Christmas in July Bargain Reads by Kristin Wallace

Even though temps are in the 90s (at least where I live) we have this fun tradition of celebrating  Christmas In July. Hallmark Channel runs their Christmas movies. Stores have holiday specials. I thought I'd get in on the act by putting a couple of my Christmas-themed books on sale for $.99 cents. This month you can download the Christmas In Shellwater Key and Second Chance Christmas.


You can get them both for 99 cents on Amazon. HOWEVER, if you are an Amazon Prime member you can get them for free.


Christmas in Shellwater Key (Boxset) - Now on sale for .99 cents!
Shellwater Key Tales

This boxset contains 3 Shellwater Key Christmas novellas. The main stories in the series center around three childhood friends who revive the old Paradise Dinner Theatre. The holiday novellas venture beyond the theatre.

Finding You At Christmas

After years of looking out for everyone else, preacher’s daughter Janie Worthy is ready to get a life of her own. But on the way to her first date, her car decides to quit, and a stranger on a motorcycle becomes her savior. The short time she spends with Caleb Montgomery on the side of the road might be the most romantic interlude Janie can remember. Of course, it’s all a fantasy, and soon Caleb is riding off into the night.

Until he shows up again in Shellwater Key. When Caleb decides to stay in town for Christmas, Janie can’t help but wonder if she is the reason. Except people don’t fall in love in one night…Right?

Falling For You At Christmas

Pregnant and alone at Christmas, Cassie Stevens decides to take a holiday vacation in Shellwater Key before her baby girl is born. Then she discovers her reservation is lost and there is literally no room left at the inn. Thankfully, single inkeeper, Jared Lathem, offers to let Cassie stay with him and his young daughter. She won't have to sleep in a manger, but being in close poximity to the gorgeous Jared might be dangerous t her piece of mind...and heart.

But the magic of the season can change everything. Cassie is suddenly surrounded by a group of friends, who all seem to have names relating to another important birth long ago. And when Christmas Eve brings an unexpected delivery, Cassie will discover that miracles are still possible even in modern times. 

Loving You At Christmas

Annaliese Matheson once had a perfect life, with a successful career on Broadway and a loving husband. Then her husband died. Devastated, she left the stage behind and only returned when her best friend, Grayson Kendall, asked her to perform at The Paradise Dinner Theatre in tiny Shellwater Key, Florida.

Annaliese is convinced she’ll never love again, but when she steps in to direct to Middle School Christmas Show, nothing will ever be the same. A man unlike any she’s known awakens her buried heart, giving her a second chance at forever with the last person she would have expected. It will take a miracle for Annaliese to let someone else in and embrace happiness again...but then it is Christmas.

BUY NOW ON AMAZON

Second Chance Christmas - Now on sale for .99 cents!

Palm Cove Tales

This book is part of my Palm Cove Tales series. It’s the follow-up to the Heiress Games trilogy. It features desperate single mom, Mia Reynolds, the cousin of security expert Damon Grant (who appeared in the Heiress Games books).

Ten years ago, Mia Reynolds and Winthrop Barrington spent one magical Christmas together. Until lies and manipulation at the hands of Win’s wealthy family tore them apart and left Mia to raise a daughter on her own. Now, both of them have returned to their hometown of Palm Cove, Florida. Once they uncover the truth, can Mia and Win rediscover the love they lost and celebrate a Second Chance Christmas with their daughter?

BUY NOW ON AMAZON

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. 

Free & Bargain Book Ads—Part 1, Subscription Services

by Madelle Morgan

How does a reader discover a good romance novel among the gazillions of ebooks flooding the market? On the other side of the coin, how can indie authors get their books noticed by readers?

Advertising is the time-proven mechanism to attract buyers, but 20th century approaches—print and television ads—have limited reach in the Internet age. Authors fight for the attention of readers via three providers of relatively inexpensive ad space that reaches ebook buyers worldwide:

• Services that provide daily lists of free and bargain books.
• Amazon
• Facebook

In this post I describe ads in e-newsletters that provide curated lists to subscribers. 

That is, a reader subscribes to receive daily lists of free and bargain books via email.

The digital newsletters offer each subscriber a list of books that is customized to stated preferences. 

An author pays to have her book included in the e-newsletter—the ad.

The more popular an e-newsletter is, the better for the reader. Look at it this way: an e-newsletter doesn't retain subscribers by recommending poorly-written books. For example, hugely popular BookBub.com carefully screens books for inclusion in daily newsletters that arrive in millions of readers' inboxes.

A site with a hundred thousand or more subscribers can be selective in accepting books for the e-newsletter, and authors will pay more for the privilege. Selection criteria may include good covers, 4 & 5 star reviews, availability on several sales platforms (Amazon, Apple, Kobo, Nook), bestseller status, and popularity of the book's sub-genre, trope or niche. 

Romance readers enjoy books with seasonal themes such as holidays, Valentine's Day, summer weddings, etc., so an appropriately-themed book has an improved chance of being accepted at certain times of the year.

