Is 'pay per page' a good move by Amazon?

On 1 July Amazon changed the way they pay for any loans or borrows within the Kindle library system. Before this date whenever a book that is in Kindle Select was borrowed the writer received a payment of around $1.35 once the reader had read more than 10% of the book. By borrowing I'm referring to Prime Members, who can borrow one book at a time, and subscription members who can borrow up to ten books and keep them for as long as they want. When they want to borrow an  eleventh book they have to return one in order to do so.

This meant that the writer knew at a glance how many times a given title had been borrowed and could work out fairly accurately how much they would receive in payment at the end of each month. Whenever I borrowed a book I always flipped to the 10% mark so the writer got a payment even if I didn't want to read the rest of the book.
The new method of payment was introduced, so Amazon say, because a large number of unscrupulous writers put up items where the front matter itself was more than 10% so without even looking at the book/short story/rubbish these writers would get the same payment as someone who had a three hundred page book borrowed and read.
The new system records how many pages of any book is read in any month and the writer is paid accordingly. This would mean that for a very long book and a very slow reader the writer might be receiving payments spread over several months.
At the moment nobody seems to be very clear exactly how much is going to be paid per page – the current thinking is that it will be half a cent. This would mean that my books, the bulk of which are a hundred and fifty pages or less, would receive around seventy-five cents  instead of $1.35, so I stand to have my income  from KU reduced by a third. Obviously this is not good news as I've already taken a 20% hit on my sales in the UK because of the introduction of VAT a few months ago.
However, until the end of July no one really knows how it's going to work out. I'm hoping that my income doesn't suffer too greatly by these changes.
The other drawback as far as I'm concerned is that I will no longer be able to track exactly how many of each title is borrowed each month and this is something I like to do. Ten thousand page reads could equate to anything – I'm not sure if this system will continue as I don't think I'll be the only writer who suffers economically and is also frustrated by being unable to make accurate recordings for each book.
I'd be interested to hear other writers views on these changes. Am I alone in having reservations?
I really liked the system as it was and I think these radical changes might well be for Amazon's benefit rather than mine.
Fenella J Miller

Lady Emma's Revenge

Here is my latest Regency romantic adventure which this time features a man who is not a gentleman but a senior Bow Street Runner. Both Lady Emma and Sam look exactly as I imagined them – Jane Dixon-Smith has given me yet another brilliant cover.

I really enjoyed writing something a bit different this time. One review of Lord Ilchester’s Inheritance suggested there was not enough plot, so this time I’ve provided plenty of action as well as romance. I hope you enjoy reading it is much as I did writing it.

Blurb:

Lady Emma’s Revenge

Lady Emma Stanton is determined to discover who killed her husband even if it means enlisting the assistance of a Bow Street Runner. Sam Ross is not a gentleman, has rough manners and full time for etiquette, but he is brave and resourceful and Emma comes to rely on him – perhaps a little too much.

£1.25

  

Chapter One

Chelmsford, 1816

The crack of the pistol shot echoed through the house. Emma stumbled backwards almost losing her balance and crashing headlong down the staircase.

The sound had come from Richard’s study. Gathering up her skirts, she spun and raced down the stairs, across the vast expanse of chequered floor and along the spacious passageway that led to his sanctum.

His man of business, Stokes, barred her way as she tried to go in. ‘No, my lady, better not see. I was too late to stop him.’ He wiped his eyes on his sleeve but remained firmly in front of the closed door. ‘The master is dead. There’s nothing you can do for him.’

‘Dead? Are you telling me that he has killed himself? I don’t understand – we breakfasted together little more than an hour ago and he was perfectly well.’ Her head was spinning; she couldn’t take in this dreadful news.

The housekeeper, Smithson, appeared beside her. ‘You come along with me, my lady, let Mr Stokes take care of things. He’ll get Doctor Reynolds to deal with this.’

Emma allowed herself to be gently guided away from the study. She had believed her husband had been contented with their union despite his lack of interest in the marriage bed. How could he have taken his own life? It made no sense.

‘No, Smithson, I’ll not be removed so easily. Mr Stanton could not possibly have committed suicide. I must speak to Stokes and he must send for the magistrate and have him investigate the matter.’

Ignoring the anxious tutting and clucking from her housekeeper she hurried back to the study and turned the handle – but the door was locked. She banged on the door and demanded to be let in and she was certain she heard movement behind the door.

