I love today’s news: The Queen’s Viper is #7 in Celtic Fantasy on Amazon Canada. AND I’m within sight of being in the top 100 for the fantasy sub-categories of historical fantasy, and magic & wizards.

In middle school, I had a teacher who shared his thoughts about each of the students’ good and not-so-good points. He said I had a habit of letting my mood be influenced by a small thing in one class, which stuck with me for the rest of the day. Maybe he meant I am moody? Anyways, the little something of today’s Kindle rank IS going to make my entire day HAPPY.

This was me after checking my KDP dashboard this morning:

via GIPHY

I didn’t write Viper intending to be the next big thing. I wrote The Queen’s Viper because over my entire life, my soul cried out for expression. I finally listened and took action.

However, the life of an author is not only about making stories. Sharing stories is also an integral part of what gives me fulfillment in being an author. I had the biggest smile on my face the other day when a reader sent me a message saying that she loved my book and NEEDED book #2 (her emphasis, not mine).

And, I won’t kid myself. It feels GREAT to hit higher numbers on Amazon Canada.

When there are more books available to read than people to read them, having a little bit of help in the statistical department certainly helps!

This weekend, I’m having a sale on across all Kindle distribution networks (were applicable). I will drop the price to $0.99 US, which also lowers my royalty to 35% (a purchase price of approximately $1.30 on Amazon Canada). The $0.99 sale must have a 35% royalty according to Amazon’s rules.

This is not a sale to make money. Then why am I doing it? To increase the exposure The Queen’s Viper receives among the millions of other titles available on Amazon, even if only for a brief time.

eBook marketing experts say this is part of the Amazon numbers “game” where an author must drop her price for a short term sale, then coast for 90 days and do it again. Rinse, lather, repeat until the book gains enough attention to reach higher ranks.

Sure, I’ll buy that for a dollar.

Other marketers suggest giving away a book for free for a limited time, to bring in some percentage of loyalty.  There is no easy answer to book marketing, not even for the The Big 5. From what I can see, publishing is an industry in flux, influenced by end-user demand and the effect of the heavy weight Amazon.

Do I undervalue my book because I’m selling it at such a low price for a weekend? No, I don’t. I believe the effort I put into my projects and the care I take with production speaks to the high quality of my books. However, until I come up with an inexpensive, shameless, self-promotional stunt that raises my voice above the copious others in the book sales world, a $0.99 USD Kindle sale must suffice.

If you have experiences you’d like to share with your own book marketing, or questions that I might be able to answer, feel free to comment! Don’t forget to grab your Kindle version of The Queen’s Viper this weekend and share the news.