A rant to match the new address: Indies again.

How are you, guys? Sorry if you have been searching for my blog and got the following message:

Yep, I've been a naughty girl and changed the blog address. I started a new site for my books and what inspired me to write them, and wanted to have this blog for ranting purposes and all the other stuff I'm blogging about. I thought it's time to separate them. The book site is for readers only and this one is for anyone who's interested in what I have to say.

Right, and because this blog is called Stella Deleuze rants, it's only appropriate if I launch right into one.

You know the newest petition that's making the round? The one against Amazon's deleting reviews without explanation? Well, I'm not going to sign it. And I'll tell you why: Indies with their fake reviews, with their attacking reviewers, with their slagging off or tagging and sabotaging other authors' books, shouldn't be surprised that Amazon takes to those measures. Amazon probably gets thousands of requests to remove negative reviews from furious self-published authors who think their precious book doesn't deserve the 1-star review it received, or they get abuse reported because someone doesn't like it that a fellow author, who just happens to be higher in the charts, gets a bloody, and probably fake 5-star review! How dare he! Amazon, do something about it!
I could imagine that all the recent press about uncovered fake reviews pressured Amazon to make changes. And, as usual, Indies brought it upon themselves. Shame it's the bad apples that make everyone suffer. Yet again. Even if the petition would work, which I somehow doubt, it would just result in Amazon having constant e-mail battles with Indie authors who appeal Amazon's explanation as to why they'd removed reviews. And we still would have a continuation of the same fake review/slagging off nonsense.
I'm sick and tired to hear about the complaints about the issue revolving around reviews. The only people I find it unfair against is when it happens to honest reader reviews; those readers who took the time to draft a write up to help other readers make a decision. I don't get why authors with 50+ reviews throw a hissy fit when three of them get deleted. Yes, it may temper with your star-rating, but heck. If you have already over 50 reviews your book is probably selling well enough. If the book's not selling at all, three more or less reviews will hardly make a difference, right?
Those of us who only have very few reviews (and I'm one of them), and received them from readers, not authors, are pretty safe, I would assume. I only got one 5-star-review removed from Tony (an author) who happened to love my book. It was put back in place when he enquired. And, as expected, a case of another Indie who didn't take it too well that Tony didn't like his book, reported abuse and asked Amazon to remove it. As a result, all of Tony's reviews were deleted. He'd just been honest.
I don't blame Amazon for having enough of it. I really don't. What worries me the most is that if Indies don't stop, Amazon may one day decided to ban all of us and return to work with traditional publishers only. 
By the way: one of my books with only one (5-star) review proves to be my bestseller, leaving the one with 15 reviews, overall rated 4.5 stars, easily behind.

Indies, stop complaining and get on with writing. Your readers will thank you for it. And if you really are that cross with Amazon, take your books elsewhere. It's not that anyone forces you to sell through Amazon. And don't complain they have the monopoly on the market: you've made it happen.

Note: shoes are there, put them on on own peril. :-)

Indies, listen up: how not to behave on a public forum:

I'm making this week a bit of a Rage against the Indie week, because, well ... because. 
This is what happened on my promo thread on the Amazon forum. I'm promoting my book, and have one thread on each side of the pond. I'm addressing writers, after all. All I can say is, had she read my book, this wouldn't have happened. We had a fun and friendly exchange, until she felt it necessary to post a link to her book. That doesn't sit well with me.
 
Her, after putting the link first: hey there, Stella! my turn to hang my head in shame, I guess: it took me four years to produce my historical novel. it took so much research, being set in the 1650s. tough to dig up information on that era, I think. but...I guess I'm really slow. now I want/need to tackle the sequel. am hoping to be a lot faster this time around. but like you said, quality is a big deal to me. so, I guess it will take what it will take. sigh...I admire you guys, your productivity!

Guy: xxxx, do you also bring your own household cast-offs to someone else's yard sale?

Her: EXCUSE ME?????

