length and can you set your own prices or not?

    2.) How long does each book have to be at the minimum

    3.) How do you create your ebooks. Do you just use a word processor, export it to a pdf upload it on the site, badda bing badda boom or is there something more complex?

    4.) Can you use images throughout your ebook? (royalty free or paid of course) Would you recommend using images?

    Thanks!
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    • 1) You can set your own prices, from $0.99 to $9.99 (I believe). So earning power is based on that.

      2) There is no minimum. I've seen people selling "books" less than 10 pages. But I wouldn't do that. If customers pay for a "book" that's less than 10 pages, you're going to see a lot of refunds and bad reviews.

      3) I create everything in Word, with an ebook template I created. There is software out there that supposedly does it all for you, but I've found this to be the easiest way (and it's free).

      4) You can use images (if you have the rights, or they're free-use). I never do. Formatting for images can be somewhat of a pain (so I've heard). But the genres I'm in don't really ever use photos, so I haven't had to try to find my way through that yet. With the new Kindles though, the resolution is great, and they are in color, so it's something I'm looking at for the future.
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    • Each book is as long as it needs to be to provide real VALUE to the reader. People only feel cheated when they don't perceive a book giving them enough valuable information on what they really want to know, or a great story they can sink their teeth into.

      When creating a book think about what YOU would want to know if you were going to buy this type of book. Give readers great content and they will reward you.

      I do all of my books in Word (easy to create a clickable table of contents). I convert them to epub using Mobipocket Creator. It's free and easy to do.
  • I don't have any lists. I don't write books that would be "list-building" types of books. I suppose I could try to build a list with the niches and genres I'm in, but at this point, it's not necessary.
  • I'm glad you're excited! However, we've all been down this road before. Remember when the idea was to build a website that makes $1 a day. Then you scale up and build 500 of them?

    The trouble is, quality suffers as you build more and more websites. The same is true of books! Plus, older books will likely sell less as time goes on.

    Wouldn't you be better off writing one big seller?

    Anyways, congrats on what you're doing. It sounds like you're doing great.
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    • I agree, partially. If you're only creating Kindle books for a quick buck, then yes, it's not a sustainable idea.

      If, on the other hand, you actually like to write, and you're passionate about the subjects you write about, there's no reason why it's not a sustainable plan.

      Quality must always be #1. No PLR, no cheap outsourcing, lots of editing. If you make a quality product, it will stick around.

      My best-seller is my second book I created, 3 months ago. It still sells the most, and doesn't show any signs of stopping. What's worked (for me) is to pick something evergreen. Fiction is tricky, because the buzz dies down eventually. But if you can pick a topic that people are searching for year in and year out (and there are tons of them), there's no reason why your sales can't hold steady, or even grow.
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    • The nature of book sales is that each book will rise to a peak and then taper off in sales at some point. I've seen this happen in my account. But, a book that is evergreen in its appeal will always continue to sell, just not at peak level.

      There is no way to predetermine which book is going to be that BIG bestseller. Therefore, the best strategy is to continue writing and publishing quality books and build up a good back catalog of books in different genres and niches. The accumulated sales steadily increases your earning potential.

      I don't rely on one book - not a wise strategy. I DO recommend building a solid foundation with evergreen nonfiction titles. Fiction is more lucrative, but more fickle when it comes to generating steady sales. Some people do great with only fiction, but I like how easier it is to target buyers for nonfiction. I am going to tackle fiction again later this year with a new series.

      Success with Kindle really requires that you create a workable publishing strategy and stick to it.
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  • I totally agree...

    Kindle is so appealing because it doesn't require any marketing (although SOME marketing probably isn't a bad idea).

    It's lovely to think you can just do good research and write with passion and get P-A-I-D.

    It's perfect for a writer masquerading as an Internet Marketer ;-)
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  • Thanks for sharing! I didn't realize that kindle user has growing that fast since the first time it exist. Promoting quality book in Kindle is a good idea, I used to be a teacher so maybe I can sell some of my knowledge to the people who needs it. Making a cover is probably a hard task for me, It requires a good design for promotional element.
  • Thank you for this post
  • Long time ago, I want to start writing an ebook myself, but my content would be potentially controversial. I am afraid to get negative review and that will ruin my credibility as a writer. But after reading your post, I might want to start all over again. One thing for sure, I will make a high quality content that make my reader become a fan.
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    • Almost EVERY book on Amazon has bad reviews. You can't please everyone.
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    • You can always just publish it under a Pen Name, if you're worried about ruining your real name.
  • Nice to read, that someone making money, writing books, good job.
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  • While I agree with the point about nonfiction, in general, being about problem solving, there are plenty of people that are also "addicted" to buying books to improve something in their life, or about something that they just really enjoy doing. One book just isn't enough to satisfy their thirst for information.

