Reviews that is, for my book, The View from Here. My first poetry book has 22, while my second poetry book is lagging at 4.
Some authors say that the magic number of Amazon reviews is 50. That’s when the magical algorithm kicks in. True or false? Or is it just one of many urban myths?
I don’t know. I’d like to know. How can I find out? Oh yeah, Google it and find 100 differing opinions, or I could email Amazon and get nowhere.
Or, I could just get 13 more reviews (hint, hint).
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
I was born in the small town of Beira on the East Coast of Mozambique, a place that holds a special place in my heart. It’s home to the magnificent Farol do Macuti, a lighthouse that has guided countless ships to safety over the years. One of my fondest memories is the excitement my dad brought home with a new toy – the first Polaroid camera!
I still remember the anticipation as we waited for the picture to develop on the square paper. To make the image last, we had to spread the fixer over the picture, which had a distinct smell that remains etched in my mind from childhood. It was an unnatural sharp, chemical and fruity sweet odor, but to us, it meant preserving memories that would last a lifetime.
But my childhood memories were not limited to photography. It was also with my dad that I experienced my first solar eclipse, an unforgettable sight that left me in awe of the natural world. Looking back, those memories of my childhood in Mozambique still fill me with a sense of wonder and appreciation for the beauty of life.
Growing up in Africa was an adventure in itself. I loved nothing more than exploring the vast landscape aroundme, always eager to discover new and exciting things. But with that excitement came a hint of danger. Some places and animals I encountered were quite hazardous, adding an extra layer of thrill to my explorations.
Today, I still hold a deep appreciation for the wonders of nature and the joy of exploration, and have added meditation and QiGong to my life as a way to continue that sense of wonder and connection to the world around me.
“Beehive Secrets : Magical Meadows” – a heartwarming story of friendship and the power of kindness.
Kaida Brightscales, a friendly dragon, loves exploring the meadow near her cave. One day, she meets Bella the Bee, who is feeling sick and needs help. With the help of a hardworking ant and a knowledgeable butterfly, Kaida sets out on a mission to cure Bella and her friends of their mysterious sickness. Along the way, Kaida learns about the importance of pollination and the hard work of bees.
This delightful book for children ages 3 to 6 is filled with colourful illustrations and a captivating story that teaches important lessons about empathy, teamwork, and perseverance. Can Kaida and her friends find a cure for the bees’ mysterious sickness? It is perfect for fans of other children’s books like “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” and “The Giving Tree.”
Join Kaida and Bella on their buzzing adventures as they explore the meadow and discover the secrets of the beehive. With its heartwarming message and lovable characters, “The Buzzing Adventures of Kaida and Bella” is a must-read for young readers.
Pick up a copy today and unlock the magic of friendship and the wonder of the natural world!
I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?
Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.
Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.
Here are this week’s promos to check out:
Reads From StoryOrigin and BookFunnel
StoryOrigin and BookFunnel allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!
No new promos this week.
Free Books
Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book (poetry or science fiction or both): Leon’s Newsletter
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
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Oh, pick me!
C’mon, space stuff!
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Not weird, but when I looked at my book page I saw that it cracked the top 50 in science fiction books.
It’s a good day.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it. Maybe you will find a new favorite.
1993. Where was I? Ahh, university. Getting my music degree. Being part of the weird ones on campus who blast Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Carl Orff’s Carima Burana, and yeah, bands like Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and this one:
I am so surprised that I had never heard this cover until recently, seeing that I think Dolly is one of the gems of country music and backed in this song by another of my favorites, Nickel Creek.
Which one is better? No contest.
Both.
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
The news that has been rippling through the indie author community about Amazon’s decision to raise the printing costs, eating away at the royalties. I understand that with inflation, costs for everything are going up, so I’m not surprised. C’mon, poor Amazon needs to make money, right?
I don’t sell many physical copies of my books; most of my sales are for the Kindle version, followed my Kindle Unlimited reads. I order author copies to give away to friends and family, and to have a copy for myself.
I price my paperbacks pretty low. I know that most people keep a tight reign on spending, and physical books are a somewhat luxury item. I looked at what other authors charge from indie authors to bigger names, and it was anywhere from $6.99 to $15.99 for a novella length book.
I have always balked at the prices for print books (in Canada, they are a few dollars higher compared to the US price), so I struggled with what I should sell my books for, a comparable book is To be Taught if Fortunate by Becky Chambers, which goes for $13.99. Keeping in mind I am a new author, I shouldn’t expect readers to pay that much for one of my books, right?
Or should I? It is a luxury item, and if readers can afford it they will buy at a higher price.
One marketing site suggests adding $7 -$10 to the eBook price, which would make any of my paperbacks around $10. Ten dollars? That’s not unreasonable, and if I only sell a few, it makes a decent royalty.
So after much debate, I am going to raise my print prices, not due to Amazon doing so, but to reflect the value my creation has to me. Before that happens, though, I do want to purchase a complete set of my finally finished science fiction trilogy for my own book shelf, and because I can, I’ll be dropping the price for the next month to $5.99, which only makes me a few cents royalty.
It will take a few days for the price to change on Amazon, so I’ll keep you updated.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
For what? Until my book, The View from Here is no longer available in Amazon’s Prime Reading catalogue. I’m hoping it will be picked up for another term, but I don’t know how likely that is. Its catapulted the book into the high 100s in the Science Fiction category, and sales for the next two books have been trickling in.
But that’s not really a free book, is it? No. Like Kindle Unlimited, you pay for the privilege, but if you don’t use it, it’s like throwing money away. True.
I also created a new book page using the StoryOrigin site, so that all of my books and newsletter sign-up (and get a free book!) are on a nice, clean, uncluttered site.
I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?
Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.
Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.
Here are this week’s promos to check out:
Reads From StoryOrigin and BookFunnel
StoryOrigin and BookFunnel allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
I came across a Facebook post asking for recommendations for fantasy/sci-fi series. I recognized the book of an author I follow on Twitter and occasionally exchange retweets of each other’s posts. I took a screenshot and sent it to him, and he replied that it made his day.
I follow many authors and readers on various social media accounts, and I am waiting for the day that one of my books shows up in a post. With so many books out there, it’s a long shot, but someday, maybe.
How are my books doing? I’m glad you asked. For a few months now, The View from Here has been in the Top 100 Science Fiction books on Amazon. Much of the credit is due to it being featured in Prime Reading (free for Prime members) and that will end at the end of this month, so it will probably drop in the rankings unless I put it on sale or heavily advertise it.
I don’t get royalties on Prime Reading ‘sales’, but I have seen sales of books 2 & 3 of the trilogy pick up. So, if you do have Prime reading, you have a couple of weeks to read The View from Here for free.
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it. Maybe you will find a new favorite.
Ruby Waters is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Of Métis and Slovak heritage, Waters grew up in Shelburne, Ontario. Her parents were in a country band together and introduced her to music at an early age. She began busking and performing in bars around the age of 13
Here is a bare bones version of the first song:
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Lines by Leon 