Her: Stella, if I've offended you, I hope you'll let me know. this PB person apparently thinks I have? scratching my head...I thought we were just discussing here...wtf???

Me, sublty letting her know that I'm not happy: I think xxx refers to your book link since this is a thread for my book. He has a point, but I let it slip through because you didn't ask me to buy your book.

Her: he has a point, really? I think he was rude. I put the link there so you would know what I was referring to...sheesh

Me: Yes, he has. It's one of the reasons I wrote this book. I know it's the MOA forum, but it's my thread, where I'm plugging my book. I don't read HF, and we had a friendly and funny exchange, which would have been absolutely okay without the link like:

I hang my head in shame because I write historical fiction and it took me ages for I needed to research a lot. See? I already had a look at your profile and noted that you're an author and editor. If I had wanted to, I could have bought the book. But I didn't, for it's not my genre.

Inserting a link takes a little effort, so everyone who inserts a link does it with a purpose: advertising. :-) 

Her: if I was advertising, I would have put the summary on there, etc. whatever! adios...

Me: Farewell, xxxx.

Her (by the way, she'd been on the thread since yesterday): you just cost yourself a book sale, and lots of likes and shares. all righty then...so much for, "lovely to meet you"

Her: all that guy had to do was say something constructive, like pointing out the etiquette of the situation, which a newbie like me is often not aware of...but instead he chose to be rude and hurtful and smart-ass. go figure...

Me: Ah, xxxx. Why can't you just say, sorry, yes, I made a mistake and all would be good? You're proving the point of my book, though.

Never mind. I wish you good luck with your book.

Me answering another post: He was funny, xxxx. It was just a tongue in cheek comment. I assure you it was.

Her: ok, I am sorry, but I think that rude guy should say he's sorry, too. why such bitchiness? why not just point out an error, without that cutting edge? perhaps you two are proving the very point of your book, yourselves. good luck yourself.

Her: it was not funny to me, Stella. it hurt my feelings. I was only trying to share in the discussion. I don't see the humor in it, I really don't.

Me: Well, he was merely pointing out that you violated the etiquette. That was all. Not trying to be mean, but if you found that hurtful, you better brace yourself for the negative reviews that'll come. Every author gets them, and readers are tough. It needs a thick skin to take that all. ;-)

Her: I've already weathered several negative reviews, and have more than 25 years of newspaper and magazine experience. not a newbie in that arena, believe me. I just thought his comment was unnecessarily cutting. talk about picky!


Guy: xxxx, this thread was begun by this author to discuss her book. She might not care that you've used it to promote your own - but for what it's worth, I find it bad manners. I might be completely alone in this, but I doubt it.

Stella keeps a pet iguana, so very little phases her.

Her: ok, this is the last post on this from me, I promise. PB, I do understand NOW why you and/or Stella may interpret my original post and the Dreaded Product Link, OH MY, as "bad manners." however: I think both of you do everyone a disservice when you assume it's bad manners, rather than give the poster the benefit of the doubt. these little etiquette systems are quite mysterious at first...
iguana schmiguana
never piss into a strong Montana wind.

Then she said something else in a snidy manner. And I decided to leave it at that. 

Could you all take a look, please? No! Sod off!

