Picking a winner: Kindle Scout

Hello, lovely readers. I was scheduled today to do a Back Jacket Hack Job, but alas, I'm going off book (pun!) to self-promote. I know, for shame. But seriously, folks, I could use your help.

Two years ago, I wrote a blog post about Kindle Scout. You can read it more in-depth here, or if you don't want to, I'll do a TL;DR thing.

Basically, Kindle Scout is Amazon's crowd-sourcing publishing imprint. Readers, like yourself, nominate books they like based off the cover, blurb, and excerpt. If Amazon's editorial team at Kindle Press like the book, they acquire it. The author gets another dose of edits, an advance, and marketing support, and the readers who nominated the title get the whole damn book for free.

I won my last campaign in 2016 for my spooky YA mystery Dead and Breakfast (which you can check out here). It took two years (to be fair, I wrote another book in between), but I'm back with the second book in the series Ghost and Found (I do pat myself on the back frequently for my clever titles), and the campaign could use some help.

Books that are frequently viewed and nominated get put in the Hot and Trending category. This gives the book extra visibility and nominations. So help me out and nominate it. Tell others to nominate it. If I get picked, you get the book for free. It's a win-win deal.

Here's a tweet I drafted if you'd like to copy and paste this bad boy into Twitter....

You like ghosts and gangsters? Then nominate Ghost and Found on Kindle Scout. If it wins, you get the book for free. @KGGiarratano #kindlescout https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/1OSY20EKYZUBY

 And thank you to everyone who has supported the series. I'm so encouraged by the support.

It's my book birthday!

I just wanted to announce to the world, or err ATB readers, that the first in my new mystery series, Dead and Breakfast, has been published today! Woot!! *throws confetti*

This is a Kindle Scout winner and it's available exclusively on Amazon for a mere $3.49. You can't go to a fancy coffee shop for less.

If you love a page-turning mystery with murder, ghosts, and the oppressive humidity of the Florida Keys, then you'll definitely want to pick this up.

Help spread the word -- click to tweet below.

Tweet: Happy Book Birthday, @KGGiarratano! Dead and Breakfast -- murder and mayhem in a haunted hotel. Get it! http://ctt.ec/Q1b8U+

Scouted: a follow-up

What up, guys! It's a rainy day here in the Poconos and while I normally find this weather atmospheric and a boon to mystery writing, my toddler does not. She's simultaneously whining for a snack and climbing over the keyboard. Anyway, I'm about to take refuge in my garden shed because dead bugs and a musty lawnmower have to be more conducive to writing than a 20-month old.  But I digress.

I thought I'd follow up with everyone about how my Kindle Scout campaign ended. You can read the introductory post I wrote here. Long story short, I submitted my YA mystery, Dead and Breakfast, to Kindle Scout (Amazon's crowd-sourcing publishing arm) in December. The book was on campaign for 30 days where it kissed babies and shook the hands of voting Iowans -- kidding! No, in fact, I campaigned for nominations in an effort to get D&B on Amazon's radar. I contacted my newsletter, tweeted my heart out, begged friends to check out the campaign, and basically used up all my lifelines. In return for nominating it, readers will get a free copy of the book before it's released. Which will hopefully bring in advanced reviews.

It used to be that after an author's campaign ended, Amazon would send a quick email either rejecting or accepting the book. Quick as in two days. I waited 12 days for a response -- luckily it was YES!

Dead and Breakfast will be published by Kindle Press. I am super excited on many fronts. The advance, marketing help, and increased visibility will hopefully propel me onto Kindles everywhere. I also get another round of edits, which I always love. I'm not a delicate snowflake when it comes to my writing -- if there is room for improvement, I want to know.

So far, I've joined a secret Facebook group for Kindle Press authors which is a lovely place to get information about the imprint, as well as network. I've mostly received automated emails setting up my banking info. I've also been notified to expect my editorial letter within the next two weeks. And that's about it.

The nice thing about Kindle Press is the books they select are publish-ready. Minor edits, proofreading, and formatting are all that's left. Cover art is secure, and print formatting are the author's responsibility. This means publication is swift. I'm hoping for an early Spring release.

Thanks to everyone who nominated D&B. I hope you enjoy your free copy and I really hope you'll review the book on Amazon and Goodreads.

Peace out,
KGG

Scouting the possibilities on Kindle Scout

Happy Chanukkah, everyone! What are you doing on this fifth night? Me? I'll be continually refreshing my Kindle Scout campaign.

As if I don't have enough to obsess about, I went and submitted my YA mystery, Dead and Breakfast, to Kindle Scout in hopes of getting an Amazon publishing contract. As of a week ago, this had not been my plan. I was finishing up edits and had been all ready to self-publish the novel before Christmas. But then my writer amiga, Alison, had her romance novel selected by Kindle Press and I decided to give Kindle Scout a try. It means delaying publishing six weeks, but I think that's worth the risk. If selected, I get a $1500 advance and Amazon's marketing support -- both of which I need.

Here's how it works:

You upload your completed, and professionally edited manuscript with your cover art, bio, and author photo to Kindle Scout. Once approved, Amazon will email you a link and a campaign start date. This happens quickly. I uploaded my manuscript on Dec. 8th and my campaign went live on the 10th. This gives you time to notify your newsletter subscribers, create jazzy graphics in Canva, and develop a marketing plan.

See, it's not enough to upload your manuscript and forget about it -- you need nominations to get on Amazon's radar. And to get nominations, people need to know your work is there. My plan is to tell my newsletter subscribers and scream it out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Nominations and page views help get your book on the Hot and Trending List, which gets the attention of passer-byers. Perhaps, random readers take a look at your excerpt and cover and nominate your book too. What's in it for them? A free book. Any title selected by Kindle Press is gifted to those who nominated it. Campaigns last 30 days.

Kindle Press is not to be mistaken for Amazon's publishing imprints such as 47North, Thomas & Mercer, or Montlake. Those who do get selected shouldn't expect that kind of marketing attention either. But a $1500 advance is nothing to sneeze at. I haven't made $1500 on all my novels combined. (That's an advance against royalties.) The money would enable me to pay for the covers and editing for the other two books in the trilogy.

There's a fine print you must read before submitting. Please do so before considering Kindle Scout. Information on print, audio, and international rights are explained.You can also read Amy Jarecki's post on ATB about her Kindle Scout experience. Her book was picked up by Kindle Press last year.

YA is a tough market for indies, but I'm hoping that by submitting to Kindle Scout, I have a shot at gaining more visibility for my books. And if I'm not selected, that's okay. I'll go ahead and self-publish Dead and Breakfast in January -- just slightly behind schedule.

 
If you're feeling generous this holiday season, please check out my Kindle Scout campaign. I can use all the help I can get.