Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Although I’ve been writing since childhood, I have a BA in History. I love studying history as much as wanting to evoke stories. I like to believe that after decades worth of introspection we have learned, hopefully more wisely if not conscientiously, what happened yesterday with a critical eye. I currently have three books published: two novels and one children’s.
Why subject matters outside of my personal experiences? I live in the Midwest and grew-up in a medium size town where cultural diversity is a bit underdeveloped. My reason is simple: I don’t want to continue to live in a conical world. Consciousness does not develop and mature by existing in a frozen pond. That’s why I love history: To learn. To question. To redeem our humanity. Submitting to a moment in time allows us to remember, or to muse even, over our society’s past. Although writing can educate as well as entertain, yet what makes art incredibly amazing, to that of paintings, photographs, and music, it transposes emotion into another form of humanity, and therefore, it is our humanity which keeps all of us striving for an improved future.
Aside from a history degree, I also have a graphics art degree. My husband and I once owned a music store, a pizza delivery business, and several internet businesses. I also have dabbled with real estate and am grateful I got the heck out right before the crash! Sadly, history tends to repeat itself in important ways. Currently my family continues to live outside of Kansas City and will always have roots tied to Kansas.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
How the Water Falls. If a person is to become socially conscious as a means to understand the world around oneself, then exploring the past is a good way to start. For me, it began with the movie Cry Freedom, which was based on the friendship between Donald Woods and Steve Bike. The inhumanity shown in the movie left me horrified and emotionally displaced. I was only fourteen. Then, years later, I came across a documentary, the name I don’t remember because I missed the beginning, about a white South African couple who had nothing in common. The wife was a liberal reporter, and the husband was a former army personnel and police officer who had been fired as a scapegoat for apartheid’s problems. They struggled with understanding each other’s past. The other inspirations came from the book Kaffir Boy and A Human Being Died That Night: A South African Woman Confronts the Legacy of Apartheid. In dealing with how to come to terms with violence and poverty, these two books opened up a world history books didn’t touch.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Sadly no. My habits aren’t as interesting as my stories and my characters.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love stories that deal with struggle for freedom, searching for identity and purpose, and have some sort of message that forces you to contemplate. Therefore, John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men are still inside my head. He mixes literary prose and realism with such grit and fortitude that I’m charmed by his depressing and enriching style. I love how F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby used cultural references of that time period to preserve the essence of the Roaring Twenties. I’ve also been inspired by G.J Ballard’s Empire of the Sun, William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, and J. M. Coetzee’s Waiting for the Barbarians when dealing with war, prejudices, and violent interactions between people under stressful circumstances. But more recently, I’ve enjoyed how integrating the art of storytelling with historical research have succeeded beyond a marginalized audience such as Jeffrey Eugenides’ Middlesex, Sara Gruen’s Water for Elephants, and Kathryn Stockett’s The Help.
What are you working on now?
A non-ficiton book this time! It’s titled- The Buster Clan: An American Saga. The reputation of “Buster” has a fun history in itself, indisputably so. Buster isn’t just a name you bequeath to your dog or horse, or even to your rabbit; nor it is a nickname attributed to a fellow for either being clumsy or anonymous. Buster is an Americanism. It is good and as stereotyped as apple pie. Was it their surname which influenced the American culture? I hardly think not. But they were not absent from the scene, either. The Busters were, like all things American, pioneers. They began as farmers and slave owners. While being a part of the benefits and consequences of Manifest Destiny, they headed out to Texas, California, and Colorado before the consolidation of the Pacific Railroad, and shortly after the gold rushes. They fought in all American wars, and yes, did have brothers and cousins combat on opposing sides of the Civil War. Although once divided, unification prevailed under the Reconstruction of the South, for those who had stayed in the South. They became entrepreneurs, politicians, bureaucrats, sheriffs, ranchers, teachers, writers, and actors. They were murdered and committed murder. They gambled, embezzled, and served their communities to the best of their abilities. With a timeline expanding three centuries, they undeniably had made an impression, whether positively or negatively, or even conjointly, depending on the angle when we look through the prism.
