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Before I scampered off on an Alaskan cruise at the beginning of June (yes! I was in Alaska! It was cold! But awesome!), I ran a 5-day free promotion on Quartz.

And along the way I learned some things (as I always do).

I decided to run this promotion on a whim. Quartz’s term in Kindle Select was coming to an end, and I hadn’t used any of my promotional days. I decided on the free days over the Kindle Countdown Deal because I’ve never done a free promo before. I figured, eh, why not?

So I picked my five days to end just before I left on vacation. Since I was throwing this together quickly, I opted not to put any money into paid advertising. Instead I relied on a combination of my social media reach, Facebook groups, and free services to get the word out.

It worked pretty well. Quartz was able to get to #2 on the Free Steampunk list on Amazon and as high as #22 on the Free Epic Fantasy list. That meant it stayed on the first page of one sub-category and the second of another for most of the promotion.

Partial proof below:

So, what did I learn from this?

A promotion does not have a natural downward trend like I assumed. I had booked the majority of the promotional sites for the first three days (though some ran for all five). The first day had a lot of downloads, the next day fewer, the third fewer still. I expected Days 4 and 5 to drop even lower, but to my surprise both exceeded Day 2’s downloads.

Takeaway is to expect the middle of the promotion will have the biggest slump. The sooner a deal is going away, the more likely people are to jump on it.

Facebook is actually a pretty good promotional tool. Yes, I know Facebook ads are a big thing, but since I was doing this with a budget of $0, all I did was post about the deal to relevant FB book groups. I’ll be upfront and say that I was skeptical that this would have any effect whatsoever, but tracking my links showed that many more clicks originated from FB than Twitter.

I should really look into FB ads some day.

The more I market, the easier it gets. You don’t get good at marketing unless you actually get out there and do it. The more I post about my books, the easier it gets to come up with taglines and catchy blurbs. After running a promotion, I feel like I have a better handle on what makes my book appealing and how to convey it succinctly.

And that, to me, is just as valuable as ranking high on an Amazon list, because it’s something I can put to use again.

What are the best no-cost promotional tools and strategies you’ve found?

Today, I’m delighted to host a new release post for MG fantasy author, Alina Sayre, for The Illuminator Rising, Book Three of The Voyages of the Legend.

I read the first book of the series, The Illuminator’s Gift, on a recent vacation, and was captivated by a world of coral archipelagos, airborne islands, and flying ships.

Ellie is an orphan who has always wanted to belong. Returned by three families and almost thirteen, she’s fast running out of chances. It seems she’s doomed to a bleak future working in a factory until she’s offered the opportunity to join a rescue fleet that serves a Christ-like king. Taken up into a flying ship crewed by a cast of colorful characters, Ellie discovers that her artistic gifts have a greater purpose than she’d ever imagined.

Sayre paints an enchanting world with a deft brush and lovely prose. Ellie herself is a sympathetic character whose growth is slow but sure. The plot moves along at a good clip. And while I had issues with some of the captain’s decisions, overall I was charmed by this middle-grade fantasy and delighted by one plot twist that I saw coming but was still happy when it happened!

Synopsis of The Illuminator Rising, Book 3 of The Voyages of the Legend:

Driven from their home island of Rhynlyr, Ellie and her friends must solve a riddle to find the survivors of the Vestigia Roi. But instead of a safe haven, they discover a hopeless band of refugees paralyzed by fear. Strengthened by new allies and new gifts, the crew of the Legend faces dangers like never before. Can they escape being shot out of the sky, falling over the Edge of the world, or being engulfed by urken armies long enough to rally the Vestigia Roi? And can they rekindle a fire from the ashes of the One Kingdom before Draaken takes over the world?

Advance praise:
“…a thrilling read…[Sayre] has a flair for being able to capture the interest of a reader and hold onto it.”
–Readers’ Favorite, 5-star review

Author bio: 
Alina Sayre began her literary career chewing on board books and has been in love with words ever since. Now she gets to work with them every day as an author, educator, editor, and speaker. Her first novel, The Illuminator’s Gift, won a silver medal in the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards, and all three books in The Voyages of the Legend series have received 5-star reviews from Readers’ Favorite. When she’s not writing, Alina enjoys hiking, crazy socks, and reading under blankets. She does not enjoy algebra or wasabi. When she grows up, she would like to live in a castle with a large library.

