10,000 books!

As I write this, I’ve reached a milestone in my writing career. As of last count nearly 10,000 of my books have been downloaded. Not all were sales as some were free promotion giveaways, but enough of a percentage of them were purchased that it makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something. As I’ve always said, it’s all about exposure. The more people who read my books and talk about them, the more grassroots, word-of-mouth sales will grow. I just contacted my cover artist and formatter about turning PULP into an ebook. PULP is the last of my hardcover books to be converted into electronic format. I’ll now have eight novels for sale worldwide on all portable devices and ereaders. Wow! I must stress that none of this would be possible without Kindle Direct Publishing and Smashwords. And of course the internet and access to readers. As dismal as this month started out with sales, I’ve now seen a surge this last week. The four and five star reviews that I’ve gotten on Amazon.com and Goodreads are from real readers that I do not know, so my stories are having an effect on people. Sleeper hits are what Kindle Nation Daily called my books and a few are starting to stir. With the finalization of PULP, I can now concentrate on finishing IMAGINATION. Nearly all my novels that have been tucked away in my desk drawer while under representation by my former agent will now see new life and find new readers thanks to the electronic revolution. Many writers I’ve talked to who are under traditional publisher’s contracts fear what the new wave of indie publishing will do to their sales, especially when they have to distribute the royalties among so many players while also competing for advertising dollars. I wholly embrace the freedom of the entrepreneur author. I can write what I want, design the cover the way I want, and sell the book at the price I want, all while being able to reach a global audience of billions. I’ve sold books in almost every state in America, all throughout the UK, and even sold a few titles in France and Italy. Not too shabby. Now, if I could only add one more zero to that 10,000 mark, it would really make my year.