Filed under: Amazon, Bruce Schneier, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction, Society, Writing stuff, YouTube | Tags: bruce schneier, direct publishing, free, game theory, jim downey, Kindle, Science Fiction, writing, www youtube
The other day I posted a video clip which nicely demonstrated one particular aspect of “game theory” and mentioned that it tied in to Communion of Dreams, though I wasn’t explicit how (nor did I explain what I found so interesting in the clip). Partly this was just due to my being preoccupied with the Kindle promotion that day, and partly it was because I like to leave people to figure things out for themselves.
Well, yesterday Bruce Schneier, whom I have mentioned here a number of times, posted an excellent explanation of what was so interesting about the clip (which has been making the rounds). Here’s the gist of the explanation:
Think about Nick’s strategy. He can’t trust that Abraham will split. More importantly, he can’t trust that Abraham will do what he said, because it’s in Abraham’s best interest to say one thing and do another. So he changes the game. He offers to split the pot outside the game — set up a meta-game of sorts — and removes Abraham’s incentive to lie.
Read the whole thing – it’s only a couple of paragraphs long, and nicely goes over exactly why this strategy works.
And that is also why I thought it had such a strong connection to Communion of Dreams: because in one very real sense, the whole book is about what happens when you unexpectedly ‘change the game’. The character of Chu Ling is the key in this regard, both literally and metaphorically, and that is why I had to have her as a game theory prodigy.
Just thought I’d share that.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, jim downey, Kickstarter, Kindle, literature, Science Fiction, writing
I mentioned yesterday “Stay tuned for further developments.” Well, what I’ve had kicking around in my head for a while was trying something . . .
That something is this: seeing if now that Communion of Dreams is starting to show some real traction with readers, perhaps I can attract a conventional publishing deal.
See, while the self-publishing thing seems to be working, it is taking a *lot* of time and energy (which I expected). And frankly, I would much rather put that time and energy into writing another couple of books. Because I have at least two more books in the Communion of Dreams ‘universe’ which I have been wanting to write for a while. Both of those are actually prequels – then there is also the matter of whether or not I want to attempt a sequel to Communion.
Were I to land a conventional publishing deal favorable enough, I could contract for another two or three books as part of the package, and turn over at least a substantial chunk of the time spent on promotional efforts and bookkeeping to the publisher. Chances are, they would even have some money for advertising, not to mention getting the book into conventional bookstores.
Oh, I know the reality of modern publishing well enough to realize that I would still have to do a lot of work to promote the book(s). But being able to hand most of that over to others would be worthwhile. And getting a sufficient amount of money in advance to take off some of the financial pressure of needing to earn money day in and day out would be a big help as well.
I’ve also considered doing something like a ‘Kickstarter’ project to get advertising money and something akin to an advance check, but I don’t think I’m to the point where that is a viable model. But going to a publisher with proven stats of 14,000 downloads in the first three months, as well as the very positive reviews, might be viable.
So I am giving this serious consideration. Thoughts welcomed.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, free, jim downey, Kindle, literature, Science Fiction
So, had this little promotion yesterday. Since the last one only generated about 1,800 downloads, I didn’t have really high expectations. Which was probably a good thing, in light of how yesterday went.
Good, because what actually happened just blew me out of the water: almost 6,000 downloads. 5,831 to be specific. That includes 42 in the UK and 4 in Germany.
That beats the previous high tally of 5,277. When combined with the other sales and whatnot this month, that makes a total of about 5,950 copies of Communion of Dreams distributed since April 1, and something in excess of 14,000 since the launch of the new edition. Not bad.
So, as I’ve said before, thanks everyone. Really – it makes a huge difference. Your downloads. Your purchases. Your reviews. Your ‘likes’. Your telling friends and forums about the book. Your helping push it to #1 in the Science Fiction category of the free Kindle store for most of yesterday, and something like #53 overall. It all has an impact.
And it is all very much appreciated.
Stay tuned for further developments.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Art, Arthur C. Clarke, Astronomy, Carl Sagan, ISS, Kindle, Marketing, movies, Music, NASA, Promotion, Publishing, Science, Science Fiction, Space, tech, Writing stuff, YouTube | Tags: 2001, art, aurora, direct publishing, free, jim downey, Kindle, music, NASA, predictions, science, Science Fiction, space, technology, video, writing, www youtube
From Chapter 3:
Wright Station was one of the older stations, and its age showed in its design. The basic large wheel structure, necessary when centrifugal force simulated gravity, was still evident, though significantly altered. The station hung there as they approached, motionless. The aero slowly coasted toward a large box well outside the sweep of the wheel, connected to the wheel by an extension of one of the major spokes. This was the dock, and it was outside the AG field.
Sound familiar?
Though I do think that were someone to film Communion of Dreams, this scene would more closely reflect this reality, taken from the ISS:
Still, it is fascinating that we have already so deeply connected music with space imagery. And that what is seen as a pale blue dot in the distance is, up close, a living world with a thin sheath of atmosphere – a wisp, glowing green.
