Interview with bestselling author, Martin Crosbie

Woo-hoo! It’s not often that I have indie superstars on my blog the likes of Martin Crosbie so excuse my big excitement today! When Martin accepted to do the interview, I couldn’t believe it. Goes to show that sometimes, all you need to do is simply ask. Martin is a bestselling author with a recent kindle scout winner in his arsenal: his crime novel, The Dead List. His book, How I sold 30,000 eBoooks on Amazon’s Kindle, is always handy in my office, a ‘promo bible’ for all intents and purposes.

 

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Outlines the methods the top 5% of successful self-published authors utilize to produce their eBooks in a professional, cost-effective manner.
Shows what happened after Amazon changed the rules and what you need to do right now to adjust your strategy.
How to adopt the philosophy that will allow promotional opportunities to come to you.

In February 2012 Martin Crosbie’s self-published eBook “My Temporary Life” hit Amazon’s top ten overall bestseller list. The next month Amazon posted a press release revealing that Crosbie had made $46,000 in one month, with one book. Prior to this, his novel was rejected one hundred and thirty times by traditional publishers and agents. In the months that followed, “My Temporary Life” and its sequel have been consistent sellers, often sitting atop Amazon’s rankings. Crosbie’s story has been mentioned in Publisher’s Weekly, Forbes online, and other media outlets around the world. In fact, Amazon referred to him as one of their 2012 success stories in their year-end press release. “How I Sold 30,000 eBooks on Amazon’s Kindle-An Easy-To-Follow Self-Publishing Guidebook” tells the story of how he became a full-time writer, detailing the specific steps he took to find and connect with his readers. Plus, it describes how he adjusted his strategy when Amazon changed their systems.

VISIT AMAZON  US    UK

 

 

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#1 BESTSELLER – ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
#1 BESTSELLER – CONTEMPORARY FICTION

It has everything, simply everything-a coming of age, a romance, and a thriller all rolled  into one delightful read.”

Malcolm Wilson learns that everything is always temporary. Growing up, he’s raised by a promiscuous mother who can’t stay out of trouble, his best friend is a thirteen-year-old alcoholic, and the masters at his tough Scottish school are always raising their canes in his direction. When he becomes an adult, he escapes, and chooses the safe route, watching the world from a distance. Everything changes the day he meets the beautiful, alluring, green-eyed Heather, and when he learns of Heather’s own abusive childhood and the horrific secret she’s been carrying, Malcolm decides to help her. And, this time he’s not backing down, whatever the cost. The first book of the “My Temporary Life” Trilogy tells a story of love, friendship, and what it truly means to be a hero. A top-ten overall Amazon best seller, this grand, sweeping story has been enjoyed by readers all over the world.

Be sure to check out Martin’s other books-My Name Is Hardly – Book Two of the My Temporary Life Trilogy, Lies I Never Told-A Collection of Short Stories, How I Sold 30,000 eBooks on Amazon’s Kindle-An Easy-To-Follow Self-Publishing Guidebook – 2014 Edition, and Believing Again: A Tale Of Two Christmases.

VISIT AMAZON  US   UK

 

 

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The dead man’s head rests on a halo of blood. His hands are locked together as if in prayer. Rookie police officer John Drake is first on scene. His superiors want to call it an accidental death, but he isn’t convinced. In his previous life, Drake saw his share of dead bodies. He knows this was not an accident. When he uncovers a list with five names including the name of the dead man, there’s only one question. Are the names on the list suspects or potential victims?

VISIT AMAZON   US   UK

 

me in Lake Ont

Hello Martin and welcome to my blog!

Hello Fros, it’s great to be here!

First of all, congratulations for your latest novel, The Dead List – a Kindle Scout winner! Was it the first time you submitted a book on Kindle Scout? How did you find the process?

This was my first Kindle Scout submission; yes. The process was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. During the thirty days you try to build interest without bombarding your followers with requests to check out the preview of your book. So, I guess in some ways it was just another normal day for a self-published author. I believe in this book, I think it’s a great story and really wanted to tell it. I’m hopeful that Scout will help me reach more readers than I could by myself.

What has inspired you to write The Dead List?

It’s very loosely based on a true story. I was originally told about a dead list type of situation by a man many years ago. I don’t want to give away too much of the plot, but this gentleman was the last man standing. I always found the whole process fascinating but I wasn’t sure how to tell the story. And, you know how that works. You eventually buckle down, create your characters and let them fill in the blanks. It seems to have worked.

