Chris Robley, Author at BookBaby Blog

About Chris Robley

Chris Robley splits his time between the Portlands Oregon and Maine, always longing for the other. He plays music on the West Coast and writes poems on the East. His music has been praised by NPR, the LA Times, the Boston Globe, and others. Skyscraper Magazine said he is “one of the best short-story musicians to come along in quite some time.” Robley’s poetry is forthcoming in Prairie Schooner, RHINO, Pacifica Literary Review, and The Fine Line.

Archive by Author

This Memorial Day, Share a Book or eBook with Troops Overseas

by Chris Robley on May 24, 2013 in eBook Distribution

With Memorial Day just around the corner, the folks at GalleyCat compiled a list of ways you can give a book or eBook to US soldiers serving abroad.

Troops don’t get to bring much with them when they deploy; according to Army Sgt. Andre Corbin, each soldier has only “1.5 cubic feet of space to pack personal items to last a year.” So not much room for books.

That is where you come in! Organizations like Books for Soldiers, Operation Paperback, and Books for Troops need your help sending books and eBooks to men and women serving overseas.

If you’d like to be involved in those efforts, check out more details HERE.

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How to Build a Stockpile of Good Writing Ideas

by Chris Robley on May 24, 2013 in Writing Tips

Returning to old scraps of writing is one of the best ways to cure writer’s block

Not every idea that strikes is going to immediately turn into the beginnings a novel, story, or poem; sometimes an idea is just a lonely little thing that lives underground for 17 years before… oh wait, that’s the cicada.

But not unlike those weird little bugs, ideas can take a long while to come of age.

You never know when something you thought up months or years ago will fit itself perfectly — almost accidentally — into your latest work-in-progress, or rub against another idea and spark. That’s why it’s important to write everything down: the brilliant lines, the half-baked notions, and that nonsense you scribbled on a sticky-note after a dream.

Gather the seeds. Plant them later.

Scraps of ideas can come from anywhere. The best two lines from a discarded poem. A bit of interesting chatter you overheard in a cafe…

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“Never Give Up” — or How One Writer Got Published in Poetry Magazine After 12 Rejections

by Chris Robley on May 22, 2013 in Writing Tips

Why persistence can pay off in the publishing world

I like Todd Boss‘ writing. He’s a little like Kay Ryan, only male and midwestern. His poems, like Ryan’s, are compact, playful, filled with internal music, and demand as much of themselves as they do of the reader — which I guess is my way of saying they strike me as the best sort of “accessible” poems.

On top of enjoying his poetry, I was also happy to discover that he seems like a nice guy. I met him briefly last year at the Printer’s Row LitFest in Chicago just before he gave a reading — and he even took a request. Anyway, I digress…

Dealing with rejection as a writer

A few months later, Todd posted this photograph on his Facebook profile of twelve rejection letters he’d received from Poetry Magazine over the years:

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What Indie Authors Should Understand About Amazon’s Algorithms

by Chris Robley on May 17, 2013 in eBook Distribution, Self Publishing

Cracking the Amazon Algorithms

Our friend Joanna Penn recently took a look at a book by David Gaughran called ’Let’s Get Visible: How to get noticed and sell more books.’

Joanna is a savvy indie book-marketer; when she recommends something, I believe it’s worth checking out — so check it out. But I wanted to also highlight a couple of the points she summarizes on her blog regarding Amazon’s algorithm:

* Amazon algorithms behave differently for different sales charts and territories (and a smart author can make use of “the differences between the Sales Rank, the Recommendation Engine, Bestseller Lists, Popularity lists, Top-Rated in Categories, Hot New Releases, Movers & Shakers and all the other ways you can target the lists and prime the sales pump.”)

* A big initial spike in sales after your book launch can be bad for long-term sales.

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Survey Says — eBooks Are Good for the Book Business

by Chris Robley on May 15, 2013 in eBook News

“Of course they are!”

Perhaps these statistics aren’t all that surprising, but according to the New York Times, eBooks were good for the book business in 2012. A recent BookStats survey of roughly 1,500 publishers (including the big six) shows that:

* eBook sales in fiction were up 42% from the year before — thanks in part to the growing popularity of the romance genre following the “Fifty Shades of Grey” phenomenon.

* eBook sales accounted for $1.8 billion.

* eBook sales in nonfiction grew 22% to $484.2 million.

* Children’s and YA eBook sales increased 117 percent ( to $469.2 million).

* eBooks accounted for 20% of publisher’s revenues in 2012, up from 15% the year before.

* Sales of print formats were flat or on the decline; eBooks and audiobooks were on the rise.

* Revenue from brick-and-mortar bookstores dropped 7%; online sales (through retailers like Amazon) rose 21%.

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Last Lines of Great Books: SPOILER ALERT!

by Chris Robley on May 13, 2013 in Writing Tips

Y’all had a lot to say about some of the opening lines featured in last month’s blog post “First Sentences of Great Books.” Did the energy that made those books famous seem present from the get-go? Few of you seemed to agree. The spice of life!

So I thought it’d be fun to see how some great books are brought to a close. With a bang, whimper, whisper? Do the last lines wrap these book up neatly, or do they leave you with a sense of unease and continuation?

You be the judge, and let me know what you think in the comments section below. [But don't be mad at me if it spoils the ending for you!].

Also, “great” is defined by me for the purposes of this article as the bunch of books that were within easy reach on my closest bookshelf.

