The Sincerity of John Locke and How He Sold 1 Million ebooks...etc.

I'm thrilled and inspired, having just finished reading John Locke’s How I Sold 1 Million ebooks in 5 Months!. So thrilled and inspired, in fact, I decided both the author and the book needed a mention on the Searching For Sincerity blog.

As an indie author, I struggle every day with the idea that endlessly promoting my work feels a little insincere. Being a salesperson doesn't come naturally to me, though the feedback for my novels has been great, and, of course, I adore them (both - my books and the feedback), and I want them to sell. But what Mr. Locke has done is to show me how to mitigate the insincere aspect of self-promotion, and to UN-lock (pun intended) the secret of building a solid readership in a way that is genuinely sincere. I am so grateful.

I haven’t read Locke's fiction (though I intend to download and read his best-selling Saving Rachel - and yes, if you use any of the links to his books on this page I make a few cents from Amazon:-). From what I gather, he writes contemporary, humorous, irreverent crime novels, as well as a Western series. I don't usually read either of those genres, nor do I write in them. I write romantic time-travel adventures that take place in evocative settings such as Jane Austen’s England and pre-Civil War New York City. How's that for an obvious plug! But this post is not really about my sincerity, rather Mr. Locke's and that of his how-to manifesto.

It’s easy to assume that a book about selling a million of anything is just going to be either a sales pitch, or a bunch of instructions that are impossible for a novice marketer like me to follow. How I Sold 1 Million ebooks... is neither, though the author is totally forthright about saying that he hopes the reader will purchase one of his novels. He’s also forthright about the fact that he wrote his book not just to help authors, but because it made good business sense to do so. Maybe it’s his skill as a salesman, but by the end, not only was I ready to try the step-by-step EASY to follow business plan that he lays out, but I believed that he is a pretty nice, sincere guy, who does not and will not manipulate anyone into buying his books – any of his books. And that was the part that impressed me the most. He stresses that though it is possible to manipulate people into buying one’s books through blogging and social networks, he asks that one not. “It would be like giving you a super power,” he says, “and watching you use it for evil.”

So, though I am honestly and sincerely saying that by blogging about John Locke’s book I hope more people will read this blog than might otherwise do so, I am also willing to add Locke and his book to this carefully chosen evaluative list of businesses, restaurants, entities, and individuals because he has earned the honor.

I deem Mr. Locke and  How I Sold 1 Million ebooks in 5 Months!: Very sincere


John Locke - author
http://donovancreed.com
How I Sold 1 Million ebooks in 5 Months!

Cliff Cottage Tea Garden & Fish Restaurant (and B&B) - Lyme Regis, England

The main purpose for our journey to England a few years ago was so that I could connect with my Anglo roots, and visit the places where my darling Jane Austen lived and that she wrote about. (I didn't really care if Jon and Josh wanted to go; they were along for the ride) And now for a shameless and insincere plug: little did I know at that time, that I would go on to write my first novel, The Time Baroness, about a time-traveler who goes to those same places, in the year 1820, for largely the same purpose. It was a good thing, then, that I had visited, on that trip, the charming, ancient town of Lyme Regis on the Dorset coast. This is a place made famous by a segment of Jane Austen's Persuasion. However, you wouldn't know that fame had ever touched the quiet environs of this lovely place that spring when we visited. Perhaps during the summer season it really bustles, but as we drove down the steep road into the heart of the village and stopped at a pay phone to call about availability at a B&B that sounded intriguing, we just felt lucky that they had a room on such short notice.

And what a room. We found the Cliff Cottage B&B perched on a hill directly overlooking the ocean and the Cobb. Ah, the Cobb. This is the stone structure that juts out into the harbor and makes a kind of break-wall to protect the beach and the fishing boats. It is the place where a pivotal scene in Persuasion takes place; also the point on which the tragic French Lieutenant's Woman, gazes out to sea - both of which I highlight in my book, The Time Baroness - oh, did I mention it already?

Anyway, we were led down a little stone path through a garden to a small bungalow in which we found a beautifully appointed space, white, eyelet down cover on the bed, everything fresh and clean and a little, pull out futon for Josh, as well as a full bathroom. The owners were an older couple, very funny and friendly, and in the morning, before our walk on the Cobb, they fed us one of those full "English" Breakfasts that Americans appreciate so much. The whole experience couldn't have been better, and I hope they're still there, with their "pet" seagulls they named Albert and Victoria, and that if you go, the bungalow is available. Oh, and don't forget to bring along The Time Baroness for some appropriately themed reading.

 Evaluation: Extraordinarily sincere!

 

Cobb Road Lyme Regis DT7 3JP 01297443334 - not to be confused with the "Cliff Cottage Holiday Guest House," also in Lyme Regis!