2023 has not been the best year but I'm going into 2024 with a positive outlook and optimism. I'm hoping 2024 gives me more opportunity for writing and sharing but my ultimate writing goal for 2024 is to finish and post Maverick Chronicles *someone hold me to this* and maybe write an og and self publish on Amazon but that might be a pipe dream - if you've done it feel free to send me a message on how it works tho lol

I hope yall have a wonderful safe night ringing in the new year and may 2024 be the best year yet.

Much love 💙

Hello, wonderful human being! <3

I recently found your book (well, like a few seconds ago because of the last ask you answered), and I wanted to ask if you get a good share when buying your paperback edition on Amazon? And if not, is there another website where I can buy it? Just wanted to ask first before getting it because I want to support you as best as possible with it! <3

All the love to you <3 and btw, the summary had me hooked within a second 👀

Oh hello! I am so happy liked that summary and are interested in reading my book.

An interesting question! I always push the fact you can read my book on Kindle Unlimited (which is always running a sign up deal if you aren't already signed up) and then ya know if you really like me/my book, you can buy the paperback as a trophy (this is what I do lol).

But some transparency! I'll but this below the cut, but you can see what rates I get from Amazon on each format, and what I made in October as a new author who only promotes their book through crazy tiktoks.

I actually had to look this up because I couldn't remember (and I should probably make a note of this), but let's not focus on my disorganization today.

When you buy my book as an eBook for your kindle, I make £1.58/$1.90 (ignore the 70% I am not enrolled in that option).

When you buy my book as a paperback, I get £2.52/$3.07 (wide just means you can find me on like the B&N website I actually don't know who much or little or whether I get sales from those wide/expanded outlets). But the big thing to point out here is that Amazon has a minimum I must set my books to so the pricing here is less my choice.

If you are like me, you only read on your phone and really only read Kindle Unlimited books because you are cheap trying to support indie/new authors more, but are be sensible with your budget before you buy a paperback for you trophy shelf.

When you read my book on KU cover to cover (400 pages) I make about £1.50. This number a bit of an estimation because I won't really know until the months end what I will make on KU because it is based on page reads.

So I guess what I am trying to say is that if you are on KU, read my book there. Because if you don't like it, you can return in and I still get paid for the pages you do read. Where as, if you buy the eBook or Paperback, decide you don't like it and return it, I get the full retail price taken from my royalties that month, which could mean I have to pay Amazon money.

This is my October Royalties breakdown. You can see I made .99 from print sales (which means I got some wide sales!), and the rest from KU page reads.

hey there! fellow naturalist (albeit less experienced!) here! in regards to the AI-generated ID guides, do you have any advice for helping the general public learn to recognize them? are there any giveaways other than incorrect information a layperson might not pick up on that we can tell people to watch out for?

Hi, @fischotterkunst! It's a messy topic, to be sure, but here's what I've been seeing of these AI-generated texts, at least on Amazon:

--If you sort your search for "foraging book" or "mushroom hunting" or whatever search string you use by "Newest Arrivals", you'll notice that there is a glut of books that have come out in the past few weeks. Yes, there are always new books, but this is at a higher than normal rate, which suggests AI is behind at least some of them. There ARE occasionally real authors' books that just happened to come out recently, so don't dismiss every single book that is a fresh release. Use the other criteria below.

--They will invariably be self-published or from some publisher with zero online presence. Not a problem by itself; my own chapbooks are self-published on Amazon KDP. But they come out every three months, not every three days, because I am researching, writing, and editing them all myself, rather than churning out content with AI.

--The titles and subtitles are often very long and stuffed with keywords. They are obviously optimized for search engines rather than being descriptive of the book and they have a rather clunky fashion.

--Look for obvious typos and other errors; for example, in the image above we have "WILD MUSHROOM COOKBOOK FOR BEGINNER: The complete guide on mushroom foraging and cooking with delicious recipes to enjoy your favorite". It should be "for beginners", and the subtitle just...ends prematurely. Favorite what? Favorite mushrooms? Favorite cartoon characters? Favorite color? Also, while there are lot of variations on name spellings, "Magaret" instead of "Margaret" stands out as a possible fake in combination with other clues. (All her other books also have this spelling, though.)

