The history of paid book reviews, cowardly book review trolls and author bashing trolls

Update: First, a welcome to anyone who has dropped by my blog via the Zon troll. I am hopeful that most of you are here to learn the truth, which is very simple: the allegations against me and many other authors are false. I can't speak for everyone, but I know I have not paid thousands of dollars for fake 5-star reviews. I have better things to do with my money.

Amazon and Fiverr have been notified of both sites that are blatantly using their names in order to appear valid. In an email I received from Amazon when I reported these slanderous blogs, they told me they were investigating the Zon and Five Report blogs. Fiverr (which is NOT the Five Report) has already issued an email stating that those blogs, written by a cowardly troll whom we believe is another author who was, himself, proven guilty of faking reviews, are bogus. For those of you who are decent enough to not judge us based on this person's malicious lies (and no proof), we thank you.

Now onto my original blog post...

The History of Book Reviews:

For years it was perfectly acceptable to pay review companies for an UNBIASED review. This practice was in effect for over a decade. Even the heavy hitter Kirkus formed a subsidiary for self-published authors, and they charged a fee. And they are a recognized INDUSTRY REVIEWER. I have NEVER been reviewed by Kirkus, but here is info from their website:

Kirkus’ Indie program was started in 2005 when the editors wanted to expand their coverage to include the fastest growing segment in the book industry — self-publishing. To meet scale, selection and financing challenges, Kirkus created a review service for self-publishers called Kirkus Discoveries, now Kirkus Indie...Authors could finance the review themselves and guarantee selection for review, but the books would be held to the same high standard as books published by the major houses. The program gave self-publishers the chance to earn honest critical acclaim from one of the most prestigious brands in publishing.

NetGalley is another popular company that charges publishers or authors a fee to have their books set up on their site and sent out for reviews. Even the BIG publishing companies are using them. I know this because I've received an invite to review a couple of my favorite authors' books. NetGalley is well known and well accepted in our industry. Readers love it because they can get involved and read a book before everyone else--and review it. Honest reviews only!

Ten years ago, when my first book was published, it was completely acceptable to pay a reading or shipping fee to a review company--even Amazon accepted paid reviews back then--as long as the reviewer didn't guarantee a gushing, fake 5-star review. Why would any author even want that?? A fake review like that means absolutely nothing! At least, to me it means nothing. I personally only want honest reviews. Have I ever paid a review company? Yes, years ago. When it was completely ACCEPTABLE, but only for unbiased reviews from a known review site at the time. There was no guarantee they'd give me ANY stars or say anything nice about my books. They could've trashed them entirely. I did this maybe 6 times. But I ceased this practice years ago, even before Amazon changed their policies on reviews, because I preferred spending my marketing budget elsewhere.

Cowardly book review trolls and author bashing trolls:

Yesterday a writer friend pointed out a blog that accused one indie author of paying for fake book awards. In another post, this blogger goes on to list authors who have allegedly paid for 500+ fake 5-star reviews. Of course the blogger has no proof of his accusations. As I read through the list, I recognized many names. Some, like JA Konrath, have long ago explained their views on reviews. Then I saw a name that made my heart stop. Mine.

WTF???? This person is claiming I paid for over 500 fake 5-star reviews? This is a complete lie! I don't know where he's gotten his information from, but it certainly isn't the truth. Perhaps he's hearing voices in his head.

I suspect he saw the 5-star reviews for CHILDREN OF THE FOG that came in mainly in 2012 and decided that the only way I could've gotten them was if I paid for them. Really?? He's ASSuming. In fact, I sold over 50,000 copies of COF from March 2012 on as a result of Amazon introducing the KDP Select program, which I was very successful with. And I gave away even more copies for free. That's where most of those reviews came from.

Here's the real truth: There are cowards out there whose sole purpose is to defame others. They do this because they are jealous. Often they are writers who haven't seen any success so they go after those who have. Perhaps they're just bored with their lives. So they intentionally set out to cause harm to others.

