Advertising Erotic Romance

Have you ever tried to run an AMS ad for an erotic romance? It's not easy. First, your cover can't be suggestive in any way. No couples in bed or looking as if they are about to rip each other's clothes off. Oh, and your blurb...make sure there are no mentions of 'alpha' males or 'Dominance' or 'submission'. But that's just Amazon.

Marketing anything remotely sexy comes with it's pitfalls. And the sexier it is, the more of a challenge it becomes.

 

I've tried to market my stories, even the tamer ones, on Amazon, but they always get rejected. If not for the cover, then for the blurb.

 

Of course, I could always use a different cover or tweak my blurb, and sometimes that's a feasible option. Sometimes it's not.

 

The last thing you want is to attract the wrong readers to your story. Your cover and your blurb should let the reader know what to expect. A cover photo of a couple holding hands doesn't exactly scream sexy book with explicit content.

 

Amazon isn't the only advertising platform that has restrictions when it comes to sexy books. Facebook is another platform that makes authors jump through hoops in order to run ads. While they are a bit more lenient on the covers themselves, they will still sometimes reject them on the initial submission. 

 

But it isn't the cover that will usually get you on Facebook. It's the background photo. Again, you're setting a mood to let readers know what to expect when they pick up your book. However, Facebook is as strict as Amazon when it comes to background pictures. No couples in bed, not even a steamy embrace.

 

With all these obstetrical, what are erotic romance authors to do?

 

First, have a newsletter. There is no greater marketing tool than a newsletter full of readers that enjoy the types of books you write.

 

There are a few effective ways to build your newsletter. Just adding random names or getting involved in blanket promos to gain subscribers isn't a great way to go about it.

 

1) Write a newsletter magnet. This is often a short story or novella, but it doesn't have to be. As long as you're willing to give it away for free in exchange for a newsletter sign up, it will work. However, in order to get the biggest bang for your buck, it should also tie into your books.

 

My newsletter magnet is the prequel to my Serpent's Kiss series, Welcome to Serpent's Kiss. It's a 12K story that introduces readers to the club, the club mistress, and some of the club members...including Beth and Drew, the couple featured in the first novel of the series, Burning for Her Kiss. 

 

The story can be purchased on retail sites, but readers can get it for free if they sign up for my newsletter. And the best part is you can advertise this reader magnet on your website, in groups, and even through Facebook Ads.

 

2) Join Promos. I know I just said don't join random promos and that's true, but targeted promos are another thing entirely and Bookfunnel is a great, and cheap, way to do it.

 

Depending on the features you want, Bookfunnel costs anywhere from $100-$150 a year and with that you get a lot. When it comes to building your newsletter lists, there are group promos you can join that are filtered by genre and trope. There are also newsletter swaps you can join with authors who write in the same heat level and genre in order to find new readers.

 

There are other ways besides your newsletter to advertise your books even if write erotic romance. Bookbub Ads and newsletter aggregators such as Freebooksy and The Fussy Librarian are a few. But by far the most cost effective way to advertise, erotic romance or not, is through  your own newsletter.

 

Digital Advertising: Facebook, Bookbub, Amazon, and Beyond

 

Digital advertising can be expensive. Which ones are worth the investment and which ones should you skip? In this week's episode of the Bound by Books Podcast, Tina Moss and I discuss Facebook Ads, AMS Ads, Bookbub Ads, and several other advertising options for your books.

Click below to listen, or go to www.boundbybookspodcast.com to find out more about all the hosts of the show.

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The Hosts 

Amazon

Amazon

Cover Reveal Coming Soon

 

TikTok - Tips, Tricks & Trends

 

 

 

Are you on TikTok? Thinking about it? Tina Moss and Danielle Bannister talk all things TikTok in today's episode of Bound by Books.

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The Hosts 

Amazon

 

Amazon

Alpha Readers, Beta Readers, and Editors

In the book world there are a lot of terms that get thrown around, especially when it comes to publishing and marketing. It can be overwhelming. Especially if you're new to the self publishing world.

 

On this week's episode of the Bound by Books Podcast, Marianne Morea and I talked about the different types of editors. It's important going into the editing process to know which type of editor you're looking for and what you should expect to pay for those services. But what about alpha and beta readers?

 

If you've been hanging around the author world for any length of time, you may have heard other writers talking about alpha and beta readers. So what are they and how can they help you in your writing process?