--This is a BIG one: Who's the author? Check their bio. In the above image you'll see that "Jason Cones", the author of "The Wild Edible Plants Forager's Handbook: A Beginner's Guide to Safe Foraging, Including How to Identify Edible Plants, Learn About Their Medicinal Properties, and Prepare Them for Cooking", has a very generic picture and bio that has pretty obviously been generated by AI. If you search for him online, the only page for an author named Jason Cones is the Amazon author page--no website, no social media, no interviews, nada. Even a brand new author will at least have something other than their Amazon page, and they'll mention experience, credentials, other biographical info.

--Look at the author's other books. Magaret seems to focus on cookbooks of very specific sorts, but again they've all come out in a very short time. They also tend to often be on really super-specific niche subjects--this, again, is not a red flag in and of itself, but it's a common pattern with AI "authors". Jason Cones, on the other hand, has written over two dozen books not just about foraging but anger management techniques, acupressure, and weed gummies, and all of his titles have come out since last December.

--If all the books have the same cover but slight differences in title, it's also a big red flag. There are reputable publishers of regional foraging guides like Timber Press, but their books are written by multiple authors and have come out over a long stretch of years (plus they're a well-known publisher with a solid track record, online presence, etc.) Also notice the typos in the title and subtitle; everyone says "Mushroom Foraging", not "Mushrooms Foraging", and "Keep Track Your Mushroom Sightings" is missing "of".

--Compare the descriptions of multiples of these new books and you start seeing patterns. If you look at the images above, you'll notice that both Lorna K. Thompson's "Foraging Recipe Cookbook" and Kevin Page's "The Ultimate Foraging Guide for Seniors" have a very similar formulaic description. They start with a brief story about a person in a town or village who discovers some foraging secrets and then transforms his life, and then a list of things you're supposedly going to find in this seemingly miraculous book. This basically reads like "Hey, ChatGPT, tell me a story of a person who improved their life with foraging in two hundred words or less!" Also, the ends got cut off of my screen shot, but they both end with "GET YOUR COPY TODAY!"

I have not purchased any of these books to verify how awful the content is, but what little content I can see in the previews is uniformly formulaic and, again, reads like someone asked an AI to write content on a topic with some specific keywords thrown in. Needless to say, I do NOT recommend any of these books.

Also, I feel really bad for any actual authors who released their books in the past few months. They're likely getting drowned out by this AI junk, though hopefully they're getting enough attention for their work through their publishers, social media, etc. to get some sales. Support your real-life authors, and boycott AI!

Finally, PLEASE reblog this! It's really, really important that people know what to look for, and the more posts we have floating around with this info, the less likely it is someone's going to get poisoned by following what these books have to say.

I've just released my first novel and the first in a trilogy! The Bonds That Bind Us is a story of trauma, healing, found family, and growth. It is a literary fiction with a gay romance plot, and is currently FREE ON KINDLE FOR EVERYONE!

Interview with Succulent Siren♠️

Where did the idea for the book ‘Powerful Secrets of the Divine Feminine’ come from?

The idea for this book began with my journey of discovering and exploring my spirituality.

Spirituality for me was like entering a wonderland where all the dogma no longer held value.

I was, and still am learning liberating and empowering knowledge about myself.

Once I began to apply this knowledge, I began to attract more money, I became more confident, I manifested a successful blog, I found my voice, I had more successful outcomes in my personal life and so much more.

What teachings advanced your life the most?

I gained the most treasures by learning to apply what I learned about Feminine Energy.

Many women are disconnected from their Feminine Energy but if they we’re connected, they’d be able to attract so much more abundance.

So I want to share this knowledge to enlighten other people, especially women and girls, of their true power.

What message do you have for girls and women?