    Here's a tidbit I took from a review of a book on writing:

    "I've read dozens of writing craft books, and this one is a gem."

    Take a look at the rack of magazines when you go shopping and you can quickly see that there are all sorts of nonfiction topics that continue to be sold to niche audiences.

    For people that want to focus on nonfiction Kindle books, it is worth pursuing just as much as those interested in fiction.
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  • I was inspired by this post and stumbled upon it while already thinking about writing one. I have followed the advice and have written about 15 pages of content (8k words) in the last 12 hours. I will publish it according to the advice and update with my results soon enough. Thanks everyone.
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  • right on bro and congrats on your success. Question, what genre were your books written in?
  • I have 2 fiction books posted last August and so far I made more than 55K sales. I am releasing a trilogy this December (still in the hands of my editor). Kindle is a long-term process and lifetime result.
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    • More than 55k in less than a year?? Geez...you should be sharing your secrets!
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  • Also make Sure to Put Your Website Address at Front PAGE and Final Page for Capuring EMAILS...

    And when you write in same niche next time...First Promote to Your List...

    Also build this asset while building your presence on Kindle...

    Awesome Advice by the way...

    Keep Delivering...
  • I want to say a BIG thanks for this post.

    I have gotten lots of useful, hands on knowledge from this packed to the brim, Kindle post.

    I want to echo what Long Beach Nathan, said about Kindle Select: you need to be very careful making sure your book has NOT been published anywhere else.

    And GobBluthJD

    Not to shabby indeed. I think the problem with making Kindle books is the follow through.

    I have several Kindle books and need to put some more up!

    Thanks again for this very motivational post!
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    • No problem. Get those books ready! The only way to progress, is by taking action and moving forward
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  • Like the OP said, you can write in Word and just create a clickable table of contents. Google it...takes 5 minutes and anybody could do it. I use Open Office and it's also super easy.
  • Hi GobBluthJD:

    I live in miami. Well, I have never seen you. Do you go to the book fair?

    Like it is big in miami. I try to go every year. Last year it was raining.

    KDP is for the birds as you earn no money. I mean I spent a lot of time doing book promos.

    Basically, it is hard to compete with one million 99 cent e-books and more are on our way.

    Please do your research on what is going on. KDP is great for amazon. I have trouble getting 500 downloads a day when I am doing a FREE give away. People on amazing amazon do not like to spend money. Still, you can always try to release a book into a niche that is not over crowded - GOOD LUCK!
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    • Hey there, fellow Miamian! Yes, my wife and I love the book fair. Went in the rain last year to hear Kurt Vonnegut's son speak. Great time.

      I'll have to respectfully disagree with your statement that KDP is for the birds though. Maybe if you're putting out low quality, $0.99 stuff. I never sell mine at that price for longer than 2 weeks. After that, it all gets bumped up to at least $2.99. At those prices, you're making $2/sale, whereas you make $0.30 if your book is priced at $0.99.

      You're right though, it's all about finding those niches!
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  • The kindle is one of the best products i have bought, ever. Definitely worth every penny. I also shop a lot of ebooks from the store. It is just too convenient.
  • So does anyone here apart from using KDP use any other sort of promotion for their non-fiction Kindles? I've read some articles about using some eBook sites for promotion, but that's mainly for fiction. How do you do it personally? I also see people stressing to promote it in the KDP free days, which I don't really get.
    My idea was to just offer the book for free for a couple of days, get people who are interested to read it (on WF as well, actually) and leave reviews, then use KDP free days to boost the downloads and ranking after some reviews. Any flaws in this plan?
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    • I have a stop smoking hypnosis ebook that's sold a few copies on Amazon. I've done nothing to promote it because I'm focusing more on fiction. I was thinking the other day to get a landing page up for that market. I've got several thousand words of good content I can turn into tips and tricks to stop smoking, etc. and create an email series. I actually picked up two absolutely unbelievable domain names for the stop smoking market the other day. I can't believe they were available. One was a .net, the other, .org

      I'll offer a freebie to subscribers along with a series of stop smoking tips. Each of those emails will contain a link to my waaaay under priced Kindle title. I'd expect to get some sales that way. Before I do this though I also want to find a decent stop smoking offer so I can alternate the two.