 

Let's start with alpha readers. Just as the name suggests, an alpha reader is the first person, or people, who see your story. Alpha readers don't have to be professional editors or even have any editing experience, although they can. Instead, they are giving you feedback on the story as you write it.

 

Beta readers, however, are used once the story is completely written, but before the story has gone to an editor. Authors will often have a handful of beta readers to read through their story before sending it off for a professional edit.

 

So what other distinctions are there between alpha and beta readers?

Alpha readers are great for catching specific issues on culture and lifestyle. I use two alpha readers for all my BDSM stories. They're a couple who's been living a master/slave relationship for over twenty years. I send them a chapter at a time and they let me know if something doesn't make sense, or if I've set up a scene incorrectly.

 

When I was writing Welcome to Serpent's Kiss, the prequel to my Serpent's Kiss series, I wrote a scene where the male submissive's wrists were chained above his head, and then a spreader bar was attached to his ankles. When I sent the chapter to my alpha readers, they informed me that I needed to have the Domme attach the spreader bar before chaining the submissive's wrists as the spreader bar would lower the subs center of gravity.

 

While the above would have been an easy fix even if I'd sent my alpha readers the story to read after I'd completed it, sometimes it's much easier to address the issue right away and not let it create a huge plot hole that needs to be fixed later. For example, I was writing a scene where the hero walks out on the heroine. He immediately regrets it and goes back, but when I sent it to my alpha readers they were both ready to throw my hero to the wolves.

 

This is good feedback to have right way so it can be fixed. When you're writing a romance, you don't want readers to hate your hero. Or, at least I don't. I want my heroes to be likable.

 

But if you have an alpha reader, then why do you need a beta reader?

 

The short answer is you don't NEED a beta reader if you have an alpha reader, but having one can be an asset. 

 

Depending on how fast you write a story, an alpha reader could be reading your book over the span of months or even years. By the time they get to the end of the story, they may not have the best memory as to what happened at the beginning. But even if you only send a beta reader a handful of chapters at a time, the story is complete before they see the first word and you're able to send them the next set of chapters as soon as they've completed the first. This means they can give you feedback on how the story flows and whether you may need to make adjustments to the pace.

 

Beta readers are also great at noticing plot holes, both big and small. Again, they're seeing the story as a whole instead of a chapter at a time. If you mention your character grew up in Texas in chapter one only to have them growing up in New York halfway through the book, that's something that can be caught and fixed before it ever goes to an editor. Or worse yet, paying readers.

 

Do you use alpha readers or beta readers?

 

It's Release Day!

Justin and Kim's story is the third full length novel in my Serpent's Kiss series. 

 

This story follows Justin McKay, a hard working mechanic and business owner and his best friend's sister, Kim. These two have been crushing on each other for over a decade, but the thing that brought them together is the thing that's keeping them apart...Justin's friendship with Kim's brother Mark.

 

The set up for this story was originally written as part of a very steamy BDSM anthology and lived as a novellette for seven years, but I knew almost immediately I wanted to expand it and finish their story. They had such amazing chemistry that I couldn't just leave it be. I hate to give them their happily ever after.

 

Depending on how you look at it, His Forbidden Kiss took me either two years or over seven years to write. Either way, Justin and Kim have been waiting a long time and they more than made up for it. There story is by far the sexiest I've ever written and the early reviewers seem to agree.

 

"Kim and Justin are CHEF'S. FREAKING. KISS!!!! I'm obsessed with the brother's best friend trope and to have that trope in the Serpent's Kiss, BDSM club setting - whew! Hot. I loved getting to see Kim find herself by submitting to the one person she's always wanted. I loved getting to see how much Justin would literally die for her he was so in love. Such a good story and I cannot wait to read more from this series!" ~LittleCozyReaderr 

 

"A brother's best friend story, I really enjoyed the connection between Justin and Kim. They've been attracted to each other for a long time but have never acted on it because of the brother's best friend thing. But when they see each other at the club and Kim discovers Justin is a Dom, she's eager to learn. The sexy scenes were hot, the banter between them was great but how will their relationship go over with her brother? Great story and I loved every page of it!" ~RhondaVB 

 

"This is my first book from this author. I was pleasantly surprised. I absolutely got sucked into Kim and Justin story. This is a book intent for Adult. The content is very graphic and very steamy, just the way I like my books. It's a Dominant/Submissive relationship. The writing was compelling to keep reading till the end. The sex scenes are plentiful and scorching hot. I'm definitely check out her other books." ~SandyN 

 

 

She’s the one woman he can’t have.  