Stokes rushed to her side, his face pale. ‘I locked the door, my lady, the master wouldn’t want you to see him like that.’

‘There’s someone in there. Quickly, unlock the door, whoever it is will be getting away.’

His expression changed to one of concern and he fumbled in his pocket for the missing key. ‘There cannot be anyone inside, my lady, the door has been locked and the windows are closed.’

Eventually the door was open and Emma was first to enter. The room was indeed empty, but she was certain there had been somebody inside. Her attention turned to her husband who was slumped across the desk, his fair hair caked with blood, the discharged duelling pistol in his hand.

Her eyes filled and she swayed. She dug her nails into her palms, she would not faint, she must be strong. Richard had been murdered and she could think of only one person who would wish to do this. His younger half-brother, Benedict Stanton, had always coveted the estates and substantial income that went with them. The last time Richard had spoken to his brother had been more than a year ago and the meeting had ended with Benedict threatening to kill him.

‘I cannot go any closer. Stokes, could you check the desk and see if there is a note for me?’

After a cursory search amongst the papers he shook his head. ‘Nothing at all, my lady. The master would have left a note explaining, I don’t understand.’

‘I am feeling decidedly unwell, I must lie down. I shall leave you to speak to the doctor. Would you also send word to our lawyers, they must bring the will. Thank God the estates are not entailed, they will remain under my control and will not be passed on to Mr Stanton.’

‘The master had summoned me here on an urgent matter. I did not get the opportunity to speak to him, but he received two letters from London this morning and I believe it was in relation to those that he wished to speak to me.’ He bowed and stepped aside to allow her to exit.

Smithson was waiting in the passageway and Emma was glad of her support. The shock and anger at Richard’s demise had carried her through the first awful minutes, but now grief was overwhelming her. It was as if she had been shrouded in a heavy, wet cloak. Her feet were becoming more difficult to move and a welcome blackness took her away.

http://amzn.to/1f4Wnow (com)

http://amzn.to/1Nz2DjV (uk)

Indian or British? The journal that inspired Victoria's War.

Ahttp://amzn.to/1HFeMTQ (.com)
http://amzn.to/1GlQigd (.uk)

I was inspired to write Regency books because I read Georgette Heyer as a teenager and later read Jane Austen's wonderful books. In latter years I watched the many Jane Austen adaptations that appeared on television and this spurred me on to write my own Jane Austen variations, as well as over thirty Regency stories.

http://amzn.to/1HvkEP (.uk)
http://amzn.to/1KZdmCD (.com)

However, when I found my mother's journal about the time she spent in India with her father, my grandfather, I decided to write a historical family saga using her memoirs for authentic background and detail.
 The first part of Victoria's War, Shadows, uses a lot of my mother's actual descriptions of the India where she lived for two years between 1937 and 1939. I also made the decision to get her memoirs typed and transferred to my PC and then to publish them on Amazon.
The electronic version has been live since last week and I'm about to put up the paperback version with Create Space. I shall make a colossal loss on this project, but writers don't do everything in order to earn royalties – sometimes we write and publish books because they are important to us.
I wish I had known the woman who wrote this journal – maybe I would have liked her more. It was only when I discovered the manuscript, after my stepfather's death, that I also found a couple of other, more recently written, journals in which she had put that she had loved my brother and I.
I wish she'd been able to tell us how much she loved us when she was alive because, although she and my stepfather provided us with an interesting home, with no financial support whatsoever from my father, never once did she offer us any physical expression of her feelings.
I wonder what inspires other writers – is it an overheard conversation, a family photograph perhaps, or something else entirely?

Fenella J Miller

Alison Morton - Is social media any use?

Today I have the talented writer Alison Morton as guest on my blog. I asked for her view on social media as I know you seem to prefer this sort of post to just straight promotion. If you haven't read her first three books then you have missed a terrific read.

Over to you Alison:

Alison - looking rather scary.

Is social media any use?

Without the firm social media base built up over several years, I could not have launched my fourth book, AURELIA, last month. It’s that simple.

Dial back five years when I started mixing with book people – writers, editors, agents, publishers, literary consultants and commentators. I was still writing the first draft of my first book, INCEPTIO and quickly realised it would be a slog to make it known to readers. A website was obvious – I’d written and used them during my business career, but what else was there?