      That's sort of an MMO-style method. The wildcard is that "general" traffic won't have as many eReader owners as Amazon traffic. But this will be a test and if they don't buy my book they'll also have a chance to buy a more expensive alternative. Not sure when I'll get around to this though because I'm working like crazy to get more salable books out, including nonfiction.
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    • I promote it. Book site, free publishing platforms (weebly, wordpress, squidoo), post the feeds of the blog in any place where it is well received, and do internal SEO targeting keywords, plus twitter and pinterest... I also added the book to goodreads, didn´t play with shelfary yet. That is for non fiction.

      When you have the free days, you also promote them, there are sites where you register the free days. I will probably be adding one of the lists with frames in my own site. They are easy to do.
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    • You would promote it much the same way you would promote your blog or a click bank product.

      Naturally you would want to setup a blog whose purpose is to presell the book. Then write articles, press releases, videos etc... and link to either the book on Amazon or your blog depending on your goals.

      You might also consider a Facebook fan page and twitter account to disperse information about your topic.

      If you offer it for free on WF, then you can't have it in KDP select as it is against their terms, therefore you wouldn't be able to get reviews on Amazon that way.
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  • I have about 3 books on Kindle and I have never had a sale. I think that I just need to keep trying and persevering.
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    • How long have you had the books up? I saw one of your books. Few comments about your book on Amazon, just from 10 seconds on the page:

      1) Cover is very lackluster, unimaginative, and does not make me want to look inside.

      2) Price is very high for a 61 page book.

      3) The description tells me almost nothing about what the book is actually about. It does not engage me as a reader and make me want to buy it to find out more.

      If you change even 1 of those 3 things, you'll have a chance. Change 2, you'll make a sale. Change all 3, you'll really be on the right track.

      A book isn't just something you can throw up haphazardly (like, say, a micro-niche site back in the day). You have to pay attention to things like cover design, book description, finding the right pricing, etc. They all tie into one another, and if you really want to see sales, you have to address them all.

      Just my $0.02. (I know, you didn't ask, but I couldn't help myself).
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    • Michael,
      Unfortunately, your situation is not unique. There are many authors who write books and think/hope that their sales will take off or all they have to do is make the book free for a few days and then they will start making loads of money.

      The fact is, once you write and publish your book, you need to work hard at promoting yourself and your books. Building an author brand is the difference between a multi millionaire like Amanda Hocking and someone who makes $20 per month from their Amazon books.

      Focus on connecting with your potential readers on a daily basis, blogging, social media, marketing, and building your author brand.
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  • If you have to promote your book hard - then what's the advantage over selling it yourself and making more per unit? If Amazon isn't helping to make sales - Kindle becomes 'sort of' pointless.
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    • There is only one way to find out if it is pointless or not... split test.

      What I noticed is that Amazon has a great structure to promote your book once it gained traction. So the promotion is as close as set and forget as it can be. You push it a bit, and then it works on its own.
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    • That's actually a good question. Like Sandra says, you would want to test it to see which method makes you more money.

      There is a big advantage to being on Amazon though - once your book starts to make sales, it gets put on the "also bought" lists for other books. This gives it exposure to all the shoppers looking for books in that niche/genre. If you make enough sales, you can get listed at the top of your category, thus giving it even more exposure.

      BUT, you have to do something to get it to make consistent sales before you can benefit from Amazon's promotional machine. That's where the promotion comes in.

      So, if you promote it on your own site, you could, perhaps, charge more for it but you aren't getting the benefit of the bazillions of customers that Amazon might expose your book to. Only testing will tell which benefits you more financially.
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    • There are many points that gives Amazon the advantage:

      1. Credibility. Everyone knows and trusts Amazon.
      2. Vehicle for delivery. Amazon makes it easy to purchase and consume your ebook, second to none.
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  • I thought about Kindle for some time now, but I can't decide which niche would be profitable. Any advice? I'm not sure if I could do a fiction book and get sales without being a famous author...

