No Limits Ladies.com

Last week, my publisher Champagne Books generously offered my latest release Invisible as a free download during Read An eBook Week. Despite it only being for the week, it was a risky move. How many people would BUY a book when they could get it for free?

Or was it risky?

It is the recession. Yes, romance novel sales are still strong (it is an inexpensive indulgence) but those are sales for well known authors. I’m not well known. Readers are less likely to gamble their hard saved money on an unknown author.

So it was less of a risk because we had less sales to possibly lose. Combine that with readers having more time and less money and a free offer becomes even more appealing.

The results were blogger coverage and a staggering amount of downloads. When the economy recovers (maybe in time for my next full length release in 2010?), I’ll have a group of readers familiar with my writing. They will no longer be taking a chance with their money. They’ll know they will get a great read.

AND I’m seeing increased sales. I have a strong enough base for word of mouth to start working. It looks like I will sell more of this second novel than I did with the first. All by giving it away.

That’s why NOW is the best time to build your business or launch your product. Sampling (recommended with any new product) will make more of an impact. Consumers are receptive to new ideas. They are out of their comfort zone. This is your chance to put them back in yours.

Don’t wait for the economy to recover. That’s when your competition will come out of hiding.

TODAY is the day!

I am naturally an optimistic person but lately, I’ve had a series of ‘failures’ batter my self esteem. Yesterday, I was feeling broken down. I was having a hard time getting motivated. I couldn’t dig up the positive energy needed to sell, sell, sell.

I had a pile of work to do, my list growing longer by the minute.

So what did I do? I went on a mini-vacation.

I spent an evening in bed, under the covers, reading a treasured romance novel, one I’ve read a hundred times before, a guaranteed good read. I sipped hot chocolate and lost myself in the book.

This morning, I feel wealthy. I’ve had a taste of what I’m working towards. My mind is clear and spinning with ideas. Problems I thought were insurmountable now have possible solutions (some solutions may be a little crazy and need fine-tuning). I can not only cope with the day but excel.

Of course, I couldn’t escape my problems like this all the time. That would make them grow until they were out of control. But when the strain and stress gets too much, a mini-vacation gives the brain a rest.

Other mini-vacations include bubble baths, getting sucked into a good movie, going to the putting green and whacking a few balls, simply going to http://www.jokes.com/ and laughing at the joke of the day.

There was lotto fever in my city last week. With the jackpot, everyone was buying tickets. There were work pools and group buys.

My hubby’s coworker wanted to go in with him on some tickets (a smart move as he was buying quite a few tickets and she only paid for one). When he bought the tickets, she asked him “How will I know you won’t skip town if you win?” My hubby laughed, thinking she was joking. She wasn’t. And the reason she asked the question was because she would be seriously tempted to claim the entire prize for herself if she won.

The hubby and I don’t play that way. You may think it is because we now have ‘enough’ but no, we’ve never played that way.

You see, when I was 12 years old, I was a kindergarten helper. I’d help the teacher with the young kids during recess and lunch hour. Every year, parents would donate their used holiday cards so kids could do arts and crafts with them (collages and such). My job, one recess, was to separate the front (with the picture) from the back (with people’s signatures and personal messages). I was a horse freak and there was this one card with a horse on it.

I wanted that card. Badly.

Looking back, I should have asked to have that card. It was a used card, for goodness sakes! But then, I was afraid the teacher would say no. And I REALLY wanted that card.

So I stole it. I hid it in my jacket, took it home, and kept it under my bed. For years, the card was there, a constant symbol of the bad, bad thing I had done. I finally destroyed it, hoping the guilt would leave with it. It didn’t. To this day, I feel guilty.

I learned a lasting lesson with that used card. Nothing, nothing in life is worth compromising your morals for. If you believe stealing is wrong, a million dollars won’t make that guilt go away.

BTW… the hubby will never buy a lotto ticket with that coworker again and he will think twice about working with her on projects.