I promised I'd share my numbers with you as I went along this crazy-go-nuts road, and that's exactly what I'm going to do :). Woo hoo!
Okay, so first, history:
In April I had a couple of short stories up and sold 19 e-books.
In May I had the two stories, and released LEGACY OF THE EMPRESS in the last couple days of the month. I sold 30 3-books, 7 of which were Legacies.
June, I sold 125 e-books across two names (this one and my pen name.)
So, July? How'd it go???
Welp.
I flip flopped between feeling sweaty elation and then icy cold terror. Now, I'm much calmer :).
What a great month, though. Let me stress, too, that I only have one full length novel: Legacy of the Empress. The rest are all short stories, and a 15,000 word novella under my pen name.
People who say short stories don't sell are wrong. This is excellent news for all of us! Have some shorts chillin' on the harddrive? Well, if you publish them for kindle, nook, etc, you could make money and gain a following before you finish that first novel.
What are you waiting for? If you enjoy writing short stories, you have nothing to lose, except maybe $10 for a stock photo. I edit my stories and make my own e-covers for these short tales. Go for it! :) You may be surprised.
August has slowed down already, and I've only sold about 550 so far. Summer is notoriously slow because folks are doing yardwork and chasing rambunctuous kiddos instead of reading, so I'm working on getting new stuff written for Fall :).
I hope to have two new Veronica Grim, Fairytale Assassin stories ready by September 1st, and then it's time to write the sequel to Legacy of the Empress. Woo hoo!
It's GO time.
How are your own projects going? Do you have anything on the burner now? Tell us about it!
15 comments:
HOLY CRAP, those are killer numbers for July! (And August already, damn!)
Congratulations, Becca!
Thanks, Tere! :D
I hope this helps folks who are on the fence about e-pubbing. Numbers are what convinced me to finally go for it.
I am totally jealous. Way to go!
What incredible numbers, Rebecca! Congratulations!
This is very inspiring to someone like me who is just starting out. These are heady times for writers!
Wow, those are impressive numbers, Rebecca! I'm glad to hear shorts are selling well. I'm working on a novella right now that's a prequel to my Shaede Assassin Series and it will be released next June before book 2 comes out. Your numbers are so encouraging! I hope August proves just as great for you :)
Congrats!
I keep forgetting to tell you that the package arrived last week. The chocolate bar melted, but I was able to save it by putting it in the refrigerator. Luckily, the book was OK. Thanks again!
@Samantha: Thanks for the love, but no jealousy allowed! :) LOL.
@Jim: Thanks so much!
@Michael: Yay! I was hoping making my journey more transparent would be helpful. Thanks for your comment!
@Amanda: They definitely do sell, which is hugely exciting for writers as a whole. No more submitting to literary magazines hoping for .05/word after a 6 month wait. Now, our shorts can make money forever!
Best of luck on your new releases!
@Sandra: Oh, excellente :). Sorry to hear your chocolate melted, though! I worried about that with the heat wave everyone's been having.
At least your book didn't have a chocolate shell when you got it!
I'm trying to get a couple of different pieces out the door before I really start pushing, so I'm not expecting big numbers right now.
But wowza, good for you! I'm proud to say I contributed to some of those numbers. (:
WOW - can we say fabulous! What did you do differently for those sales? Anything on purpose? Just word of mouth? I've ventured into the epub and self pub world but haven't seen close to these numbers! Way to go!
PS I tweeted this - but I can't find you on twitter and your handle isn't on your blog! Where can I find you!
AWesome stats! Congrats. :)
Wow! This is very encouraging for those ready to e-pub, and a very good sign of your talent! Congratulations!
@Michael: Thank you! :D Also, best of luck on your upcoming stuff!
@Steena: The two stories going free (one for each pen name) really boosted things. The numbers are settling back down right now, so I have no clue what August will bring, but I'm still way better off than I was :).
Also, my twitter name is @twoheadknight. Sorry you couldn't find me!
@Laura: Thanks! :)
@Katrina: I'm so glad it's encouraging! It was other people posting their journies that inspired me in the first place :).
So how long are your short stories? I have one, that I never I could do anything with. Hmmm......
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