editorial

Promoting Books Through Amazon's Author Central

Irene Watson

It has been brought to my attention that many authors aren't aware that Amazon has a program called Author Central.  If you don't know about it, it's time to get informed about the whole world behind the scenes of Amazon and take advantage of it. 
 
So...what will it do for you?  It's another place to let potential buyers know about you and your books.  You can create an author page that includes your bio, bibliography, author photo and feeds from your blog and your Twitter posts. You can add your book video and advertise events.  And, you can even add Editorial Reviews.  Considering Amazon has been removing reviews at a rampant pace because they accuse reviewers of not following their guidelines you are able to post excerpts from these reviews in the Editorial Reviews section.

But, there is more.  You can get Sales Figures, Rank History, and if need be email or daytime phone support.   Well, that's what they say but I've heard recently from several authors that the responses haven't been as good as in the past or none at all.  Amazon, as I'm sure you are aware, is making some major changes in all areas which is causing bedlam internally and externally. Just go any forum and you'll get the gist of it.

I really like the Sales Info because it gives me a good indication of where my specific books are sold and during what period. This is one simple way to track sales if I've done any particular promotions during that time.  As with all Sales Info the information isn't entirely accurate but it's close enough to see what movement you've had on your book. This is also a place you can compare the sales records to the records your publisher sends you during royalty reporting. As well, if you have more than one book all the information is in one central place and you don't have to go from book page to book page.

If you are wondering how potential readers will actually find your Author Page just go to a book listing on Amazon.com and click on author's name (at the top, under the title and next to "author.") This will take you to the Profile Page of the author. 

Does this Author Page take place of a website?  Definitely not! The specific information is only good for those that actually go to Amazon.com to find books and are inquisitive enough to read information about the author or watch a video.  The page is not Search Engine Optimized and a Google search will not land the potential reader on the page. Nonetheless, it's important to have your Profile Page updated and available to those that actually do shop Amazon.
Do you have any success stories to share due to using Author Central? Do you have anything encouraging to say to those that haven't created their Profile Page yet?  I'd like to hear from you here.

featured this week

Fiction - Historical, Culture, Fantasy

The Sixth Coming

Richard Donahue

AuthorHouse (2010)
ISBN 9781452047966
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (6/11)

Synopsis

The Aztec Calendar speaks of The Legend of the Five Suns.  What if there had been a Sixth Sun and a Sixth Coming? Join Soyala, whose name means The Time of the Winter Solstice in the Hopi Language, as she seeks to discover the truth behind the self-proclaimed Sun King to the South. In The Sixth Coming, by author Richard Donahue, mythical and some  not so mythical beasts abound,  as does mystical intrigue and suspense.  Journey back to a time to the dawn of science when magical still was the most powerful force in the land.  Join Soyala as she seeks to discover her true heritage and that of her grandfather. 

Read review of The Sixth Coming
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featured this week

Fiction - Historical, War, Religion

Sherman’s Chaplain

David Bellin

Epigraph Publishing (2011)
ISBN 9781936940028
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views (6/11)

Synopsis

In a series of candid letters, Ellis Brantley, a charismatic young seminary graduate with a gift for preaching. chronicles the merciless march of Sherman's armies from Atlanta to Savannah. His powerful sermons quickly vault him from regimental chaplain to a senior chaplain's post at Sherman's headquarters. There, he must contend with the flinty and unpredictable general, a hostile captain who mocks his beliefs, a church-burning, half-insane soldier and, most dangerous of all, his own conviction that he knows God's will. In Sherman's Chaplain, by author David Bellin, Brantley's letters reveal the inner conflict that will drive him to a lethal encounter and a profound new truth about his faith and his future.

Read review of Sherman's Chaplain

Spotlight - reader views literary awards winner

First Place Winner in Health/Fitness

An Alphabet of Good Health in a Sick World by Martha M. Grout, MD, MD(H) & Mary Budinger

New Medicine Press (2010)
ISBN 9781932842548

Dr. Martha Grout obtained her A.B. degree from Radcliffe college (now merged with Harvard University) in 1966 and her M.D. degree from Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1971. For the next 25 years she served as an Emergency Physician in New York, Florida, and Arizona. She traveled the world to study with masters of medicine. She is Board Certified in Medical Acupuncture. In 1997, she moved to Arizona and obtained the Homeopathic Physician's license.

Mary Budinger graduated from the University of Arizona in 1976 with a BA in Mass Communications. She worked on the Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder at NBC in Los Angeles and then spent a decade as a reporter in broadcast news in northern California and Denver, Colorado. She received a Rocky Mountain Emmy award for live reporting. Mary Budinger now focuses her efforts on complementary and alternative medicine. Her articles have been published in Townsend Letter and Explore! For the Professional and Health Conscious and Public Health Alert.

Synopsis: An Alphabet of Good Health in a Sick World allows readers to discover that illness is really your friend, your body's cry for help. There is a new paradigm emerging called green medicine and consumers are demanding more of it. Green medicine has a strong respect for the body's own healing abilities. Green medicine also recognizes that what we put into our environment, we also put into ourselves. It is paramount today to acknowledge the impact of food, chemicals, and electrosmog (wireless technology, electrical fields). If your doctor has little to say about them, then he's working with obsolete information. The new paradigm of medicine sees food as medicine, chemicals as more important than germs, and electromagnetic frequencies as a double edged sword.

Read review of An Alphabet of Good Health in a Sick World
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List of 2010 Literary Awards Winners

Spotlight - reader views literary awards winner

Second Place Winner in Health/Fitness

The Medical Bill Survival Guide by Nicholas Newsad, M.H.S.A.

The Westminster Cambridge Conglomerate (2010)
ISBN 9780615352831

Nicholas Newsad, M.H.S.A., is the author of Medical Bill Help and The Medical Bill Survival Guide. He has served as the senior analyst of a national surgery center management company as well as an interim surgery center administrator. He has been quoted and interviewed in the Today Show, L.A. Times, NY Daily News, as well as numerous other magazines, newspapers, and radio shows

Synopsis: The Medical Bill Survival Guide by Nicholas Newsad is a useful guide to help you navigate your medical bills and get assistance if you are having difficulty paying those bills.  Sections include definitions of insurance terms, why insurance companies don’t always pay, what to do if you don’t have insurance, how to organize your medical bills, and how to talk to billers.  It does not matter how bad your financial situation seems to be, The Medical Bill Survival Guide will provide you with the knowledge to help yourself or your loved one. Medical bill anxiety is caused by miscommunications and misunderstandings. This book teaches easy, effective strategies for working with insurance companies, hospitals, doctors, and other healthcare providers. An appendix has a state-by-state guide to Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program eligibility.  

Read review of The Medical Bill Survival Guide
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This week's video

Values Of A Spiritual Mind: Essays For Living

Roman New

Xlibris (2011)
ISBN 9781456891923

Synopsis

Revealing Book Uncovers What Lies Inside of a Spiritual Mind. "Values Of A Spiritual Mind" will take readers on an insightful journey to where wisdom and enlightenment await.

Spirituality is essential to discovering the essence of one's being. It is manifested through various practices such as prayer, meditation, and contemplation, which are intended to cultivate a person's inner life. But what is inside a spiritual mind, and how it works to make one's life more meaningful?

Values Of A Spiritual Mind: Essays For Living by author Roman New is an insightful book that comprises 16 essays that disclose the value of the many things that are essential to man's existence - it uncovers the truth that will change one's outlook about life and provides a deeper understanding about the spiritual mind.

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