    Thanks for any help :-)

    Phil
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    • Picking a niche: Research what's hot and trending on Kindle; compare that with Google keyword tool; compare that with your interests (because you should be interested in what you write, or that will show through in your writing).

      Fiction: Others can answer better than me (and have, in the posts above), but it's entirely doable with: hard work, writing skills, being prolific, and a little bit of luck.

      If you 2 of those 4, it'll be an uphill battle. If you have 3 of those 4, it can work. If you have all 4, you'll be golden.
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    • In fiction - Being a famous author is not necessary... you find your readers and BECOME a *famous author* ;-)
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  • For a while (back about a year ago), they were sending out warnings to people whose books showed up on pirate sites, but the authors would get the book taken down (from the pirate site) or answer Amazon and tell them it had been pirated and Amazon re-instated the book.

    I haven't heard of this happening in recent times, so I think maybe Amazon has figured out how to tell which sites are pirating the books?

    I don't know of anyone that got their account shut down, but some people did get their books taken off sale temporarily while they straightened everything up out with Amazon (which btw, can be a painfully slow process).

    Anyway, like I said I have not heard of any such thing in recent times, so I don't think you should spend time worrying about it.
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    • I too have never heard of an account being shut down for this. Sounds like someone's reasoning for not doing any work and putting their books up on Kindle! :rolleyes:
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  • Very good thread, thanks for the share. You should write a WSO on how the process goes step by step. I would buy it.
    • [3] replies
    • The Warrior Book Club on this forum has good information to get started. There are also already several Kindle WSOs that go into how to write and publish for Kindle.
      • [1] reply
    • I did it, not a wso... a kindle book. Have to walk the walk and not only talk the talk.

      First link in my sig. Released it yesterday.
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    • I'm finishing up a guide today, actually. It won't be a WSO, it won't be in the Kindle Member only thread, and it won't be for sale on Amazon.

      It will be free.

      This is the type of information that should be shared. No reason to try and profit off of it.

      I'll update this thread when it's finished!
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  • GobBluthJD:

    I applaud you and I thank you. I greatly appreciate your willingness to share knowledge.

    I do not have any issue with anyone making money from their knowledge or insight, about Kindle books, however.

    I recently paid for a membership in the private Kindle Forum here.
    IMHO it is well worth the price of admission. The information contained, for me has been extremely valuable.

    I also purchased Sandra Martinez Kindle Visual Guide. And while I have not gone through all of it yet, it again is a great tool for my Kindle Tool Box.

    I have made money from my Kindle books and I feel re-investing some of it to learn new tricks and tips will only help me to become a better Kindle author.

    Again: I want to sincerely thank you for all you have done GobBluthJD for all Kindle Authors here at the WF.
    • [1] reply
    • I'm just trying to share what little knowledge I have! I've picked up a lot of great advice for free on WF throughout the years, so now that I finally had a little bit of success, I wanted to pay it forward and give back a bit.
      • [ 5 ] Thanks
  • GobBluthJD I have to agree actually, Kindle is certainly being over looked. I for one am guilty of that myself, I would love to have a go at writing and getting some books out there.

    You mentioned a couple of things I would like to learn about, when you say formatting what exactly does that mean. Lastly, based on the cover design do you have any useful sources I could possibly use.

    Any help or suggestions on that would be awesome.

    Regards
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    • By formatting, I mean making sure your book looks good when someone reads it on a Kindle. There are a few certain rules you have to follow to make sure that everything appears as it should, but honestly, once you get those down, it's easy to write and format at the same time. I make all my books in Word and just upload the Word doc to KDP and it works fine. But I had to learn the formatting first. One of the main reasons for bad reviews and refunds is the simple fact that the author didn't properly format the book and people can't even read it!

      As for cover design, I make mine myself. Free stock photography sites and GIMP are your friends. If you can't/don't want to do that, then find a good outsourcer. The cover is one thing you absolutely do not want to skimp on. People DO judge a book by its cover, so its important to have a good one!
  • So on average what do you guys think is a reasonable price for non-fiction books on kindle? Do you guys charge by the size of the book or do you charge the same price on every book no matter the size?
    • [1] reply
    • Depends on length, type of non-fiction (cookbook? how to guide? historical research?), and quality.

