Can You Relaunch a Book Published 2 Years Ago?

I feel like the proud parent of two children. My elegant girl is a contemporary romance, the winner of 15 book awards. My boy is a teen fantasy, winner of 7 book awards. Each book is written under a different pen name. The success of one does not affect the other, because they live as separate entities out there in the world. Just like two separate children.

Like a mother in a historical novel, I chose to back the boy with my limited funds. "The Crystilleries of Echoland" was published in March, 2018. I relied on OnlineBookClub.org as well as Facebook to launch the book on a sea of champagne, and it is doing very well. My girl, "Looking Glass Friends", was forgotten by all--except me. And then a surprise came...

I ran a free book promotion for "Looking Glass Friends" and the novel hit Amazon's free book best-seller list. 

Hmmm... perhaps it's time to relaunch this novel, originally published in 2016.

Relaunching A Novel Published in 2016

Online Book Club Reviews (OnlineBookClub.org): 

This is a crucial step. I warmly recommend this community of readers to all authors. Your purchase of the review package goes towards maintaining the site; the reviewers do not receive payment but are called "volunteer reviewers".

There are 10 excellent reasons for using OnlineBookClub.org

1. More people will discover your book.
2. The community will begin to discuss the book on their forum. 
3. You book reviews will appear on the site. 
4. If readers like the cover, they can share it on Pinterest.
5. If readers like the review, they can share it on Facebook and other social media sites.
6. You can request that the reviews be posted on Amazon, and the reviewer might choose to do so, writing a new, short version for Amazon.
7. Reviewers will likely list any typos they came across. This has been enormously helpful to me in perfecting the book.
8. As you read the reviews, you will come to see your novel through the fresh eyes of readers. You may discover errors you'll want to change.
9. It's an enormous boost to see your book appreciated by many readers.
10. Once your book has many reviews, you can choose to use the site's Book of the Day promo, to back your Amazon free book promo. You will likely hit Amazon's free best-seller list, and your book will be downloaded by thousands.

Book Ads: 

I've tried advertising with several venues, but with my small budget I find that Facebook offers me the best results...under limited circumstances.

1. The ad must be well targeted. I begin by selecting the location, age and interest carefully. Then as data comes in on how the ad is performing, I tweak the age and demographics. 
2. I include a "buy now" button with my ads. Without this button, Facebook ads do not lead to external link clicks (or very rarely). 
3. Even if people who visit my Amazon book page fail to buy the book, they seem to add it to their Amazon Unlimited list, because the book's seller ranking is beginning to improve. 

Book of the Day on OnlineBookClub.org:

I'm about to test this ad with "The Crystilleries of Echoland". If successful, I will definitely proceed with an ad for "Looking Glass Friends" once enough reviews come in.

Best of luck to you with your books!

E. L. Neve

How I reached #9 on Amazon's Free Contemporary Romance Best-Seller List

This weekend I tried a free Amazon promo for the first time. I listed my contemporary romance (more a literary love story, really), Looking Glass Friends. It was the first time I tried this promotion, and the results were surprising. In fact, the book reached #9 in Free Contemporary Romance, made it into the fiction list and reached #135 in ALL free Kindle books (of course, I forgot to take a screenshot of this ephemeral moment).

In all, Looking Glass Friends was downloaded 1, 368 times and two audiobooks were sold as well. From my, admittedly, limited experience, these were excellent results, of which I am very proud.

All the traffic was funneled through this simple Facebook ad. It was the "Buy Now" button that made all the difference. I see that the button doesn't show here, but it was there when the ad was live on Facebook, and it enabled Facebook users to click their way directly to buying/downloading the book with no intervening steps. This, coupled with the number of awards the book has won, made it super-easy to get Looking Glass Friends, while the awards vouched for the story's quality in lieu of reviews.



In my experience, Facebook users do not tend to spend money, but they are very supportive of creative ideas, and when something is offered for free, they will participate willingly. Once Looking Glass Friends made it into Amazon's top seller pages, I am sure downloads were generated that way as well.

The Day After

I am now following the advise of another author and trying Amazon ads to see if the momentum of sales can be maintained even in a small degree. I notice already that Looking Glass Friends is being read on Amazon Unlimited, which helps its sales ranking. But the true test is to see if readers are willing to take a risk on my unknown novel, despite its only having 4 reviews at this time. Time will tell if I did right to lower the price from $5.99 to $2.99. As for all self-published authors, every step is an experiment. But this time the experiment worked, which feels great.

I hope other authors find my experience helpful.

All My Best,

E. L. neve

"Jardin" (Garden): Poems for Paintings Number 2

This painting by the inimitable, Danielle Richard, faces our wide bedroom doorway, welcoming us back from sleep each morning. 