This exploration started out with a singular intention of wanting to know who my ancestors were, and nothing more, like anyone else on the planet. For years I had procrastinated with my lack of commitment to finally swim in the many rivers of genealogy. Foremost, middle age has an uncanny way of redefining your identity. And so does the death of both your parents within nine months due to two types of cancer. Existential crisis echoes in between your ears like Woody Allen’s nasally voice. It’s poignant. And annoying and unwelcoming at times. I’ve always thought the surname was a bit odd and humorous, often thinking about old Depression Era movies with their Transatlantic accents, calling out to strangers, “Hey, Buster!” I linked my direct line to the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and of course, the Civil War. I pursued the paper footprints from Virginia to Kentucky to Illinois, and ultimately to Kansas. Striking facts about my many generational great-grandfathers accumulated. It became like an Easter egg hunt and I wondered how many “eggs” I could find in historical archives and newspapers. As their personalities transformed from one dimensional relics to human beings, that was when I decided to tribute pay to the Buster clan.
Check out the progression on my blog: http://TheBusterClan.blogspot.com
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Prior to publication, I had already established one blog, one Facebook fanpage and Twitter just two years before marketing my book, but once I had something worth marketing, my followers dramatically increased during November 2011- June 2012. Because I understood the difficulties of reaching out to an audience I still had yet to find, I set my goal to sell a 1,000 copies. Along the way, through trail and error as I experimented, I’ve gathered a list of what I used, what worked best and what didn’t. Below is a list of strategies I had used as a means to market my first novel. To simplify things, I’ve decided to rate the list as it seems fitting as to how authors’ books are rated:
Kirkus Reviews: 2 out of 5 stars
For the price of $425 to stamp a name brand in order to acquire credentials for your book, I would say use your money elsewhere to benefit your marketing budget. It doesn’t provide the exposure as it claims in their statements, and you’re playing Russian roulette when assigned to a reviewer who may not even finish reading your book and then leaves a compromised review. I’m not the only one with this complaint, as you can read here: http://selfpublishingadvice.org/publishing-is-a-kirkus-review-worth-the-price/
Publishers Weekly: 1 out of 5 star
They only select 25 DIY out of 200ish to review and feature your book. If your genre is very selective, the odds of PW selecting your work is very slim; otherwise your book becomes lost in the slush pile PW establishes on their quarterly DIY section. If the price were only $50 or less, it might be worth the gamble, but not for $149. http://accrispin.blogspot.com/2012/05/publishers-weekly-moves-into-self.html
The Bookplex: 5 out of 5 stars
Highly recommend! Amazon accepts their paid reviews, and the affordable pricing is well worth the 5-10 reviews you will receive on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and even the reviewers’ blogs if they have blogs. Their reviewers are bona fide readers who enjoy reading a good book, not critics who feel superior. They do provide fair and thoughtful reviews, so don’t expect all 5 star reviews because we live in the real world. TheBookPlex.com
Self-Publishing Review: 4 out of 5 stars
If you’re looking for an extremely affordable credential, this is the spot. They are a medium size format. Their reviewers are also self published writers, editors, and bloggers whose background compliments the indie author industry. SelfPublishingReview.com.
Blogger Book Reviews
5 out of 5 stars
I am so grateful for the support of bloggers who support indie authors. To read about how to acquire book reviews, check out my article: The Low Down of Book Reviews for Indie Authors http://blog.elenchera.com/2012/10/guest-post-the-low-down-of-book-reviews-for-indie-authors-k-p-kollenborn/
GoodReads: 3 out of 5 stars
A wonderful place to set up your author’s page and load up your book(s). It’s a great resource for exchanging ideas and thoughts. No spamming. The best feature is the book give-away. You have up to 6 months to give-away a physical book as a means to generate a buzz and accumulate reviews about your newest release. When I mailed off the winners copies, I included a letter thanking them for entering and congratulating them for winning. I also asked them to leave a review if they would like to do so (which all did.) How many books you want to give away is up to you, but the more you send out, the more reviews you collect. Author Program. And this is an excellent article: 5 Ways Writers Can Get the Most Out of GoodReads http://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/5-ways-writers-can-get-the-most-out-of-goodreads
Smashwords: 2 out of 5 stars
I’m still not sure about Smashwords. I do love what it has to offer: It offers different outlets- Apple, Kobo, Diesel, Sony, Baker & Taylor, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, (although with Amazon and B&N it’s better to directly upload it yourself because you’ll upload immediately and will receive a higher royalty percentage.) I do like that you can download epubs and mobi conversions that are ideal for submitting to reviewers that way you don’t need to find and download programs to perform those tasks. I also like that Smashwords will assign a free ISBN for ebooks needed for libraries, Apple store, and Baker and Taylor. Here are the problems I have with Smashwords: First, it took anywhere from a month to three months to upload the files, and my book never made it on Apple or Baker & Taylor. Second, my sales are 1/5th compared to that of Amazon. I have read, however, Smashwords does well with authors OUTSIDE of the U.S., and for those in the U.S., certain genres like romances, paranormal romances, and erotica have done well.
