Tag: promotion

Monday Blog: Valentine Month

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val

Welcome to the first Monday Blog of February! I have plenty of good news for you. This month is Valentine Month, and not just because of the holiday. I’m celebrating the five books in the Valentine series. There’s a give-away going on this week: Kindle versions of Valentine and Valentine 2: The Patron Saint, are FREE!!! Between February 5 and February 9, you can get both eBooks for free, if you have a Kindle or the Kindle App. I’m using this promotion to introduce Valentine to a new audience. If you decide to download either book, and you like what you read, please take a moment to post a review!

 

Dee Seybrook Cover Art

 

Dee Seybrook: Rock N’ Roll Diva

Yes, I finally finished my twentieth book! Dee Seybrook is currently available on Amazon in the form of a paperback. I will release the eBook in a month or so. The story follows Dee’s rediscovery of punk rock while Aidan and the band are out on their first national tour. Consider this book to be a teaser until Righteous is ready.

 

Mommy and Siblings

 

A Rose Left Behind

My mother and fellow author, June E. Parris, has just completed her second book! A Rose Left Behind is the story of a special paranormal secret one family discovers within the walls of their home. It should be available for sale by the end of February.

Until next week, folks…

Monday Blog: 5 Things Every Self-Published Author Needs

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Books2018
20 of the Woolaston Entertainment books, by June Parris and myself

 

Hello, everyone. Here we are: the final Monday Blog for January. This week’s topic: things I think every self-published author should have. No, I’m not naming random things, here. These are things that have been a great help to me, and I wanted to share them with my fellow writers.

  1. A Website: Good Lord, if you don’t have a website, what are you doing? Sure, you may not know much about building a website, but you can always enlist the skills of others to do this for you. I created my site through Go Daddy, on my own. Plus, Go Daddy offers tech support, and has a range of templates to choose from. Like I always say, if I can do it, anyone Your website should contain info about your books, where they can be purchased, and how readers can get in contact with you. There are plenty of online sources with tips on how to set up your website, and you’re more than welcome to use mine as an example. If you decide to use Go Daddy, I suggest taking advantage of their SEO option (search engine optimization). 
  1. A Catalogue: The best way for you to get your name out there, is by giving your readers a list of books to choose from. Show your readers your true writing ability. This can be a single series of books, or several individual books. I have 4 series, and 1 individual book (which I will most likely write a sequel to). In all, I have published 19 books. Search for Nicole Woolaston on Amazon or Goodreads and take a look.
  1. Facebook Page: Yes, many of us use Snap Chat, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, LinkedIn, etc. I’m on all of that crap, and yes, it’s tiring. But Facebook is where it’s at. Why? Two words: Ad Space. Facebook is a wonderful (and free) way to connect with a large audience. Friends can like your posts and share them, then other people will share them, and so on. As for ad space, while it may not be free, it is DIRT CHEAP. Example: I made Our Lady of Righteous Rage: Extended and Uncensored free for Kindle for 3 days. I ran an ad on Facebook (spending only $3; I could have spent a little more and reached more people). Six people downloaded my book. Over 100 saw the ad, 12 people clicked on it. Either way, I gained 6 new readers and exposure for my book.
  1. PayPal: I’m recommending this for 3 reasons. 1) It’s a safe and effective way to collect payment from book sales, should you choose to sell them on your website. 2) You can use PayPal to pay for ad space on Facebook. 3) You can use PayPal to pay for extras for your website, if you happen to use Go Daddy.
  1. Fiverr: I’ll give you a minute to let this last one marinate. Ready? Good. If you need someone to help you build your website, create an effective Facebook ad, edit your book, design a cover, etc, there are plenty of people on Fiverr who can do those things for you, starting at $5. Also, it’s a great way to earn funds to support your Facebook ads and pay for your website. I write book reviews via Fiverr, starting at $5 per review, and the money I’ve earned since August 2017 has paid for all of my Facebook ad space, and my website. Think about it.

 

Keep a few things in mind:

Everything will not be free. Many things will be, but not everything.

Sometimes, you will need to spend money in order to make money. I’m not suggesting you break the bank, but $3-$10 for some ad space, or $5 for a book review to boost readership and sales, isn’t asking a lot.

You have to be willing to try. Fear held me back for a long time, until I let go of my fear, and jumped. You have to be willing to take risks.

Decide if you just want to write books, or if you actually want to sell them. If you just want to get your name in print, then kudos! But, if you want to sell some books, you’re going to have to put some work in, beyond typing a manuscript.