These "trolls," as we refer to them in the book biz, can be identified by certain behaviors. They leave 1-2 star scathing reviews on successful books (usually not verified purchases), they bash the authors instead of reviewing the content (because they haven't read the book), and if you go into their profiles, you'll see a pattern of low stars, sometimes with the odd 4-5 star review thrown in. Sometimes one of those 5 star reviews is their own book.

Sadly, I discover too many times that a 1-star review is from a competing author (sometimes they've even left a link to their own competing book, saying it's so much better), and when I report this to Amazon, they have removed the review. There are even stalker trolls who aren't satisfied with just bashing your book in a review; they go into other reviews and leave nasty comments.

The whole concept of book reviews is so warped now that it has become a war zone for everyone involved. And now we have the author bashers who have taken to blogging and slandering others publicly. For what purpose? To make them feel better about themselves, I guess.

I'd also like to point out that ANYONE could pay for a review for someone's book if they really wanted to. There's no law against it. So what's stopping this blogger (who is nameless because he/she is cowardly hiding behind an anonymous blog filled with fake information) from setting up fake reviews of his own and then claiming an author did it? Let's question THIS person's integrity for a second. He/she makes claims but doesn't show any proof. And there is no name or contact info for this person on their blog. Hmmmm...that sounds very suspicious to me.

This leads me to an important message for us all: Don't believe everything you read. 

People who spend their lives trying to ruin others are to be pitied. They don't know how to achieve success or recognition any other way. There is something seriously wrong with someone who intentionally trolls successful books so they can leave one-star reviews--with one intention: to damage that author's sales. And there's something sickening about a person who spreads lies and calls them fact. Jealousy and envy are always a problem when others are successful.

There are still many companies out there who offer unbiased reviews and charge a reading or mailing fee so they can ship the book to their reviewer. While Amazon won't accept these reviews (and I respect that), other places will. This is an industry practice that many authors--both traditionally published and self-published--have used for decades. Will they continue? I don't know. I don't plan to use them, but that's just me. I walked away from my former traditional publisher (who took my book out of print and gave me my rights back) because he wanted us all to write fake 5-star reviews and other ethical issues I didn't agree with. I have integrity, and I do my best to adapt to the changing trends.

Disclaimer: I have never paid for 500+ fake 5-star reviews. My reviews came from getting over 68,000 copies of my works into the hands of readers whether through sales or free giveaways.

What is the perfect price for ebooks?

The perfect price for ebooks is what the public is willing to pay, and many publishers and authors are ignoring this fact. Too many ebooks are priced the same or more than their print counterparts. Too many ebooks are priced at over $9.99, and most people don't want to pay that much, unless it's for one of the "big name authors".

There has been a lot of discussion of what the perfect price point is for an ebook. The answer? Publishers and authors may have to play with the prices to determine where the best price lies.

A strong proponent of $0.99 and $1.99 ebooks, author JA Konrath, held those views up until last year, when Amazon raised the royalty level to 70% for ebooks priced between $2.99 and $9.99. Konrath took the plunge and raised his prices and has reported that this hasn't hurt his sales in the least. In fact, he reports he made over $100K last year on his ebooks, across multiple retailers. Not bad income for an author who is self-publishing his own books now, after being published by the big guys for years.

In Konrath's latest blog post, he talks about an author who reached the NYT bestsellers list multiple times, who was just offered a $200K two-book deal. After Konrath crunched the numbers and pointed out that her ebooks would be priced higher, it appears this author would be better off publishing these on her own--especially since she obviously already has a platform and a built-in fan base from her existing titles--and setting lower prices.

Kindle Nation Daily conducted a recent survey and discovered that a high percentage of Kindle readers preferred ebooks priced at $3.99 and less.