This is my second poem in the series, Poems for Paintings, published under my pen name, E. L. Neve (award-winning romance author). 

I wrote the music with Garage Band and recorded my poem under my real name, Tal. I hope you find the video soothing.

You can see more of Ms. Richard's art at http://daniellerichard.com.

Forever Here: Poems for Paintings Number 1

~ My poem, dedicated to Forever Here, by Danielle Richard ~ 

I was inspired to write a poem for the painting, under my pen name, E. L. Neve (award-winning romance author). ~ 

I then composed music on Apple's Garage Band and recorded the poem under my real name, Tal Boldo. You can see more of Ms. Richard's art at http://daniellerichard.com

Audible Edition

Discover My Audible Edition

It's like going to Narnia...through a closet.

That's what recording my audiobook felt like. I would seal myself in my closet. Pull the thick mover's blanket over the door. And the world outside would be muffled. The room had a small light. And my words on my monitor. That was the whole of reality.

Reading a story aloud in an audio booth is magical. There's nothing to distract you. You weave an alternate reality with the sound of your voice.

Reviewers listening to the story seemed to feel what I felt when I recorded it:
"5 stars for the narration of this book, performed by the author. Ethereal."
"The narrator, who is also the author, did an amazing job."
"Beautiful excellently written love story of two souls finding happiness with each other. well narrated!"

 "Looking Glass Friends" on Audible 

Author Interview: E L Neve on "Writers and Authors"

Many of you know that I write under two pen names. Here's an interview I gave for my pen name, Dew Pellucid, under which I wrote my award-winning teen fantasy, The Crystilleries of Echoland. E. L. Neve comes up in the interview too.

Quote from your Book | Favorite Quote “And on this sea of song, he floated for who knows how long.”

As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up? I always loved literature passionately. I wrote poetry as a kid. I knew I wanted to get lost in storytelling. I always knew.

When did you write your first book and how old were you? I wrote my first short story when I was 8 years-old. In elementary school my poems were published in this school paper. I wrote my first (terrible novel) at age 24. It was beautifully written and utterly boring. So I decided to write for kids, and then I had to learn how to write a good plot. Today I write under two pen names, Dew Pellucid for teens, E. L. Neve for adults.

How did you begin writing? Did you intend to become an author, or do you have a specific reason or reasons for writing each book? Writing is my flight. When I get lost in that world I know I’m where I’m supposed to be. Which is why I can’t remember when I started writing. I just did…

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

Keep reading on Authors & Writers

14 Literary Awards

So happy to share the latest book awards for "Looking Glass Friends":

~ 2018 Great Northwest Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2018 Beach Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2017 New York Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2017 Los Angeles Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2017 London Book Festival Runner-up ~
~ 2017 Pacific Book Awards Finalist ~
~ 2017 BookVana Award Finalist ~
~ 2017 Readers’ Favorite Finalist ~
~ 2018 San Francisco Book Festival Honorable Mention ~
~ 2018 Paris Book Festival Honorable Mention ~
~ 2017 Florida book Festival Honorable Mention ~
~ 2017 New England Book Festival Honorable Mention ~
~ 2017 Southern California Book Festival Honorable Mention ~
~ 2017 Great Midwest Book Festival Honorable Mention ~

11th LITERARY AWARD

Looking Glass Friends has won its 11th award. The novel is a Great Northwest Book Festival WINNER (2018).

I live in the Northwest, so this is special to me. And of course, the number eleven is significant to the book, because I've chosen it to represent two individuals standing side by side, united but still separate. My pen name, E. L. Neve, is an anagram of the number 11.

THE STORY

Looking Glass Friends is a story about finding your soul's reflection, the ideal person put on this earth just for you. But what if you are already married? What if you have kids? This quest for happiness lies at the heart of all our lives. Many of us face the choice that turns the pages of this story. Many of us know that our life will be utterly different in twenty years depending on the choice we make today. It is an intersection that changes everything forever.

This award-winning novel seeks to show that what seems insurmountable can be done...and should be done. I hope you'll choose to discover its poetry and wisdom for yourself.

FIND "LOOKING GLASS FRIENDS" ON AMAZON.COM:
http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Friends

OR:
Amazon Canada: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_CAN
Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_UK
Amazon Australia: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_AU
Amazon Japan: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_Japan
Amazon Spain: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_Spain
Amazon Italy: http://bit.ly/Looking_Glass_Amazon_Italy

A Riddle

:-)

The dedication in my novel, LOOKING GLASS FRIENDS, is a clue to two. So is my pen name. Have any of you figured it out?

THE DEDICATION:
"For the first one in the anagram."

MY PEN NAME:
"E. L. Neve"

CLUE:
E. L. Neve is a clue to two...
From real love letters this story grew.

Do you see the answer? I've posted it at the end of this post.

