matthew iden

Testing, Testing: Need Audiobook Help

May 8, 2013 by Matthew Iden

If you read this blog, you probably know I’m in the process of making my first book, A Reason to Live, into an audio book through the Amazon site ACX.com. I’ve gotten several fantastic auditions from voice actors, and am a little stuck on how to proceed.

Got ten minutes? Listen to these voice samples from A Reason to Live, vote for your favorite and, if you want, give me a couple comments at the bottom of the page. It would be a huge help for me in making my decision (which I need to do before May 15 or so).
Continue Reading »

Posted in My Books & Titles | Tagged ACX, amazon, audio books, voice actors, voice talent | 14 Comments »

Do you hear what I hear? Audio Books and ACX

April 30, 2013 by Matthew Iden

I’ve recently started poking my nose into the world of audio books. Now that I have a bona fide series out there, the investment of time seems more than worth it. Why not have another product on the line to meet readers’ wants and needs?

Many of you have heard of ACX (www.ACX.com), the Amazon division that functions as the audio arm in much the same way CreateSpace is the print arm for self-publishers. I took the plunge about a week ago and have started the process of “claiming” my book, getting ready to hear voice talent auditions, and taking the steps necessary to get the thing out in the wild.

Posted in Tip Tuesday, Tips for eAuthors | Tagged ACX, ACX stipend, amazon, audio books, narrator, self-publishing, voice actors | 9 Comments »

Self-Publishers: Do You Need Nurturing?

April 30, 2013 by Matthew Iden

Reblogged from J W Manus:

I get several emails a week from people who are self-publishing or thinking about self-publishing. They ask me questions about the process.

Sometimes I can answer: "What's a good program for making an ebook?" (look here) "My ebook has weird characters. What's causing that?" (look here) "What does Smashwords do?" (it's an aggregator that distributes ebooks to various retail sites.

Scams, Schemes, and Dead End Deals

April 24, 2013 by Matthew Iden

Over the last two days, I’ve come into contact with a couple of what I consider dodgy publishing and self-publishing “offers” and news bits that I thought I’d share.

Posted in Tip Tuesday, Tips for eAuthors | Tagged Bowker, contest, David Gaughran, Preditors and Editors, scam, scheme, self-publishing, Writer Beware, writing | 4 Comments »

Lessons from a book fair

April 22, 2013 by Matthew Iden

I’ve been lucky enough to be invited to several books signings and events this year, one of which was the fun Day of the Book festival in Kensington, Maryland.

I had a great time holding down the Mystery Writers of America table with fellow scribbler Alan Orloff. A lack of sales was almost made up for by the quirky cast of festival goers that passed by, often coming up and asking “Did you write this?” as they picked up our books. Continue Reading »

Posted in The Journey | Tagged awkward, Day of the Book, Kensington | 4 Comments »

More Thoughts on Also Boughts

April 12, 2013 by Matthew Iden

A little update on the Also Boughts issue at Amazon: it’s obvious now that the wholesale removal of ABs is not a permanent change and that the book seller is split-testing its consumer base like mad. The testing is definitely occurring across browsers, with major differences amongst Internet Explorer, Mozzila Firefox, and Chrome.

Posted in Epublishing News | Tagged Also Boughts, amazon, books, ebooks, self-publishing, writers | 2 Comments »

Thoughts On Also Boughts

April 11, 2013 by Matthew Iden

Like many self-published writers, I’ve been unhappy/dismayed/puzzled at Amazon’s removal of ratings and stars from Also Boughts’ listings, but I might be having a change of heart–I was just looking at the Also Boughts for my most recent novel, One Right Thing, and realized something very refreshing: every title looked as interesting as any other.