10 Things All Authors Should Know

 

10 THINGS ALL AUTHORS SHOULD KNOW

1. How to Contact Amazon to Price Change

There may come the day when you want to change the price of your eBook to 0.99 or to free but you're unable to do that on your KDP dashboard. So how do you do it? Do you go to your book's Amazon page? Many used to reply on the "Tell us about a lower price" link under a book's product details, although that was very insufficient and could take a long time to hear back, if you ever did. In fact, that option is no longer there.

So, how do authors change their eBooks' prices to 0.99 or free on Amazon?

You do it through KDP's Contact Us page: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/contact-us

Beneath "How can we help?", click on "Pricing" and then "Price matching." Then click "I still need help." You can contact them through email or phone. Phone may be faster, but I always did email because I hate talking on the phone. When you choose to send an email, make sure you have the ASIN for your eBook in the Kindle store and the competitor's URL links. Always specify what the price is listed as and what you want it to be instead.

TIP: If you are changing the price permanently or even for a specific amount of time, always check back to make sure Amazon hasn't reverted it back, because they like to do that and it is maddening.

You can also ask them to price match on all Amazon marketplaces (UK, DE, etc.)

THE CURE by Patricia Josephine / Zombie Quiz and Excerpt + Giveaway / LIMITED TIME 99 Cents Sale

The Cure is a clever, fun take on the usual zombie stories that are out there. I thoroughly enjoyed it in its early stages. I've told Patricia many times that Zee is my favorite character she's ever created, and many of her characters have stuck with me. No lie, at random times, moments from The Cure pop into my head, which is a rare thing. I recommend The Cure to zombie lovers, paranormal lovers, post-apocalyptical setting lovers, novella lovers...pretty much everyone.

BLURB:

Every human in the world becomes a zombie when they die. But Erin refuses to accept the world as it is now. She’s heard about a cure locked away in a lab in Up-per Michigan, and she plans on retrieving it. To do so, she needs a zombie. Not just any zombie, though.

Zee is Erin’s link to the lab. His connection to the living world is her bargaining chip. But only if she can teach him to control his mindless impulses.

Can a zombie be trained? Or will Erin be Zee’s next meal and become a zombie herself? The fate of humanity rests in her hands.

ON SALE FOR 99 CENTS TILL 9/25

Universal Buy Link - https://books2read.com/u/mBZpkp

Add to Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58343851-the-cure

Windover, A 7,000-Year-Old Pond Cemetery / Research

In a comment on my Florida & Seminole History blog post, M.J. Fifield brought up a fascinating discovery I hadn’t come across in my research…the Windover Archeological Site. She mentioned that the remains dated back to 6000 B.C. Immediately, I was intrigued.

So, I did research.

My main source of information was Life and Death at Windover: Excavations of a 7,000-year-old Pond Cemetery by Rachel K. Wentz.

I am actually acquainted with someone (through M.J.) who did CT scans on some of the remains. Her name is Rita. In fact, the cover of Life and Death at Windover uses one of Rita’s scans.

The Windover Pond has been called “one of the most important archaeological discoveries in the world.”

Interesting Facts:

• This pond, located in present-day Titusville (in Central Florida), is a Middle Archaic (6000 to 5000 BC) underwater burial site.
• The human remains and artifacts are 7,000 years old.
• That’s 3,200 years older than King Tutankhamen.
• And 2,000 years older than the Great Pyramid in Egypt.
• Archaeologists found the remains of 168 individuals, from infants to about 60 years of age, as well as 119 artifacts.
• The bodies were so well-preserved from the peat and neutral pH of the pond that there was brain matter present in 90 skulls.
• These brains (I cannot write that or read that without thinking about zombies) were the “most ancient DNA yet analyzed at the molecular level.”

My Farewell + Don't Shame Readers for What They Read (or Writers for What They Write)

 

MY FAREWELL TO THE BOOK CLUB:

(Sent to book club members on 7/26/2021)

Readers and Writers,

Chrys Fey here. The IWSG administrators contacted me recently to inform me about a new direction they’ve decided to take the book club. They also decided to replace me. Toi will be taking over as the new book club lead. Although, she’s not really new. She’s been with us since 2017 as a book club moderator!

I don’t have many details about the new direction, but from what I understand, the book club will be spotlighting IWSG members’ books from now on. Toi will share more about the new direction soon.

Fortunately, our upcoming discussion day on August 25th for They Called Us Enemy and Writing Magic will still be taking place. Toi will be posting for that discussion day. Please join us!

I’d like to take a moment to reflect and express my gratitude.

I created this book club in 2017 for writers to read/learn about the writing craft. I am sad to have to say goodbye after all these years. Many of you have personally messaged me to say how much the book club has helped you and what it has meant to you. Your words have meant a great deal to me. I also know many of you have read the books over the years but chose not to participate in the discussions (which were always optional), preferring to stay on the sidelines, instead. I saw you, and I thank you for being a member on your terms. 

The book club’s upcoming changes will be different, but I know Toi and the moderators, Ronel and Juneta, will do great. I am incredibly grateful to them for being such a wonderful team. I didn’t make changes without their input and asked for all their ideas. Their enthusiasm for the book club boosted me, and their assistance helped me to maintain my stamina in running this book club.

Thank you for everything, Toi, Ronel, and Juneta!

And thank you, all four hundred and fifty-seven of you, for being a member of this book club!

Happy Reading (and writing),

Chrys

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

The IWSG book club selections for Sept/Oct/Nov would've been The Heroine's Journey: For Writers, Readers, and Fans of Pop Culture by Gail Carriger and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (as a good example of voice). I was really looking forward to reading and discussing these two books, so I am still going to read them for myself. If either of these books sound good to you, I encourage you to read them for yourself, too. I will talk about them on my blog later this year. 

Happy Reading!