[Image credit: Thank you to FB group: Antique & Vintage Letters-Postcards-Greeting & Swap Cards - Old Photographs.]

ANSWER:

Letter writing involves 2 people. Or rather 1 + 1. Or...11. So now you've figured it out, right?

SPELLING IT OUT:

E. L. Neve is an anagram of 11. Go ahead... jumble the letters ELNEVE and you'll get ELEVEN.

{Read the opening pages of the novel if you're intrigued.

10th Literary Award for "Looking Glass Friends"

I remember talking to my best-friend in January 2017 and wondering if "Looking Glass Friends" will win any awards. He said, "Maybe not...and it's OK." Because he didn't want me to be sad. And I speculated, "Maybe 3." But I really hoped for more. 

And now...how lovely that I get confused about which award I should write about, because there are 10 so far. So here's the list, because it makes me happy. The Los Angeles Book Festival will always be dear to my heart, because it's the first award I've ever won. I felt very special and raised a toast to myself, by myself. Of course, Ellie & Neil were there too, in my imagination.

10 TIME AWARD WINNING LOVE STORY INSPIRED BY REAL LETTERS 

~ 2017 New York Book Festival WINNER ~ 

~ 2017 Los Angeles Book Festival WINNER ~ 

~ 2017 London Book Festival Runner-up ~ 

~ 2017 Pacific Book Awards Finalist ~ 

~ 2017 BookVana Award Finalist ~ 

~ 2017 Readers’ Favorite Finalist ~ 

~ 2017 Florida book Festival Honorable Mention ~ 

~ 2017 New England Book Festival Honorable Mention ~ 

~ 2017 Southern California Book Festival Honorable Mention ~ 

~ 2017 Great Midwest Book Festival Honorable Mention ~

Winner: Great Midwest Book Festival

Late last night I was scanning my email and was delighted to see that Looking Glass Friends placed in the 2017 Great Midwest Book Festival. So I went to sleep smiling. This is the book's seventh award. I feel a quiet sense of pride.

Looking Glass Friends Awards:

2017 New York Book Festival Winner
2017 Los Angeles Book Festival Winner
2017 Pacific Book Awards Finalist
2017 BookVana Awards Finalist
2017 Readers' Favorite Award Finalist
2017 Southern California Book Festival Honorable Mention
2017 Great Midwest Book Festival Honorable Mention

Winner: Southern California Book Festival

So proud to share that Looking Glass Friends was honored in the Southern California Book Festival. The novel received an Honorable Mention in the General Fiction category. It warms my heart...

LOOKING GLASS FRIENDS AWARDS:
2017 New York Book Festival Winner
2017 Los Angeles Book Festival Winner
2017 Pacific Book Awards Finalist
2017 BookVana Awards Finalist
2017 Readers' Favorite Award Finalist
2017 Southern California Book Festival Honorable Mention

https://www.amazon.com/Looking-Glass-Friends-I…/…/1540864456 http://www.southerncaliforniabookfestival.com

A Look Behind the Scenes

This is what my "thinking wall" looked like when I first considered writing Looking Glass Friends. The story began with real love letters. I hung them in chronological order. To my surprise, I discovered a pattern, like a dance.

He wooed her (even if he didn't know it.) Every time he went too far, she drew back. Then he became cool. So she drew near, afraid to lose him. There was a crisis, a climax, a denouement. Our lives can mimic great dramas in pursuit of our dreams...

My New Cover

After "Looking Glass Friends" won its' 5th award, I created a poster of the cover, to hang in the room where I write. Suddenly, I could see the cover big as big (to quote A. A. Milne). Hmmm...I wondered. And decided to change things a little. 

Now, here's a glimpse at the creative process that went into making the cover. This is the photo I began with: I found this beautiful photo on Shutter Stock and paid for the right to use it.  

Originally I titled the novel, Soul Mates. For publication, I reverted to an idea I had during writing, which I had shelved and then forgotten.

One Saturday, I had the idea to cover the faces with print...as a visual clue to the emails and printed letters the lovers exchange. I photographed a page from an old Victor Hugo novel...and after a lot of work on Affinity Photo:

The new cover (at the top) is by far my favorite for its subtlety. I hope you like it too. 

~ 2017 New York Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2017 Los Angeles Book Festival WINNER ~
~ 2017 Pacific Book Awards Finalist ~
~ 2017 BookVana Award Finalist ~
~ 2017 Readers’ Favorite Finalist ~

WHEN OUR SOULS FALL IN LOVE…BEFORE OUR BODIES MEET

They fell in love over email, discussing Ayn Rand’s novel, Atlas Shrugged. Neither remembered the other’s face clearly. Both were married already. And she had a five-year-old son. But in the span of a few letters each discovered his soul’s mirror-image. So how could they live apart?