See you next week…

Monday Blog: Corrections

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Author Page
My Amazon Author Page

 

If you’ve ever self-published a book via Amazon’s Create Space, or KDP, chances are, you have an Amazon Author Page. I have one, and it’s pretty nice. However, if you have one, it doesn’t hurt to check it out once and a while. Make sure all of the information on your page is correct and up to date. I recently checked mine, and I received a bit of a shock. Some of my books had been incorrectly linked together, and the summary for one book was listed under another book. This can really hurt you as an author, in terms of sales. Readers may choose your book based on the wrong information, or not choose your book at all. I was about to run a promotion for one of my books when I noticed the errors. Thankfully, I made some corrections through KDP for the eBooks, and I notified Amazon about the other mistakes. Within 72 hours, everything was fixed.

This past weekend, if you followed me on Twitter, Instagram or checked the Woolaston Entertainment FB page, you may have seen Our Lady of Righteous Rage: Extended and Uncensored was available for free. This campaign ran for three days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). My next promotion will take place in February, for Valentine and Valentine 2: The Patron Saint.

Until next week!

eBooks!!!!

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I’m still learning to navigate that tricky thing known as Amazon’s KDP. It took several tries to upload two of my titles in order to convert them into eBooks, but I finally managed to get it done. The original covers wouldn’t upload, but that’s okay too; I simply created new ones. So as of today, 18 of my 19 books are available in paperback AND eBook form. Here are some of the most recent editions:

Fortune’s Wing: Flies Again: https://www.amazon.com/Fortunes-Wing-Flies-Nicole-Woolaston-ebook/dp/B078TNTLTG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1515597447&sr=8-1&keywords=fortune%27s+wing+flies+again

Her Name is Lola Vencent: https://www.amazon.com/Her-Name-Lola-Vencent-Valentine-ebook/dp/B078TPCXCZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597526&sr=1-1&keywords=her+name+is+lola+vencent

Jo Fuentes: The Black Queen: https://www.amazon.com/Jo-Fuentes-Black-Queen-Valentine-ebook/dp/B078TNHBRF/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597565&sr=1-1&keywords=jo+fuentes+the+black+queen

Valentine 4: Past and Present: https://www.amazon.com/Valentine-4-Present-Nicole-Woolaston-ebook/dp/B078TQ7YG3/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597588&sr=1-1&keywords=valentine+4+past+and+present

Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold: https://www.amazon.com/Valentine-5-Queens-Nicole-Woolaston-ebook/dp/B078TQZGYQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597620&sr=1-1&keywords=valentine+5+the+queens+fold

Novocaine: https://www.amazon.com/Novocaine-Lady-Righteous-Rage-Book-ebook/dp/B078WWHLWW/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597639&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=novocaine+nicoe+woolaston

Another Shot of Novocaine: https://www.amazon.com/Another-Shot-Novocaine-Lady-Righteous-ebook/dp/B078WWRQKH/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1515597639&sr=1-2-fkmr0&keywords=novocaine+nicoe+woolaston

 

I’m going to release the eBook version of The Witch of Fulton Lane within the next month or so. You can also expect special promotions on my eBooks, which will happen throughout the year. 

Monday Blog: Wrapping Up 2017

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Happy Holidays, everyone! Welcome to the final blog post for 2017! I hope everyone enjoys their holiday. With 2017 coming to a close, it’s time to look ahead to 2018. But first, what happened to W.E. in 2017? I published more books this year than ever before. I’m having a comic published in my high school’s newspaper,  The Bear Facts (from Bethel High in Virginia). I created a brand new story, The Witch of Fulton Lane. And, I’ve managed to use my writing to fund this website. All in all, I’d say 2017 was a great year for W.E.

 

Jon and Olivia Homecoming2.2
Jon and Olivia comic

 

The year 2018 is right around the corner. When January hits, I’m going into “beast mode”. My goal is to place more W.E. books in the hands of more readers, and start picking up some online reviews. I have plans to start a book club, which would start out with W.E. books, but would eventually expand. Our Lady of Righteous Rage is coming back, along with a side story, Dee Seybrook: Rock n’ Roll Diva.  I’d also like to dive deeper into the life of Valentine’s Jo Fuentes, by giving her another stand-alone book. Plus, merchandise! Next year, there will be some merchandise (other than the books) available on woolastonentertainment.com.  Calendars, posters, etc.

OLORR album cover

 

2017 was great, but I know 2018 will be even better. I’ll see you on the other side!

www.woolastonentertainment.com

Expand Your Readership With The Public Library!

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SELF-e_Logo_Web

 

I wanted to share some info with my fellow indie authors. Self-e, is a terrific program, which helps authors connect with new readers, by making their books available through the public library. I have had success with this system, and two of my titles are currently available as ebooks through the Queens Public Library, in New York. So, if you’re an indie author, and you have published an ebook, you may want to consider using this program. Here is a direct link to their website: https://selfe.librariescreate.com/self-e/

FYI: you will need to fill out a short form, which includes agreeing to their terms and conditions, entering your name, email, state and name of your local library, and uploading a copy of your ebook (ex, PDF), and info about the book (ISBN, etc). Best of luck to everyone!

Monday Blog: Back-to-School!