You've guessed correctly. I have a full blown rant in me, and it demands its way out. So, fasten your seat belt and hold on to your wig, it'll get rough.
As a self-published author I'm frequenting fora on a regular basis. Often just to chat, more often though, to discuss. It can get heated, which is fine by me, as long as it stays factual. I will also hit people verbally over the head every now and again. Trust me, they deserve it. And it happened a lot more often lately as some people are seriously not one, but a few sandwiches short of a picnic.
I have lost count on how many new authors popped on one of my threads where we discuss self-published books, announcing they've just published their first book, and asking either me or all participants to take a look at it, then feed back to them. My favourite: Any constructive review would be great.
Excuse me? Are you telling me that you have not had anyone look at your book before publishing? Are you serious? I mean, really? Are you serious?
That explains a lot. Asking for feedback when the book is already published is so clever, even I'm impressed. Not! I wonder why people ask others to look at their offerings and tell them what they think. Is it really important to them? To be honest, I don't care at all. Go look at my book and tell me you think it's shite. Fine, if it makes you feel better. Of course a review is important, mainly for the potential buyer, but that's a different matter. Asking people for feedback after a glance at the 'look inside' feature is baffling to say the least. What do they need feedback for? Either the book is edited and polished or it's not. If it's not, then go and fix it. Before publishing! It worries me that amateurs, who can't even be bothered to use Google to find writers' sites and learn the craft before they even think of publishing, seem to take it as a given that readers are their guinea pigs. When have readers become beta readers by default?
I really don't need to take a look when it's a first time author, 99% of the cases are in dire need of an edit.
And it's a brave move to ask me, the one who initially started that thread stating that I'm not impressed with self-published books in general, what I think of their novel, because the answer will most possibly hurt. I don't have respect for people who don't work hard and gain skills before publishing. I'm very sorry if that sounds arrogant, but even the most talented person needs some practice. And after my deleting marathon, I'm not really keen on reading more dross. Thank you very much. Plus, I certainly don't have the time to read opening after opening, telling those hopeful souls the bad news. Most of them won't even go and hire an editor, so it's lost energy, or my sanity. Maybe even both in the worst case scenario.

The army of beggars

It seems that the most recent development among self-published authors is to share that ridiculous advice, suggestion, or you could even call it passive plea 'how to support your favourite author'. It suggests that you should buy books (really?), tell your friends (ah?) and leave a review (nope, I'm out!).
To me it feels like the main reason behind that advice is gathering reviews praise. There's almost nothing self-published authors value more than positive reviews and here's where the trouble begins: first, it was the review-exchange, which they quickly learned wasn't the best idea, then there was the bribing of top reviewers; didn't work either, and now it goes a step further: advising educating readers.

Here's the most recent merry-go-round: Click the picture to enlarge.

I'm a reader, too, and I don't want to see a plea or worse: a reminder to leave a review if I liked the book I just finished. What if I didn't like the book and have only one desire: to walk away? What if I feel insecure about giving my opinion? What if I can't be bothered? I bought the book, I read it and that's all you can expect from me. Sorry. What I do after that is my choice, my decision and not yours. I think everyone would agree with me that sharing a book that has touched me, is almost common sense or even human nature. If I have friends who read, I'll recommend it. And, of course, I'll look for another book by that particular author.
The key element here is that a book must really stir something in me, good or bad, before I talk about it. And I would think that applies to most readers. Why recommend a mediocre or terrible book? The latter perhaps for a laugh, but if something doesn't convince me, I move on and forget.

I see people complaining about having plenty of downloads when their books are free, but that nobody leaves a review. It's all over several fora, Facebook, blogs, and Twitter. Some moans I've seen even sounded like demands: I give you a free book, something I've worked on for years, now you have to review praise!
A reader doesn't owe you anything. If you give your book away, it's your choice. A choice you made for marketing purposes. Being snappy because readers grab the opportunity with both hands is wrong.
Free means free and that means it doesn't come with conditions, unless you have an agreement with a reviewer, which is an entirely different case. Expecting something in return is pretty cheeky if you ask me.
People stack up their e-readers, collect freebies; they don't necessarily read the books straight away, or maybe they do and quickly delete it and move on. If they dare to give an honest opinion and bravely leave a negative review, they get shot down and attacked by the author's friends, in some cases even by the author. Because the call for reviews is secretly a call for praise.

Reality check: self-publishing is not a walk in the park.

