Overview
With 10 years of experience in independent publishing and the book industry, I am here to help your literary dream succeed. I have experience and insights into all aspects of the publishing and book marketing process, including indie publishing, crowdfunding, and bookstore marketing.
My experience includes:
🔹10 years as an indie publishing book operations and marketing professional
🔹3 years as a professional bookstore book buyer
My services are:
🔸Launch marketing and production planning (including market research, competitive analysis, distribution strategy, marketing strategy and tactics, launch process and timelines, social content and advertising)
🔸Metadata, keyword, and category audits to enable best organic search reach on written copy including catalogue copy, author bios, advertising copy, book blurbs
🔸Frontmatter and backmatter optimization to turn a book read into series readthrough
🔸Paid social advertising plans that deliver profitable results, using Meta ads
🔸Amazon advertising analysis, optimization, and management (I have managed over $240K USD spend on Amazon Ads alone)
🔸Promotion planning with Bookbub and other discount book promotion services
🔸Mailing list building, segmenting, onboarding, and optimization
🔸Advance review and street team tactics
🔸In-person event and hand-selling coaching
The best part? I will be upfront and honest with you about where your money would be best spent. I refuse to let clients waste their money on tactics that won’t see good return.
My areas of specialty are:
🔹GENRES: science fiction, fantasy, speculative fiction, LGBTQ+ fiction with speculative elements, gamelit/litrpg
🔹FORMATS: novels, audiobooks, graphic novels (original or webcomic adaptations)
🔹PLATFORMS: Self-publishing platforms including both KU exclusive and widely published books. I love to explore new publishing platforms and delivery methods so don’t hesitate to reach out if you are trying something off the beaten path. I also work with Kickstarter and Backerkit projects.
🔹EXPERIENCE LEVELS: I work with all levels of experience.
🔸Experienced publishers looking to optimize current processes or experiment with new avenues.
🔸Authors with at least three titles looking for coaching on how to standardize processes and make more time for the creative work.
🔸Debut independent authors needing advice on a launch strategy and best practices. I've got your back with consulting and coaching.
Services
Fiction
Non-Fiction
Awards
- 6-time finalist for Prix Aurora Awards for Best Graphic Novel
- 60+ Amazon US bestseller badges
Certifications
- Growth Marketing Certificate
- BComm in Marketing, Minor in English
Work experience
Freelancing
I help literary entrepreneurs like you find more readers, optimize your business, and have time to do what only you can do: write.
Faolan's Pen Publishing
Frontlist and backlist marketing and advertising campaigns including Amazon Ads, Mailchimp, Kickstarter, and social ads (Meta, Twitter/X, Reddit).
Faolan's Pen Publishing
Frontlist book production operations, launch strategization, marketing, and advertising campaigns including Amazon Ads, Mailchimp, and social ads (Meta, Twitter/X, Reddit). ARC and beta reader team management.
University of Calgary Bookstore
Managed all non-textbooks, selecting titles and quantities to order based on market and bookstore trends. Organized, stocked, and staffed all bookselling events.
Astres Press
Published personal projects including graphic novel versions of the 6-year Prix Aurora Award finalist Crash and Burn and volunteer fundraising anthologies for Sirens, a Narrate Conferences. Coordinated, planned, and staffed multiple artist and vendor stalls to hand-sell comics.
Faery Ink Press
Assisted and hand-sold books at bookselling events at pop culture and comic expos. Assisted with successful Indiegogo crowdfunding campaigns.
Projects
#1 Science Fiction Category Launch (The Service of Mars by Glynn Stewart)
This book launched into #1 on the US Science Fiction category for paid on its release day, August 25, 2020. This was a Kindle Unlimited exclusive launch. The marketing factors I managed for this title's success included:
🔸Cover reveal 1 month before launch
🔸Optimized metadata and connected to core series
🔸Preorder buzz campaign
🔸ARC team management and review coordination
🔸Patreon early access campaign
🔸Newsletter campaigns for preorder and launch
🔸Launch advertising on Facebook/Meta and Amazon Ads, initiated 2 weeks prior to launch
🔸Social media launch announcements for Facebook Author Page, Facebook Readers Group, Twitter/X
🔸Website book release announcement
🔸Simultaneous paperback release (did production work for this)
🔸First in series countdown campaigns in US and UK with discount newsletter services stack
AMS Ads - Military Science Fiction Series Rescue
After an ad subcontractor failed to deliver on targets, I was brought in to rescue this series' US Amazon Ads. The issues were:
🔸The ads were not spending to the desired budget ($1400 USD)
🔸The ACOS (Advertising cost of sale) was well above the desired range of less than 100%
I worked intensively with the existing ads: adding targets based on keywords with traction, negating undesirable targets that ate spend without giving return, and refining bids. Then, I added Sponsored Brand campaigns to provide a new ad placement, leveraging the new feature and the series' great covers.
The results in two months:
🔸Doubling spend from $717.47/month to $1,412,70/month (meeting goal)
🔸Increasing click-through rate (CTR) from 0.14% to 0.17%
🔸Increasing ad-attributed pages read from 20K to 23K per month
🔸While doubling spend, decreasing ACOS from 1,714% to 384% on the Amazon dashboard
🔸Once adjusted for page reads and readthrough, decreasing ACOS from 121% to 78% (meeting goal)
Space Fantasy Kickstarter: Marketing, Logistics, and Backer Management (Nine Sailed Star by Glynn Stewart)
With this space fantasy hardcover Kickstarter, I lead the launch marketing including a genre hardcover giveaway with mailing list entry, a free book giveaway, and advertising across Meta, Twitter (now X), and Reddit. The result was a campaign funded to 213% of goal ($12,500CAD or $10,000 USD).
In addition to the marketing, I sourced the manufacturing, assisted with backer tiers and stretch goal arrangement, managed logistics communications, and coordinated all backer management.
Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/glynnstewart/hardcover-space-fantasy-novel-nine-sailed-star/
Portfolio
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