Although I had no published book to promote, I decided on World Book Day in 2010 to blog about my newbie journey as a writer. Shortly after, I plunged into Twitter then Facebook, both a little unwillingly.

But something unexpected happened - I fell in love with social media. Yes, it’s publicised my Roma Nova thriller series but more than that, I now enjoy talking to warm, witty, insightful and generous people on every continent. And many of these virtual friends and acquaintances have not only bought my books, but actively help me promote them to others.

What benefits do blogging, tweeting and posting bring?
Writing blog posts hones short-form writing skills like nothing else. Now, I have five years’ worth of posts on alternative history, writing life and craft and Roman life which readers can discover and hopefully enjoy; my post on the Antonine plague in the late second century is even used as a student resource! ;-)

Worth remembering:  your blog belongs to you, you control what goes on it and how information is presented.

Tweeting widens your reach, gives you the opportunity to connect instantly and discover useful articles that can help your career, find new books or just entertain you. Sophisticated tools like Tweetdeck allow you to reach people in other time zones with scheduled tweets. I like Twitter for building relationships and following trends and news as well as retweeting useful articles from other people and, very importantly, from my own blog. Other tweeters will retweet yours if you reciprocate; your book is then in front of their followers’ eyes.

Facebook allows you to contact people in specific interest groups and, in my case, to talk to my readers as well as to other authors and experts. Using an author page allows you to be more commercial and concentrate on your books and writing life without driving your non-author friends on your personal profile insane with book talk!

Amazon author sites are essential and simple to use; readers can find what other books their favourite author has written, watch trailers and check author events.

Goodreads, sometimes called ‘Facebook for readers’ runs an author programme where authors can promote their books. Most popular is the giveaways where authors can put their books before hundreds of readers and readers have the chance to win free signed paperbacks!

A few tips
Not a numbers game – Don’t count ‘scalps’ or pure numbers – all social media is a gradual business which accumulates and you should look for quality of your contacts, not quantity. Paid likes or followers aren’t worth it – they’re usually 14-year-olds in a bedroom doing it for pocket money.

Interact - You don’t have to follow everyone back, especially if you have no shared connection and they’ve popped up out of the blue. Have conversations as well as promoting your books; readers and authors are people first!

Have fun but be prudent – Once you’ve put something on social media, it’s in the public domain and can’t be withdrawn.

Facebook – If you receive a friend request from somebody you don’t know personally, check the subject matter on their page, their other friends, any mutual friends, the groups they belong to and their interests before accepting the connection. Just because your friends have accepted the request doesn’t mean the requester is abona fide person…

Content - Keep all posts specific, on message, entertaining and informative. Restrict promotional tweets to about 15% of your total tweets.

Bad master, good tool – Decide how much time you will spend on social media, and when, in the day and do not exceed it. It’s very alluring… I check each morning for posts in other time zones and to say good morning to fellow early risers, then allocate more time in the evening, which is when most of my contacts are about. 

Blogging – How often you blog is up to you, but once a week keeps readers’ attention. Posts of 600-800 words are best plus at least one picture. Regular blogging also gives you an opportunity to discuss research, host guests and highlight how your work is going – all interesting to readers.

Other social media are available, as they say – Pinterest, Google+, Tumblr, Instagram – but I’d start with the ones I’ve mentioned.

In brief, what do social media deliver?
For me, it’s been, and is, support, insider knowledge, interaction with readers, reviews, sales, endorsements, strategic and personal friendships. And my ability to write succinct prose quickly and to deadlines has improved no end!

Alison Morton bio (AURELIA)

Even before she pulled on her first set of combats, Alison Morton was fascinated by the idea of women soldiers. Brought up by a feminist mother and an ex-military father, it never occurred to her that women couldn’t serve their country in the armed forces. Everybody in her family had done time in uniform and in theatre – regular and reserve Army, RAF, WRNS, WRAF – all over the globe.

So busy in her day job, Alison joined the Territorial Army in a special communications regiment and left as a captain, having done all sorts of interesting and exciting things no civilian would ever know or see. Or that she can talk about, even now…

But something else fuels her writing… Fascinated by the mosaics at Ampurias (Spain), at their creation by the complex, power and value-driven Roman civilisation started her wondering what a modern Roman society would be like if run by strong women…

Now, she lives in France and writes Roman-themed alternate history thrillers with tough heroines.