Speaking of self-publishing: as you know, my experience with self-published books has been catastrophic, so I don't blame any reader who tries and deletes, walking away in silence. I honestly think that many authors would be devastated if they knew what their readers really think. Many authors seem to believe that their offerings are exactly what readers have been waiting for, brainwashed by the success of Hocking, Locke and E.L. James, but those success stories are rare.
Don't get me wrong, I'm in this, too, you know? I had over 4k downloads during my trial with the KPD Select programme, and I didn't get any reviews. Probably for the same reasons: I didn't touch the readers, those of them who read the books. Taste is subjective and if it didn't impress them enough to recommend it to their friends, then there's nothing I can do other than continue to write. I've had people tell me in person, via e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, and even the Amazon forum that they loved my books, but they didn't leave a review. Did I ask them straight away to do it? No. It's their choice. I said thank you so much and grinned like an idiot for most of the day.
Imagine you walk into a book shop, and at the till you are told to leave feedback, buy another book by the author if you liked it and please share your opinions. You'd probably be pretty gobsmacked, wouldn't you?

Guilt-tripping a reader into a review, recommending your book or else insults a person's intelligence. Leave the reader be; stop blaming everyone around you when your book isn't a success. Start looking at your writing.

10 things I hate about Indies

These are a few observations I've made over time, some are more recent than others. As usual, I use the universal term Indie authors, but there are plenty of wonderful people -- the exceptions to the rule -- who I converse, discuss, exchange and am friends with. Those of you, I cherish.

#  1 Indies don't care about me, they only want my 'vote'.
I have a few new followers daily. Mostly writers. As soon as they realise I don't follow back, they'll unfollow me quickly. Many still haven't grasped that other writers/authors are not their target audience. Networking with plenty of authors will not result in the sales they hope for. It may improve your knowledge and writing, though, so use networking for that.

#  2 Indies seem to have forgotten how to read.
Pose a question and you can be sure to get a reply that won't answer your question. Totally unrelated and from their point of view, making it about their books and their writing, self-absorbed and unnecessary. Particularly on fora where authors mingle.
 
#  3 Indies are worse than every sales person I've ever met.
No matter where you go: Twitter, Facebook, writer fora, you always have those who would blatantly disrespect other people's discussions and dumb a link to their book smack bang in the middle of it. Or they will ask you to retweet their books, like their Facebook page, take a look and follow their blogs, ask for comments, share or whatnot. No! Go away!

#  4 Indies can't take criticism.
Despite negative comments on their books from real readers that the characters and story line are flat, they only cherish the positive comments, disregarding any negative comment. Or worse: they will talk back.

#  5 Indies think readers are stupid.
Even if that may be the case for a few, the majority of readers is rather switched on. So they will spot that the author had family, friends and their dog to write reviews or recommend their books on the forum. Writing fake reviews, bribing independent reviewers backfires to those who go about the business with honesty.

#  6 Indies are the biggest arse-kissers I've ever come across.
I can't even tell you how many times I've heard 'I loved your book, can't wait for the sequel to come out'. They'll be all over you with only one aim: to get you to buy their books and review it. In most cases you will never hear from them again. It all a lot of hot air.
 
#  7 Indies constantly refer to rubbish traditionally published books with errors in it.
Yes, there's a lot of rubbish, but it's normally well-edited rubbish with a minimum on errors and typos and often just a matter of taste. Since I'm deleting so many Indie books due to terrible character and story building, as well as wrongly used dialogue attributes, I'm not convinced that both compare. I have read only a few which compared to the quality standard of traditionally published books, yet, they were still a far cry from the book that made me sit up and say: better than any traditionally published book I've ever read.

#  8 Indies claim that we have to support each other.
Er, no. I don't have to. If I want to support someone, I'll do that. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for helping if someone gets stuck with their writing, to cast an eye over it and help to clear the blockage. I'll even shout it from the roof tops if I find a book worth recommending, but I won't do that just because 'We Indies have to stick together.' Which leads me to number nine.

#  9  Indies say we are not competitors.
We are not? Interesting how quickly the perception changes if one has a bit more success than the other. There's so much bullying and bitching going on behind the scenes, it makes me sick. Writers love to help each other, but as soon as they're published, they are competitors. Like it or not, it's a fact.

