Well, guys, much as I love helping to promote everyone’s work since we’re all in this writing thing together, I think I’m going to have to wind down the outside promotions side of this blogging endeavor. Because…
- It takes a LOT of time. I have trouble working in time to write around the blogging obligations, and I’m not ready to give up on the writing (I have my moments, but I’m not quite ready to pull that plug yet).
- It also takes a nice chunk of time to promote the posts to drive reader traffic to come look at the posts. Quite a bit of traffic now comes from WordPress and email subscribers, but most is driven from Facebook. And if I don’t make the added effort to steer traffic to the posts, what’s the point of taking all the time to make the posts in the first place, right?
- Since my writing often doesn’t earn enough to cover even the cost of my release blitzes, let alone the cost of the website, I’d hoped that once the site traffic was high enough, I’d be able to use Amazon Associates links on the book promotions to at least cover the cost of the site. But nope. Data from two months into that tells me that most people who are buying the books are doing so by some method other than by following through with clicks from the links on my site, so that’s not making this blogging thing worth the effort, either.
So, I’ll still run all the promo posts I’ve already signed up for, which is quite a few (more than 50) and includes some all the way into early December, but I don’t intend to sign up for any more except for books by my writing friends. I’ll still promote the ones I’ve already signed up for on FB groups, but probably not as many.
Otherwise, I’ll continue my what-I’m-reading on the treadmill posts on Sundays, Rainbow Snippets on Saturday, random posts, and if anyone ever wants a spotlight post and/or interview, I’d be happy to do that on request.
Maybe now I’ll have time to get back to writing more flash fiction and bonus scenes in addition to getting some fresh books written!
I have no idea how you’ve managed to do it for as long as you have…particularly with the care you put into each post with the gorgeous graphics etc. The blog entries themselves are ‘merely’ the start of it – as you say – promoting each post as diligently as you do on all the FB book groups & twitter must take hours. I had to cut back on social media a month or so ago, simply for sanity’s sake, let alone its time devouring propensities. I may never have sent my first novel off to a publisher had I realised what promoting it would entail.
I’m bestest chuffed that you’ll still be doing the posts I love most; treadmill and snippets…and it will be lovely to read random posts about your writing/whatever you wish to wax lyrical on. Spotlights sound the perfect solution for promoting authors/books you want to – I chose that option myself – once I’d got my head around how the promo system worked.
Selfishly speaking? Any decision that leaves you with more time to write whatever your heart desires is a wonderful thing indeedy…as I will get to read it 😁❤
LOL…I don’t know how I hung in there so long, either! 😂 I hate to give up on things, I guess, but I seem to be a bit of a go-all-out or forget it altogether kind of gal. 😁
Thank you so much for your continuing support. Amazing people like you are what keeps me hanging in there! ❤️ 🌺
😂 I think I did that in a ‘joining everything’ but if I had to do things to a calendar it would drive me demented – each day for a week or so after signing up, I’d panic that I had forgotten to post it and then…forget. Until the day after I’d missed the date. 🙄
Aw…tis a pleasure, I loves both you and your writing…and if we do, then I’m chuffed t’bits to be one of those peeps.❤🌹
LOL…yeah, I hate schedules because I really, really hate to ever back down once I’ve made a commitment, so it stresses me out when it piles up.
You and your writing are both awesome. I can’t wait to see what you release next! 💞
Your pile must have teetered ominously most days, which is a very lot of stress with scarcely a break in bookings to…reboot a bit.
Aw…thank you so much ❤It will be Hangover 3 (mehopes) when I actually finish editing it and send it off to MLR.😳
Most ominously! And WooHoo!!!!! I ❤️ Callum and Daniel so much! 💞
Then I’m soso glad you’re allowing yourself to do this ❤ Oh thank you! Sooo much 💞
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First of all: “I’m not ready to give up on the writing (I have my moments, but I’m not quite ready to pull that plug yet).” – You’re not allowed to quit. It will break my heart if you do, you know I love your writing. I forbid it!
That being said: I completely understand and support your decision. I decided to quit the promo posts because I wanted to be more personal, because that’s the kind of content I personally like. Instead I try to support my friends, like you and Amy and Kris and other JMS authors, but also I gush about books I’ve read and loved, because that’s the kind of content I like. And I know; not everyone likes the same things I do, and my husband always reminds me that I have to think outside the box, but for me I have to do what I believe in.
So instead I made a schedule, a rolling four week schedule with 8 themes, and my intention is to post at least twice a week. It doesn’t always happen because life, but that’s my goal. And to be honest, it hasn’t really affected my blog traffic. Granted: I didn’t post as many as you do, and wasn’t as meticulous about posting on Facebook so I’m sure that’s a part of it, too. And don’t get me wrong: i don’t have a lot of traffic to my blog, but I don’t see a lot of difference from when I posted all the blitzes.
Also: I’m sad to say that I’m one of those who hasn’t clicked on your links. I never click on affiliate links, or ads or stuff like that because I hate ads. I realize it would be easier for me to just click the link instead of opening the website and typing it in, but it’s what I do. Sorry.
And I realize that this is probably the longest comment in the history of blog comments, but finally I wanna say that if you ever wanna do a flash fic where we use the same prompt words to write a fic from (like we did once before) and promote each other, let me know…if it’s okay for you to consider my blog schedule and all that 😉 😀
Whatever you do, you have my support (unless you decide to stop writing. Then we’ll have words! 😉 )
I like the idea of something that, although perhaps technically a review, is more of a recommendation. I mean, you never post about books you didn’t like. It only makes the cut if you can rave about it. I might consider doing something like that. We’ll see how eloquent I can be—I’m not sure my writing style is a good match for review gushing.
I have no illusions about the hit my blog traffic will take. The averages for June and July were over 115 hits/day from about 50 unique visitors/day. I’m not sure what’s considered “good” for author blogs or for review blogs, but that was super high for me, and I absolutely know it will go down. Maybe it’ll be higher than it was before I gave the blitz thing a shot, but it’ll sink dramatically.
I’m less sure about the traffic on my book pages outside of the blog posts. Those averaged about 6/day the past three months (which is probably kind of sad), and I have no record of the numbers from before this endeavor. I’m sure some of the traffic was from blitz lookers who got curious, but I suppose some might have come looking specifically for my pages.
No worries on the link thing. I’m not much of an ad clicker either, although I’ll usually follow a book’s purchase link rather than search it out separately, because why not reward the person whose efforts enticed me to buy the book? It costs the buyer nothing. It costs the writer nothing. It only costs Amazon, and we can all get behind that, right? 🤣
And absolutely, yes! You know what might be cool is some kind of weekly flashfic blog hop with an image or list of prompt words of the week (or a combo?). Or if that’s too large a scale for your interest, I’m fine with just coordinating between the two of us and maybe any other interested parties. I’ll probably want to wait until the blitzes/tours I’ve already committed to have at least petered out to more of a trickle, though.
Thanks for everything, Nell! Awesome fellow writers like you help keep me going! 💖 🌼
I can’t do a weekly flashfic, that takes more energy than I have. But If we co-ordinate something, I could do a monthly? 🙂
Yes! I’d hate to commit to weekly, too. Monthly is probably doable, especially if the terms for the next one are agreed upon a month in advance. 💖
Yes, that sounds doable. Let’s talk more in the chat! 🙂
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