October Sales Numbers

As promised!

The Grand Total is:

1,751

During the month of October, The Guardian sold 367 Amazon US copies, 3 Amazon UK copies, 1 Amazon DE copy, and 0 Amazon FR copies. On Barnes and Noble, 26 copies were sold, for a total of 397 copies (or 12.8 sales per day).

Cross My Heart sold 884 Amazon US copies, 107 Amazon UK copies, 5 Amazon DE copies, and 0 Amazon FR copies. On Barnes and Noble, 86 copies were sold, for a total of 1,082 (or 34.9 sales per day).

Vendetta sold 250 Amazon US copies, 1 Amazon UK copy, and 0 Amazon DE and FR copies. On Barnes and Noble, 21 copies were sold, for a total of 272 copies (or 8.7 copies per day).

The total books sold came to 1,751, or 56.48 sales per day. This is up from last month's total of 1,640 (or 54.6 sales per day). Cross My Heart totals declined by two sales a day, which could mean I've hit a plateau. (This isn't *nearly* as steep of a sales drop that I saw from August to September, or even from summer to fall).  Sales for both The Guardian and Vendetta are up. The Guardian is up two additional sales per day, and Vendetta is up one additional sale per day from last month. Sales for these two books were also up on Barnes and Noble compared to last month.

I’m not a math nerd, but I put my data into an online graph generator just to see if there were trends. Here's what came back (each "dot" represents one day—there are 31).

The pink line is Cross My Heart, the blue is The Guardian, and the red is Vendetta.

I don't think there's much here to analyze. I'm a Humanities major anyway, so I'm not sure if I *could* analyze the data, even if I wanted to. (What I *can* do, however, is color coordinate my graph lines with my book covers. Score!)

The highest points for Cross My Heart are all Sundays. In two cases, there was a steep drop for Monday, and then it picked back up on Tuesday.

Otherwise, there's no rhyme or reason. At the end of the year I'm going to post a month to month graph, just for fun. I probably won't be able to analyze that, either, but it's all good.

There's really nothing else to speak of. Work continues to kick tail, and I spend the majority of my days wishing I could write full-time. Progress on the third Guardian book is steady (25k words on draft one).

If you missed my earlier post, Cross My Heart is a finalist for the 2011 Goodreads Readers Choice Awards for Best YA Fiction! It's the only indie novel in the category, and I'm up against some insanely talented (Sarah Dessen! Jenny Han! Squee!) authors. There are three rounds of voting, and the first round ends on Nov. 13. If you read/enjoyed Cross My Heart, I would *love* your support!

Otherwise, have a great weekend!

KK

2011 Goodreads Choice Awards

Hi Y'all!

I know I owe you a sales post. I have a few day job-related things to take care of, but I plan to tally up my totals and post them soon. *Promise*

In the meantime, I stumbled across a couple of fabulous new reviews for Cross My Heart. 

From Joyous Reads: 

"I’ve never been more inclined to re-read a book shortly after reading this. In fact, that’s what I did as soon as I finished wiping my wet, snotty face."

*love*

And, from a new Amazon review from Readergirl Reviews a Teen Book:

"These characters were drawn together inexplicably, but it was very naturally done, beautiful written, and unique. This is one of those books that doesn't have a whole lot of external conflict going on. It's almost completely character driven, and you would think this would make it boring, but not at all." 

The best part? "Beautifully written" and "character-driven." The. Highest. Compliment. 

In other news, I *just* found out that Cross My Heart was nominated for the 2011 Goodreads Choice Awards. I'm still kind of flabbergasted. Just looking at the names of the other authors who were nominated. . . . It's kind of insane. I *LOVE* these writers, you guys!

I know this is ratings/rankings-driven, so I want to give a *huge* thank you to everyone who read CMH, then ranked and reviewed it on Goodreads. I couldn't have done it without your willingness to spread the word.

Truth? I keep refreshing the page, thinking my book will disappear, and I spent about an hour researching and trying to figure out what it all means. (Seriously: I kept asking Mr. Klein: "What does this mean?!?!" I think it may have annoyed him.)

I've decided this is a *very* cool thing, and I'm so honored to be in the presence of some of the best YA writers in the industry.

Voting lasts through November. It goes without saying that I would *love* any vote you're willing to cast for Cross My Heart, if you feel inclined. :)

KK

My Favorite Things

Do you know what I like best about epubbing?

Knowing my sales, and getting paid on time.

If you've published a book to Kindle or Nook, you've already gotten an email letting you know that August royalties will be dispersed soon. (If not, it's on the way!)

One of the biggest complaints I've heard from traditionally published authors (and have experienced myself) is the lack of information available to writers.

I just had to email my former publisher because I realized I haven't seen a statement in a while. I know I haven't "earned out" from my traditional deal, but I'd kind of like to know where I stand.

Simon and Schuster is working on this, and is now offering its authors a portal where they can see their sales numbers. This is definitely a step in the right direction.

Still, it's nice to know that, at the end of each month (if I've sold enough copies), those BN and Amazon emails will hit my inbox and, within a few days, the money will be dispersed. I don't have to wait six months for the house to crunch numbers. I don't have to wait for a check to be cut. I don't have to wait for an agent to crunch numbers, take his/her cut, then send the rest my way. . . .

