Interview with the author of “How To Be Owned By A Cat: Simple Action Plan For First Time Cat Owners Who Have NO Idea What They Are Getting Into” Kate Chen, October 2017
– What do you like to read – fiction, non-fiction?
I prefer to read non-fiction 90% of the time as I enjoy learning new things that are useful to my daily life. I recently read “The Four Tendencies” by Gretchen Rubin which talks about how we are all divided into 4 personality types. It’s an eye-opening and enlightening read which I highly recommend to anyone who wants to know themselves better and learn how to communicate effectively.
– What is your writing experience?
I’m a self-taught non-fiction writer. Most of my writing and inspiration comes from my own personal experience and that of others. When I need more information, I will do in-depth research online or read up books on similar topics. The books I write is based on the “problems” I encounter in life and I hope my little solutions can help others going through the same stuff.
– Which advantages of being a writer do you see?
I guess as a writer, I’ll have more creative outlet than normal people. It also gives me more freedom to express myself. It’s not really an advantage but rather a different way of expression just like some people sing, paint or play musical instrument. Different strokes for different folks.
– Which disadvantages of being a writer do you see?
Self-discipline! The discipline to sit down and write un-distracted is very important for a writer. Sometimes I’m full of ideas but one moment of distraction and the thoughts go “poof!”. It’s extremely satisfying when I can sit down and pen it all out without a care in the world.
– Can you give some recommendations on how to write an interesting/useful book?
Actually any topic that speaks to you can already be an interesting / useful book. Or do you have a solution that someone is looking for? I highly recommend drawing a mind map to outline your book chapters. I used to be stuck with information and ideas all over the place. But once I organized them into a mind map, I can just follow the outline accordingly. It’s really a life and time-saver for me. Google “mind map” and you’ll see lots of examples or check out the “Book Launch” by Chandler Bolt whereby there’s a very useful chapter on mind map to outline for authors.
– Can you give some recommendations on how to promote a book?
If your books are on Amazon KDP, I recommend trying their AMS (Amazon Marketing service) to promote your books. You can start off with a budget of $1/daily and test which keywords get you the sales. So far the ROI I got from AMS turned out to be the best bang for my buck.
I have tried:
– Facebook marketing but it’s too costly for my $2.99 books
– Books Go Social twitter 3-month promo and their service is excellent but non-fiction don’t seem to be their strong suit
– In the midst of trying Books Butterfly and their service seems prompt so let’s see if it works out.
All in all, I’ve spent more money marketing than making money from actual sales. The hard truth is book promoters probably make more money than most writers. I guess keep trying until you find something that works for your kind of books.
