JULY QUESTION: What's the best thing someone has ever said
about your writing?
When I published Hurricane Crimes with The Wild Rose Press, I had never received praise for my writing. To promote Hurricane Crimes, I created my first character interview for a blog. After the post
went live, I got an email from the host telling me it was the best
character interview she ever had, and she was emailing my
editor to tell her about it.
I didn't think my editor would go to it because I know how busy she is, but she did. And she left this comment: "I know I may be her editor, but I loved Hurricane Crimes and really enjoyed the journey."
My editor is very to-the-point and
doesn't really give praise, so when I got that comment from her, it made my day.
I haven't forgotten it. :)
AUGUST 3RD QUESTION: What was your very first piece
of writing as an aspiring writer? Where is it now? Collecting dust or has it
been published?
***
PROMO EFFORTS:
Facebook Ad: I paid for my first Facebook ad. My budget was $11 daily for two days. My target audience was readers in Florida.
RESULTS:
Paid Tweet: Right after my FB ad ended, I attempted a $10 paid tweet. Afterward I found out you pay per link clicks. So at $5 per click, my ad ended when two people clicked the link!
RESULTS:
Ad Reach: 2,093
Likes: 47
Sales: 1
Sales: 1
RESULTS:
Impressions: 1,928
Retweets: 5
Sales: 1-2
Giveaway: My giveaway for a $25 gift card ended.
NUMBERS GAINED:
Twitter Followers - 94
Facebook Likes - 47
Twitter Followers - 94
Facebook Likes - 47
Newsletter Subscribers - 34
OVERALL: I will definitely do different giveaways in the future, and I'll also try different FB ads. But I won't be doing a paid tweet!
That's all for now! :)
Editors are just the people you certainly needs to get praaise from. Great post Chrys.
ReplyDeleteYvonne.
I'm an editor, and I always try to give praise. I like to point out the good things I like. :)
DeleteI loved your character interviews. I couldn't imagine doing them myself, but yours were great. I'm not surprised your editor responded to it. Glad it made your day! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the results on your promo efforts. Interesting to learn about the paid tweets.
I was a bit surprised about how the paid tweets went, at least for me. Doesn't seem to be worth it.
DeleteLoved the information about the promo efforts. I found the same with paid tweets, not useful at all!
ReplyDeleteYou are the best at the character interviews, Chrys, and your editor was spot on! Congratulations for all your success, it is much deserved!
Thank you, Yolanda!
DeleteThat's wonderful your editor left a compliment.
ReplyDeleteFacebook ads have to be targeted just right to have much of any effect at all.
Yes, the target I chose did pretty good for my first paid tweets.
DeleteI wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed 'Hurricane Crimes'. All the while she was walking out to that car in the beginning I was wondering what I would do in the same situation.
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome! Thank you! :D
DeleteNice one. I love it when my editors praise something - it means a great deal from them.
ReplyDeleteIt sure does. :)
DeleteThanks for sharing your promo efforts. And good luck with the hospital volunteer training!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Madeline!
DeleteThat's a lovely message from your editor. I think it makes their job easier if they actually like the story. Good luck with your hospital training. I'm sure you'll be great!!
ReplyDeleteI know it makes my job easier. ;) Thank you, Nicola. I'm enjoying volunteering.
DeleteWhat a nice note from your editor! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jemi!
DeleteI didn't even know you could do paid tweets :) Good efforts trying to find the best way to promote yourself. How fun to be a hospital volunteer too!
ReplyDeletebetty
Yes, you sure can. :) Thank you, Betty!
DeleteThat comment/praise from your editor is exactly sweet. A hospital volunteer is a noble thing. Good luck. Hope you can share some of your experiences later.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joylene. I am enjoying volunteering. :)
DeleteThat is great to hear indeed for feedback.
ReplyDeleteFacebook ads I tried once, meh for me.Pfft to paid tweets after seeing that.
Pfft to paid tweets is right!
DeleteWow, your editor came and left a comment. That is awesome!
ReplyDeleteChrys, you are doing a great job helping the IWSG. You are an inspiration and I love reading you blog posts.
Thank you so much, Jeffery! I glad you think so. I try my hardest. :)
DeleteWhen your editor says something like that in public, that's awesome.
