Just got my first royalty check along with a note from my publisher: “You are our top seller.” I unseated the author who has held that spot for the past eight years – JK Rowling @Meg Hafdahl. She’s a great author (check her out at: https://www.meghafdahl.com/ ) and it’s an honor to take the top spot.

Woo Hoo!!!

Okay, a little expectation management is appropriate here. Very cool to take the top spot. Very happy that the book launched well. Still, it’s a small publisher and we’re talking less than 200 books. Probably not going to make the NYT Best Seller list at that pace. So how to boost sales?

So, let me ask actual readers. What can and should I do to boost sales and get legitimate reviews? 

Gratuitous cute curious dog pic.

As expected, the web has lots of ideas – and lots of companies – designed to do just that. Mostly it’s pay-to-play schemes. You pay for reviews. The going rate seems to be $6 – $9 per review and will “guarantee” that you’ll hit your goal. Hmm…

Online reviews indicate that the reviews are junk – copied and cobbled together from actual reviews. “Reviewers” are told that they must wait at least 6 hours before posting their reviews. This doesn’t sound like a fleet of actual readers.

So, let me ask actual readers. What can and should I do to boost sales and get legitimate reviews? Send me your ideas!

By the way, if you want to buy the book and leave a review on Amazon, you can buy it here: