Last week, I wrote about why I write short chapters (if you missed it, you can find it here: [link] and announced that you can sign up for my newsletter to get an exclusive excerpt of Book 2, An American Treasure.
I sent the newsletter out to all 106 subscribers on Tuesday, and of course, there was a problem. Nothing is simple when you do things yourself and learn as you go! The link to the landing page didn't work. It was frustrating because it worked perfectly fine when I tested it before pressing "send."
Since I was at the sports center for roller hockey, the problem had to wait. I sent a correction email the following morning with an apology and a working link, so that problem was rectified... I hope.
📉 The Newsletter Dilemma
I use MailerLite for distribution, and I find the newsletter process to be the hardest part of building my author brand. Everywhere you read stresses how important newsletter readers are, but I struggle with what to send them.
I try to give them the scoop first—like early access to the An American Treasure excerpt, and they will see the new book cover first—but beyond that, I don't know how I am supposed to use the newsletter.
I have or had 106 subscribers. I don't mind sharing that number. But I've had only 4 downloads of the Book 2 excerpt to date! My open rate has plummeted from nearly half of my subscribers opening the email down to 21%, and of that, only 4.81% clicked the link. Five people unsubscribed, which is fair enough—if you're not interested, you should leave!
This is the part I do not get: are you following me because you like what I write and do? Or did you just want that initial freebie (An Irish Mystery excerpt) and now have lost interest?
These are questions I cannot answer, and I don't know how to rectify. The learning carries on, whether I ever get the hang of it, only time will tell.
📊 The Hard Truth About Traffic
I moved my blog from Blogger because every site I read claimed that using blogger.com looked unprofessional, and for me to be successful, the blog needed to be on my own website. It also meant all traffic went directly to my site, where I advertise my books.
Just before I transferred everything, I had my record views in a month—three short of 700! Now that it's all on my website, those numbers are a pipedream. Last week’s blog had two views (thank you to you two, though one was probably me getting the URL for social media!).
Batting in the Dark
In another blog, I wrote about using Pinterest and was told it takes a few months to pay off. At one point, I was at 5.2K monthly views on my pins, but likes and clicks were probably below 1%. I cannot say I have had one person find my blog and read it from Pinterest.
It does feel like I am batting in the dark, swinging at fresh air and hoping I hit something. Maybe the algorithms don't like my content, but I don't know what else to do. I’ve spent my whole life making it up as I go along, so why stop now? You never know, something might stick one day!
🤩 The New Cover: A Moment of Triumph!
Now for some genuinely exciting news!
The new book cover for An Irish Mystery has been sent to me, and my reaction when I opened the Dropbox was WOW! It was beyond what I expected. I have asked for a few small, necessary tweaks to ensure the details are true to the book, but the core design is phenomenal.
I honestly cannot wait to show you all and get it uploaded so I can order some author copies for myself. This truly is exciting!
💎 An American Treasure Update: The Excerpt is Out, But the Cost is Real
As I mentioned earlier, the excerpt for An American Treasure is now available exclusively to all my newsletter readers (you can sign up here: [Newsletter Sign-up Form]). You will get the prologue and the first 10 chapters to whet your appetite for what is coming in Book 2.
But when will the book actually be out?
The short answer: The manuscript for An American Treasure is essentially ready. I may send it out to a final review group soon. I would love to publish it tomorrow, but the new cover design for An Irish Mystery has cost more than I originally budgeted for, and Book 2 is also going to need a professional cover. Quite frankly, I cannot afford it at the moment.
How You Can Help Launch Book 2
You will see a widget hovering on the left side and in the right column called Ko-Fi (a place to buy me a coffee). This is where fans can help me reach my goal quicker. Any donations made through Ko-Fi would go directly toward getting Book 2 out in the world faster.
However, the best way to help me is by taking the plunge and buying An Irish Mystery and leaving a review once you have read it. The more copies I can sell, the more books I can afford to produce for the series!
📚 What Am I Reading? (A New Thrill)
I’ve finished my previous read, but I instantly jumped into Rogue Force (Book 1 of the Troy Stark Thriller) by Jack Mars. And I have to say, this is my kind of book!
It’s fast, action-packed, and the sort of story that, if it were a movie, would star Jason Statham. I was so engrossed that I read the whole book in every spare minute I had over the last seven days! I enjoyed it so much that I immediately bought Book 2, Rogue Command. I will let you know my thoughts on the sequel next week.
If you are one of the few who found this blog and like what I write about, please leave me a message below—it genuinely makes a difference!
About Me:
Hello and welcome to Swmming Upstream the home of my blogs. I am D.C. Salmon and I write pulse-pounding adventure thrillers that blend real-life unsolved mysteries with modern-day action.
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