Amazon Selects: 3.0 out of 5 stars
Now to be fair, I recently joined Select and only have one book. Other authors who have multiple books have done fairly well with this program. I can understand that. Once you gain a fan base, readers want to read more of your writings. Despite having only one place to sell my ebook, (which sounds like jail,) I have to admit that when I offered my book for free for the Christmas holiday, I sold A LOT OF BOOKS. I like this feature for available exposure. Now, in order for this program to work, you need to list it on sites where they advertise your free ebook.
Barnes & Noble: 1 out of 5 stars
As dismal as my sales appeared with Smashwords, they are even worse on B&N. But the listing is free, and it’s at least another outlet. Some authors have claimed to have fared well, and again, it’s all genre based- which seems to be dominated by romance. And if you want to offer your book for free as a promo gimmick for a few days like Amazon, you would need to do so via Smashwords, and there is a little bit of a delay before it shows.
Createspace: 5 out of 5 stars
Createspace has the most affordable POD to date- comparable to Lulu, Blurb, Bublish, Wordclay, The Book Patch, etc. If you are on a tight budget, Createspace will provide a FREE ISNB and the most cost-effective printing when you need to buy your own books for promos. Also, with a cheaper wholesale, you can competitively compare your book within your genre. I started with Lulu, and although they have excellent customer services and products, I had to pay twice as much for my book. And for $25, Createspace offers an extended distribution to other online bookstores to include Barnes & Noble, Alibis, Books A Million, and many smaller distributors. Plus with Amazon offering free shipping on their Prime program, it encourages readers to purchase via Amazon instead of other stores. Although 90% of my sales have been ebooks, to offer physical copies has been helpful with give-aways, (especially on GoodReads,) and for those who do prefer soft bound to that of ebooks. CreateSpace.com
Blogging: 4 out of 5 stars
It’s difficult to calculate direct sales from my blogs, but the hundreds of hits I get on a monthly basis has helped expand the exposure of my name and themed interests. Not to mention I love sharing and have a strong belief in paying it forward.
Author Interviews & Guest Blogging: 5 out of 5 stars
Finding other bloggers who not only provide book reviews but allow interviews and guest blogger is a fantastic way to grow your marketing. If you can coordinate at least several within the same month, you will see increased traffic toward your social media outlets and will help keep your sales steady. It can be time consuming, so pace yourself, and I wouldn’t recommend doing so every month because you will burn out. Either every other month or quarterly intervals, depending on your stamina level.
Facebook and Facebook Writers Groups: 4 out of 5 stars
Depending on the month, I got an average of about 10% of referrals to my blogs and website via Facebook. I use both my personal page and business pages, ( pages to include author and book pages.) But since Facebook had changed it’s system- again- the last few months of the year I had noticed a decrease, so 2013 very well may have different results. The events page invitation is a great way to invite your friends, however. Although most groups have authors post their books for sale, but every once in a while either a blogger, another writer, or some other promo person will post a request seeking other authors for interviews or offer free resources to help market your name or book. I think of it as classifieds, therefore several times a week I’ll scroll through to see what’s going on. In the meantime, sometimes I am able to answer a question or share some advice to others.