Like the majority of girls, I was also taught to be a ‘nice girl’ but I learned as I got older, that the ‘nice girl’ path didn’t have my best interests at heart. It was a setup for me to get walked all over by others and I refuse to live a life of misery or submission.

So instead of teaching girls to shrink, I want to remind them of their power.

I had to learn how to release my mind from shame and take my power back and there’s no better feeling than owning who you are and living free.

I know i’m meant to get what I want and live my dream life and I know that there’s so much more abundance to come.

I am totally obsessed with bettering myself and living in my highest potential and I strive to influence others to do the same.

Grab A Copy of the Book Here

What are plans -- In Fog is out!

It is on kindle only for the moment, because Amazon is clingy, but it'll be on Gumroad as well when the kdp thing runs out. And a print version will be available before the end of the month (I am waiting for my proof)

In Fog is a Horror Romance with a focus on existential dread, identity and emotional worth. It gets a bit intense and there are some naughty bits and a lot of blood. So be prepared and please enjoy. ^.-

Excerpt (you can also hit up the tag and find the entire rough draft in there somewhere, do it, it'll be fun)--

You were to leave after our final year at university, on the heels of your father, ferried to another city–another world for all the pain it caused me–while I remained in our sleepy town, living the same sleepy life. I would have accepted it, you know. I would have cried and wailed and gnashed my teeth…but I would have accepted it. Perhaps not until filial responsibilities forced me into a business I had no head for and social mores locked me into a marriage of convenience, of expectation. Yet, I would. I am certain that I would…eventually, had I been given the option, had that night not ruined it all; ruined us both.

While not for everyone, selling direct does allow authors a certain degree of freedom, and a lot more information that allows authors to get closer to their readers and begin to build that fan base.

My Mum is A Self-Published Author!

Hey guys! So, my mum has always wanted to write a cookbook filled with our homemade recipes. It’s been in the works for a bit, but now, we’ve finally self-published her kindle book, Mumzilicious!

It would honestly mean the world to me if you could show some support for her book.

These recipes are perfect for you if you want:

Quick and easy recipes for delicious Pakistani cuisine.

Healthy dishes that are not too spicy or oily.

To learn how to cook and need somewhere to start.

To treat yourself to mouth-watering home-cooked meals.

You can get your copy below. If you have any questions, let me know!

Links:

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW19JX4M

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW19JX4M

Please signal boost this too, so everyone can get their copy! ❤️

So here it is boys and girls, my first book I wrote and let me tell you... As someone who has a broken heart herself right now... I literally kind of put a lot of my own pain in this. But instead of harsh reality, this should leave you with a big smile and a warm and fuzzy feeling in the end. You might also want to strangle or slap these two idiots occacionally, maybe you'll also have a chuckle and later on it might even get spicy 🤭 So definitely not safe for work peeps...

But in the end... well, you'll see. 🤗 So get yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea, snuggle in and get yourself a treat with my two idiots Jasper and Oliver. 😊

Have a look here~

Oh and for anyone who is interested, I also made the cover myself. What do you guys think? I might change it later on, as I can never settle for just one 🤭 lol... anyway. For now I very much like it. Have fun!

Frustrations (Self-Publishing [lulu.com] / Selling [Amazon.com])

I joined Tumblr in 20`6 because I wanted to have some (however small) social media outlet to promote my poetry chapbook:

(FTR, over the last 7 and 3/4 years, 52 copies have been bought [through both Amazon and Lulu's own site], for a total of $6.69 in royalties. The most recent sale was February of this year, and the listing on Amazon now has 2 ratings. So that's nice.)

Anyway, about a week ago, I checked the for the book on Amazon, and I saw it was described as "For Ages 1 and up" (with a little baby face icon). I clicked their feedback form, and said: "It's for ages YA and up." As of today, the information has not changed.

So I logged onto Lulu's site to see if they included "reading age" in the information they provide to sellers, to see if I could change the settings, or what have you. They do not.

So I don't know how or why Amazon's algorithm decided to provide that [mis]information ... Maybe because it's a slim book, with pictures of animals on the cover?