  

Kim Langley is beautiful, sexy, and confident. She makes Justin’s heart skip a beat every time he sees her. There’s only one problem. She’s his best friend’s little sister. Off-limits. Then, she shows up on his doorstep, offering herself to him.  

  

Justin McKay has been starring in Kim’s fantasies since she was a teenager. When she finds out he’s an experienced Dominant, she knows he’s the one she wants to explore her sexuality with. One night with no strings. 

  

But what if one night isn’t enough for either of them? Is he willing to risk betraying his friendship to be with her? 

 

His Forbidden Kiss is the smoking hot third book in the Serpent’s Kiss BDSM Club series. If you like brother’s best friend romances, steamy love scenes, and happily ever afters, then you’ll love Sherri Hayes’s sexy forbidden romance. 

 

Buy His Forbidden Kiss to get your kink on today! 

  

Note: Part of this story was originally published as One Forbidden Night and has been expanded into a full-length novel. 

 

 

Amazon US: https://tinyurl.com/2p9dezbm 

Apple: https://tinyurl.com/yck653wr 

Nook: https://tinyurl.com/5n8t6kyf 

Kobo: https://tinyurl.com/2p96d2b5 

Google: http://tiny.cc/exzpuz 

Books2Read: https://books2read.com/u/3n2qY9 

Goodreads: http://tiny.cc/Goodreads 

Paperback: http://tiny.cc/ytlquz 

Finding Your Perfect Editor - Bound by Books Podcast Episode 49

 

Finding and editor can be a daunting task. On this week's episode of the Bound by Books Podcast, Marianne Morea and I are breaking down what to look for and some red flags when searching for an editor.

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The Hosts 

Amazon

 

 

Amazon

Why Writing In A Series Makes Smart Business Sense

The best way to gain traction in the fictional author world is to write a series. Readers fall in love with the world you've created and want to read more. As your series grows, so does your readership as you build your backlist with related books. Traditional or self published, it's common to see trilogies, or even series that go on for ten or more books. 

But what makes a series?

In truth, it can be just about anything. Series can be built around small towns, families, friends, office romances, or even profession. The idea is to build a set of books around something readers can get connect with.

When I set out to write Behind Closed Doors, I'd originally planned for it to be a standalone novel. However, as I continued to write it, I knew I want to write stories for Chris's brothers as well. Each book in that series takes place in a different town. There are very little similarities as far as setting, personality, or storyline. The connection is the fact that they are brothers.

In contrast, the books in my Serpent's Kiss series are all set in St. Louis. That series also happens to be centered around the members of a private BDSM club, so it's pulling from two different connections. If readers are looking for stories set in the midwest, St. Louis, or if they're simply looking for a kinky story, then they know this one fits the bill.

That's another great thing about series. It saves readers time.

Most readers are drawn to certain types of tropes they enjoy. For some, it's small town romance. For others, it may be family sagas. Having your books grouped by series helps readers to weed through the millions of books available and gives them a quick glance as to what they can expect from your story and if they might be interested in reading it.

This is another reason why genre hopping isn't the best idea for authors who are wanting to write to the commercial market. Now that doesn't mean you can't write what you want. Certainly, you can. But it does mean that if you're going to write a sci-fi romance, then an erotic historical romance, followed by a sweet small town contemporary romance, you may have trouble finding your footing with readers.

Pick a lane and stay in it. At least, for a little while. It's a lot easier to build traction that way and give readers the chance to discover you and your stories.

If you want to write in three vastly different genres, then it's probably a good idea write under different pen names. Not only will this be a sign to readers what type of book they're getting, but it also helps with the algorithms. 

When you're writing in a variety of genres, especially ones that don't have a huge cross over of readers, it confuses the computers. They don't know who to show your books to and often they choose wrong. That can lead to low sales and/or low ratings for your book.

Is A Small Press Right For You? - Bound By Books Podcast Episode 48

 

On the podcast this week Tina Moss and Yelena Casale are providing a behind the scenes look at their small press publishing house, City Owl Press. Is publishing with a small press right for you?

 

Click below to listen, or go to www.boundbybookspodcast.com to find out more about all the hosts of the show.

    ...

 

The Hosts 

Amazon

Amazon