One Month In: Stats

On September 10, 2012, I launched Torched into the ocean of published books! A month later, I've been so thankful and grateful and thrilled at the response. People have been tweeting about the book, reviewing it on Amazon or B&N (which would be really helpful if you haven't done it already!), adding it to their to-be-read Goodreads pile, spotlighting me on their blogs, and basically making my day. Thank you, everyone, for your support!

And of course, people have been asking me how sales are going :)

The answer: pretty good, I think!

Of course, it's hard to figure out what exactly "good" means, right? I'm always curious about the actual numbers, because they mean different things to each writer. An established author with a large following and several books out is going to have a higher expectation for sales than a debut author like myself.

There's a widely-cited statistic (I've seen it several places, but don't know where it came from originally) that 80% of books, both self- and traditionally-published, sell fewer than 100 copies. I'm not sure if that's true, but I'm happy to say that Torched has already shot past that benchmark!

The stats for Torched's first month of life:

Books sold: 142

How that breaks down:
Paperbacks: 57
--sold at launch party: 33
Kindle ebooks: 63
Nook ebooks: 22

Does this qualify as good? I have no idea! But I'm thrilled. After all, I'm a debut author, so I have only one novel out, and I did very little promotion to build up to the launch. The fact that I've sold over a hundred books in the first month makes me a very happy author indeed :)

A large portion of the sales were in the first week. Afterwards they tapered off (though they're starting to pick up again), but I expected that! My motto for self-publishing and my author career is, "It's a marathon, not a sprint," and I'm aiming for quality books and steady growth over time. Since launch week, I've averaged a copy or two per day. Honestly, that's more than I expected this early in the game!

What matters to me more than sales numbers are the reviews Torched is getting. So far they've been fabulous! Really, heartwarmingly, print-them-out-and-hug-them fabulous :) Thank you to everyone who's reviewed Torched. I appreciate it so much!

Celebratory Giveaway!
On Goodreads this month, I'm giving away three paperback copies of Torched! You can enter to win all through October. Thanks to everyone who's entered already, and good luck :)

If You Liked ...

The trouble with finishing a book you love ... is that it's over and there's no more to read!

I'm working on a page of book recommendations for readers who liked Torched and want more contemporary YA novels to inhale. Probably the first books on the list would be Miranda Kenneally's novels.

Miranda is the author who blurbed Torched, calling it "Fun, sexy, and hilarious!" Publishers put blurbs on book covers to show a potential reader that a (usually more popular) author loved the new author's book, meaning his or her audience would probably like the new book as well.

It also means that if you love the book that's blurbed, you might like the blurb-author's novels too! So if you liked Torched, I highly recommend checking out Miranda's books. Catching Jordan, about a girl quarterback struggling with life changes, love and new competition, came out almost a year ago, and the consensus is pretty much the same as my own: people adore this book!

Today, Miranda's second book, Stealing Parker, is out! I had the privilege of reading this months ago, and I can tell you it's just as awesome as her first book. It's a companion novel, meaning it takes place in the same "universe" as Catching Jordan, but you don't necessarily have to read Catching Jordan first.

Here's the Goodreads description:

---

After a scandal rocks their conservative small town, 17-year-old Parker Shelton goes overboard trying to prove that she won't turn out like her mother: a lesbian. The all-star third-baseman quits the softball team, drops 20 pounds and starts making out with guys--a lot. But hitting on the hot new assistant baseball coach might be taking it a step too far...especially when he starts flirting back.

---

Also, aren't her covers gorgeous?? Sourcebooks is doing a fabulous job with that :)

Anyway, if you liked Torched and are looking for more great heroines to root for, check out Miranda's books! She's doing a giveaway for Stealing Parker to celebrate its release; you can find it on the Goodreads page.

Happy reading!