*Shrug*

I know there are huge problems with Amazon, but I have to say, the democratization of publishing is something magical. No gatekeepers, no one tells you it isn't marketable or that it won't have a big enough audience, you just format and post a novel and they print it. And people are getting books that would never be published otherwise (like Mansfield Park variations).

Yes, you have to market it yourself, but I was convinced only a few years ago that no one would ever pay for what I wrote and Amazon direct publishing changed all of that.

Fun facts about Maya’s new book!!

She doesn’t have a publishing deal (yet?)

However do you know this Sada? You might ask. Well it is quite simple dears. First: she didn’t list any publisher, which is a difference from how -say - Lottie announced her new book.

There is also nothing that comes up when you search for Maya or the book, and there’s nothing in any trade magazines about her book being picked up.

On top of that, her illustrator? He only made his IG account 6 hours ago. He is in fact a real artist but the account she tagged is brand new.

Just some fun facts 🤗

The Bonds That Bind Us

I started this book in late 2016/early 2017, and it has been through so many iterations before finally becoming what it is now.

When I first published this book in 2018, it was impulsive and unfinished; I was just so excited to have written a novel people might buy.

Now, I'm at a stage in life where this story (all three parts of it) have helped me heal so much of my own trauma and hurts, and I want it to do the same for others.

For everyone who doesn't have a family, who has found family, who are dealing with trauma and the shitty things life has to throw at us.

To the survivors and the ones who refused to give up. The ones who shouted fuck you to the people who told them they'd never amount to anything.

Whether you pay for this story or get the free, kindle unlimited version, I want to thank you for giving it a chance, and for supporting me. <3

Just some examples of how suboptimal the Kindle self-publishing set-up is:

(1) My author bio got rejected with the error "You have used a prohibited word." I kept reading it over, like, "What word could possibly be triggering this????" Before taking out the link to my Tumblr page. That was the trick, I guess you can't have links in your author bio. But...it feels like Amazon could...tell you that......?????

(2) Likewise, Amazon kept rejecting my manuscript for completely unspecified reasons. Over and over, just rejecting it, without telling me why. I kept following the directions and following the directions, tweaking tiny little things like, "Is this the problem? Is THIS the problem??" Finally I was like, "Is it because it's not a PDF????" It DOES say a PDF gives you the best results but I was on a computer where print-to-PDF wasn't working (don't even ask...) so I thought I'd try with the .doc, which it also claims to accept. When I got to a computer where I could PDF, yes, it accepted the same exact manuscript with zero issues. So......it seems like Amazon doesn't actually accept .docx documents and it shouldn't claims that it does?????

(3) Even though I used the exact Amazon template, downloaded from Amazon, that it told me to use for the paperback manuscript, it still told me that it had uploaded with sizing errors, but don't worry, it would fix it for me. I feel like their exact template should not have sizing errors, but I apparently have high standards.

(4) My book still doesn't show up when you search Amazon. In fact, if you search my title plus author name, you get zero results. I Googled this issue to see if it IS an issue or maybe searching just takes a while to kick in. The suggestions were: (a) Just give people a direct link. Okay, but....maybe people might want to search your book, too...???? A feature Amazon claims to have.....??? (b) Sometimes Amazon assumes people don't actually want to find your book, even when they are searching deliberately for it, because Amazon decides your book isn't good enough for people to actually want to read, and so it just doesn't return it in search results and instead returns other books it thinks people should want to read more. ?????? (c) Put the title of your book in a keyword search box, which I'm going to try, but seems a little silly, but okay. (d) Don't even bother to title your books with a title, just title them with a summary of what's in them, you're not special enough to have a title. (e) Contact Amazon directly to ask them to make your title and author name searchable, sometimes Amazon automatically spellchecks your title and author name and/or otherwise doesn't enter the information correctly and you need to contact them directly to fix the problem.

This is a small selection. When I tell you it took me several days of multi-hour sessions to get the technology to work even a little bit, I'm not lying.