What Category does your book fall in?

First off I want to send out my prayers to all my friends in the Philipines. I hope all of you and your families are safe and unharmed. 

Categories!!!

This is a quandry for most writers. There are so many genres now. When I was younger you had Romance, Historical Romance, Science Fiction, Mystery, Christian, and Non Fiction. I’m sure there were more, but that’s the ones I remember in the book stores. Now there’s everything from Young Adult to Shifter Paranormal and beyond.

As a writer this is something that always blows my mind. If you put your book in the wrong category it may not sell as well as in another category. But how do you choose? On Amazon and Smashwords I do a lot of research. It takes a little time, but it can help you to move up in the ranks. 

Here’s how I research:

1: I write down the top 5 categories I think my book would fit in. I look at the many facets of my book. Does it have any suspense? This could put it in a suspenseful romance category. Does it have paranormal aspects, mystery, horror, or historical? All of these things play into the choosing.

2: Don’t fall in love with these 5 categories because this step could throw them completely out of the list. Then go to Amazon or Smashwords and search that category. I learned a lot from doing this. I used to put all my romances in the Romance category. Then after researching it, that category is overrun with books. That means it will be harder to climb the charts. Then I started stepping out of the general category box and pull out the big guns. It really helped.

3: Amazon has a nifty little tool in the help section. It gives you the list of the most popular categories and the side lines that go along with it. Go to your KDP dashboard and then to help. From there all you need to do is type categories in the search box then it will give you the main categories then just click on yours and there you are. It help my sales immensely.

This is just a couple of ways to select your categories. Believe me that is a big part of your book sales. 

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Crazy Maybe, Thankful Definitely

How many writers have been told they’re nuts? I know I have. It’s almost hilarious the looks you get when you say you’re a writer. Some give you a sympathetic look. Some give you that ‘you can’t do anything else with your life,’ look. The one I love is the one where they look like ‘you’re nuts.” Ok, well maybe I am, but it’s something I love. 

Now anyone can say they’re writers, but how many can say they’re published writers? The first question usually asked is, “How’s that working out for you?” I always laugh and say it’s going wonderfully for me. I can finally say what I dreamed of years and years ago, “I’m a published author and am making money with my dream.” 

As for the “you can’t do anything else with your life”, well if you’ve read my bio you know I do a lot with my life. We are only given one chance at the pie so why not dip your fork into every slice you can. I run a successful accounting business which I built through experience and passion for the work. I’m a Children’s Ministry Director and dearly love what I do to minister to children. Then I get to do what only some sit and dream about. I get to put my dreams and thoughts into writing. I get to put romance, love, tears, heart and other emotions into someone’s life through my words. It’s a very humbling feeling to hear from my fans. Good or bad I have some faithful fans that ask when’s the next book coming out, where’s this character going from here, and so many more questions.

So where am I going with this post? I’m so thankful for the fans that support my writing. I’m thankful for the ones that write the adoring reviews and emails that I love reading every morning. This past year I’ve made friends all over the world and it’s been a very exciting time in my life. So, without further ado, I want to announce a huge sale. I’m doing a sale that will start today and run throughout Novemeber to show my thanks to all that follow me and even those that don’t but might start later.

The sales will be on all my stand alone books, not the bundles as they’re already reduced based on the amount of books included. You can find them at http://www.amazon.com/Stephanie-Hurt/e/B00850W7U8 and https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/StephaniePayneHurt and http://www.allromanceebooks.com/storeSearch.html?searchBy=author&qString=Stephanie+Payne+Hurt.

Soon they will show up on Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple, Sony and the other sites where my books are located. It usually takes about a week for the prices to show up on these sites, but the above link should start showing today and tommorow. So thanks and if you feel like it, give a review. I love to hear your thoughts.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Back To School Book Post

Good Friday morning. It’s another rainy, dreary morning here in Georgia. Makes me want to go back to bed with a good book and another cup of coffee or at least Earl Grey tea. But alas, work beckons me to the office. It’s Friday and payroll is due out for several clients so…

I’ve decided to do a Back to School book sale for the rest of August. It’s already up on Amazon and soon to be on allromanceebooks.com and Smashwords.com which will put it on Barnes & Nobles, Kobo, Apple and so on. Am I committing earnings suicide, well maybe, but it’s a hard month finance wide for lots of people. What with school supplies, school clothes, dorm supplies, and all the other school related purchases. So maybe this will help and give someone out there a chance to sit back and read a minute or two.

As for everything else going on, well let’s just say, it’s been a busy couple of weeks. I’m trying to finish up my newsletter for submission next week to my subscribers. It’s not too late to subscribe. All you need to do is message me here or through my email. 

The other big story is the upcoming blog tour with my friend from across the pond, Rosie Amber. We’ve joined forces to do a blog tour from both sides of the Atlantic. It’s called Romancing September Across the World Blog Tour. We still have a couple of openings but they’re going fast. IF you write romance or put in romance elements in your writing join us for this exciting tour. We’ve already got some great response. Just send me a message and I’ll send you the info. Also put including link below.

Hope everyone has a good Friday. It’s almost the weekend!

As always, Good writing and May God Bless You…