The Self-Publisher’s Dashboard of Gratitude

aurora-borealis-69221_960_720Ode to the Reader

Twas the night before I uploaded to KDP and all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring as my hand hovered over my mouse.
My masterpiece had been edited and formatted with care,
While visions of soaring up Amazon’s rankings floated through the air.

Okay, I’ll stop now.

You know that feeling you get when you check your dashboard and you’ve sold another book, or a reader has borrowed your book through Kindle Unlimited? You know what I’m talking about. It’s that little jolt you receive. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling thousands of books a month or a handful, there’s still some kind of a charge. I can attest to this because I’ve been in both camps. I’ve had months where I’ve sold tens of thousands of books and I’ve had months where the sales barely trickled in. Yes, ‘tis a fickle vocation we find ourselves in, isn’t it. As the jolly season approaches, I find myself in a contemplative mood, and I was wondering – what is that little burst of energy we feel when the numbers increase on our screen? What does it really mean? And, what should we do about it? Continue reading “The Self-Publisher’s Dashboard of Gratitude”

Goodreads Widget for Your Website

I just got a new website. It’s pretty, but it’s kind of plain. So I’ve been looking for some things to add to it. A Goodreads widget seemed like just the thing – and it was so easy to do that I thought I’d show you how.

1. Go to Goodreads and click the Home tab. You should now see a box at the top of the right-hand column labeled Author Dashboard. If you don’t, then chances are that you’ve never claimed your Goodreads author profile. Go here to find out how do that.

All signed up for the author program and back at your home page? Excellent. Now click the words, “Visit your dashboard.” Continue reading “Goodreads Widget for Your Website”