BookBub Ads

For an author, having a book selected for a BookBub email is the brass ring, but it's expensive. Per BookBub's featured deals pricing and statistics page on December 27, 2016, a one-day $367 USD ad for a free contemporary romance would generate an average of 40,000 downloads. You may wonder why an author would pay so much to give away 40,000 ebooks? Well, the author hopes to profit if and when readers of the free book proceed to buy her other books.

Similarly, a one-day ad for a 99 cent contemporary romance would cost the author a whopping $734 USD, and would sell an average of 3,100 books. At a royalty rate of 0.35, the author would earn an estimated $1,085, for a net profit of $351. Note that these are statistically average figures. Losses or greater profits are possible.

Other Bargain Sites

In comparison to BookBub pricing, another bargain site might charge only $35 for a one-day ad, which appears to be a much better deal for the author. However, the $35 ad is less likely to reach as many readers, or generate as much of a profit.

Authors should therefore investigate a site's number of newsletter subscribers before deciding whether to invest in an ad. BookBub's approach is the gold standard. It breaks down the number of U.S. or international subscribers by book category.

Below is a partial list of bargain sites I've come across. If you know of others, please add them in the Comments section.

The Fussy Librarian
Robin Reads
The Elite Reader
The Naughty List
Romance Reads
Many Books
BookHippo.uk
Read Cheaply
Bargain Booksy
Free Booksy
Ereader News Today
BookBub.com

Checking out these sites can fill up your ereader fast! In researching this post, I downloaded several free books.

The Big Question: Do Ads Work?

Readers, what is your go-to source for discovering bargain or free books? Do you subscribe to any discount or free book e-newsletters? If so, which are your favorites?

Authors, in your experience, how profitable are paid ads in these e-newsletters compared to other marketing options? What's your most successful marketing tactic?

In Part 2, I'll address Amazon ads for romance novels.

Happy New Year!

Madelle

My Bargain Book—For a Limited Time

Amazon, Kobo, Apple Buy links: MadelleMorgan.com

Caught on Camera, a New Adult romantic comedy, is available for 99 cents/ 99P through January, 2017.

Madelle tweets and posts about Hollywood, filmmaking, the settings for her stories, and, of course, writing and publishing.

Subscribe to her blog at MadelleMorgan.com and follow her on  Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Pinterest, and Wattpad.

Top Seven Reasons Readers Follow Authors

by Madelle Morgan

We all know that readers receive several benefits from following authors, or why else would they do it!

Photo Credit: Flickr

By "follow", I mean either click the follow button on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads, etc., and/or subscribe to newsletters or blog posts.

Which of the reasons below best represents why you follow authors?

Love the Books

The #1 reason is that I love the books... and by extension their authors.

It's All About the Books

Following an author keeps me updated on cover reveals, pre-order announcements, reviews, series lists, available formats and purchasing options, and other information that helps me decide whether to buy the latest book or other books by that author.

Additional Content

I loved the story so much that I want more! I enjoy extra content such as deleted scenes, character interviews, Pinerest inspiration boards, maps of the fictional world, and music playlists. It's all about the books, not the authors.

Read for Free (or Nearly Free)

I follow because I want to be alerted to the author's bargain books and deals, paperback giveaways, ebook promo codes, and opportunities to beta read the author's next book before it's published.

Free Stuff

I enter contests and giveaways and attend Facebook parties to win gift cards and other gifts, collect swag, and learn about special perks like access to conference parties. To get more of this, I might join a street team.

Social Media Interaction

I enjoy the day-to-day interaction with favorite authors. By reading, liking and commenting on their frequent, often daily, posts of photos, writing updates, glimpses of personal life, shared Facebook posts/retweets, I get to know the authors better. 

It's so easy to connect via Twitter, Facebook, email/messages, etc. Besides, it's entertaining: the authors are interesting, recommend good books, or make me laugh. It's all about developing relationships with the authors.

Blog Posts & Newsletters

I subscribe to weekly, monthly or occasional newsletters and blog posts because I don't have time every day to follow on social media all the authors I love. (I'm too busy reading in my free time!) 

To ensure I don't miss anything important, I subscribe to an author's newsletter or blog. This is how I keep up to date on personal and writing topics, new releases, conference attendance, book signings and other topics.

Readers, Why Do You Follow an Author?

What motivates you to click that follow button or subscribe to an author's newsletter or blog? If your #1 reason is that you Love the Books, what's #2?  Do you have a reason that's not mentioned?

Please comment! I'd love to hear your views.

Madelle

Bio:

Madelle writes romantic suspense and contemporary romance novels set in wild, beautiful Canada.

Available now for $0.99 on Kobo and Amazon:  Diamond Hunter's geologist heroine and her cop bodyguard are ensnared by a deadly diamond smuggling op in Canada's Arctic. 

Coming in 2016: Caught on Camera, #1 in the Hollywood in Muskoka series. Read the first four chapters of this romantic comedy, contemporary romance.

Madelle tweets and posts about dogs, Hollywood, film-making, the settings for her stories, and, of course, writing. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter, or subscribe to her blog at MadelleMorgan.com.