Welcome to the month of December! The last month of the year! Can you believe it?
Since it is December, I am going to be posting Christmas songs all month long. Here’s the first one. I did pick this one for a specific reason.
Published to YouTube by Christmas Channel on October 31, 2017.
On Thursday, I am going to be posting the first chapter of a Touches of Austen novelette called Frosted Windowpanes and every time I go to open that document, this song pops into my head because of frosted windowpanes line. 🙂
Frosted Windowpanes is one of the novelettes in this collection:
I am currently working on final edits for Mary: To Protect Her Heart because I have to have the final document uploaded to Amazon by Thursday, but after that is done, I will be doing final edits on this Nature’s Fury and Delights collection.
I wrote this book with a specific purpose. Even though it will be published, it’s a gift, first and foremost. I attempt to write a book to give to my mailing list each year. So far, I have succeeded three years in a row if you count this year. 🙂
I’ll mention this again on Thursday, but I’m not just giving the book to those who are currently on my mailing list, I am extending it to anyone who wishes to join that list before the end of December. I know not everyone is a mailing list sort of person. There are some who would rather purchase the book. (I know because that’s me. I’d rather buy. 🙂 Is it ok to admit that?)
For those interested in signing up to my mailing list, there is a link at the bottom of this post in the signature area where my Leenie B Books logo is.
In other news — one week from today, Mary: To Protect Her Heart will be live on Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited. I just put Henry: To Prove Himself Worthy, Charles: To Discover His Purpose, and His Beautiful Bea into Kindle Unlimited. I’m a bit excited and nervous to see how this Kindle Unlimited experience goes.
For those who don’t know, Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service provided by Amazon. A reader pays a certain amount of money per month and can then borrow and read books that are part of the program. I don’t know much more about how it works as a reader since I am not a member of the program.
For the author of the book, being in the KU program means that his or her content is exclusively distributed through Amazon. It can be purchased just as any other book can be with the author receiving a royalty (35% or 70% depending on pricing), but it can also be borrowed with the author receiving a fraction of a cent per page read.
One of the last numbers I saw for how much was being paid per page was something like $0.004. That means a reader must read at least 3 pages before an author earns a penny.
Let’s say my book is short and only 90 pages long (because that is an easy number to work with in calculating this). If I am earning approximately a penny for every three pages read, I would receive about 30 cents for a complete read of that 90-page book.
That same book if it were sold for say $2.99 (the lowest allowed price for a 70% royalty payout), the author would receive about $2 for that book. That’s a big difference, isn’t it? Kindle Unlimited works best for long books because they have lots of pages or for books that are read by tons of people (more people than would normally purchase a book).
Since I write books on the shorter side, I’m a bit nervous about how much money these books will make. (This is a business after all. A business based on a passion, but a business none-the-less.)
My hope in putting these books in KU is to attract more readers to a series of stories that are not Pride and Prejudice based and that do not star Darcy and Elizabeth. It’s just easier to take a chance on a book when you’re borrowing and not seeing the money go out when you click on the book to read. (You’re still paying for the book with your subscription, but it feels free.)
If this experiment goes well, then I might be putting other books in the program. Time and statistics will tell.
I do not have a story excerpt for you again this week. I have been spending more time editing than writing. I’d say maybe next week, but I won’t bank on it. This week will have lots of editing time as well.
Have a great week. I hope you join me on Thursday for that first chapter of Frosted Windowpanes.
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KOBO AMAZON NOOK IBOOKS MAILING LIST PATREON SOCIETY6
Dear Leenie, for a time I had kindle unlimited. Readers should know that the books you borrow disappear immediately when they finish the program. Personally I prefer to buy, since I found the program had not enough of the books that I like. Barbara
That’s a very good point. Just like the library, KU books must be returned. 🙂 I, too, prefer to buy because I like to reread at a later time.
I have been a part of KU for a couple years. I really enjoy it because I can borrow a book, like I would at the library and then if I love it and want to reread it, I can buy it and keep it forever. I treat KU like I do the library. Some books are horrible and I return them quickly. Others I savor and then buy outright. You can borrow 10 books at a time and keep them for as long as necessary. I have found that I will borrow a book that sounds vaguely appealing but if it stays on my “borrowed” list for too long, obviously I’m not truly that interested and I’ll replace it with one I am just anxious to read. All that said, it does introduce me to new authors that are must buys (and the opposite!). I really hope that it brings you more love Leenie! Yours will never make it on my KU list because as soon as you say “pre-order is up” I’m over there hitting the “buy” button. LOL Looking forward to the Nature’s Fury and Delights book. Love the little snacks I can grab while I eat my lunch at work. 🙂 Merry festive season my dear! Thanks for all you do!
That’s a great way to use KU! If I read faster or did not park on a book I liked to read and reread, I might consider using KU. However, I’m not a fast reader 🙂 and I do park on books and often read them three times (minimum) before moving on (because I am studying why I like them). 😀 I was just grumbling last night when there was nothing worth my time watching on TV how I would like a new short read. I ended up picking up a couple earlier today so I’ll be prepared next time I find myself in this situation. I like having short reads to read in small gaps of time (like a lunch break). If I start a long book, I am gone and will stay up too late or ignore things so I can finish reading. Or I get frustrated and a bit cranky about life interrupting my reading. 😀 (I swear I am an adult, but sometimes I just don’t want to adult when there are books to read.) I’m so happy you enjoy my stories so much. I appreciate how you are so supportive. It’s so encouraging. Thanks.