Yes, indeed it has! Martin, I’ve read your book, How I sold 30,000 eBooks on Amazon, and thought it was a wonderful tool for indies. I keep it handy near my desk for its great tips on promotion. With the indie world being so fluid, how hard do you find it to keep revising this book so that it can stay updated? How often do you need to do it? And would you be happy to share here a tip that you have learned since you last revised the book? I’d love it if you could share one here the first time!

Thank you for reading my book, I’m glad you find it useful. The book is taken from workshops that I have taught and you’re right, it’s difficult to keep revising as the indie world continues to evolve. As you know from the book I believe that approaching your career in an ethical manner and following a professional process rather than one or two distinct things will help you connect with readers. Having said that though, I still believe that if a writer has written a great book it will find an audience. So, the best thing we can do is keep writing and continue to become better writers. I don’t know if I can give you a tip, but one thing I have learned recently is that I can write faster and produce more than I believed I could. Others were doing it so I’ve been trying to increase my output. Whether all my scribbles will be published remains to be seen, but for me, I know I can write more than I have been. My writing mentor always told me there’s no such thing as writer’s block. Writing is a job and we just put the words together until they start making sense. I believe he was right.

I agree with you that writer’s block doesn’t exist. It’s just lack of determination, and the absence of a solid writing plan/method. Sometimes, a decision for better time-management is all you need. What other writing have you done? Anything else published?

I was very fortunate with my first book. I published My Temporary Life at the end of 2011 and readers really enjoyed it. A major Canadian newspaper wrote a story on me when my book hit top ten overall on Amazon and called me a “traditional publishing reject”. I’m one of those authors who was lining his walls with rejection emails. I had 130 of them for that book before I published it on my own. My Temporary Life is a tough book to categorize. It’s part coming of age, part adventure and part romance. Nobody quite knew what to do with it, but readers seemed to like the book and posted positive reviews. I was very lucky.

Perhaps it was luck in part, but I am sure it all started with the brilliant-writing bit, otherwise people wouldn’t have spread the word about it in the first place. I think you’re being very humble, Martin!

*chuckles* Perhaps, thank you.

Any hobbies or interests that you enjoy in your spare time?

Brandy, 30K book, and me

I enjoy movies with subtitles. There are a couple of very good film festivals locally each year and I love sitting in dark theatres watching foreign films. And I have a black lab who walks me most days. Plus, I’m a lapsed runner. I’ve run several half marathons and a full marathon. It’s my goal this winter to hit the treadmill consistently so I can train outside next spring and get back to long-distance running. And now that I’ve said it out loud I actually have to do it.

LOL! My husband is a marathon runner and I know the kind of commitment and inner strength it takes to do this. You have my full respect! Do you see yourself in any of your characters, or do any of them have traits you wish you had?

I was teaching a workshop a couple of years ago and a couple of ladies kept referring to me as “Malcolm”. Malcolm was the protagonist in My Temporary Life. When I told them I wasn’t him they repeated in unison, “Oh yes, you are.”

Malcolm has become a favorite character of many readers. I receive emails from his admirers telling me what he can and cannot do in the follow up books. It’s been quite interesting to see how folks have taken such a personal interest in him. When asked I tell people that even on my best days I don’t think I’ll ever be able to measure up to Malcolm, but we can dream, can’t we.

What you just said might as well be the best elevator speech you could give for your book. I am hooked! What are you working on at the moment? Tell us a little about your current project(s).

I’m writing the second book in the John Drake (The Dead List) series. I will probably submit that to Kindle Scout also. I’m also playing around with a short novel that is still in draft form. It’s the follow up to a Christmas romance I published a couple of years back –Believing Again – A Tale of Two Christmases. And, I am always plugging away at the third book in the My Temporary Life trilogy. One day I will be pleased to announce that it is complete.

What genres do you read mostly, and what are you reading now?

As I write this I’m due to leave on a short holiday so I’m filling my kindle with books. Amazon has many of the classics available for free and I’ve been taking advantage of that. I recently completed a Wilkie Collins book and enjoyed it very much, but right now I spend every night with Madame Bovary. She’s quite a woman, I mean book. She’s not real, is she? Was she? Either way, I’m enjoying my time with her very much.

Do you have any advice for other indie authors?

Don’t rush it. Put the best product you can out there and take your time doing it. If you’re not happy with the result then go back and find more beta readers to freshen it up before you publish. And, don’t be afraid of criticism. I’ll once again paraphrase my writing mentor. He told me to listen very carefully to everything he said and consider his comments. Then if I didn’t agree throw them out the window because nobody knows your work better than you do.

