I accomplished my goal of getting Secrets of the Wolf out by Labor Day weekend. Yay! Sales are slow, but I’ve found that the sales of all my releases start really slow and then slowly gain momentum. Haunted Lake was released in January, and sales were terrible for awhile. Then, in July and August, sales suddenly jumped. In August, it outsold my best seller, Guardian Vampire. (This pertains only to the U.S. In the UK, they still want mostly my vampire books.)
I paid a small fee to be included in the Indie Book Blowout. I’m very disappointed in my sales of Dark Relic: Vampires’ Curse, which was the book I put on the site. Sales jumped just a tad, but not enough to make up for my fee. However, I find that sometimes the sales don’t come right away, so I haven’t given up on it. This sale on the Blowout site might have helped sales for later. Sometimes it just has to build up momentum.
I’m still enjoying my anniversary weekend here in Helen, GA. For those who don’t know anything about this little town, it’s kind of a tourist attraction. The whole town is build in a Bavarian theme. I noticed even the local Wendy’s had a little alpine village type building. There are little shops where you can buy just about anything. I love the little clocks. I think we’ll get one for my mother-in-law for Christmas. If we buy one, I’ll post a pic. Most of the local restaurants feature German food. Yesterday, for lunch, I had a German sub on pretzel bread and a side of German potato salad. Yum!
lauralynnelliott.com 
Thanks for your post. It’s good to know that sales aren’t always immediate! And about the blowout. I was thinking of signing up for their next one. You’ll have to keep us posted to see if it did help w/ sales in the long run. Which reminds me, there is a book I need to purchase today 🙂
And happy anniversary! Helen sounds like a fun town!!
Thanks for the anniversary wishes!
I have definitely found that sales sometimes take awhile. And I’ve also noticed that sales are picking up today. This is the day my book is one that’s featured on the first page of the site. I’m curious to see if sales are better on the feature day than on the other days.
I will probably do this again when they have another one. I think we need to get as much exposure as possible, and this is probably a good way to do that.
There’s a little town like that in Michigan called Frankenmuth; a lot of good memories in that little place, for school trips, family weekend get-aways, and a few other things! They’re really fun, so I’m glad you’re having a good time.
Congrats again on releasing the book, too! Best of luck with sales, for all of them.
Thanks, L.S.!
I love little towns like this. We’ve been to Gatlinburg, TN a few times, and it definitely has more shops. Helen is much smaller, but it’s so quaint! I’ll post a couple of pictures later.
I was excited to see the latest Libby Fox up on Smashwords the other day — nice job meeting that goal! I am also glad to hear sales take a while. It’s been close to a month since my first release, and things have been slow, but that’s okay. I’m in it for the long haul, and already looking forward to publishing the next installment. 🙂
I’m vacationing in Sun River, Oregon this weekend — it isn’t exactly a theme town, but it is quite distinctive. It’s all about skiing in the winter, and sunning/golfing/biking in the summer. And my anniversary was last week — hope yours is as happy and fun!
Thanks, J.R. And thanks again for beta reading and proofing for me.
I hope you’re having fun. I had a nice, relaxing time in Helen.
Hey Georgia! That’s not too far from my neck of the woods. 🙂
Awesome for making your labor day goal and good luck for those book sales!
Thanks, C.M. It’s not too far from my neck of the woods, either. 😉
Well, I still have that aspect of the book to look forward to…it’s been a few years since my other five came out, and things are quite different in the industry nowadays. I’m excited about the possibilities. Congrats on the release of your newest book.
Things have changed a LOT in the industry, Laurel. Authors have many more choices than they used to have; it’s a great time for us right now. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but I’m living for today. 🙂
Congratulations on getting Secrets of the Wolf out this weekend! I hope sales pick up and as you said, these things take time.
Have a great week!
Thanks, Em! Sales are picking up for Dark Relic, which is the book I put on the Indie Book Blowout sale. But I’ve sold a few Secrets of the Wolf, too, so that’s good. My backlist is still selling better than my new ones, though.
I’m sure the sales will pick up – well done for getting it out there – be interesting to see if the blowout helps in the long run – all the best for this coming week
Thanks, Alberta. It looks like the blowout is definitely helping sales. Not as good as I was hoping, but I think the momentum will pick up.
Congrats on getting the book out! It is on my to-buy list, for the magical, wonderful day when I get paid again (the downside of working in education: no summer paychecks). And the little town you traveled to sounds adorable. When I was young my parents took me to Leavenworth, WA, which is very similar — lots of cuckoo clocks, folks in lederhosen, Bavarian beer + pizza spots. Another couple of towns that I really like are Solvang, CA, which is a Danish-themed town, and Frankenmuth, MI, which is German-themed.
Thanks Jamila! I have a friend who teaches, so I know about those summers without paychecks.
The town was very adorable. I had forgotten how small it was, though. It didn’t take us long to go into all the little shops, some more than once. I think the highlight of the trip was when we went to the Old Hiedelburg restaurant and had sauerbraten. The beef was so tender, it practically fell apart when touched by a fork! And the huge pretzel we had as an appetizer! Yum.
Sorry about the blowout thingy not being an instant success, but who knows how many people have it on their wishlist now.
Congrats on the new release! 🙂
At least my rank went up. I was just hoping I would recoup the money I spent on it. But you never know what will happen later. You’re right…some people may have put it on their wish lists.
Thanks!