INCEPTIO, the first in the Roma Nova series

– shortlisted for the 2013 International Rubery Book Award

– B.R.A.G. Medallion

– finalist in 2014 Writing Magazine Self-Published Book of the Year

PERFIDITAS, second in series

– B.R.A.G. Medallion

– finalist in 2014 Writing Magazine Self-Published Book of the Year

SUCCESSIO, third in series

– Historical Novel Society’s indie Editor’s Choice for Autumn 2014

– B.R.A.G. Medallion

– Editor’s choice, The Bookseller’s inaugural Indie Preview, December 2014

Fact file:

Education: BA French, German & Economics, MA History

Memberships: International Thriller Writers, Historical Novel Society, Alliance of Independent Authors, Society of Authors

Represented by Annette Crossland of A for Authors Literary Agency for subsidiary and foreign rights.

Links (Please adapt to your preferred format!)

Connect with Alison on her Roma Nova blog: http://alison-morton.com/blog/

Facebook author page  https://www.facebook.com/AlisonMortonAuthor

Twitter https://twitter.com/alison_morton @alison-morton

Goodreads  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5783095.Alison_Morton

Buying link (multiple retailers/formats):

AURELIA: http://alison-morton.com/books-2/aurelia/where-to-buy-aurelia/

AURELIA book trailer: https://youtu.be/K5_hXzg0JWA

Regency Quintet : Summer Edition

I am delighted to tell you that the second multi-author box set -  Regency Quintet - Summer Edition is now available on Amazon and this time you can use KU to download as well.

Sadly, Wendy Soliman was forced to drop out for personal reasons and we now have a great replacement writer - Monica Fairview.

All five of us are best-selling authors in this genre and we have a great selection of books for you to read.

Here are the blurbs:

£1.99

Lord Orpington's Wager

 (A Reluctant Bride – Linford Romance 2009)

Fenella J Miller

Persuaded by her mother to act as chaperone to her godmother's daughter, young widow Patience Sinclair doesn't realise quite what is involved. Lady Orpington is perfectly capable of arranging her daughter's come out, so why is Patience needed? When she meets Lord Simon Orpington it all becomes perfectly clear. Their respective mothers intend them to make a match of it. And while Patience has no intention of marrying again, it seems that Simon has other ideas.

A Most Unusual Governess

 Amanda Grange

When poverty forces Sarah Davenport to take up a position as a governess, she finds herself in conflict with the arrogant but devastatingly handsome Lord Randall. When danger threatens, he is the only one she can trust.

An Improper Suitor

Monica Fairview

A lady in possession of an independent fortune has no need for a husband. Miss Julia Swifton, secure in that belief, has made no attempt to search for one, even after three seasons in London. That is until her grandmother, an advocate of women's rights, rises from her deathbed and threatened, of all things, to marry her to a notorious rake, Lord Thorwynn.Shocked into action, Julia launches into a search for an intelligent, scholarly husband who will suit her. On her way she has to rescue a fallen 'angel,' save a rake from being forced into marriage, defeat an unscrupulous gamesmaster who needs to seduce her for money, and avert a friend's disastrous runaway marriage.Fortunately, she does not have to do it alone. Even if her companion, Lord Thorwynn, is the last person she would ever want to marry.

Gentlemen in Question

By Melinda Hammond

A tale of romance, adventure and intrigue in Georgian England by an award-winning author.

In the closing months of 1792, the terror of the French Revolution forces Camille, the young Comte du Vivière, to flee his homeland and seek refuge with his relatives in England. For Madeleine, the arrival of her handsome French cousin marks a change in her so far uneventful existence and brings her into contact with the enigmatic Beau Hauxwell. Soon she finds herself caught up in a dangerous web of intrigue involving both gentlemen, but which one is the villain?

Seventh Heaven

Elizabeth Bailey

Septimus Berowne, poet, does not expect to succumb to the charms of wealthy Lady Louisa Shittlehope, although his brothers are eager to court her. Hampered by the shocking Berowne reputation, Septimus struggles to stop Louisa embroiling herself in his family’s affairs and keep her safe from his dissolute brother Quintus.

But the tribulations of the Berowne girls capture Louisa’s warm heart and she cannot help but interfere. Quintus strikes, involving Louisa and the Berownes in a madcap chase to rescue her love-struck ward. Will they be in time? Can Louisa brave Society’s disapproval to snatch at the promise of happiness?

Fenella J Miller

http://amzn.to/1eu6Nh7  (.com)

http://amzn.to/1KmUVr0  (.uk)

How accurate does a Regency have to be?