Whether they want to admit it or not, Simon and Schuster is following Amazon's lead in this. Information/Knowledge is power. Now that the information is available, maybe we'll start to see better royalty rates, and then maybe authors will get paid on time.

Anything that shifts the favor back to the writer is a good thing, and I'm glad to see Simon and Schuster adapting. :)

KK

Reading and Writing

So, despite the busy weekend, I still managed to churn out 3k words on the WIP. Probably more, but I did some deleting, too. 

I also spent some down time reading. I was completely sucked into Courtney Summers's SOME GIRLS ARE. 

I'm familiar with Courtney's work (I read her other books earlier this year), but I'd forgotten how completely immersed in her character's lives I get when I'm reading. It's not hard for me to put most books down, but I *never* seem to want to stop reading hers. They embody what it means to be a "page-turner."

I also admire Courtney's ability to put her characters through the muck. As authors, I think we're guilty of sometimes protecting our characters. We don't want bad things to happen to them. Bad things happen in Courtney's books, and then, just when you think it couldn't possibly get worse for the characters, it does.

I love how she pushes the boundaries. It makes me want to "up the ante" in my own writing.

Her books aren't for the faint of heart/spirit, but I *highly* recommend them.

I hope you had a productive weekend! :)

KK

It's the Weekend!

I dare you not to smile. . . .

Yeah, that's what I thought.

I'm going under for the weekend. I'm hoping that I can get some new words written on the WIP, because, quite frankly, I haven't opened the file since last week. I had no clue the day job was going to keep me so busy this year. (cries) I miss my summer!

Whatever your plans (writing, revising, plotting, promoting, formatting), I'm sending productivity vibes your way.

I'm going in with 16,900 words. We'll see what I have when I return.

See you on the other side. :)

KK

Brief Update

It looks like the previous issue I blogged about is slowly working itself out, so the other post has been temporarily sent to "draft" status. I'm sorry if you missed the drama (but not really, because I'm sure we could all use less drama in our lives).

Again: I'm incredibly thankful for the friends and family members in my life who stay on these things. Wouldn't know what to do without y'all. I'm surrounded by the coolest people in the world, and I don't take you guys for granted. <3

As for me: Moving on, because the day job calls. Looking forward to *another* late night.:)

(At some point I'll be able to write full-time, and then I'll have so many books out you'll be sick of me!)

KK

YA Indie Spotlight: Liz Reinhardt

Hi Everyone!

I *finally* have another spotlight for you! Today, I'm featuring Double Clutch, a YA contemporary romance by Liz Reinhardt.

SUMMARY

What happens when you fall for the perfect guy...twice...in one day?

Brenna Blixen spent her freshman year homeschooling in Denmark; now that she's back in the States, she's determined to make her sophomore year unforgettable. And by unforgettable, she imagined awesome classes, fun friendships, and maybe a little romance. 

What she got was a whole lot of romance, and all at once.

The same day that dark, brooding Saxon Maclean charmed her with his killer good looks and whip-smart wit, Jake Kelly stole her breath away with his heart-wrenching smile and intelligent, thoughtful focus.

But Saxon is a proud player who makes it clear that he doesn't know why he can't get Brenna off of his mind and out of his system, and Jake's sweet and humble attitude hides a secret past life that might be darker and more complex than Brenna is willing to deal with.

Complicating the matter is the fact that Saxon and Jake were once best friends and are now arch-enemies...and the more Brenna finds out about their connection to each other, the more intrigued and worried she becomes.

Between keeping the peace with her lovingly over-protective parents, designing t-shirts for her high school's rising punk band, keeping up her grades in classes split between academic and technical high school, and running the track like a maniac, Brenna has enough to worry about without juggling two guys who make her heart thud and drive her crazy all at once.

She has to make a choice, but how is she supposed to do that when giving her heart to one of them might mean breaking the other's?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Liz Reinhardt was born and raised in the idyllic beauty of northwest NJ. A move to the subtropics of coastal Georgia with her daughter and husband left her with a newly realized taste for the beach and a bloated sunscreen budget. Right alongside these new loves is her old, steadfast affection and longing for bagels and the fast-talking foul mouths of her youth.

She loves Raisinettes, even if they aren't really candy, the Oxford comma, movies that are hilarious or feature zombies, any and all books, but especially romance (the smarter and hotter, the better), the sound of her daughter's incessantly wise and entertaining chatter, and watching her husband work on cars in the driveway.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

"A realistic contemporary romance that held my attention from page one right to the very end; it is sweet, romantic and the drama is detailed and entertaining."

"A wonderful debut . . . one sizzling love triangle, and a great romance."

"Reinhardt's portrayal of high school romance is so captivating that I couldn't help but be swept up in the heart-pounding, butterflies-in-the-stomach fun of it all."

(A few reviews mention some PG-13 romance, so this might be more appropriate for the older teen—we'll say 14-up.)

Double Clutch is priced at $2.99 and is available for Kindle and Nook.

You can read Liz's blog, like her on Facebook, or email her at lizreinhardtwrites@gmail.com.

Happy Reading!

KK