As an author, I want readers to be able to afford my books. I don't write so they can sit on a shelf (physical or virtual) and collect dust, or be used as decorations. I write because I want someone to read my stories and hopefully enjoy them. I write for more personal reasons too, but essentially my intention is to make by books and ebooks available to everyone and anyone.

So I've priced my ebooks low--from $0.99 to $3.99. Why? Because I want my books to be read.

I don't know if there really is one "perfect" price point for an ebook. I think it varies, depending on the economical situation and your target audience per title. But I am very pleased to know that all my ebooks are retailing at an affordable price, and that I'm able to put them on sale every now and then.

In the end, the pricing issue really boils down to one thing. Publishers and authors should give readers what they want, and they want less expensive ebooks.

For authors: How important is ebook pricing?

Literary agent Richard Curtis and author JA Konrath discuss whether authors make good agents

When I read respected agent Richard Curtis's post Do Authors Make Good Publishers? I wasn't surprised to find that Curtis believes the answer is 'No'. I get where he's coming from since I've been traditionally published AND self-published. Publishing takes a lot of hard work, knowledge and dedication. But is it fair for Curtis to lump all authors under that umbrella of 'No'? I don't think so.

For years, various elements of the publishing industry have tried to tamp down the involvement of authors in their own success. Publishers didn't want too much input from authors; they wanted to maintain their iron-gloved fist of control. Editors wanted to be seen as the experts on all things grammatical (and in many instances they were), even to the point of changing story elements to suit their tastes. And the writer has been at the bottom of the heap, the creator of a story that stemmed from their ideas.

Traditional publishing is made of many moving parts--publisher, editor, cover artist, publicist etc. Self-publishing required that an author either take on all these roles or sub-contract these areas. A smart self-published author quickly learns that though they may be good at all areas, it's far better to hire out and cut down the work load. This was they can focus on writing more books. That's what I do. That's what makes a good publisher, the ability to recognize areas of strengths and delegate others.

Respected author and self-publishing advocate JA Konrath posts a reply to Curtis on his blog, and he makes some valid points. First, anyone who has been following Konrath over the past year knows where he stands on self-publishing. He's all for it and is one of the top income earners in the ebook industry.

"Authors should self-publish," Konrath writes. "In an ebook-dominated world, are publishers even needed?"

I've watched the massive rise in popularity of ebooks and ereaders. No one predicted it would happen this quickly or early, but it's here. Ebooks are outselling print books. I know that just from my own sales data. My ebook sales in December blew my print sales out the door.

The biggest indicator for me that ebooks are King is this:

My mother who is an avid reader of about 3 paperbacks a week always claimed how much she loved print books and that she'd never read via an ereader. So I gave her one for her birthday in August. When I spoke with her at Christmas I expected her to tell me she hadn't bothered to turn her new Kobo on yet.

Boy, was I shocked by her answer. She "LOVES" her ereader. She likes that she can enlarge the font for easier reading and that she can buy books so easily. She's already downloaded all of Lee Child's "Reacher" ebooks. She reads during the day. She reads in bed. No more waiting for time to shop for books at the store. If you knew my Mom you'd know that this is a clear revelation as to where ebooks are going. The surprising news: We're there!

So back to Richard Curtis's question: Do Authors Make Good Publishers?

Here's my answer:

Some do; some don't. A self-published author taking on the role of publisher will have to dedicate time and energy to the process. If they're doing print, they may be looking at ways to get books into stores, something that is getting harder by the week. But if they're publishing ebooks, the doors are wide open.

Publishing is a skill or trade that can be learned. So yes, SOME authors can and will make great publishers. And SOME won't. It's unfair to lump all authors under the "No" umbrella.

I'm an author who has been traditionally published and self-published. Yes, taking on the publisher 'hat' requires more work, but it's worth it. A smart self-published author turned publisher builds a strong support team. I can honestly say I'm a better "publisher" than my last traditional publisher. I'm still in business.

Cheryl Kaye Tardif

P.S. I just answered the door. My new Kobo ereader with Wi-fi is here! Whooo-ooo!