I write at least three new Regency romantic adventures every year – sometimes four – as well as two mainstream historical novels set in World War II. Obviously with any books set in living memory it essential to get all historical details absolutely right so I tend to spend far longer on background reading and detailed research with these books than I do for my Regency romances.
One author, a friend who also writes Regency, said to me when I mentioned that she had made a couple of minor historical mistakes that as her books sold for less than £1 it didn't really matter. A reader would hardly expect a writer to spend as much time on these details if the book was going to be sold for so little.
What do you think? Is she right? Do readers get what they pay for and don't expect the same standard of historical accuracy in a less expensive book?
I think that every book, sold for whatever price, should be as well written and as accurate as the writer can make it. Of course, no reader was alive in the Regency and therefore less likely to be as knowledgeable about the period. However, many readers are fans of Jane Austen and will have gleaned a lot of accurate history from reading these books and watching TV and film versions.
I don't do as much research when writing a Regency story because my background knowledge is so extensive after having written more than thirty books in this genre.
What I do is check when I'm not sure – for instance I wanted to know what songs might have been sung around the piano at Christmas time. Hark the Herald Angel was written in the 1700s, so I used that, but I had to check online first.
I know that my books are more historically accurate nowadays than they were when I first started writing and I'm proud of that. I'm not talking about major anachronisms such as talking about turning on the tap or catching a bus which I've never done, but small details like using the word fiance, which wasn't around until much later.

What about covers? Not whether the picture on the front has the correct hair colouring as the heroine or hero, but whether the setting and costume are correct. In the cover on the right the girl looks exactly like my heroine – however, she wouldn't have worn a white dress with such a low back. I had to settle for a slight inaccuracy as it's almost impossible to get perfection if you use photographs rather than artwork for your covers.
 The cover on the left was for one of my early Regency novellas for My Weekly Pocket Novel. Need I say anymore?
A Runaway Bride is a recent book with a lovely cover from Jane Dixon-Smith and I thought it historically correct until a friend pointed out there was a zip running up the back which neither Jane nor I had noticed. Would you have noticed if I hadn't pointed it out to you? The MW PN cover is horrendous and totally misleading, however despite the minor inaccuracies, I think both the other covers give the feel of a Regency romance.
I've been told by some readers that too much "history" in a Regency spoils the romance and that as long as the setting and dialogue are reasonably correct, they don't even notice the details. The plot and character is what is important.
Do you agree? How much historical detail is too much and drowns the reader in unnecessary information? I'm not talking about a huge info dump – that's never a good idea. I like to put in details that bring the period to life and use the correct words when possible. If I call a bag a reticule then I make sure it's obvious from the context what it is.
I would be interested to hear your views.
Fenella J Miller

Price, cover or content?

I had raised the prices of all my mainstream, full length books to £2.99 -  they should have been £2.50  for me to keep the same royalty - and sales plummeted. I read somewhere that books should never be priced at £2.50 ( or anything £.50) which is why I made them £2.99.
I have now reduced the prices of all of them to £1.99 - and will  have to absorb the reduction in royalty of £0.40.

Original Cover.

People happily spend £3 on a coffee, but for some reason don't want to pay the same for a book which has taken months to produce.
How much does price influence you? I must admit I get the majority  of my books via KU nowadays, and would only spend more than £2.99 for a book from someone like Lee Child or Donna Leon.

Covers - how important are they to sales? I have changed the cover for Lady Emma's Revenge because several people said they looked as if they were asleep. Hadn't occurred to either Jane or I until then - but decided to have a new cover. Would the old cover have put you off buying the book? I know that I don't even look inside a book if I don't like the cover.

New cover.

What about content? Obviously the story is the crucial thing for any book - but if the price and cover are not right then readers don't even 'look inside.' What I'm asking about is the 'front matter'. I only have a title page, copyright stuff and acknowledgments  - my book list is at the end. Some books have pages of  information about family etc/book lists'historical notes and contents page before the book starts - would you persevere and read the excerpt or give up?
When  KU began and writers got paid if a reader read 10% of the book there were, I'm told, hundreds of very short books published where 10% of the book was just the 'front-matter'. not sure if this is true - but saw it on several loops.
For me it's cover, price and content -what about you?
Fenella J Miller

'Lady Emma's Revenge' will be published in June 2015.