Joseph Asphahani liked the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule
Thank you guys for this thread, all of you. I have been stressing out *hard* these past couple of days trying to get people to pre-order my book. Posting about it to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, SnapChat, Tumblr, you name it. I’m trying so hard and am getting very little in the way of interaction/response, and I’ve only gotten 4 orders. It’s super stressful! I’m going to try to keep pushing through that "I’m posting about this too often" guilt, though, and hope that it pays off... :/
like · liked by Alisa and 2 others

People who have liked this comment in the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule

    Joseph Asphahani followed Luke Fellner
    Luke Fellner
    A young author, musician, christian, and student who writes all sorts of fiction. Check out my West...
    Follow
    Joseph Asphahani liked the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule
    These are really good points from a lot of good Inksharians, and I just want to throw my experience in as previous contest winner/newbie. 

    I had never heard of Inkshares until the day before the G&S contest was to go live last April (the contest ran through mid-May, so not that long ago). I heard about it via G&S FB page. I was working on my novel, which fit their theme of Hard Science Fiction, so I threw my towel in and annoyed the heck out of everyone, including people I hadn’t seen or heard from in years. My own comfortable social and family network is very small, but I hustled and asked literally my entire FB friends group, any and all book clubs I’ve belonged to, even previous co-workers.  Sometimes several times.  To my surprise, the orders came in, sometimes slowly, sometimes much faster. And I definitely got ignored by a lot of people! People are busy, might be financially strapped and don’t want to say anything, or were just not interested in my book. But that’s ok. 

    By the end of the contest I was on a fun momentum that helped me be in the top three. I went outside my comfort zone, and I’m happy I did. It was very hard, though, and I sometimes look back and wonder how I did it. 

    But the important point I tell everyone who asks me is this: you can win this without being an established author.  I was neck to neck with another Nerdist Contest winner for weeks until he pulled ahead the last few days before the contest was over.  I like to think I kept him on his toes :-). 

    The long and the short of it is, you can do this!! I’ve learned that Inkshares is a wonderful community that supports each other, and we will do what we can to help!
    like · liked by Alisa and 2 others

    People who have liked this comment in the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule

      Joseph Keeler followed Joseph Asphahani
      Joseph Asphahani
      Reader, gamer, enthusiastic applicant for whatever cybernetic limb-replacement program you have in m...
      Follow
      Joseph Asphahani followed Palatine:Heir
      Palatine:Heir
      A son takes on his father’s role as protector of a noble’s daughter.
      Joseph Asphahani followed Bryce Clemens
      Bryce Clemens
      Hey everyone! I’m Bryce Clemens, 25 years old and have been living in southern Michigan since birth....
      Follow
      Joseph Asphahani liked the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule
      I just wanted to put my nose into it as one of the many many people who have 5 or less preorders as of right now in the G&S fantasy contest.

      It is not easy to get people to preorder your book when you only have access to five or six people in your life. Ive asked every single family member, every single close friend, and have started to reach out to the weird social group that is distant highschool friends. Ive asked nearly 100 people so far, telling them i need as much support as possible.
      Ive gotten a resounding 2 preorders out of this.
      Im not saying the system is rigged. Im saying the system leans towards people who have worked the site for probably years at this point.
      I love G&S and i love writing, Its always been a dream of mine to get published.
      I dont mind working my ass off to get the preorders but after three days of constant nagging (because thats what it feels like at this point) Ive reached the point where I can no longer rely on my immediate area for preorders.
      A tiny little bit of help would be greatly appreciated.

      also the syndicates throw a big wrench into things.
      Say one of the larger syndicates  backs one of the bigger authors because theyve been fans of that author and thought this would be a great chance to give him/her their support.
      That could be upwards of 100 preorders handed to the top spot.
      Again... not saying the system is rigged, just that it leans heavily towards well set up and long time authors of the site. Authors like @Rick Heinz @André Brun just to name a couple.
      I want so badly to be an actual voice on this beautiful site, but it just feels like i and many other small time authors are being completely ignored by the audience at large. Ive even appealed to G&S fans on youtube at this point to get more support.
      like · liked by Joseph

      People who have liked this comment in the forum thread, Geek & Sundry Contest - New Rule

        Joseph Asphahani followed Joseph Keeler
        Joseph Keeler
        Tried doing a crowd funding campaign. My advice to those looking for avid fans: FINISH your book bef...
        Follow
        Joseph Asphahani followed Aellor Prophecies
        Aellor Prophecies
        Aellor is in peril. The Darkness is sprouting from the ashes of the past. The world cries out for a savior and one who can shine bright in the dark days to come. The light is fading fast, and everything hinges on the Prophecies of Aellor.
        Bryce Clemens followed Joseph Asphahani
        Joseph Asphahani
        Reader, gamer, enthusiastic applicant for whatever cybernetic limb-replacement program you have in m...
        Follow
        More items