Thursday, January 4, 2018

BOOK MARKETING: Marketing Books in 2018, by Lorilyn Roberts


In the future, I predict publishing books will take on the business model of commercially produced products:  The public will buy the books they like regardless of how they are published. As a popular commercial sums up, it’s not complicated.

While many rules have changed, others are non-negotiable. You better write a good book, hire a top-notch editor, and grace the front of your book with an outstanding cover. You will need a rocket full of energy to launch it and not enough hours in the day to promote it. Otherwise, your book may end up in the slush pile of broken dreams.

In spite of the challenges, the new norm is a win-win for both the producer and the consumer (the author and the reader). But for the uninformed, it has also created a void that needs to be filled. The biggest problem with this new norm is the lack of training for self-published authors. As the founder of a network of authors (John 3:16 Marketing Network), the lack of training in what it takes to market and the unrealistic expectations of what can be achieved is a legend. I could give you many stories, including my own. While consumers will slap down a debit card for a Starbucks latte without a second thought (including me), ask someone to spend 99 cents on a book from you, an unknown author, and you will feel the parting of the Red Sea. You wonder if you have B.O. or bad breath.

As a self-published author, I have made my share of mistakes. One of my books had an amateurish book cover and a well-known author told me so. I quickly learned that I can’t sacrifice quality to save money. I grew up a lot that day—people notice the good, the bad, and the ugly in books. If I am in this for the long haul, I better not be looking for a quick buck, or I will be disappointed.

To that end, I would encourage writers and hopeful authors to think of writing as a business endeavor—approach it with that attitude. It’s not a hobby, it’s a job. Talent and willingness to learn will serve the serious writer well, along with some good business savvy.

The goal should be to build a platform and seek out readers who will fall in love with your book this year and come back and read future books—and share your books with friends and family. That mindset will serve those authors well who are serious about writing and marketing. It’s a business. The industry deserves that kind of quality.





Despite the challenges, I am glad the publishing world of the future won’t be controlled by a few highly successful companies. In the past, those publishers held a monopoly on the market. If I were a betting woman, I’d say they missed some real gems. What other answer is there for why some authors had so many rejections for excellent books? No wonder many writers gave up. The world will never know what books they didn’t get to enjoy. Not every wannabe author has the gumption to keep knocking on closed doors.

I can tell you that traditional publishers have never looked twice at me. I am too old for them to invest their cash in but too young (or stupid) to believe I can’t start another career. When I crawl into bed at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. in the morning, after writing a few words on the computer following several hours of broadcast captioning, I sometimes wonder if I am insane. Still, I wouldn't trade what I’ve learned for any contract from any publisher.

Why? Because knowledge is power. While some information just doesn’t stick in this old brain of mine like I wish, that doesn’t mean I am going to give up. After all, we live in a world of information overload. I sometimes tell my daughters the C-drive in my brain is full. I need to delete something before I can take in any more information.




But with that power come opportunities. Today is a readers’ world in spite of television and computers and smartphones and tablets. In fact, it’s because of the plethora of these gadgets that more people are reading. Perhaps we make our hopes and dreams too small—too many rejection slips have convinced some they can’t make it at all. The journey is what it’s all about. And for me at least, I know the outcome is in God’s hands.

***

I published the above article a couple of years ago and my reflections on this topic are the same, actually truer now than back then. However, I want to add a few more practical suggestions. 

Save your money and don't spend a lot on advertising. Build your twitter following, blog regularly, and grow your email list.  

The KDP Lending Library has hurt all authors, and I don't think it's a viable business model over the long haul. Authors will eventually figure out that readers aren't stupid. Why should consumers buy your book when they can borrow it from Amazon for free? 

My advice: Take your book out of KDP Select and make your book available all over the web, and write more books. Eventually, if you are patient and your books are good, you will build a following of loyal readers, not just Amazon fans who want YOUR books for free. 

Give readers one or at most two free books, and sell the rest. Consumers appreciate quality, and if they like your books, they will buy them. 

Be as free as the water - and let God take you along.
Three more suggestions for marketing: 
Don't write books to sell - write books that make a statement about what you are passionate about. Success shouldn't be construed only in terms of numbers. Authors can't make people buy their books. Success should be about writing them. Focus on the process, not the outcome. Leave the result with God. Ultimately, your real success should be measured in what you have given back to God with the gifts He's given you. Whatever rewards He's laid up for you in heaven will far surpass anything monetarily you might receive here.



Enter book contests. Whatever you can do to draw attention to your book will help your book to get noticed. Don't know what good contests to enter? Here is a link to get you started: 
https://selfpublishingadvice.org/allis-self-publishing-service-directory/award-and-contest-ratings-reviews/



Turn your books into audiobooks. See my recent blog post about how to do this at the following link: http://john316mn.blogspot.com/2015/11/audiobook-narrator-rebecca-roberts.html



Join a small community of writers - like Word Weavers, a Facebook group. the John 3:16 Marketing Network (we will open back up in the summer), the Author Independent Network, or some other group where you can be encouraged. Don't be a loner. Become part of a "tribe." And learn as much as you can about writing and marketing. 