Konrath says "steal this book"; Tardif says "please don't steal mine"

So the debate over book piracy is still alive and kicking over at author JA Konrath's blog. I, for one, don't have the time or energy, to be beating this issue with a stick on a daily basis, but I have put my two cents in here and there and I did successfully get some of my material removed from a pirate site. Piracy is theft; it's that simple. Copyright laws are in place for a reason and until those laws change, I won't and can't condone copyright infringement and piracy, unlike my fellow author Joe, who embraces it and welcomes it. However, I'm not going to spend my days hunting down every pirate either; I have a business to run and novels to write.

I'm busy working on creating more value for my fans and more new works, but don't think I'll shrug it off if I find one of my works pirated. A lost sale is a lost sale. If you were interested in a book enough to search for it on a pirate site and download it (possible viruses and all) for free, you should still be interested in it if it's priced affordably (ironically, Joe believes in making ebooks affordable too.) My ebooks are $1.99 and $4.99 (the latter going down to $2.99 in July.) My new release Lancelot's Lady will launch in late September at $7.99--for a brand new book. You can't tell me these aren't affordable when the majority of books are priced much higher.

So how inexpensive do these book pirates want them? What's their price point? DUH! Free, of course. That's why they go to the pirate sites in the first place. Sadly, many get caught in the "free" cycle and that's where they stay for the most part. When they want a new book, they request someone download it. I'll admit, there are probably some who WILL use pirated copies to "test" an author out, as some pirates have defended. Then they'll run out and buy the book or another of the author's works, or so they tell me. I just don't see this as being the majority.

Since I got involved with the pirate debate, I've had about a dozen admitted pirates take up my offer of a free ebook (for their own personal use only)--and all said they'd consider buying it or another of my works afterward. As far as I know none of them have done this yet--and I asked them to let me know.

With Joe's "experiment", I believe he's cashed in quite smartly on this controversy. Kudos, Joe! He's using the hype of the situation to create awareness, publicity and branding. But don't get too caught up by the numbers he's quoting. Let's get real here: Joe sells exceptionally well --period. Just read his blog and you'll see his numbers. So, for me, his experiment does nothing but prove he's good at capitalizing on free publicity (something I'm fairly good at doing myself). It certainly won't and can't prove his claim that piracy doesn't hurt sales.

It's a skewed experiment that will show an increase in sales. Joe will always have great sales--because he's good at marketing his books and because all his new pirate friends who accepted his free ebook will want to defend their belief in piracy so a few will now pay. More than likely, the increased sales are from non-pirates who happen to read his blog or like his work or read about him online...or read about the experiment. There is no way to determine where those sales came from. Joe may not view the 15% or so he's lost to piracy as a big deal (or as real lost sales) because he's still making more than enough to pay his rent/mortgage and bills (and good for him!) For the average author, that 15% could mean the difference between having enough food for the month or keeping their home--especially in today's still-recovering economy. Not so good for them.

So while Joe says "steal this book", I'm saying "please don't steal mine." If you're interested in my books, download free samples from Kindle, Kobo or Smashwords, or visit my site and read samples on the cool BookBuzzr widget. (You can flip pages like a real book :-)

Here is MY challenge to pirates:

I challenge those of you who pirate books on a regular basis to read one of my FREE samples--you can read larger portions (50%) of my novels via Smashwords--then email me when you've decided to buy one of my novels at any of the ebook retailers I mention above and send me proof of purchase (the receipt). This will show me that pirates DO take pirated copies because they're looking for a way to sample an author's work and that the authors do then benefit by future sales. Of course, I'll be looking for staggering numbers, not just a handful.

I'll take my challenge one step further...you can call this The Tardif Effect ;-)

If you're a pirate who enjoys suspense thrillers, read a sample of my thriller THE RIVER on Kobo, Kindle, Smashwords or my site and email me when you're done. If after reading that sample, you're still intrigued by my novel, let me know and I'll give you the ebook for FREE. However, if you accept this challenge, you'll be honor-bound to email me with proof of purchase of any of my novels within, say, 6 months. This free ebook offer to pirates is good until the end of August 2010.