She watched the dark highway and entertained me with her vegetable-soup song, except that now there were people mixed in with the beans and potatoes: Dwayne Ray, Mattie, Esperanza, Lou Ann and all the rest.

And me. I was the main ingredient.

- from The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver

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A Checklist of Basic Promotion Materials for Indie Authors

by Chris Robley on May 10, 2013 in eBook Promotion, Self Publishing

So you finished your book. Congratulations! That’s a major accomplishment.

Now it’s time to put together all the stuff you’ll need to help you sell your book once it’s published, including…

1. A short book description

There are a handful of reasons you’ll need a short, compelling book description (one or two sentences at most): as a soundbite in interviews, as a teaser on your website, as the hook in your press materials and communications with folks in the publishing industry, and maybe even as the tagline in your email signature!

2. A longer book description

Once you’ve hooked ‘em with the soundbite, they’ll want to read more.

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Writers, Forget About Your Weaknesses!

by Chris Robley on May 9, 2013 in Writing Tips

How to Improve as a Writer David Biespiel of Portland’s own Attic Institute is a frequent contributor to The Rumpus’ Poetry Wire.

Yesterday they published one of his articles called “FOLLOW YOUR STRENGTHS, MANAGE YOUR WEAKNESSES, AND DON’T LET YOUR BABIES GROW UP TO BE COWBOYS.“

For a “blog post,” it’s a very long read — but well worth your time, especially if you’re prone to harsh self-critcism.

If I can try to summarize his argument, it goes something like this…

1) Every writer has strengths and weakness (image, plot, dialog, phrasing, lush description, etc.).

2) You can’t improve upon your weaknesses all that much, but you can greatly enhance your strengths.

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How to Sell Your Printed Books: Tips from Teresa L. Irvin

by Chris Robley on May 8, 2013 in Self Publishing

BookBaby Print Services’ Author-of-the-Month: Teresa L. Irvin

We spend lots of time on this blog talking about how to promote and sell eBooks. so we thought it’d be a good idea to offer periodic tips on how to sell physical books too!

And who better to ask for advice on this topic than independent authors who’ve returned to BookBaby for multiple printings of their book. They’re obviously doing something right, right?

In this author-of-the-month series, we ask writers who have a proven sales history to give us a few tips and tricks on how they attracted attention to their book, and how they converted that attention into sales. Not all of their advice will apply to you, but you might find a few good promotion ideas you haven’t tried yet.

This month, we hear from…

Teresa L. Irvin, author of I Want to Know How to Grow

I’ve been a busy lady!

Besides utilizing social media, blogs and websites pertaining to children, parents and grandparents, and having a website of my own, I’ve mailed…
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Web Tips for Authors: The April Roundup

by Chris Robley on May 1, 2013 in Self Publishing

Best-practices to smarten-up your online book marketing

Checked out The HostBaby Blog lately?

Every week, we’re posting new web and social media tips for authors, musicians, and artists. You’ll learn how to grow your email list, how to get readers to engage with your online content, how to draft newsletters that convert to sales, how to optimize your site for search, and more.

For those of you who haven’t been keeping tabs on the HostBaby Blog…

Here’s a recap of April’s HostBaby Blog articles:

1. Is Your One-Page Website Hurting Your Career?

2. How to Add Google Analytics to Your HostBaby Site Builder

3. Does Your Website Reflect Where You Are in Your Career?

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← Older posts

BookBaby Blog

About Chris Robley

This Memorial Day, Share a Book or eBook with Troops Overseas

How to Build a Stockpile of Good Writing Ideas

Returning to old scraps of writing is one of the best ways to cure writer’s block

Gather the seeds. Plant them later.

“Never Give Up” — or How One Writer Got Published in Poetry Magazine After 12 Rejections

Why persistence can pay off in the publishing world

Dealing with rejection as a writer

What Indie Authors Should Understand About Amazon’s Algorithms

Cracking the Amazon Algorithms

Survey Says — eBooks Are Good for the Book Business

“Of course they are!”

Last Lines of Great Books: SPOILER ALERT!

A Checklist of Basic Promotion Materials for Indie Authors

1. A short book description

2. A longer book description

Writers, Forget About Your Weaknesses!

If I can try to summarize his argument, it goes something like this…

How to Sell Your Printed Books: Tips from Teresa L. Irvin

BookBaby Print Services’ Author-of-the-Month: Teresa L. Irvin

Teresa L. Irvin, author of I Want to Know How to Grow

Web Tips for Authors: The April Roundup

Best-practices to smarten-up your online book marketing

Here’s a recap of April’s HostBaby Blog articles:

What Are You Looking For?

BookBaby on Twitter

About Chris Robley

Returning to old scraps of writing is one of the best ways to cure writer’s block

Gather the seeds. Plant them later.

Why persistence can pay off in the publishing world

Dealing with rejection as a writer

Cracking the Amazon Algorithms

“Of course they are!”

1. A short book description

2. A longer book description

If I can try to summarize his argument, it goes something like this…

BookBaby Print Services’ Author-of-the-Month: Teresa L. Irvin

Teresa L. Irvin, author of I Want to Know How to Grow

Best-practices to smarten-up your online book marketing

Here’s a recap of April’s HostBaby Blog articles:

Popular Posts

What Are You Looking For?

BookBaby on Twitter