# 10 Indies think they are the next big thing.
Most of us are not. Not even close. So you are an author, fine, but to be the next big thing, you need sales and without sales you're just an unsuccessful author. 10k free downloads doesn't count. Better quit the 'bestselling author' in your bio. I've not heard of you, and I assume, nor has the world, so you are most likely not a bestselling author.

Indies, sometimes I just want to slap them!

Some people's actions leave me speechless. For a few seconds, then, I'll blow off. Seriously, only Indies can pull such stunts as I'll describe in the following.

A few days ago, a newly published author sent me a message on Twitter, asking if I'd be interested to promote his book on my blog via guest post or an interview.
To be honest, I was stunned. I don't know this person, I can't even remember to have ever conversed with him, neither do I remember when or why I followed him back. It was probably back in the earlier days, when I started my Twitter account and connected with everyone basically.I didn't know better back then. You probably guessed it, I unfollowed immediately. I mean, I know that we need to get word out there and promote like there's no tomorrow, but, seriously? Just 'attacking' random people you are connected with is definitely a sure way of annoying people. There are plenty of bloggers who promote Indies, who do interviews and have regular guest blogs. I don't! If you, Indie author, would have taken the time to look at my blog, you would know that! So why, Indie author, do you feel the need to ask me? What were you on that day?
Another example: there's a guy (author) on the Amazon forum, who regularly insulted people. When I told him that you shouldn't call people names, I ended up being insulted, too. Not only by him, but by his friend as well. (Apparently, I'm stupid.) So I told him I'm not going to converse with him any longer, which he agreed to. He recently popped on one of my threads where we had a discussion about the KPD-Select programme and its results and dumped a link to his book informing us that the updated version is now available. How obnoxious can a person be, I wonder. Maybe he wanted to annoy me -- in which he succeeded -- but it felt more like an attempt to get some downloads for his book.
That kind of desperation makes me want to slap them. Hard.
I've only ever 'promoted' one event: a few people who came together for a special occasion and I knew whom I'm helping.

If I wanted to promote someone, I'd approach them myself. But, hey, guess what? I've got three of my own books to promote, you see? And I'm not even doing that anymore like I used to do. Why? Because it's all a bit for nothing. Though it's fun to do guest posts and interviews and I'm always happy to do them, it didn't do anything for my sales and my theory is that it's mostly Indie authors who set up Indie promotion sites, which then often will resolve in Indie authors being the audience. There is one person, whose mere mention of my love for 2nd person POV in a pod cast had triggered some sales: Morgen Bailey, a fearless blogger, who does daily interviews, guest blogs, pod casts and more. And she's an author, too. Take a look at her page, if you're a reader, for many suggestions, and if you're an Indie, for being a guest on her site. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against them, I'm an Indie myself, but I want readers. Those who are not in the massive gum-like Indies bubble.
So, for that, I must write a book that's going to be read by readers and therefore I don't have time to promote my, let alone, other people's books.

And another Indie rant

Today, I did something, I shouldn't have done: I contacted an Indie author and informed her that her novel contains errors in dialogue punctuation, which disturbs my reading experience. I was only 4% in and thought she might want to know, since she praised her editor's precision skills and the polished book. Well, I found about twelve (more or less) errors in the opening, one already in the prologue.
Her writing was good, but I'm very particular with dialogue attributes. I contemplated for a while if I should get in touch with her or not. I did, anonymously, because I know many can't take this sort of criticism and will shoot back. She replied to my comment on her blog and gave me her e-mail address, asking me to point out where the errors are. I e-mailed her, saying that I was trying to help, as it would be a shame if someone would vote her writing down because of the errors.

