True story. While I was working on my ads today, I ended up on Amazon Author Central and happened to be in the reviews section.
Now, keep in mind I don’t normally read my reviews. In fact, I go out of my way to avoid them, as well as even looking at the review average. In my opinion, they don’t matter because they’re out of my control.
But I happened upon a review for one of my writing books that was interesting.
The reviewer gave me a one-star. To the reviewer’s credit, they were completely within their right to do so because the book wasn’t for them. But what I appreciated about the one-star was the sentiment—a lot of one stars are mean-spirited and petty. This one wasn’t. It was honest, and I value that.
(And no, I won’t name names. It’s not about that.)
The person called me neurotic. They felt that my way of doing things, ie. writing a lot of books quickly, writing on my phone, etc. was all about productivity and lacked any kind of soul. I’m paraphrasing this person, but I think they’d agree with my assessment. (Heaven forbid a writer write quickly and actually write decent books!!!)
They also said that my way of doing things was an unhealthy way of approaching the craft of writing.
They took issue with a number of other things, particularly writing on Scrivener iOS (how dare I recommend an iOS-only app with no consideration for Android…join the club. People have been razzing me about this on YouTube since 2015, so oh well.)
Michael La Ronn is neurotic and peddles an unhealthy approaching writing. That’s apparently what I do, folks. 🙂
There is some truth to it. Most of you have never met me in person, but if you did, you’d probably agree that I have an intense personality. I intimidate a lot of people, mainly because I’m so passionate about writing and I execute on an entirely different level than people expect when they hear “writer.” Most people think “tortured soul sitting in a room for hours trying to find the right word.” Their brains break a little when they meet me and I tell them what I do, and how I manage to do it, and how many books I’ve written. Some people immediately put me into the “same as Satan” camp, mainly because I advocate that writers dispense with the emotional bullshit and just write, and quickly.
I never advocate that anyone follow my path wholesale. Most can’t. I AM a little crazy—but that comes from being on the edge of death in 2012 and a conscious choice not to waste any more time.
I’m not typical of most writers. But I do have a different perspective and am not afraid to share it, because maybe people can learn something when they compare my advice to other people’s out there. I’m a different voice.
And I’m not someone who sits around and talks about writing but never does it. Despite doing this blog, YouTube channel, and my various podcasts, my first goal is writing.
Anyhoo, this post is just to tell you that when you double down on who you are, there will be lots of folks who don’t like you. But the reason they don’t like you isn’t because there’s something wrong with you—it’s because there’s something RIGHT with you that doesn’t resonate with them.
Clearly my work ethic triggered this person to the point of disgust. I guarantee you that another reader will read this person’s one-star and say “Wait a minute. This sounds like my kind of guy.” And boom—I sell more books. That’s niche marketing working as it’s designed. One-star reviews are part of the ecosystem that makes book buying healthy. You can’t have five-stars without one-stars. They balance each other.
So I’m grateful for the reviewer in that sense. I’m also grateful for the review and the douse of a cold water. Am I going to change anything about my brand? Absolutely not, but it’s very insightful to know what about my books turns people off, so I can do more of it. LOL
WOW, that was a long rant.
Oh, and I wrote about 3000 words today toward Indie Author Confidential.
LESSON LEARNED TODAY
I discovered a way to store all of Amazon Ad data so that I recall it easier and analyze it. I won’t go into it as it will bore you.
I also finished one of Bryan Cohen’s ad challenges, and got more familiar with some different ad strategies.
LESSON EXECUTED
My ads are starting to bear fruit, y’all! I sold one copy of a book that hasn’t seen any action for a while. I’m pretty sure it was the ads.
I created 50 more ads today—this time for a series I haven’t advertised yet. Ay yi yi…Folks, I’m either headed for an ad spending train wreck, nirvana, or somewhere in between. No idea yet. But until I find out, I’ll just keep spinning out ads…
I have around 500 Amazon Ads running right now. That’s nothing compared to others. I know authors that have thousands of them with crazy budgets, too. I’m just amateur hour. But I hope to get better.
Anyhoo…that’s all I got for tonight. Don’t forget about my Beast Mode Collection. Today and tomorrow are the last opportunity to grab it: https://authorlevelup.combeastmode.