Links: 
Website: http://www.alinasayre.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/alinasayreauthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AlinaSayre
Amazon: amazon.com/author/alinasayre
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7469870.Alina_Sayre

Hello readers! Welcome to the Release Week Blitz for

Memories of Ash (The Sunbolt Chronicles #2)
by Intisar Khanani

Fantasy lovers, this one’s for you! Love magic, look no further!
And you definitely need to check out the awesome giveaway found below.

Happy Book Birthday Intisar!

Let’s celebrate everyone!!

In the year since she cast her sunbolt, Hitomi has recovered only a handful of memories. But the truths of the past have a tendency to come calling, and an isolated mountain fastness can offer only so much shelter. When the High Council of Mages summons Brigit Stormwind to stand trial for treason, Hitomi knows her mentor won’t return—not with Arch Mage Blackflame behind the charges.

Armed only with her magic and her wits, Hitomi vows to free her mentor from unjust imprisonment. She must traverse spell-cursed lands and barren deserts, facing powerful ancient enchantments and navigating bitter enmities, as she races to reach the High Council. There, she reunites with old friends, planning a rescue equal parts magic and trickery.

If she succeeds, Hitomi will be hunted the rest of her life. If she fails, she’ll face the ultimate punishment: enslavement to the High Council, her magic slowly drained until she dies.

Title: Memories of Ash
Series: The Sunbolt Chronicles, Book Two
Author: Intisar Khanani
Cover Designer: Jenny Zemanek
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Release Date: May 30, 2016
Publisher: Purple Monkey Press

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple | Kobo

 

 

“It needs a meal,” the mage says, voice rasping, “and it won’t be me.” He yanks me off balance. I cry out, jerking away from him and lashing out with my glowstone. I manage to smack him hard across the face, but then his boot comes between my feet. For a sickening moment I teeter on the edge of the stairs.

Get back!

I barely register the words ringing in my mind before the mage shoves me, hard. I swallow a scream, throwing my arms up to shield my head as I fall. I slam down the stairs, bouncing toward the mass of tentacles.

Feet first—get your feet first!

I follow the shouted advice mindlessly, twisting my body as I come to a stop amidst a tangle of three or four great tentacles.

Don’t move.

Someone is talking inside my head, and it’s not me. Somehow, that’s almost worse than lying surrounded by the talons of a nightmare monster. Almost.

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

The winding streets and narrow alleys of Karolene hide many secrets, and Hitomi is one of them. Orphaned at a young age, Hitomi has learned to hide her magical aptitude and who her parents really were. Most of all, she must conceal her role in the Shadow League, an underground movement working to undermine the powerful and corrupt Arch Mage Wilhelm Blackflame.

When the League gets word that Blackflame intends to detain—and execute—a leading political family, Hitomi volunteers to help the family escape. But there are more secrets at play than Hitomi’s, and much worse fates than execution. When Hitomi finds herself captured along with her charges, it will take everything she can summon to escape with her life.

Intisar Khanani grew up a nomad and world traveler. Born in Wisconsin, she has lived in five different states as well as in Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea. She first remembers seeing snow on a wintry street in Zurich, Switzerland, and vaguely recollects having breakfast with the orangutans at the Singapore Zoo when she was five. She currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband and two young daughters.

Until recently, Intisar wrote grants and developed projects to address community health with the Cincinnati Health Department, which was as close as she could get to saving the world. Now she focuses her time on her two passions: raising her family and writing fantasy. Intisar’s current projects include a companion trilogy to Thorn, following the heroine introduced in her free short story The Bone Knife, and The Sunbolt Chronicles, an epic series following a street thief with a propensity to play hero when people need saving, and her nemesis, a dark mage intent on taking over the Eleven Kingdoms.

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