Her response irritated me even more than the actual errors. First she said that grammar check didn't pick up on the upper case in the dialogue tags, and then she said something that made me furious: that most readers won't know or be bothered.
And a minute later, she asked for my titles. Here we go, I thought. I didn't even write a review, which I could've done, and then leave it open for others to read.
A reason I don't review anymore is exactly such a response. Doesn't matter what state my books are in, though I certainly hope they're almost perfect now, pointing out that my book might contain errors won't eliminate hers, right? Those, who have told me about my errors, know that I was most grateful for pointing them out and I went through several stages of correcting.
To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised, if she now searches for my books, just to pick out some errors.
Yeah, Indies, and you wonder why readers don't review your books anymore or silently delete them from their Kindles, not even considering giving your other books a go.

Who do you call talented?

Those of you who know me also know that I don't hold back when I get an overdose of something that annoys me. As the title already hints: it's the Indies again. I'm an Indie author myself and I do get invites (perhaps not anymore after today) to do guest posts and interviews, I am busy networking on social media sites and I even connect people if I see fit.

It's all good and wonderful to help people, it's all perfectly fine to do blog tours and get your name out there, but what I find increasingly sickening is the mutual appreciation society. If you look on Indie blogs you see 'Today I'm talking to the incredibly talented Indie author xyz'. That, to be honest, makes me feel incredibly. Sick that is.

I see that everywhere when Indies talk to each other, one says, your success is well deserved and the answer will be: so is yours, you're so talented. But how many of those talented people have read the other talented's work, be it a longer excerpt or a full novel? I would guess not even 50%. Isn't that like going past a restaurant, looking at the menu and then saying, the food is really good in here?

For an interview you don't necessarily read the work, all you need is a rough overview about what the person is doing. That's all okay, but calling someone talented just because the person happens to be in the same boat is just wrong. What do you do if you then read the author's book and find he or she's not so talented?

I often feel like Indies think they need to blow up smoke each other's arses just to maintain the friendly tone, but isn't it enough to wish each other well?

Yes, I have a few people I can confidently recommend to someone, because I find their writing engaging, their stories interesting and them in general talented. Those will know it because I have told them several times. But you will not see me telling an author he's talented when I didn't read at least enough to form an opinion.

Look around on Twitter, those who follow each other to compliment each other; it's just a big love-you-writing fest. Sorry, just because you love my writing, doesn't mean I will love yours, too.

Okay, rant over. 

Happy weekend, everyone :-)

2600 and counting

I've always said I won't give my books away for free, unless they are for reviewers or some hand-picked people I want to give the books to.
Now I have been hearing good things about the Amazon KPD select programme -- something to get your books out there, your face and your writing known. Let me explain in short: you are exclusive with Amazon for 90 days in which you are  not allowed to sell e-copies of the enrolled book elsewhere. During that time you are allowed (you don't have to) give away your book for free for five days. You can do them all in one go or split them.
I've enrolled Excuse me, where is the exit? and also my new book Candlelight Sinner, which I both unpublished and removed from Smashwords since I never really made money there. Amazon is my main sales outlet.
Now my sales weren't too bad, but not very good either. Roughly about 150 in the past months, slowly going up again, but that's not enough to rectify the hard work I put into writing and promoting them.
With the promotion -- both books are free over the weekend -- I had over 2700 downloads since yesterday. To be honest I'm still in shock about the vast amount of downloads. It seems that my short stories do really well in the humour genre (position 3 as I type), yes even in the overall free charts (position 19). Candlelight Sinner has taken off on Amazon.com.
I wonder if that mirrors the 'buying' patterns of readers. I will admit that downloading freebies is addictive as I have downloaded about 20 books myself in the past two days. I only downloaded what I would buy in a shop, based on the pitch and I know I will give all of them a try, hopefully finding one or the other gem.

But with books on promotion for free on a daily basis, I'm a little worried that readers might rather download free books than paying for them, especially if they are by new Indie authors.
Many authors who have enrolled their books have reported an improvement on sales and it better when I think of the amounts of books given away. I expected only a couple of hundred downloads, but the actual figures make this one author dizzy. By the way, since starting this post about fifteen minutes ago, I had another 100 downloads. If only that would happen every day, with readers paying for the books. :-)