ReplyDeleteIt sure is. :)
DeleteLooks like you're finding your way. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
I think I am. :)
DeleteThanks for the report on what worked for you ad wise. I always appreciate hearing that stuff.
ReplyDeleteYour editor really doesn't do compliments? My content editor is brutal, but he still tells me when he likes something. My line/copy editor cracks me up with her comments, making me feel like a rock star about my writing. I'm so, so grateful for her.
I will continue to share my promo reports. :)
DeleteNo, she doesn't. She just tells me what needs fixing. Or she'll ask a question. Which is why I always like to point out what I like while I edit for someone.
That's awesome that you have a line editor like that.
Woot woot, Chrys! A compliment hard-earned is much better than the ones that come frequently. Good job!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Loni! :)
DeleteThat's a wonderful compliment from your editor, Chrys. I'm in the middle of the sequel, Seismic Crimes. Wow, action packed!! The best compliment I've received on my writing was from one of my beta readers. She said her husband was concerned because she was crying all the time. She explained it was the short stories she was reading. :) Evoking emotions from a reader is a huge sign that something is getting through.
ReplyDeleteInteresting results on your paid ads. I've never tried to pay for tweet ads. I've done a couple of facebook ones and garnered a significant increase in my book page followers. However, book sales don't seem to necessarily tie into these ads. Great exposure though.
That is too cute. You made a woman cry and her husband was concerned for her. I love that!
DeleteI will try to boost my FB page sometime to see what sort of increase in likes I get. That'll be an experiment for another day. :)
I made the same mistake with paid tweets! It's a total rip-off. Glad you had good results with your other marketing efforts.
ReplyDeleteAnd congrats on that character interview and your editor's reaction! That's fantastic.
I was surprised. I thought the paid tweet would've been better than the FB ad, but boy that was wrong. Thanks, Julie!
DeleteIt's nice your editor made an exception and said something nice and warm. Some people are more reserved, and save their praise and softness for special occasions.
ReplyDeleteThat's true, Carrie-Anne. She also tells all of her clients beforehand that her time is short, so she just gets to the point with edits.
DeleteThat is high praise coming from your editor. Congrats. And congrats on the release of both books. Hugs Happy IWSG Day
ReplyDeleteJuneta @ Writer's Gambit
Thank you so much, Juneta!
DeleteThat paid tweet method sounds like scam. Two clicks? I have clicked stuff by mistake and exed it off my browser! Nice to see that you are trying various advertising methods. Maybe try book promoting sites or Amazon next? Your editor is definitely a tough angel.
ReplyDeleteIt does sound like a scam, doesn't it?
DeleteI will be trying to email Amazon reviewers. I did that in the past but never heard back from one. My money is limited right now, so I am going slowly. :)
I didn't know that's how paid tweets worked. Thanks for sharing this information.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know it until I tried it. You're welcome, Susan!
DeleteCharacter interviews are the best and it's so cool she liked yours so much! Keep at it, Chrys!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gwen. I will. :)
DeleteHi Chrys. I hope the hospital volunteer training is going well. So sweet that you're doing it. And that was a lovely story about your editor. You are very creative in your thinking, which is probably why it was such a good character interview. Have a great month~!~
ReplyDeleteIt is going well. I have one more day to train before I'm a full-time volunteer. :)
DeleteI love character interviews. I did a few on my blog with characters of fantasy writers. They were amazing.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy character interviews, too.
DeleteGreat feedback. I bet it was nice to hear.
ReplyDeleteIt was. :)
DeleteHow nice of your editor to make a fabulous comment.
ReplyDeleteI've tried FB ads and it's hit and miss. Once I boosted ad and received over 20,000 impressions, but not much as far as sales. On an created ad I've had good luck and no luck. Tweeter the same results. I do believe these ads are still getting you noticed as an author. I can only hope!
I can only hope the same. :)
DeleteThat's awesome praise!
ReplyDeleteAnd, I love the question prompts. :)
Thanks, Tyrean!
DeleteThat's wonderful about the blog owner and your editor's compliments. I really liked Hurricane Crimes too! I don't pay for ads at the moment, but I may when I get a decent number of novels to sell.
ReplyDeleteI only have one novel to sell. But four ebook novellas/short stories. I think any time is a good time to market books and buy ads. :)
DeleteCongratulations! That is high praise.