You can even share the file with 3 people--WITH my permission. BUT those 3 will be held accountable by the same terms. They'll need to email me to tell me they got the free ebook from you and then later email me to tell me that they've bought one of my novels. This should be quite fair in establishing that sales do result from piracy and that pirates are basically honest people--arguments I've heard numerous times.

I'm not saying "steal this book", I'm saying "please don't steal mine, but here, I'll give you a free sample, maybe even a free ebook and you'll have a chance to show me that piracy will help my sales, not hurt them." Prove this to me and I may change my views about book piracy.

Again, don't get me wrong, I think Joe is a great marketer. I just don't agree with him on this issue. I DO agree with him on most of his marketing advice though. So if there are any brave pirates out there who want to show me the error of my ways (or beliefs), please follow the above instructions. Without naming names, I'll report the results in as much detail as I can on my blog The suspense is killing me!

(No, really! The suspense IS killing me!!! lol)

Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
bestselling Canadian author
http://www.cherylktardif.com/

A-hoy, matey! Should ebook pirates walk the plank or be set free?

This is my recent reply on JA Konrath's blog where piracy pros and cons are still being discussed. I am a bit concerned about new authors taking everything Joe says to heart without looking into the issue--illegal copyright theft and sharing. As much as I respect Joe for his marketing abilities, I am not sold on his argument that since we can't fight them we should embrace piracy and do nothing, turn a blind eye. I'm just not wired that way, and I'm not alone.

My comment:

I'm dropping by to give you all another update on the 4shared website that has illegally shared so many authors' works.

Mine were removed--as were many others--after 2-3 brief emails with 4shared. It wasn't time consuming and I didn't find it half the battle as when I was fighting for the rights of authors to keep their signature lines on Amazon book reviews, which we can do now although they had been deleting reviews by authors who had done such.

It's a small win, having your work deleted from pirate sites.

Do I think this solves the issue? Not at all. My work could end up right back on the site, but for now I'm satisfied. At least I took a stand against something that is legally wrong.

The word "copyright" and subsequent laws protecting our copyrights are there for a reason. When a pirate distributes an ebook, they are making illegal copies and conversions, sometimes even scanning a printed book. While there will always be people disobeying this law, it is in authors' best interests to not sit passively and allow this to happen.

Over the past week or so I've been contacted by a number of authors who were not happy to see their works pirated. I was also contacted by the agent of a very well-known bestselling author. She wasn't pleased to find her client's works on 4shared and she and the publishers involved are taking steps to have the works removed. 4shared has been fairly easy to work with on this matter.

As for Joe's belief that authors should sell ebooks for $1.99 to see better sales, that's not a guarantee. Not every author has the fan base or history of publishing with big publishers as Joe has had, and whether he wants to believe that makes a difference or not, it does. Having a series also helps in this situation; hook people with book #1 and they'll come back for more because they want to know what happens next to those characters. I KNOW that if I'd been published by a major or even mid-list traditional publisher, my work would have reached far more people than it did publishing with a small traditional publisher. It's a no-brainer.

That doesn't mean Joe hasn't worked hard. When I read about all his promotional strategies, I'm exhausted. :-) And good for him for being so pro-active on this. Many authors think it's up to the publisher to market their books. It's not.

Regarding ebook pricing: Pricing your ebooks at $1.99 does not guarantee you higher sales, and new authors really need to understand this. It's your fan base and marketing strategies (which includes pricing and much more) that will lead to high sales.

An author with a new release SHOULD market her books a bit higher to put value on it and also so that later, when the book has been out awhile, she can discount it to make it more attractive as a backlist or older title.

This doesn't mean she can't put it on sale every now and then, or give away some free copies--both great marketing strategies.