      Definitely do not charge the same on every book no matter the size. You gotta keep testing and find that sweet spot where customers buy at a good price.
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  • Might be because I'm located in the Netherlands. Yeah, I'm curious as to how it will go, hopefully people find it useful. I planned in 1 day for KDP select tomorrow, planning on promoting it on my site itself as it might serve useful for musicians. Do you suggest on using just 1 day at a time or all at once?

    I can't believe you would be able to publish a book a day though, that'd be crazy. I might look to outsource the writing, but I'm not entirely sure where to start... Let's just see how this goes. Thanks for all the great info, hopefully I delivered something which is of value to people...
  • Hello GobBluthJD,

    Great job with your Kindle success - keep it up!

    I just started on it myself (see the sig link). I'm finding it enjoyable to see more sales come in (though I still have to get more reviews - have 1 so far, though it was a 5-star review).

    I'm not sure why - I've kept revising the book, but Amazon won't accept it into KDP Select. I don't know if it's the subject matter (Wheat Belly - I know Dr. Davis, the one who coined the phrase to my knowledge with his book - his books aren't in KDP Select, nor are some other Wheat Belly books by other authors, though a few are. Amazon says that the information is not exclusive or is in the public domain. Of course, I didn't copy or rewrite Davis' book or any other book, just extrapolating on some points, adding some ideas and a 7-day meal plan, etc.).

    Therefore, I've had to do some of my own marketing- it's been a little slow to start, but it's starting to work. I'm currently #6 for "Wheat Belly" (had been #9) and #2 for "Whole Grain" and "Whole Grains" (was #1 briefly). I have more marketing planned, but certainly, I plan on writing (and outsourcing) many more publications for Kindle in the coming weeks and months. I certainly am enjoying it.

    If I can't get into KDP Select, I could also promote on Apple's iBookStore and B&N's NookPress right away, so there's always a positive.

    I agree, too, that a good cover is essential, being that it's the first thing most prospects will see- fortunately, they don't have to cost that much (even some good ones on Fiverr - I think my cover is solid, and it was done on Fiverr). I also plan on creating my own covers as well, as I have some software and templates to do that.

    Again, congrats on your success and for the advice- greatly appreciated! Good luck in the future!

    TinkBD - thank you also for that link - I wasn't aware of it either, but it definitely looks like good info!

    Take care,

    Joe Chengery
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  • Kindle is the shiznit
  • Good job. You can post your free day to some FB groups for a little extra press!
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    • Thanks, really curious for any kind of feedback / reviews. Ah, I don't know any of these groups for kindle publishing specifically, already pushing it as possible while not seeming spammy on my own channels. Care helping me out here? Would be very much appreciated, I want to do everything I can do stimulate the performance! :-)
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  • I'm impressed. Excellent intro. I'm not really your market and I'm curious as to what the rest might be like. I downloaded the book. I'm not promising a review as I have about a dozen others in front of yours. But if you've kept the magic flowing that I found in the "Look Inside" section I might just stop what I'm doing and write one up. Congratulations on a nice piece of work!
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    • Thanks so much for the first peice of detailed feedback I've gotten, I really appreciate it. In the rest of the book, the info is also based on my personal experience. It also contains quite a bit of facts that are just plain interesting even if it's not your cup of tea, and some basic marketing insights that I use in my work. Well, see if you find some time, and if you do find time to do a review I'd be very grateful!

      Gob, you're right. However, it gets harder and harder to choose subjcts, doesn't it? I mean, this one was pretty obvious as I spend a lot of time on social media, but I only have about 3 more subjects before I get to the point where I am really not confident or knowledgeable enough. Do you only outsource at this point?
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  • Can't let this very useful thread die!
    In what way does everyone here use the free days. 5 in a row, or spread out? I have used 1 free day, got good feedback on Reddit / FB and about 200 downloads, but I'm not on any ranked list today since it's paid again. Is this normal or should I change my strategy?
    • [3] replies
    • Do some experimenting, find out what works for you. I used to try a day or two here, then paid, then a few more free days. Now I tend to do all 5 free days at once. It shoots you up the charts and you stay there longer. I've found I've gotten a lot more free downloads, and then stay up in the charts for sales after that.

