Posted on 2013-May-13
The Perks of Writing a Full-length Novel
It is a fortunate moment to live in a time like this when you sell your eBooks unstoppably to your fast-growing fan base. To start producing the next book, you only have to go through your mental archived drawers and spend some time to instinctively crank out the full-length novel that will appeal your fans. Naturally, authors are never shy from writing for their audience as long as they have the freedom to write. A longer piece of writing tends to represent the great effort of having worked so hard during the hiatus to craft creativity into multi-faceted storytelling. But how long have you spent writing one big book? What if you can split it into several smaller episodes/series?
Every Writer’s Uphill Climb
Lindsay Buroker blogged serializing novels last year when a fantasy indie author-Brondt Kamffer-launched his serialized The Scion of Abacus. Although he initially announced his indie author status early in 2011, he faced an uphill climb to be recognized. Despite the fact that he had released three full novels between April and July and market those books, the sales did not go anywhere near his expectation. He had every promotional tool in check ranging from an active blog to podcast to no avail.
Being “burnt out” on social media affected his blog and podcast. That was when he decided to serialize his book. Although the first and second volume sales started slow, the third volume catapulted him into 5,000th rank on Amazon. The fourth installment even garnered more success than he could bargain for with the sales surpassing the amount of downloads during his KDP Select days.
Serializing a Book into Smaller Parts
His serialized strategy is to split one or two books into six books. Although he had a different plan in his mind, the six-part mission got stuck with him and allowed him to present the kind of stories that were interconnected yet standalone. Splitting one big book into smaller parts, he can manipulate “revelations” in each book enticing readers to wait for the next book and test out which episode is reader-pleasing. Pricing strategy is something he logically establishes to go from $0.99 to a slightly higher price tag. At the time of writing, his first volume is currently offered free while the final book is $3.99. Rank-wise, the sixth book scores the highest at #93,864 in Kindle Store.
Profitable Outcome Recommended by Hugh Howey
To study why serial fiction can be profitable, Karen Woodward explains in her blog. Referring to Jane Friedman’s article on Publishing Perspectives, Hugh Howey and Sean Platt had their good times serializing their novels. If it were not for the serials, perhaps The Wool Omnibus may have not come into existence. Howey thinks of the work as “a collaboration of a singular effort.” By the time he finished writing the last installment in the serial, he had collected enough materials to write a full book for public audience. Eventually, he gave up selling all the five serials and merely sold the full length version.
From Partner in Crime to Downtown Abbey Lesson
Sean Platt and David Wright are another indie author duo whose inseparable skills bore many great successful serials in their resume. Their life almost ended when the day job was disrupted yet their dream to become writers wove their professional destiny together. Having been inspired by gripping TV series and Stephen King’s “The Green Mile,” they are constantly making serials for Amazon audience in the expanding marketplace. In case you are wondering how the structure of episodic/serialized novel will look like, Janice Hardy can teach you the structure of serialized novels by analyzing the famous TV drama, Downtown Abbey.
To paraphrase Hardy’s analysis, tension is the best secret to keep your readers intact with your storytelling while problem can boost their curiosity. Readers want to know how problems arise, affect the characters, and get solved. To expand the story, you can emphasize how difficult things are as you add more complication. Introducing the character’s fallacy seems to keep solution away as the personal revelation is unveiled. Uncontrollable external forces like the destructive aftermath of a war can create a fresh ending beyond reader’s expectation.
Red Phoenix’s Erotica Novels and Novelletes
To sum up the above-mentioned paragraph, bestselling erotica author, Red Phoenix, knows her audience well as she has breathed life into the Brie series. With a mysterious past, the main protagonist is introduced to new environments where her guardian reveals dark secrets about his identity. BB eBooks is proud to announce our eBook design of Brie’s Russian Fantasy (After Graduation, #3). The sequel to the series, Brie Faces her Master’s Fears (After Graduation, #4), is also a big hit as it is ranked #955 in Kindle Store. Of course, the story does not end there and the only one way to find more about her works is to Buy now with 1-Click®. To find a full list of her serials, full-length novels, and customer’s rave reviews, visit Red Phoenix’s Amazon Author Page.
More Regular Releases, Please
Back to Lindsay Buroker’s interview with author Brondt Kamffer, he pointed out why the serials would remain his main interest. Serializing novels will automatically launch “regular releases” into the market as author’s name “never gets old and always shows up in the new releases section in the Kindle Store.” Selling a separate piece of writing can also show the popularity rate for your marketing research to work on the next project. Most importantly, you can combine the serials into a complete full length novel.
Amazon introduced its Kindle Serials late last year for many reasons. Please read the submission guidelines here. The program tempts authors to write in a timely fashion and encourage readers to read more often. As mentioned earlier, the more you release your works, the more established your name has become to readers. The general rule of thumb about Kindle Serials for authors can be found here by the same old Lindsay who interviewed the serials author, Roberto Calas. Unlike the release schedule of a full length novel, Serials can help you publish your eBook every two weeks. Readers become your new motivation to write when they announce their anticipation of the next episode via Amazon discussion forums. In a time like this, what series are you planning to release right now?
Label: Marketing
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