The first post is from author Nicholas Rossis who has his finger on the pulse of self-publishing and publishing trends. In this post he shares some of those for 2020 with some strategies for marketing your books in line with the changes.
The Top Publishing Trends For 2020
Written Word Media (WMD) recently published a must-read article with the top publishing industry trends for 2020 written by Clayton Noblit. I am sharing here a summary that includes their main points.
1. Audiobooks will continue to gain popularity, and more indie authors will invest
A 2019 survey revealed that half of all Americans over the age of 12 have listened to an audiobook in the past year. Additionally, audiobook listeners trended younger. Fifty-five percent of listeners were below the age of 45. The survey stats showed an increase from 2018, and the expectation is that audio will continue to grow.
With better access to audiobook creation and distribution, WMD expects to see more audiobooks in the marketplace in 2020. Marketing audiobooks remains a challenge for authors but effective marketing will become more important as the space gets more crowded. Deeply discounted audiobooks are hot. WMD are seeing a lot more experimentation with price control and running promotions.
What this means for you:
Start learning about how audio books are made and sold. If you already have an audiobook and own the rights, make sure to distribute your audiobook to as many outlets as possible. Talk to other authors who have had success with their audiobooks and learn what is working for them when it comes to marketing.
Head over to read about the rest of the trends and what it means to us as writers: Nicholas Rossis – The Top Publishing Trends for 2020
Nicholas Rossis, Buy: Amazon US – and: Amazon UK – Blog:Nicholas Rossis – Goodreads: Nicholas Rossis Goodreads
The next post is from Olga Nunez Miret who has written a new book but has chosen to share on Wattpad instead of publishing on Amazon.. You can read the story for free. Here is the blurb and the link to read the story.
Hi all: I hope 2020 is going well for you so far, and I also hope it will get better and better. It is customary to take stock of what has gone on over the year, and although I enjoy the posts where people share lists of achievements, recommendations, events, etc., I always find others’ reflections more interesting than mine and seem to have too many other things to share and do this time of the year, so there you have it.
Although I hadn’t planned a “best of 2019” kind of post, I wanted to offer you a gift (of sorts) for Christmas, but I ran into some technical difficulties and didn’t manage to get everything ready. Instead, I bring you a gift for the New Year. Well, not sure it’s much of a gift, but, hey, ho!
I decided to do a little experiment and try to see if writing for a short period of time every day would work for me. Instead of publishing the resulting book, because I’m not too convinced about it, to tell you the truth, and I’d rather invest the money necessary in other things, I’ve shared it on Wattpad. You can read it there, if you fancy it, although, don’t worry, I know the topic is a bit peculiar and not to everybody’s taste.
Head over to read the blurb and to follow the link to access the book on Wattpad: http://www.authortranslatorolga.com/2020/01/07/2020gift-youre-never-too-old-to-be-a-prom-queen-wattpad/
Olga Nunez Miret – Buy: Amazon UK – and: Amazon US – Blog: Olga Nunez Miret Author Translator – Goodreads: Olga on Goodreads
The final post today is from Charli Mills at Carrot Ranch and whilst each Friday it is a platform to announce this week’s flash fiction challenge, it is also always a wonderful post about life, history, and the human condition. This week Charli shares the tragedy that took the lives of so many in the Copper Mining era, women who are brave enough to protest against tyranny of all makes, as well as the Australian bush fires. The prompt this week is to write a 99 word story about ‘protest’.
Head over to read the post in full as it is rich with content: https://carrotranch.com/2020/01/17/january-16-flash-fiction-challenge/
A little about Charli Mills and find out more at Carrot Ranch
Good to meet you! I’m Charli Mills. From riding horses to writing stories, I’m a born buckaroo wrangling words. I once won a trophy for goat-tying and later, one for story-telling.
With over two decades in freelancing, publications, sales, marketing, editing and speaking, my writing is published in magazines, anthologies and online. I use my worldly experience to consult with organizations, schools, entrepreneurs, writers, and independent authors in the art and business of story-telling.
My byline has appeared in Montana Outdoors, Colours Literary Magazine, Edible Twin Cities and online at USA Today. I used to write wellness columns, and foodie features about turmeric and cheese-makers. I published over 200 print articles and managed the award-winning Living Naturally for 16 years.
Thank you for dropping in today and I hope you will head over to read these posts in full …thanks Sally.
Nicholas’s post was amazingly informative, and a bit intimidating. Amazing how much we need to be marketers if we want to be authors. Heading over to read Olga and Charli. Thanks for the links, Sally. 🙂 Happy Weekend!
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Thanks Diana and enjoy your weekend too..hugsx
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Terrific posts, Sally.
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Thanks John.. hugsx
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Hugs back.
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A fascinating collection, Sally. I’m enjoying Olga’s new story. I’m just glad she is still writing (and publishing in some form). Hugs all around.
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Great Teagan.. and I am glad too..hugsx
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Great shares Sal. I’d already seen Olga’s post and got interested in the story but don’t enjoy reading chapters on Wattpad so Olga was kind enough to zip it over to me 🙂 Charli’s post sounds right up my alley, lol. ❤ xx
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Thanks Debby .. no I prefer to have something I can take off the computer on to my reader.. loved Charli’s post.. xx♥
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❤
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Many thanks for the lovely feature, Sally, and for the great links! I hope you’re enjoying the weekend 🙂
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Thank you Nicholas and a pleasure. A cold frosty but sunny weekend so great. x
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Cold and wet over here. But enjoying the family, so all’s well 🙂
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Reblogged this on Nicholas C. Rossis and commented:
Some great writing links, courtesy of Sally Cronin
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Thanks so much for featuring my new book, Sally, and for including my post in such a fabulous selection. You’re the top! ♥
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my pleasure Olga..hugsx
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Reblogged this on Just Olga and commented:
A great selection of posts shared by Sally Cronin (yes, one of mine included, but read them all). I’m honoured to be in such fantastic company.
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Delighted to share Olga.. thanks for boosting the post. .hugsx
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Nicholas’ post mentioned indies making money from libraries. I have been wondering about the availability of indie books in libraries. I’d be interested in learning more.
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Certainly worth checking out Liz.. will be interested to find out how it works there.. Here they seem to buy the books outright.. hugsx
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I know anecdotally and through my limited person experience that writers donate copies of their books to local libraries for “local authors” spotlights. I don’t know if the books of indie writers make it into the industry publications librarians use to make purchase for their collections.
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I was lucky enough to have several copies of Tales from an Irish Garden bought direct from the bookshop stocking it, but I don’t get anything more when people rent. xx
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That’s true. I’ve also wondered whether people who check books out of the library write reviews.
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They can on Goodreads and Bookbub if they are signed up as they don’t need to prove purchase. xx
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And hopefully they do!
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All fabulous posts, Sally.
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Thank you Robbie..hugsx
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Love your selection of posts. All very informative. Thanks for sharing.
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Thank you Damyanti.. glad you enjoyed.x
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Thanks for the inclusion, Sally! It’s good to see the 2020 trends, too from Nicholas.
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Pleasure Charli.. was extra busy this last week offline and failed to participate…. sorry..xx
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