Kindle Scout Saga Continues

After I published the post about my Kindle Scout experience, I received more clicks and the most feedback I’ve had on my blog since I posted about the loss of my father-in-law.

Because of the Scout post, many people contacted me through different venues, including my email. I had many discussions that were quite interesting and eye opening. I came to a new understanding about Kindle Scout, which I have written below.

But, before you go further, here is the link to my now published novel.

After #1, the rest is how I understand what was said during those feedback discussions.

1) Before I entered Kindle Scout (KS), I was so naive about how it works that it’s almost comical. My understanding was that a KS campaign was something like an online American Idol for authors. People could vote for their favorite sounding novel, then KS would be the final judge of those that received the most amount of nominations. I was wrong.
2) KS will choose whichever books they want for their Press. It doesn’t matter how much traffic a book receives or how many nominations.
3) Some authors do pay to market their Scout campaigns, which means that paying to stay on the Hot & Trending list may just be a waste of money. Because, as said in #2, KS does not choose by the amount of traffic, views or nominations.
4) KS has selected people for publication who have had minimal time on the Hot & Trending list, or no time at all. They have their own system for selecting novels for publication that is not revealed to the public or their authors.
5) Apparently, KS monitors how long people stay on a campaign page. If voters just go there and click the NOMINATE ME button without reading the content, to KS, that is an indicator the author is paying for marketing to get people to vote without any real interest in the novel.
6) I had many people nominate me that read about it on my blog and in other social media. They didn’t necessarily read the content on the campaign page, because they read it somewhere else. They likely just clicked on the link I provided and then clicked NOMINATE ME.  If this is the case, then bothering others to click that NOMINATE ME button was useless.
7) In order to give my novel advertising, I still needed to do all that promotion.
8) If all of these things are true, Kindle Scout’s nomination process is misleading.
9) Despite all of these disappointing discoveries, I’m not sorry I entered the campaign. I learned a lot. My novel got exposure, and KS will send my Scouters word when I publish my book. I won’t rule it out for the future either, because this time I’m aware of how it really works and I’m not going in blind. I just wish they were forthcoming so I didn’t have unrealistic expectations.

To anyone who might be considering entering Kindle Scout, I say it’s worth trying it at least once. As long as you understand the way it really works, you can just give your novel exposure there. An added surprising benefit might be if they select you for publication.

In the mean time, while I’m learning how to get my novel published for those who nominated me, you might like to read my witty and uplifting memoir anthology. Click the photo to buy.

 

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