The Glen's Official Retirement

Yes, that time has come. While it may seem out of the blue for some readers, it has been on my mind for a year or longer. Hey, it had a good run, over five whole years, I would not have believed it would have lasted even this long. I'm officially announcing my retirement from writing posts on Dusted Glen for several reasons.

1: My Writing is Elsewhere

I could say I'm too busy but that's not exactly true. It's just that the time I do have to write I spend it elsewhere. Every time I sit down to work on a manuscript there's that nagging voice in my head that says "You should actually write a blog post." The problem is, if I do, I'm all tapped out on writing, more and more it has been feeling unproductive.

2: Does Anyone Even Read This?

This is an honest question, not a cry for attention. Although my blog comments are few and far between, my last one was in 2014. Also, based on a few people I talk to, I'm under the impression that even people I know no longer read this blog (their discovery of this post will be discovered in 2023 when it appears in a user's feed in the new mega-social media: PinterBookTwumblSnaptagram)

3: Blogs are Old School

With a few exceptions blogs have been replaced my social media and, while not my favorite medium, I find social media to be where any sort of audience is. Therefore, if I am to make any announcements to new books coming out or want to hear from any readers, Blogger is not the destination for it. I'm like Ariel from the Little Mermaid, I want to be where the people are.


But no worries! I won't be deleting Dusted Glen, your Satyr tutorial goodness will still be around as long as Blogger itself lasts.

Meanwhile, for any new or recent updates check out my Twitter @punyauthor or my Facebook profile. If I decide to branch out I will try to add more to Dusted Glen's sidebar.

Thanks for being such great readers and I hope you'll continue to enjoy my books both new and old!

Whoops

Okay so I did attempt to get a post out on time. In reality I've actually been too busy with my next writing project to make a post. Maybe next month, yeah?

I don't want to leave you without anything to read this month though so here is an article about the reality of self-publishing failure.

http://www.creativindie.com/the-horrible-hidden-truth-about-self-publishing-that-nobody-wants-you-to-know/

Why Amazon Reviews are Important

I really don't want to write this post.

Like really.

I kinda don't even want you to read this post.

Here, look at some kittens instead.

Okay I got distracted with the kittens long enough

Here we go.

Originally, when I wrote Dusted I figured Amazon reviews would just trickle in. Whenever I read an indie book I make sure to always give an author a review and, I figured, anyone else would do the same for me. Many indie authors have a page in their book that basically asks you to leave a review, I had decided not to do that. Instead I decided I "wasn't going to beg for reviews" and that if people enjoyed my book enough they would give it a review.

Instead I can now honestly say I have people who would rescue me from a burning building but have never given me an Amazon review.

They did, however, give the building 1 star on Yelp.

I've had people tell me, in person, how awesome my book was, but unless they tell other people to their face or leave a review online it's not going to do more than give me fuzzies. 

The most common excuse I've heard is "I don't know what to say" but it's not that hard.

The story was:

Great

Too slow

Too fast

Well-paced

Awful

Cliche

The characters were:

Hilarious

Even more cliche than the story

Well-rounded

Hollow shells

All Mary-Sues

Awesome

I would:

Get a refund from this book if I were able

Check out the next book in this series

Definitely buy anything from this author again

Highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a fun read

Throw this book in the fireplace

Shank this author in a dark alley

Mix and match at your leisure.

Most important than even the wording is this:

Actually wait, let me zoom in a little...

Enhance

Fuzzy Rainbow Vision activate!

I hate to say this, but quantity actually matters over quality. Ten 5-star reviews won't do me as much good as 100 3-star reviews.

So please give me, and other small-time authors, just a moment of your time and give a quick review. It helps us so much.