[CEMartin2]

This isn't a complaint- it's me stating the facts.

Put my new kid book up as a select last tuesday and today. 35 copies downloaded last tuesday, 7 today.

I had been reluctant to do a select only book in the past, but everyone has gone on and on about how wonderiffic it is... 700 downloads, 1500.downloads...

Yes, all I did was tweet the freebie... oh and get mentioned on a middle grade monday book site. Yes, maybe the book blurb blows chunks. Maybe the concept sucks eggs.

My point just is that for every "Select is the greates thing since sliced bread" thread in here, Odds are there's going to be sme abject failures. Just wanted to offer this counterpoint for anyone contemplating a Select run. It isn't all biscuits and gravy.

 

[Guest]

Yes, all I did was tweet the freebie... oh and get mentioned on a middle grade monday book site.

This is very likely a major part of the cause, and although I'm no expert on this, but how well do kids' ebooks sell in general?

 

[CEMartin2]

This is very likely a major part of the cause, and although I'm no expert on this, but how well do kids' ebooks sell in general?

I don't know how they sell, but apparently you can't even give them away.

 

[Guest]

Well, another thing is the cover and blurb seem likely to make some parents a little wary...

 

[Lisa Grace]

That is not a middle grade cover or blurb, no wonder...
and
Kids don't want to read about adults because they're...old!

 

[G_Bingley]

I did a promo where I gave away 65 copies. A month later I did a two day span where I gave away over 1250 and was #3 on the free erotica list. The difference? About 20 hours total spent researching which sites would let me submit my freebie (a lot won't take erotica) and then submitting it to them. I spent no money, but I did spend a lot of time. People that are getting thousands of downloads are doing just that - spending time and/or money to get the word out.

There are tons of free books on amazon. Tweeting about it isn't going to get the word out unless you have a ton of followers, all of whom see your tweets and download accordingly.

I understand your frustration, I too once thought, put a free day on it and watch the downloads pour in, but at this point there are so many free books out there and  a lot less sites that are automatically listing them without any work on the author's part that the only way to get attention is to promo it.

Step back and learn from this, maybe tweak some things as others have suggested, and then plan out your next promo. It makes a HUGE difference.

Good luck!

 

[CEMartin2]

That is not a middle grade cover or blurb, no wonder...
and
Kids don't want to read about adults because they're...old!

I was going on the assumption oft quoted here that I shouldn't underestimate kids, they're more mature, etc. It's an MG story.

But yeah, i get the adults r old thing- lord knows my kids tell me that all the time.

 

[Gertie Kindle]

To get the big numbers you have to notify every possible site that you can find. Not all sites will pick up your free run, so spread the word far and wide.

When I set my kids books free, the numbers are very low compared to my romance books.

 

[unkownwriter]

I must have missed all the "Select is the best thing since sliced bread" threads. I don't recall seeing one of those in at least two years.

As for ebooks for children doing well, what I've been reading from other authors is, not so much. Even with a very cheap Kindle out now, and the Kindle Fire commercials aside, I don't think many parents are giving electronics to kids.

But hey, at least you tried something. Now you have to take the information from that, and make plans for your next move.

 

[CEMartin2]

But hey, at least you tried something. Now you have to take the information from that, and make plans for your next move.

Exactly- and the whole project from start to end was only about 6 weeks.

 

[Saul Tanpepper]

If a book goes free in the woods and nobody is around, does it make a sound?

Putting a book into Select and offering it for free only ensures the possibility of downloads. There's still a ton of legwork that needs to be done by you. Folks need to know about your freebie. And, yes, I agree, the cover and blurb seem inconsistent with who you say your target audience is.

Don't despair. We all learn from our mistakes and experiences.

ETA: spelling, b/c my typing is atrocious this morning

 

[TexasGirl]

I must have missed all the "Select is the best thing since sliced bread" threads. I don't recall seeing one of those in at least two years.

Which is funny since Select is only 15 months old.

But JKonrath made $100K after a Select promo last month...there's a thread about it right now.

Anyway, I agree that MG books are harder. Schools using the AR system make it hard for kids to read books that don't give them AR points, plus parents are gatekeepers for many of the under-12 set.

I never put mine in there. I went perma free with a related short instead.

 

[Becca Mills]

Have you looked at the mega-thread on Select for guidance? KBers have been collecting data there on what works and what doesn't for more than a year, now. My impression is that doing isolated one-day giveaways is not the way to go.