Great advice! Are there any sites or writing tools that you find useful and wish to recommend?

I write a monthly article for Indies Unlimited. Those guys volunteer their services to try and help the Indie author community. I highly recommend you check them out. And, I keep a list of tools for authors on my own website too.

Well, Martin, it’s been a huge honor to have you here with us today. Thank you so much.

Thanks for having me, Fros, this was fun!

martincrosbiephoto

In a press release, Amazon called Martin Crosbie one of their success stories of 2012. His writing journey has been chronicled in Publisher’s Weekly, Forbes Online, and Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper. Martin’s latest novel The Dead List is a Kindle Scout winner and published by Amazon’s Kindle Press.

He makes his home in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.

 

Visit Martin’s Amazon page  US   UK

Visit Martin’s website

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/martin.crosbie.3

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Martinthewriter

 

Logo 280x178 w font AR HERMANNHave you enjoyed this post? Follow the blog (see right sidebar) and miss no more posts! Sign up to Effrosyni’s newsletter to keep up to date with her news and special offers (very sparse emails). Interested to read more? Head over to Effrosyni’s Blog, where you’ll find her earlier interviews, book reviews, author tips, travel articles and even Greek recipes!

 

Two new books and a Secret Santa

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Hello peeps! November has come and gone, and I’ve been busy getting The Storm, book 3 in The Lady of the Pier trilogy, ready for publication. I am happy to announce the book is now available on Amazon on pre-order. The big day is December 11! Not too long till The Lady discloses her last tragic secrets!

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Order it now on Amazon

 

I promised my readers a great Xmas, and it’s only fair, seeing that I’d been really mean and piling on the heartache all this time for both my heroines!

But that’s not all!

I’m currently keeping busy with the launch of a second book, Poetry from The Lady of the Pier. This mini companion book to the series (approximately 50 pages) is a collection of 10 romantic poems from the trilogy and also includes the bonus short story, “An Old Promise”:

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Joanna boards a flight from JFK to visit the Greek island of Sifnos again after twenty years. All this time, despite the distance and her life’s circumstances, she’s been holding on to precious memories from an old summer love. Now, she’s determined to meet again the man she once left behind, hoping for a chance to prove she never forgot their old promise…

The book contains no spoilers, and readers who are not familiar with the series may equally enjoy it.

I am going to make this available in all bookstores (not just Amazon) in an attempt to attract new readers to the series. For this reason, the kindle will be perma-free. The paperback will be available in all major bookstores.

UPDATE: I am still working with Amazon to drop the price for the poetry ebook from 99c to FREE. In the meantime, you can download it FREE on other major stores, such as:

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/poetry-from-the-lady-of-the-pier
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1064068977
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1123057439

 

If you’re an author, please note: I plan to blog a lot in the near future sharing tips for authors and instructions on using various free services, so I hope you’ll stay tuned! These awesome tidbits of information will organize you and make your indie life so much easier!

If you’re a reader, watch this space! Other than continuing to host a new author every Monday, I will keep reviewing the books I read so you can always have great recommendations from me. Remember I only review books if I am going to give them a minimum of 4 stars so you’ll only find here my top recommendations!

Forthcoming interviewees for this month include Martin Crosbie and Mandy Baggot, plus I’ll be reviewing An Almost Perfect Christmas by USA Today bestselling author, Donna Fasano.

Christmas is upon us and I expect many of you will do what I do and shop from Amazon for your loved ones… This year, I had the notion that I should be someone’s Secret Santa among my author friends… To do that, all I need to do is go to Amazon to make my purchases having first visited an author friend’s website. I’ll just click on one of their book links that points to Amazon and which embeds their Amazon Associates affiliate link. This way they will get the  benefit of a small commission. Plenty of giving, wonderful friends to choose from, so I’ll pick one by random and continue to do this by picking a different friend each time I make my Amazon purchases throughout the year.

I strongly urge you, whether you’re an author or a reader, to support an indie author with this small gesture this Christmas. It’s peanuts, but it all  helps!

Should you feel inclined to support me in this way this Holiday Season, simply click on any of my published books on the right sidebar. This will take you to Amazon with my affiliate link so I can get a small commission if you make any purchases on Amazon during that specific visit (no need to buy my book). Thank you 🙂

Have a great day and enjoy the hectic run up to Xmas! And, for those among you who have been following The Lady of the Pier trilogy, I hope you will enjoy the fairy tale ending of The Storm, reading it in a festive room somewhere! Enjoy 🙂

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