      But again, might not work for everyone. Depends on your niche, content, etc.
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    • Most of the advice I've seen says that one-day promos are a waste for most. One two-day and one three-day promo per 90 days seems to be the rule of thumb.

      That said, you need to find what works for you.

      One combo that's crossed my mind, although I haven't tested it yet, is to schedule a one-day promo and email your list and anyone in your network that might be interested. Stress that you want honest reviews, star ratings, shares if worthy. Basically, ask for a favor.

      Once you have a few reviews/likes/ratings, schedule a two-day promo and announce it anywhere that will let you. There are a lot of lists of such sites - find one and use it.

      A few weeks later, schedule your other two-day promo and send news releases, do the announcement thing, and whatever social media you do.

      > If anyone has comments or suggestions on this plan, bring 'em on...

      [Subseven, I grabbed a copy of your book. I'm just getting into it, but what I've seen so far, I'm impressed with. Good job.]
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    • Be aware - I have been hearing that if you are having good, organic sales, putting your book for free can tank your sales and rankings because the algos read those days as -- days without sales...

      I have not tried this so I can't report personally, but it needs to be considered.
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  • I've heard you can hope for one review from every 100+ sales/freebies. I'd say anywhere from 100-200 is more accurate. But just keep at it, keep promoting, and once you get a review or two, they start to snowball and grow and grow.
  • Subseven, maybe ask for reviews in your description and in your actual book?

    I don't know how much I can attribute the reviews I've received to my calls to action, but reminding people to leaves reviews HAS to be more effective than just expecting them to do so.

    My feeling is that if you don't remind people to leave a review, they won't. Just like if you don't remind people to "buy now" they won't. A call to action is a big deal in IM for a reason..
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    • I did ask for reviews where I promoted the book myself, but indeed not in the book or description. I added it to the description now, might add it in the book once I go for more free days. Not seeming to get much sales now it's not free, I'll throw in more free days as I am currently not even ranked.

      Thanks for the tip on CreateSpace. My book is a bit too short, might be able to add a few pages to comply with the minimum.
  • And also, I'd say make a paperback copy of your book on createspace. I've heard people saying don't do it unless your book is 100+ pages because it will look flimsy, but if you clearly state the page count at the beginning of your description, you won't violate expectations.

    Plus, you can charge more for your paperback and earn a larger royalty. My paperback version earns 2x the commission of the kindle version and despite my book being only 40 pages, people still order it, which warms my cockles to think somebody has a physical copy of my book in their homes. Don't you all want warm cockles?
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    • I agree, having a paperback version makes a lot of sense for long books or say a collection of short stories. For example, I bought a paperback last month for £6.99 that I could have downloaded on Kindle for £1.49. I don't have a Kindle and although I do have the desktop app I wanted the book for some light bed-time reading so I happily spent the money for the convenience factor.
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  • wow thank you! great read ! its something ill definitly take look at it in a near future
  • Loved this thread. I have a neighbor who was a first time fiction writer. I helped him with his book cover plus gave him keyword and formatting info.

    He was a top seller in his category. Totally unknown author before.

    He did a lot of self promotion on facebook. Asked his friends to buy the book and review it. Kept on encouraging people to read and review. He has 40+ reviews. 95% of his reviews are 5 and 4 stars which helped his sales.

    Plus he did a lot of radio interviews. Not sure what he makes on his book but it is cool to know a "best selling" Kindle author.
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    • [2] replies
    • When I was starting out as an aspiring writer, authors like Stephen King were going Godzilla and eating all the midlist assets for their gargantuan advances. This was just prior to the Web. Publishing was becoming a proverbial "walled garden." Would-be writers had slim hope for any kind of sustainable returns after the publishing houses took their lions' shares. Bestselling authors were not even making a living at writing!

      Now, even though there is no longer a bookstore in my local mall, I think people are reading more than ever.

      Great thread!
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • See, that is awesome. He didn't just publish a book on Amazon and hope for reviews or sales, he went out and worked and hustled for it by doing interviews, promoting on social media, etc.
  • Thank you for sharing.Your information is incredible thanks again

    Regards,
    Dina
  • Sorry if this has already been asked (I did not read every post in the thread) but have you tried Smashwords ? And if so, what is your experience with it ?