Anyone who's ever been in marketing & sales (that was my background prior to becoming a published author) of other products will know that new products hold better value. If you start with $1.99 ebooks, you don't have much room to go in discounting, especially since some retailers have minimum prices you have to charge (like Amazon).

Though I bowed out of this debate awhile ago, I'm still reading posts here, plus the many emails I've received privately from authors and (surprisingly) admitted "pirates". Though I appreciate their reasoning and can even understand why they do it, I can't condone it as others here have done. For anyone just weighing in on this debate, it is far better to investigate both sides of the piracy issue before making a decision. And trust me, if you aren't an author or if you haven't been pirated, you have no idea how it feels to have your work stolen and re-distributed. Pirates don't usually download a book they aren't interested in, and in that, authors have lost a potential sale. Period.

But I do agree with a couple of points my new pirate friends mentioned: ebooks need to be priced affordably (less than $5 seems to be the consensus, easily accessible to all ereader devices and easily uploaded. Smashwords.com seems to understand these concepts and I believe they have the most versatility when it comes to formats. My books are all available through Smashwords. Plus, their coupons make it easy for me to discount my books for special sales.

By the way, Smashwords, Amazon on other retailers offer a LEGAL method for people to "distribute" authors' works. It's called affiliation. As an affiliate, you can advertise an author's works on your site/blog (which is very supportive) and then earn money on sales purchased via your affiliate link. Former pirates could then earn money to buy more books. I am more than happy to have others distribute my works this way--and we all win.

I'll leave you all to continue this debate. I've said what I need to say on this subject, as you can see on my own blogs about piracy.

I encourage authors to read everything they can on piracy. Don't take my word for it, or Joe's. We each have strong opinions on what's right and wrong. Make an informed decision based on more than a couple of authors' (or pirates) opinions.

Support Authors, Buy a Book! :-)

My other posts on piracy:

http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/authors-are-your-books-being-illegally.html
http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/update-on-blatant-copyright.html
http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/update-2-on-copyright-infringement-at.html
http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/author-ja-konrath-defends-copyright.html
http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/update-3-authors-get-copyright.html

Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
bestselling Canadian author
www.cherylktardif.com

Author JA Konrath defends copyright piracy

If you haven't been following this topic, please read my first post:
http://cherylktardif.blogspot.com/2010/05/authors-are-your-books-being-illegally.html

After notifying fellow author JA Konrath that his books were being illegally downloaded on 4shared.com, I was surprised that he boasted about his cavalier attitude regarding copyright infringement on his blog. But I can see where it stems from. He's reportedly making quite a bit of money from his books, one of few authors I know that is making a living off their work. So why should he worry?

In his post, Konrath suggests that authors have "freaked-out" over this issue and that we're a bunch of idiots who are uneducated. "If you really fear piracy, educate yourself...If you have an ounce of brains in your head, you will quickly realize that piracy is always going to be here."

Most of his post validate pirates and their theft of copyright protected works. To say I'm disappointed in his attitude is an understatement. But hey, he has a right to believe what he wants. And so do I and the other authors I've spoken to this week who are not impressed to find their copyrights infringed.

This was my response to his post:

Joe, as one of the four authors who took time to alert you to the piracy of your books, I'm offended by your cavalier attitude and your comments that people who fear piracy are basically stupid and uneducated. I am neither. I am smart enough and educated enough to make a decision on whether piracy hurts me as an author, and I believe it does.

Of course you disagree. As you told me in your email reply, you're still raking in the sales at $230 a day, so a little piracy isn't hurting your sales. Let me assure you that the majority of authors are NOT making money like this. Most authors I know are lucky to make that amount a month.

So yes, theft of our works strikes a protective chord for most of us. We simply cannot afford to have other people illegally offering up our works to others for free. It is up to the author or publisher to give away free books, and I do that often, on my own terms and when I can afford to do so.
Maybe if I was making $200+ a day on book sales, I'd have the same attitude about piracy, but I hope not. I hope that I always remain humble enough to remember the struggle to get there and to remember how I started, with one book and one sale.