ReplyDeleteIn response to your questions, my very first piece of writing was a short story under six thousand words and yes it did get published by an online publisher out of Canada.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia
Hey, Pat. That's the IWSG question for August. You can answer that in your August 3rd IWSG Post. :)
DeleteThat's a wonderful compliment from your editor! I see what you mean about ours being similar—both very to-the-point! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing your Ad stats. It was so helpful! I'm still trying to figure out which ones would be the most bang for the buck, and now I know that Twitter is definitely out! Lol. :)
Exactly.
DeleteI am also trying to figure out which is worth the money, but to do that...you have to spend money. haha
Interesting results on paid-promos - and good of you to share that. I made such a terrible (and expensive) mistake once that I've never gone that route again - folks either like my work or they don't. As in all of my business ventures, word of mouth is the truest and most effective form of advertising. True, it entails quite a bit of mingling with your target audience - I'm still learning - but you have it down to an art!
ReplyDeleteCheers to you and volunteering! I can just imagine how inspiring it will be and hope you'll share the experience in some of your endlessly interesting posts :-)
I actually don't do much mingling with my target audience. I will be part of a massive book event/signing next year, so I'll have a chance then.
DeleteI may share some experiences from my volunteering. :)
What a great comment from your editor. Love this new feature of IWSG.
ReplyDeleteHope the volunteering training was a success too.
It was a success. I have one more day left to train. :)
DeleteThat's wonderful that you're training to be a volunteer. I bet you'll make a good one. Also, thanks for the info. on Ads at Face Book and Twitter. I haven't done either. I wonder about Good Reads too.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely thing for your editor to say.
Goodreads has ads? Hmm I'll have to look into that. :)
DeleteThanks, Beverly!
You know your work is good when your editor loves it. How great that you're training to be a hospital volunteer. Best wishes.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Diane!
DeleteChrys, I've got to get out more as I see IWSG has themes now and I must have missed the memo. Anyway, an editor is one of the writer's best friend. They offer honest feedback other people will not.
ReplyDeleteI put the announcement in the newsletter and here on my blog. I know Alex announced it once, too. That's okay, though. I shared the August question in this post so you'll have it next time if you want to answer it. :)
DeleteAt ;east the word is getting out there, and the viewers may remember where to find a good book later :)
ReplyDeleteThat's very true, Dolorah. :)
DeleteReceiving praise from those who are generally straight-to-the-point or less complimentary is a fantastic feeling! I'm also very happy that your giveaway and FB ad have paid off. I didn't know a Twitter ad was that expensive though. Well done, Chrys!
ReplyDeleteWell, Twitter ads can be affordable as mine for $10 was but for just two link clicks and it ends, it is a waste.
DeleteWow! That's a great comment from your editor!
ReplyDeleteEven if the promo efforts don't translate into lots of sales, I think it's still a great learning curve...and insightful.
It is a great learning curve. You have to try to see if it'll work for you. :)
DeleteI think this was an excellent compliment since editors, I would suspect, are very picky. Good for you and good for you in becoming a hospital volunteer. What would you be doing as a volunteer?
ReplyDeleteI go to patient rooms, restock supplies for the nurses and doctors, offer the patient fresh water, ask them if they'd like a magazine or book, and basically do whatever they'd need me to do for them while I'm in their room. I just can't touch them, as that's the nurses's job. I have a cart that I push with a bunch of stuff. I even have crossword puzzles and coloring pages if a patient is a child. :)
DeleteThat's awesome that you had praise from your editor! Your promo results look good, I will most likely use Facebook ads and giveaways once I get something written.
ReplyDeleteGreat. I stand by those two promos. :)
DeleteI can relate, since I've had a lot of tough editors, especially in journalism. Praise is indeed rare from editors. Congrats!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your promo efforts. I'm always interested in how well these things do. That Twitter ad was ridiculous! $5 per click? Talk about robbery!
It is robbery! I was shocked. They didn't say that before I bought the ad.
DeletePraise from where you least expect it, from your editor too, is great, cloud nine worthy. I've thought about doing a FB and Twitter ad in the future but now I've nixed the Twitter ad idea. That was robbery.
ReplyDeleteIt was robbery. I expected the ad to last, like with FB, for days.
Delete