Twitter: 3 out of 5 stars
Again depending on the month, I get an average of about 5% of referrals, but what I like about Twitter is that it establishes these 3 elements: 1.) Connecting to other indie authors and see how they are communicating on Twitter to grow their audience; 2.) Finding more book reviewers to connect to; 3.) Finding indie book stores to connect to. Check out the best hashtags for writers: http://www.authormedia.com/44-essential-twitter-hashtags-every-author-should-know/
Hootsuite: 5 out of 5 stars
This was awesome force to utilize a way to schedule my posts on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. You can login on any computer and do not have to worry about downloading a program to use it. I usually set up my posts on Sunday, and allow them to go out for the rest of the week. Hootsuite.com
Newsletter: 2 out of 5 stars
I haven’t had much success with my newsletter thus far. I’ve noticed that unless you’re constantly providing freebies, people won’t sign up or hardly will read your emails. About 3% of people who had signed up will check out my newsletter. I know the ultimate goal is to announce your next event and release of new books; however, with one book right now it’s a hard sell. I will need continue to improve my content and database. I use MailChimp because it’s super easy to use and it’s FREE up to 2,500 followers. Mailchimp.com
Press Releases: 1 out of 5 star
THEY DO NOT WORK. Authors who specialize in self-help, advice, how to, etc. have claimed that press releases work for them. For the fiction sector, it’s a bit more challenging. Unless you’re well known, the unknowns rarely get a second glance. Even John Locke of Donavon Creek series, not the 15th Century philosopher, admitted that press releases didn’t work for him, either.
Website and Book Trailer: 3 out of 5 stars
Although I only get a handful of hits, nevertheless, by having a website establishes professionalism as a published author. Book trailers will not necessarily increase your exposure, however it a cool feature to compliment your website. If you can’t afford one, then don’t worry about it. Websites for Indie Authors
Book Club Reading List: 1 out of 5 stars
For $39.95 you list your book with them, they send out a newsletter and press release to their audience. I was intrigued by the idea, and the cost was worth the gamble. Sadly, I had a few people look at my book, and no buys. They are fairly new and in order for them to grow they want you to back-link their site.
Indie Author Land: 3 out of 5 stars
A free place that supports indie authors and I have noticed some sales that it came from that week of publication. IndieAuthorLand.com
Indies Unlimited: 3 out of 5 stars
Another free place that supports indie authors. I didn’t get much traffic, but I believe the main reason is due to my genre. They focus more adventure, romance, mystery, horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and biography. I do appreciate having an opportunity to market my book at any rate.IndiesUnlimitied.com
Hand out Cards: 3 out of 5 stars
Hand out business cards and postcards, (postcards to include your book, book reviews, where to buy your book, and website.) Keep these with you in your purse or wallet. If you strike up a friendly conversation with a stranger, just hand them a card. ”In case you may be interested.” The most cost effective printing I’ve found is this one, (and yes, cheaper than Vista Print.) http://www.overnightprints.com/
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Persistence pays. Even with bad reviews and low downloads during slow times. My first year I’ve sold 3,248 copies, and gave away 40. Very, very rarely will an author hit it big on their first round. Many authors, whether indie or traditional, have often stated it was either their third or fourth book before they started gaining recognition. And sometimes it wasn’t until their seventh or eighth book before raising brows. The best part about being an indie author is the absolute control you have in managing your book(s); and you don’t have to worry about either a publisher or agent dropping you due to the amount of sales you have accumulated. Ask, politely and without stalking or begging, to acquire book reviews and to also buy your books. If you don’t ask, you won’t know.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.” All About Eve, Bette Davis
What are you reading now?
The Scotch-Irish: A Social History and Away Off Shore.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Completing my next project and try another avenue for publication- I’m looking at small to medium presses. I’ll still be independently published, but this time not self-published to see what that’s like.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Empire of the Sun, Empire of the Summer Moon, (yes, I do love my empires!,), The Joy Luck Club, and a dictionary. Still need to expand my knowledge and vocab!
Author Websites and Profiles
K.P. Kollenborn Website
K.P. Kollenborn Amazon Profile
K.P. Kollenborn’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account