My Word Weavers Group in Gainesville, Florida


***

Lorilyn Roberts is a Christian author who writes children's picture books, adult nonfiction, memoirs, and a young adult Christian fantasy series, Seventh Dimension. 

Lorilyn graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Alabama, which included international study in Israel and England. She received her Master’s in Creative Writing from Perelandra College and is a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature.

Lorilyn is the founder of the John 316 Marketing Network, a network of Christian authors who are passionate about promoting books with a Christian worldview.


To learn more about Lorilyn, please visit her website at http://lorilynroberts.com. You can follow her on twitter at http://twitter.com/lorilynroberts. To connect with her personally, you can contact her by email at authorLorilynRoberts@gmail.com

Wednesday, January 3, 2018

BOOK REVIEW: “Seventh Dimension - The Prescience: A Young Adult Fantasy,” Five Stars from Readers’ Favorite Reviewer J.K. Simmill



Seventh Dimension - The Prescience is a religious fantasy fiction by Lorilyn Roberts. Shale and Daniel are caught amidst a bombing in Jerusalem. Using one of her unique skills, Shale is led to help a newly orphaned child beside her dead parents. The dog that brought Shale to the child said they were the ones God had called to look after the child, but at 18 they were little more than children themselves, despite their experiences. 
Trapped in Jerusalem, they decide it is safer to head back to the first century where they had met. At least there they had a chance of discovering what was going on and what was expected from them. The Antichrist will soon rise to power and, for some reason, demons have an interest in the child they had rescued.

A believable setting is enhanced by snippets of realism, such as people's limitations. My favourite example is that a person who had studied a language couldn’t fluently understand the native speakers, and this is just one such example of attention to real-life details. 

Seventh Dimension - The Prescience is a very religion-oriented book, yet there are some original and interesting interpretations of ideas often used in such literature. As a reader, you are rewarded with subtle intricacies which add alternative perspectives and interesting ideas. Good versus evil in the most primal sense. Angels of good against angels of evil, each attempting to turn the tide in their favour. 

The chapters are short and concise, making it easy to pick up and put down; that is if you can tear yourself away from the adventure. 

I read Lorilyn Roberts’ book in a single sitting, finding it engaging, action-packed, and fascinating. The main protagonists, Daniel and Shale, show growth individually and as a couple as they face the challenges before them with faith and unity, trying to solve not only the mystery of the disappearance of Daniel’s father but the meaning behind everything happening and how it is connected. A great read, and easy to lose yourself in.

Tuesday, December 26, 2017

WHAT IF I HAD TRIED HARDER: Devotional by Lorilyn Roberts


"......My husband divorced me two years into his medical residency and married the radiation therapy tech who carried his child. She gave birth two weeks following the signing of the divorce papers at the courthouse. October 15, 1985, until recently, was etched in my memory as the worst day of my life. It was the day that my dreams of motherhood ended and the day that doomed me to court reporting forever. Depression was my comforter back then......"

Deborah Malone, an author friend of mine, has a blog Where Hope Blooms. She featured me for Christmas on how I've dealt with some of the hard places in my life. I share the link here to the whole article. I hope you find Christmas Ornaments from Christmas Past uplifting and inspirational.







Saturday, December 9, 2017

BOOK REVIEW: “Seventh Dimension - The Prescience: A Young Adult Fantasy,” with Comments








Amazon Reviewer:  Immediately following their betrothal, Shale and Daniel find themselves in the midst of exploding bombs in Jerusalem. They rescue a young girl, orphaned by the warfare, and seek sanctuary in the most secret parts of the city. From there, they follow God's leading through the gates into the first century AD and begin to unravel the goal of their enemies and the location of Daniel's missing father. 

The Prescience is the fifth book in the Seventh Dimension Series by Lorilyn Roberts. With the knowledge that this novel could be read as a standalone, I embarked on reading it without knowledge of the previous books in the series. That was not the best decision on my part, partly because I now know major spoilers when I finally go back and read the rest of the series. 

Additionally, there was so much foreknowledge for the author to try to summarize in order to make this book a standalone that it was probably impossible for her to include everything. So while I was reading it, I was struggling to understand what was going on. The characters traveled to different times, dimensions, and spiritual locations. It was fascinating, but I did not fully understand how all of the different places correlated or the characters' backgrounds in each of the places.

Despite my confusion, I found myself extremely interested in reading the rest of the series. I loved the characters and want to read more of them. I loved the Biblical symbolism and allegory that was present everywhere in the novel. The characters were tested through all of the spiritual warfare and experiences, and they grew. 

My biggest critique of this novel is the plot. As much as I enjoyed the characters, setting, and spiritual aspect, I found the plot lacking. It seemed more like an episode than a rounded novel. The characters sought to follow God, find Daniel's father, and fight against their enemies. They did so, but it did not seem like a concentrated effort. It seemed more like they were wandering from one place to another, facing weird situations, and fighting the enemies they happen to come across. The novel did not seem very focused on completing a major goal, and the end was subsequently left hanging in the attempt to complete a minor goal. It was kind of frustrating. 