    Thanks.
  • Amazon gives you an amazing, easy to use platform that will sell your books FOR you in VOLUME. That's the trade off. And as John said, it stings the ego to sell your hard work for less than what you think it's worth but if you make more revenue, then you're actually getting as much as it IS worth.
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    • Exactly. Well said!
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    • Those were exactly my thoughts.
      I just sold my first few units, and while it may not be much, it's a good start for me. I still decided to use up the free days in the next 4 days in order to see what it does for my ranking. Maybe I wouldn't have planned in the free days after I saw I made my first few sales seeing that put me in the ranking, I'm still curious as to see how it turns out. Time to start my next book and let the free days do their work.
    • I totally agree... and for fiction - which can be far more evergreen than non-fiction, the pricing is pretty close with the rewards FAR greater than going with a traditional publisher...

      Here is an example ;-)

      Sharing Royalty Info: One Book From My Back List Still In Publisher's Control

      We are living in wonderful times. If you can write, now is the time to buckle down.

      And <wink, wink> it is my contention that it is easier to make the transition from non-fiction to fiction...
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  • I love this post. I plan on diving into kindle, but I'm kind of curious about the outsourcing part of it. I have zero time to research. What's the best way to outsource book creation?
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    • Find a great writer, test them, sign them to a contract, and be prepared to spend at least $500+ for a quality book. Stay far away from crappy places like Fiverr as well.

      Make sure that the writer guarantees that they are giving you 100% original and unique content and that you will be the ONLY one they give it too. Many people get screwed because after the first sale, the "writer" sells the exact same book to other unsuspecting authors.

      Check reviews, feedback, etc, and expect to pay for quality.
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  • I have a question can you use peoples names in your non fiction kindle books e.g I want to talk about tony robbins or tim ferriss maybe bill gates but nothing negative about them though its merely to use them as examples. I am wondering is it legal to do that or do I have to seek permission?
    • [1] reply
    • There are two approaches. First, as has already been mentioned, you can hire a ghostwriter to create a 'work for hire'. Second, you can outsource the actual research to someone else and do the actual writing yourself.

      Since people like the ones you mentioned are public figures, you can use them as examples. I try to stick to information that's already public.

      As a wild example, contrast using Gates or Jobs as examples of garage entrepreneurs who got rich vs. the hackers who posted various public figures' and celebrities' personal financial info.
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  • I will assume you are asking a legitimate question:
    You may certainly use public figures as examples in your books.
    You can even quote them...

    you may not libel them, that is:

    Libel - Legal Dictionary | Law.com
    dictionary.law.com/Default.aspx?selected=1153 Similar
    libel.

    1) n. to publish in print (including pictures), writing or broadcast through
    radio, television or film, an untruth about another which will do harm to that
    person ...

    But anything else is fair game.
    This is what newspapers and magazines do all the time...
  • Do any of you participate in Pat's First Kindle Book (From Start to Finish) on Facebook?
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/357112331027292/

    It is an excellent discussion group that is active and a supportive community. I've tried a few LinkedIn groups but Pat's group has been the most supportive.

    As I read through this thread, I still think it is important to promote your books across your own channels vs. set and forget it.

    For example, if your sales start to dip, you need a strategy to increase sales and change your book description, title or cover.

    I haven't tried to outsource a title just yet mainly because I want to be the expert in my niche and bring my own voice to the end product. In the end, it is a higher quality product.

    Andy

  • A to the MEN!!! It is a lot of work, but you're right, the rewards are ridiculous! I think a lot of people will be pleased with the fact that you are literally done after you upload it then you reap the rewards!
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  • Great to know about your Kindle success. Its very encouraging.
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    Why I Love Kindle

    It's the most successful way I've found to make money online. Yes, it has a lot of drawbacks (which I'll mention in a minute), but holy s*** do the rewards ever make up for them! I only seriously started attempting to make money with Kindle ~3 months ago. I wrote, prepped, and released a book a week, until I figured out a better outsourcing system. I now have 20 books up and am averaging a new book every 2 to 3 days. My latest book was just released last week and, well, since then it's sold 500+ copies. I know, I still can't believe it when I look at the reports, but it's not going away. At even $2/book profit, that's not too shabby. Okay, this isn't to say that this is easy or there aren't cons. There are. Lots of them. Which is why, I imagine, there's not a lot of Kindle talk around this forum.