After having quite a few successful books out – all in the supernatural category. I put out a beautiful set of fictional short stories on a metaphysical theme. I had it professionally edited. I released it under what I thought was a pretty good title with a lovely looking cover….
The Pink Bus and Other Strange Tales from LaLa Land……
It sort of died. I couldn’t believe it. It was my favorite work and some of the stories I had thought were really quite good. I recall the editor – who I tremendously respect as a write in her own right (Alienora Taylor) told me she loved it. But despite free give aways, discounts and so on, it barely sold…. just 40 copies in 6 months with 98 free copies given away. I also had an audio version made featuring the vocal talents of Lorraine Ansell – it has sold to date just 22 copies.
I was devastated.
I couldn’t figure out. What was wrong with the book? Was it the title perhaps? The cover? How could we find out?
My then publicist, Nick Wale and I discussed this at length. Finally, he had an idea. Put out the same book but use a new cover, new title and even a different author name. By putting the book out under a Nom de Plume, we would get a neutral view of how the book did.
And so, Sam White was born……
His Amazon profile features a picture of me walking with my young daughter and has the following description to give him a bit of credibility…
Sam White is an eternal asker of questions. He spent several years working in the world of corporate business — but found that the lifestyle was not for him. Looking for the true meaning of life he took a trip to India and studied Transcendental Meditation. With the help of his teachers he has started to unravel the great wonders of life, and death.
Cool huh?
So we republished the kindle book as Will we Meet Again: Mysteries of the Unexplained by Sam White with the following description – Imagine one day you wake up, and you discover that you are dead. You now possess knowledge that few know. You know what happens when we pass from this existence, to the next. But what comes next? Do you spend eternity roaming the Earth looking for peace? Does peace come to you easily? What happens?
And guess what? Yes, you probably guessed right. It sold much better. 76 copies with even a more successful give away of 199 copies.
The final numbers from all sources are as of today… Pink Bus moved 161 copies while Sam managed 255 copies!
Even worse or better I guess depending on how you look at, the reviews that Sam got were great – I didn’t get a single review. Here are Sam’s
4-star review – This was a very thought provoking read. The stories are written as fictional pieces but I can’t help but think that the author has uncovered some of life’s mysteries, and has given us clues to what those are within these passages. If you’re one who ponders abstract concepts such as the metaphysical, vibrational energy, the sprit world, or just occasionally wonders about the unknown, this book will give you more thoughts to consider, and may challenge you to dig a little deeper on your own journey through life.
5-star review – A lovely book anything that can bring a little comfort and a little peace is good in my book
So what did I learn? I have no idea! Was it the name of the book, the cover, the author? All three? But now, I am wondering what to do. Do I kill Sam White? Do I change the cover and title of the book under my own name? Do I use Sam White as a Nom de plume going forward?
What do you think??? I would love your opinions…. comment or send me an email and let me know your vote please….