Show me a music artist who has NOT been hurt by sites that offer free downloads. I have a lot of friends in the music industry. They're all struggling. A few hundred (or thousand) dollars a month they could have made from the illegal downloads would certainly help them out. The music industry has been fighting this same battle for years. I expect authors will too. That still doesn't make it right.

I am not alone in this. Besides other authors, agents and publishers, one of the major writers organizations in the US--Authors Guild--has already begun an investigation into sites like 4shared.com. The 5-10% writers who are actually making a decent living from their writing may never see the loss of money that piracy results in, but the other 90-95% of authors will.

I'll always stand up for the rights of authors and content creators.

UPDATE:
I spent most of the day participating in an interesting debate on this topic with JA Konrath and visitors to his blog. You might want to check it out and leave a comment. One thing I most enjoyed was that visitors to the discussion were quite respectful. I encourage you to be the same here and on Joe's blog. It's not easy to take a stand (on either side), but I hope the discussion will give you food for thought.

Support Authors, Buy a Book!

Cheryl Kaye Tardif
award-winning Canadian author
http://www.cherylktardif.com/

When I grow up, I wanna be just like JA Konrath

If you're a reader, author, publisher or agent and you haven't heard about JA Konrath, then you must have been sleeping for the past 6 years and it's time to wake up and smell the margarita mix. JA, aka Joe, has become one of my book marketing idols and I aspire to be just like him "when I grow up". Truthfully, I think I'm a bit older than he is, and I really mean "when I figure out how to sell ebooks and make the kind of money Joe does."

JA Konrath is the author of the very popular "Jack" Daniels mystery series, and this guy knows how to sell ebooks--something I am just starting to get familiar with after taking back my ebook rights. In fact, he estimates he's selling 230 Kindle ebooks a day. WOW!

So what's the secret of his success? As much as he's been very gracious in sharing his techniques on his blog, I still can't see what exactly he's doing that is resulting in such high ebook sales--other than he's walked the walk, talked the talk and gotten his name (brand) out there any way he could PRIOR to going the ebook route. I've seen his name mentioned at events, conferences and everywhere online. Only a handful of authors seem to be making the ebook sales he's making.

I would like to be one of them. There! I said it. Out loud. In front of people. Ok, maybe only you, but I said it. I wanna be just like JA Konrath when I grow up. I am tired of making pennies and working long hours for such small financial rewards. Sure, money isn't everything; I LOVE to write! But I chose this as a career. Wait! That's not quite right. IT chose ME and wants to be a career. One where I make some money to validate the hours I spend pouring my heart and mind out onto my word processor, not to mention what I spend on marketing.

I was thinking of going back to school. Then I realized I AM in school. I'm attending Konrath University, reading his blog posts, reading his marketing book, studying everything he does, mimicking his techniques, creating some of my own and experimenting--because like Joe, I'm an experiment waiting to happen. And in case any of you are now rushing off to google Konrath U, I made that up. In other words, I'm kind of cyber-stalking Joe. He just doesn't know it. Yet. Or maybe he does...

Okay, break's over. Time to get back to my studies.

To learn more about JA Konrath, his novels and his amazing ebook sales, visit his blog A Newbie's Guide to Publishing and his website http://www.jakonrath.com. I'm hoping he'll add me to his links page since I blogged about him, so be sure to tell him you heard about him from Cheryl Kaye Tardif. lol

My ebooks:
Whale Song - available only at KoboBooks.com until June when it will be available thru Kindle and Smashwords.
The River - KoboBooks.com, Amazon Kindle and Smashwords
Divine Intervention - KoboBooks.com, Amazon Kindle and Smashwords

Lancelot's Lady - to be released September 27th via Kobo, Kindle and Smashwords.