Woven with poetry and philosophy this is a story about the nature of love, its enchantment or curse, and the heartbreaking question: Can a mother secure her child’s happiness by sacrificing hers?

My Thoughts on Placing in a 5th Award Competition

Even the title of this post sounds pompous in my ears. My dogs are no longer startled out of their furry little coats when Mommy suddenly breaks into a dance. A minute before she was staring at that silvery sidelong book she calls her MacBook. Now she's picking up each dog in turn and waltzing. Humans!

I am honored to learn that Looking Glass Friends is a General Romance Finalist in the 2017 Readers' Favorite Awards. I know the competition was fierce, so this means a lot to me.

When I started writing ages and ages ago, I thought I was good. I thought I had a talent for literature. And it was true. I was better at literature and writing than anything else. And I loved it with a passion. But I've finally reached a stage when I realize how much I can suck at this illusive craft. Most of my writings have a close relationship with the delete button. It's ironic, but I didn't start winning awards until I realized how terrible my writing can be. And how hard I have to work to make it good.

Since I self-published Looking Glass Friends, I was my own editor (and copy editor). I reviewed the novel (for the absolute final time) over 20 times. This polishing took around 4 months. I felt like a sculptor chipping away and polishing his finished work. Each stage revealed new flaws and so on.

So after all the hard work, I am thankful that the story is received so well. And I am especially grateful to readers who take a chance on my unknown story. I wish more of them would share their thoughts in a review. It's a joy to me to read. And as a reader, I know how helpful a good review can be in guiding my literary choices. So...will you write a review and share it? I hope so!

Thanks for reading!

Tal Boldo (pen name: E.L. Neve)

Audio Book

Amazon

Goodreads Reviews

4th Award for "Looking Glass Friends"

So proud to learn that "Looking Glass Friends" is an Award Finalist in the “Fiction: Chick Lit/Women's Lit” category of the 2017 Bookvana Awards. I hugged my little Pomeranian and we danced a jig in celebration. Here's one of the old covers...one that never went live. In the end, I designed a new cover, with layers of meaning that relate to the story.

BTW, my pen name for this novel (E. L. Neve) is an anagram. Can any one guess the riddle behind it? Clue: The dedication in the book reads: "For the first one in the anagram."

2017 New York Book Festival Winner

So thrilled to learn that Looking Glass Friends has won another award. It's so nice when a surprise like this just lands in your inbox. The novel is the winning romance in the New York Book Festival.

I wrote this poem years ago

Suddenly I remembered it in the night. Maybe a dream recalled it to my mind. So I edited the bits I didn't like in the original, and here it is. 

Audiobook & Signed Paperback Giveaways

In honor of the two awards the book has won, I created two new giveaways. Check out the giveaway tab on this blog.

This will be the first signed paperback I offer publicly. As to the audiobook I wanted to narrate and produce the book myself, because I think an author has a special connection with her story, and that intimate feeling runs through the performance. It took me 3 months of trial-and-error to arrive at the sound quality I wanted from my home studio in the closet under the stairs. And a total of 6 months to complete the book.

If you enjoy literary love stories, I hope you'll enter. Best of luck!

My Wonderful Experience with New Apple Literary's Unbiased Free Book Reviews

All authors love to hear that readers enjoyed their books. As Mark Twain said, wittily (of course,):

"There are three infallible ways of pleasing an author, and the three form a rising scale of compliment: 1. To tell him you have read one of his books; 2. To tell him you have read all of his books; 3. To ask him to let you read the manuscript of his forthcoming book. No. 1 admits you to his respect; No. 2 admits you to his admiration; No. 3 carries you clear into his heart."—Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar. 

Yet I find it hard to convince readers to share their thoughts on paper, for all to see. With my first novel, a children's fantasy, it was easier (The Sound & the Echoes, published under Dew Pellucid). Maybe because Looking Glass Friends won two awards and is more cerebral, readers are more hesitant.

Which is why I appreciate the story-lovers at New Apple Literary. I reached out to them under their "Unbiased Reviews Network" for authors, which connects authors with readers who are happy to leave reviews, at no cost to the author, though with the caveat that the review will be entirely "unbiased". What a gift this is: an honest opinion from a reader, which the author does not feel she had to pay for. It's pure joy.

If you're an author, be patient when you submit your book. It's the least you can offer in return. Last week three, thoughtful, in-depth and entirely unique reviews appeared on Goodreads, by three readers New Apple Literary put in touch with my story. I am very grateful and highly recommend the program to other authors. New Apple Literary also offer paid reviews, for authors who are in a rush.

I wrote this post to help other authors who are looking for free reviews for their books. But it occurs to me that readers who love to receive free books in exchange for an honest review will also benefit from hearing about New Apple. So happy reading to all!