Tomorrow is a promotional day: the Kindle edition of Communion of Dreams will be free for any and all to download. Share the news.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Aliens, Amazon, direct publishing, E.T., First Contact, free, jim downey, Kindle, Science Fiction, Titan
So, this coming Sunday is the 40th pre-anniversary (preversary?) of when the main character of Communion of Dreams first encounters the artifact. Here’s the relevant passage from Chapter 8:
The two of them stood there, on the edge of the excavation pit, looking down. Beams of light flooded the pit, but didn’t seem to really touch the misty grey surface of the artifact. There was no reflection, no glint, and no shadow. There was that roughly hexagonal shape to each of the several facets of it, but it had more of an overall tear-drop shape than he expected. Flat top, rounded bottom. And the large burl of gel directly below the suspended artifact, quicksilver with a little electric blue thrown in.
“Mind if I go down and take a good look?”
As I mentioned previously, I now have more promotional days with KDP Select, meaning that I can schedule a promotional event in ‘celebration’ of the novel’s ‘first contact’. So, plan on it – tell your friends, post it to blogs, heck shout it from the rooftops – the Kindle edition of Communion of Dreams will be free to one and all on Sunday, April 22!
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, jim downey, Kindle, literature, Science Fiction, writing
… feet, er rank.
That’s where Communion of Dreams has been hovering most of this week: #30,000 or so in the “Amazon Best Sellers Rank.” Sometimes it’s a little better, sometimes a little worse. Just now it was #28,088. Yesterday afternoon it was 34,000-something.
You might think that this would be somewhat disappointing to me. Actually, I’m pretty happy with it.
That happiness comes because it does seem that people are actually enjoying the book. Yeah, sure, I would love for it to suddenly skyrocket to the top of the best-seller list. I could certainly use the financial boost which would come with that. Just as I would love it if everyone raved in their reviews about the book. But being realistic, the book has only been available for about 10 weeks now, I haven’t spent any money on advertising, and the response keeps growing. Over 8,000 people have downloaded the book in the Kindle edition, and so far this month over 100 people have actually paid good money to do so. That tells me that enough people who have read the book are telling others about it, recommending it.
And when you think about that, it’s really one hell of a compliment. Because the amount of time taken from other things people can do with their life to read a book is pretty substantial, and represents a significant investment which makes the $4.95 price fairly insignificant by comparison. So, thanks, everyone. Keep it up!
My participation in the KDP Select program comes up for renewal next week, and I’ll be able to schedule another promotional day shortly thereafter. Stay tuned for an announcement about when that will be.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Failure, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, jim downey, Kindle, literature, Science Fiction, writing
So, as mentioned early last week, I planned on doing a “make-up” free-Kindle-edition promotion on April 12, in recognition of this first paragraph of Communion of Dreams:
He could see four or five thousand buffalo, one of the small herds. They stretched out in a long line below him, wide enough to fill the shallow valley along this side of the river, coming partway up the sides of the hill, not fifty meters from where he stood. The sky was its perpetual blue-grey, as clear as it ever got at this latitude, though the sun was almost bright. Late winter snow, churned into a dull brown mass by the buffalo where they trekked along the valley floor, nonetheless glinted along the tops of the hills. Weather forecasts said more snow was coming. It was Friday, April 12.
Well, as of noon today, it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. But this time, it’s not my fault – I did the requisite hoop-jumping to get Amazon to provide my promised “make-up” day. But you know how it is with corporate bureaucracies – my submission seems to have been lost somewhere in the dreaded depths of customer service. I even sent a follow up two days ago, asking about the status of the submission, and was promised a response within 48 hours. You can quess how that turned out.
So, from what I can tell, tomorrow will not be a “free-Kindle-edition promotion”. Sorry about that. Here in a couple of weeks the calender will start anew for my participation in the KDP Select program, and I’ll have more promotional days available. And I’ll schedule one right away.
In the meantime, do feel free to continue to tell others about the book, or to get your own copy. I’ve sold almost 100 so far this month – YAY! And the feedback has continued to be very positive, though some more positive reviews would be very welcome so the most recent thing isn’t the fellow who found it “A bit too Insubstantial for me.”
Stay tuned!
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Astronomy, Book Conservation, Connections, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, NASA, Promotion, Publishing, Science, Science Fiction, Space | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, jim downey, Kindle, NASA, science, Science Fiction, space, technology, writing
Two items.
One: Yesterday’s post was the most popular thing I’ve written here in years. Actually, I think it might be the second-best ever. Go figure.
(Well, three. I should mention this other item.)
Two: Possibly related, though things were doing quite well even before yesterday’s post – so far this month we’ve sold almost 50 copies (mostly Kindle) of Communion of Dreams. Thanks, everyone!
(No, make that four. Damn, forgot about this one.)
Three: Got another review. And it serves as a nice counterpoint to all those who enjoyed the book.
(Finally.)
And lastly, which I intended to be my second point all along: this very cool site showing relative scale of our solar system. I’ve seen this attempted a number of times and different ways online, but this is the best I’ve come across yet:
OMG SPACE is the thesis project of Margot Trudell, an OCAD student studying graphic design in Toronto, Canada. This website aims to illustrate the scale and the grandeur of our solar system, as well as illustrate through the use of infographics our work in the exploration of our solar system with various spacecraft.
And now I need to turn my attention to some book conservation work I want to wrap up. Cheers!
Jim Downey
Communion Of Dreams 