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Bethel

 

 

Hello everyone! Happy Labor Day! September is here! Today is Labor Day, and tomorrow, students across the country will be headed back to school. So, this month’s theme will be school-related. I have some exciting news for you, so let’s get to it.

 

Donations

This month, I will donate copies of W.E. books to libraries both in the US and abroad. I was delighted to learn of a community library in Bream, in the UK. I discovered it while searching for libraries in Woolaston, UK (since it is my last name, the name of my company…). I’m also donating to Open Books, an organization which works to support literacy. If you would like to learn more about them, here is a link to their website: http://www.open-books.org/give/donate-books/

If you belong to or know of a library in need of fiction books, please contact me, via the Contact Page on woolastonentertainment.com, and let me know. I still have copies of the first editions of Fortune’s Wing and Valentine available.

 

Bethel High School

I’m happy to announce, I’m currently working on a project for my old high school, Bethel High, in Hampton Virginia! I’m drawing a set of four comics, which will appear in their newspaper, “The Bear Facts”, and a W.E. ad will be placed in their literary art magazine, “Polaris”. When I was a student at Bethel (thousands of years ago) I worked on the “Polaris” staff, and had my work published in the magazine during my Sophomore, Junior and Senior years. I really loved working on it, and I enjoyed my time at Bethel. I’m looking forward to having one of my creations published with Bethel once again.

 

Polaris

Speaking of Polaris… I mentioned in the paragraph above, I’m having an ad for W.E. placed in Polaris magazine. If you’re an author, or if you own a business and would like to place an ad in Polaris, please reach out to me via the Contact Page on woolastonentertainment.com. I can put you in touch with the teacher who is overseeing the publication. Keep in mind, this magazine is available in Hampton, Virginia. However, this is a great opportunity for writers to gain some exposure for their books; especially if you write for young adults. To give you an idea of the pricing for the ads, a quarter page is $60—that is the ad I’m using.  So, if you’re interested, please reach out to me. Remember, the internet is national.

 

Until next week…

Aidan is not to be messed with…

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You tell David,” I began, “If he does anything to hurt Amy, I will rain down on him like a fucking biblical plague.

Yeah, you don’t want to mess with Aidan from Our Lady of Righteous Rage. I’ve had a few readers tell me he’s their favorite character from the “Our Lady” series, and it’s no wonder. He’s funny, sarcastic, and very protective of the people he cares about. Get to know Aidan and the rest of the “Our Lady” cast in “Rowdy”, the third book in the series, coming at the end of October!

 

 

 

http://www.woolastonentertainment.com

Tips For Promoting Your Book

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As I may have mentioned in past blog entries, I’m a fan of Writer’s Digest Magazine.  Each issue contains helpful information for professional writers and amateurs alike.  The current issue contains great information on how to promote your book, especially if you are self-published, like me.  Here are some strategies I have learned from the article, “Success Stories in Self Promotion”, located on page 26:

 

1. Kindle, Kindle, Kindle! Kindle is a wonderful way to publish your book, especially if you’re on a tight budget. Why? Simple: there is NO COST to publish with Kindle! You can enroll your book into Amazon’s KDP Select, where subscribers can check it out for free.  Other readers can still pay to download a copy of your book.  However, free samples will attract new readers.

 

2. Goodreads Giveaways.  If you are an author, you really need to become a Goodreads Author.  Creating an Author Page is very simple, and once you get started, you can host a giveaway.  I held my first giveaway just last month for “Valentine”, for 10 books.  While I only anticipated 100-150 entries, I received 511 entries! What does this mean? While I’m only giving away 10 copies, 511 people became interested in “Valentine”.  10 new people will receive books, 10 new people will read “Valentine“, and hopefully, provide me with some feedback.  If you’re on Facebook, you can invite your friends to join you on Goodreads, where they can friend you and become your “fans”.

 

3. Blogging. Do you have a website? Hopefully, you answered “yes” to that question.  Now, do you have a blog? If you said yes, good for you.  If you said no, well, start one! Blogging is not complicated (look if I can do it, anyone can).  My suggestion: don’t make every blog you post about your book.  Mix it up! Blog about your hobbies, or your job, or your kids, etc.  If all I did was shove my books in your face in every blog, it would be pretty boring.  Also, blog about the things that help you with your writing; things that have worked for you as well as the things that didn’t work. 

 

4. Social Media: Like it or not, as a writer, you can not afford to ignore social media.  Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr…I’m on all of them.  Yes, keeping up with so many pages can be a pain sometimes (I have neglected my Tumblr page, but I’m working on it), but it’s a must.  Create a Facebook page for your book, where you can post links to where it can be purchased,  Also, you can post quotes from the book itself.  Tweet lines from the book on Twitter.  And if you don’t have a website….wait for it….you can create one on WordPress FOR FREE.  Yes, FREE! Again, super easy to do. 

 Of course you can find these tips and more in Writer’s Digest Magazine