I have mixed feelings about this party. I felt like it was already a success going in because I had so many fantastic participants and because the Kickstarter was a success, so my launch was successful before it happened. Some things didn’t work so great and I know what not to do next time too. Do you have any feedback/advice for me? Continue reading
I’ve been accepted as the Seattle Writing Examiner! Here is my very first article: http://www.examiner.com/article/preconceptions-about-self-publishing-and-promotion
I’d really appreciate it if you’d check it out and maybe even subscribe to it! I’ll get credit for every view and I’d love to get established writing for Examiner.
I’ve been learning a few things to include in posts that have really helped make my posts more interesting and get more views. They’re pretty easy to do and help turn an interesting post into a big success!
I know I missed some! What makes your blog posts sparkle? What about your posts reflects who you are?
My trip was amazing! It was nothing like what I expected. I expected mountains, yes. That was a no-brainer. What I didn’t expect was technology withdrawal! 45 minutes before we got to our rental cabin, my phone service cut out. I had hopes that their website was correct and that they had wifi. But the page, last updated in 2009, was wrong. No email, no voicemail, no Facebook, no Google. It was a whistling vacuum of information. It was relaxing once I got over the struggle to reconnect.
Even the pay phone didn’t cooperate with me. I felt transported back in time standing in that booth, wrestling with the clunky cord and trying to follow the instructions of that female voice, pushing scratched metal buttons. The spider in the corner was not impressed.
So we explored, and it was great! The region was a mixture of small-town charm and spectacular views.
There were three dams up there, all lined up along the river: Gorge Dam, Diablo Dam, and Ross Dam. We drove along roads chipped into the mountainside and walked trails surrounded by metal rails so we wouldn’t plunge into the ravine. There was a sense that gravity was different here.
This is where my family gets 18% of our power. (That’s what the plaques and brochures said). This is why I headed up here in the first place, to show my kids where their tech gets its juice.
Tuesday evening came and my 11-year-old was giddy with excitement. He was overjoyed to return home in the morning to his internet connection, his cable TV, and his computer games. He’s getting to be that age. So we came home to use that 18% as much as possible (and they have been). I sure hope they remember though!
Have you ever been included in a Blog Award? There are tons of them and you can’t blog for long without seeing them everywhere. But are they anything but a shout-out to your friends?
I think the most valuable thing I’ve received from a Blog Award is the networking! I got new follows and views from people I might never have found online through my blog awards. Each link is a connection to innumerable others who may find your blog. Whether you’re just looking for blog publicity, or whether you’re trying to promote something else through your blog, this is really the reward you get with a Blog Award. Plus, you get to pass it on to others too.
Besides that, blog awards provide you with content you might not otherwise get. If you’ve committed to regular blogging, you know how hard it is to create content sometimes. A lot of a Blog Award is already planned for you.
So I’d like to give an extra “Thank You” to everyone who has included me in their Blog Awards, shared their networks with me, and given me content for my blog! If you’ve been reluctant to join in on the Blog Awards, I’d encourage you to reconsider.
I’ve been trying to figure out what it is about Sunday that makes it such a light blogging views day. I could hope that all of you Saints are spending the whole day at church, but that probably isn’t it.
Friday is by far my best views day. Whatever I post will get more views. Saturday is pretty good too. But Sunday you’re all tired of being online or raiding Heroic Valonia or something.
Do you read more blogs on Friday and skip it altogether on Sunday? Why?
Be like Lorenzo: patronize an artist like me!
Kate Policani 
The Virtual Launch Party Analysis
I would say that this party was a great success!
The biggest success was in blog views. I recieved 170 the first day, 133 the second and, 127 on the third day. Normally I get between15 and 50 views when I post something. I also got 18 spam posts! (Hehe it stinks but it also shows that even spammers were paying attention.) I had 31 total likes on posts.
The most popular posts were:
My book sales were great too. I sold 4 print books and 3 Kindle books. These aren’t fantastic numbers but it is way more than I sold during my diminutive release of The Disenchanted Pet. The Black and White print cover won out with 2 sales versus one each of the red and slate.
I gained 4 blog followers for a total of 101 and 5 new twitter followers. I had one new Goodreads buddy (Thanks Maria!) , but nobody tried LibraryThing.
Maria Tatham was the hands-down participant winner and I need to think of a great gift for her to thank her for being so involved!
Was it worth the work? Absolutely. It was a lot of work with little return but also great to connect with so many people and try something completely new.
What results did you see participants, on your site? I’d love for you to post them in replies!