I believe that I would appreciate the story more if I had read the previous novels first, enjoying it for the pleasure of seeing the characters continue on their journey. But as a standalone, it was not developed enough to equal a well-rounded book. 

Still, I enjoyed this novel very much. I recommend it as a YA Christian fiction, although I would suggest starting with the first book, The Door. 

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. All opinions are my own. 


*~*~*~*

In response to Emily’s review, 
I posted these comments on Amazon:



Thanks, Emily, for your feedback and hosting me on your blog. It's very hard as an author to know what to include and what not to include for someone who hasn't read the previous books, and I appreciate your comments. It's also made me rethink my marketing strategy and the need to encourage people to read the earlier books instead of trying to pick up the series in the middle. That said, people will anyway, even if you tell them not to, so I tried to accommodate that possibility. And thanks for pointing out that there are spoilers, but rest assured, there is still much left to unravel in book six, and "The Prescience" sets up the final book; hence, the name. 

As far as the plot, the reader will already be cued in on that by book 5 and so my focus wasn't on that, but to show how the unpredictability of life throws us curveballs and surprises and difficulties we don't expect. As the reader reads, he will see that through the eyes of the protagonists. We all have goals we want to accomplish and dreams God gives us, but the ultimate purpose of God is to transform us into His image for the world to come. 

In doing that, we struggle, we find ourselves in places we could never have imagined, we make mistakes, but we hopefully grow in our walk. The question we should ask is can we glorify God through all the trials He gives us if we accept them as transforming moments, knowing we won't understand how the pieces fit together until we get to heaven? God wastes nothing if we allow ourselves to be teachable.

So what you perceived as a lack of plot was anything but. It's a paradigm of life and working out our salvation with fear and trembling even as God promises to give us the desires of our hearts. Ultimately, we won't receive everything in this life we want, but we will receive what we need to become the person God wants us to be. 

My goal in the series is for readers to not only enjoy a good story but to ask deep questions and ponder the enormity of what their life could become if they allow God to have full reign. I hope you will go back and read the earlier books. Believe me, you will enjoy them, and then reread "The Prescience." "The Howling," the final book will be out, Lord willing, sometime next year. Thanks for your review as I found it immensely helpful.



I would add to my comments above, as we use the giftings God has given us, our ultimate purpose as a follower of Jesus Christ is to help others to be redeemed. I will expand on this in my next blog post. 



Tuesday, November 28, 2017

PRESS RELEASE: “Seventh Dimension - The Prescience: A Young Adult Fantasy,” Book 5


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Lorilyn Roberts, Ph: 352-359-XXXX


Seventh Dimension Series Wins Twenty-Ninth Award
Seventh Dimension – The Prescience, a Young Adult Fantasy, Book 5,
New Release

GAINESVILLE, FL—November 24, 2017—The Prescience takes the reader on a time travel adventure to the first century where the protagonist experiences an apocalyptic battle that transcends dimensions.

“When I began writing The Prescience, I was diagnosed with breast cancer,” says Lorilyn. “My own scare with cancer was as much an apocalyptic battle as penning the words to this book. I hope the Seventh Dimension story captures the underpinnings of God’s redemptive work in a world at the crossroads of heaven and hell. We’ve all been there in one form or another.”

Awards for the Seventh Dimension Series include the following:  Literary Classics Book Awards, USA Book Awards, National Indie Excellence Award Winner, International Book Awards Finalist, Readers’ Favorite Awards Winner, Best Indie Book Award, Florida Authors and Publishers Association Award Medalist, Global eBooks Award Winner, Best Book Awards Finalist, Shelf Unbound Notable 100 Award Winner, Book Excellence Award Winner, BooksAndAuthors.com Winner, INDIEFAB Book of the Year Finalist, New England Book Festival Honorable Mention, New York Book Festival Honorable Mention, Great Southeast Book Festival Runner Up, Grace Awards Finalist, Selah Awards Finalist, and Book Goodies Best Cover Contest Winner.

The Prescience, Book 5, $14.95, ISBN 978-1-9760745-1-6

Author, and speaker, Lorilyn Roberts, www.LorilynRoberts.com, has appeared on Discovery Channel’s Monsters Inside Me and blogs regularly at LorilynRoberts.com


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Wednesday, November 22, 2017

BOOK MARKETING: Seventh Dimension - The Prescience: A Young Adult Fantasy - Black Friday Bargain


I'm so excited to have The Prescience published. I wrote it while battling breast cancer and there were days writing anything was completely exhausting. Sometimes I think God gives us our dreams so that we look beyond our pain, and our suffering, and we see hope, we see goals, we see things God puts on our hearts. It's so easy to doubt, so easy to quit, but I'm thankful God helped me to finish it.



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This book will probably be one of my favorites because I know the only way I was able to complete it is because God gave me the strength to do it. So now He gets the glory.