by Hope Ford
The Short story romance handbook
How I Make Over $1,000 a Month Writing Short Story Romance
(and it only took me 3 months)
Hope Ford
The Short Story Romance Handbook © 2018 by Hope Ford. All Rights Reserved.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
Cover designed by Hope Ford
Hope Ford
Visit my website at www.AuthorHopeFord.com
The Short Story Romance Handbook
A Tell All of How I Became an Amazon Bestselling Author and Make Over $1,000 a Month (and it only took me 3 months)
Do you want to be a Bestselling Author? Do you want to make over $1,000 a month writing part time?
I am a new author; my first book was published in January 2018. Since then I have had three best sellers in the short romance category and am now making over $1,000 a month. I went from making $10.64 for January (my first month) to making $1297.72 for March (my third month). I am projected, by looking at sales, to make $1800+ for April (my fourth month).
This book is a tell all of exactly what I did and how I did it. This is a short book. I guarantee there is no fluff here. I get straight to the point and tell you exactly what I did.
I truly want to help you become a bestselling author and help you make money writing books.
Please, I encourage you to follow the steps outlined in this book. Happy Writing!
#1 bestselling short romance author Hope Ford writes short, steamy, sweet romances. There is always an alpha male (because who doesn’t love an alpha male) and a woman he makes his queen. Sit back, grab a glass of wine, and get lost in this happily ever after story – that’s also a little naughty.
CONTENTS
Introduction
Choosing a Pen Name
What should you write about
How to come up with story ideas
Point of View
Writing Formula
How many words do I need to write
Formatting and Editing
Choosing a Title
Cover Design
Marketing
#1 Helpful Tool to be an Amazon Author Success
Publishing Timeline – Boost your sales
Bundling
Kindle Unlimited
Pricing
But What Do I Really Have To Do?
Afterword
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Books by Hope Ford
Introduction
I was approached from another author asking me how I had reached my success. At first, I was surprised that someone thought I was a success. Then I answered all the questions she had. They were basic questions like what I do differently, how do I get my book seen, etc. I had to really stop and think about it. I have done pretty well in a short period of time.
Do I know enough to teach other authors what they need to do to be successful? I believe so. Can I show other authors exactly what I have done and they can use that as their guide for their own publishing? Yes.
Let me begin by telling you a little about myself. I have always wanted to be a writer. I finally published my first book January 19, 2018. Since then I have published sixteen books total. I have went from making $10.64 for January (my first month) to making $1297.72 for March (my third month). I am projected, by looking at sales, to make $1800+ for April (my fourth month).
Here are my earnings for January that was paid in March:
Here are my earnings for March that was paid in May:
I have also had three books become #1 Bestsellers in the short romance category.
As of the publishing of this book, I have eight books in the top 20 of short romance reads. Check it out: Amazon Short Romance Bestsellers
I won’t tell you it’s easy because it’s not. I made a commitment to myself to stick to a publishing schedule and I did it. A lot of books will tell you that you need to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars in marketing. I did not do that. Honestly, I did not have a lot of money out of pocket. In this book, I will tell you exactly what I did and how I did it.
With all that being said, I am not an expert. I am going to tell you what I did. Some people may tell you it doesn’t work this way, another way is better, or you shouldn’t do it this way. And they may be right. But I do know that what I did, helped me to make over $1,000.00 by my third month of publishing and become an Amazon bestselling author.
In this book, I will tell you how I come up with ideas, how I chose a pen name, how I outline my books, and I will tell you the two main things I did that helped me to be successful.
However, this book will not tell you how to write a book. It will not tell you that you have to write a certain niche, and it will not tell you all the different marketing strategies. I’m sorry. This book will only include information that I have done and has worked for me. This book has no fluff. It is short and direct.
I do hope you continue to read this book. I really want to be helpful to other authors. If I can do it, you can too. Good Luck!
Choosing a Pen Name
I struggled with this. So much to the point, that I had to put it aside, write some books, and then come back to it. If you have trouble picking out a name, I suggest you do the same. The most important thing is writing. So, if you have to choose a pen name later, do it.
There is a lot to picking a name. You feel like once it is on the cover of a book you are stuck with it. Which to me is true. People will tell you that you can always change it, but all you are doing is adding extra work for yourself. Take your time and choose a pen name. Here are the four things to think about when deciding:
Your pen name should be short and easy to spell – You want to pick a name that is easy to spell and short. For example, I had considered using the name Hanna. However, after I looked at it further, people spell Hanna multiple ways (Hanna or Hannah).
Your pen name should not be used by someone else – Research on Amazon and Goodreads for the name you pick to make sure there is not already another author with your chosen name.
Your pen name should have an available domain - Go to whois.com and search your name. However, there are ways to work around this. Hope Ford .com was already taken. I added author to it and purchased http://www.authorhopeford.com. This was a way to work around it. I recommend purchasing your domain name once you decide on a pen name.
Your pen name should be available on Social Media – When I looked at Hope Ford on Facebook there were 46+ Hope Ford’s on Facebook. However, I typed in www.facebook.com/authorhopeford (like my website) and it was available. So, I secured that address on Facebook.
These are all things to think about when choosing a pen name. This is how I chose my name. First, I made a list of ten possible names. I tried to think of one to two syllable first names and one syllable last names. I paid close attention to names I read in books, saw on television shows or movies.
I compiled a list from all my research. Once I had a list of ten names, I then went through the four steps above to mark off names. I could have been Hannah Storm, Hanna Scott, Hope James, Hanna Love, Hanna Ford, or Hanna Heart. But because of the four steps above, I ended up choosing Hope Ford. This name has really worked well for me. It’s short and easy to spell. I was able to get the domain and social media names.
Again, I want to stress this: If you are struggling, put it aside. The most important thing right now is to write. START WRITING YOUR BOOKS.
What should you write about
When
I write, I want to write about the same books that I like to read. Before you begin, jot down everything you like to read. For example, this is how I started:
I like to read short romance stories. I like stories with sex, but also have a plot. I like to read about tattooed, alpha men that are possessive and a little controlling. I like to read about men that are a little rough around the edges, and even have a potty mouth when they want to get their point across. I like to read about men that are jealous and want to be the only man in their lady’s life. I like to read about strong women that love their men, but don’t put up with any crap either.
So when I write, I write short stories that have all the ideas listed above. People will tell you to research popular niches. They will tell you to look at the top 100 romance or erotic books on Amazon and see what’s popular.
You can do that. I didn’t. I sit down and write stories that I would like to read. Unless your kink is really off the wall, there are going to be people that want to read the same things you like to read. Plus, you don’t want to just write something because it’s popular. You will lose interest if it’s not something you are really into. This is something I feel strongly about; write about what you would want to read!
How to come up with story ideas
First of all, I have heard that every plot has already been written. If you think about it, that is true.
You and I could be told to write about two college students that meet and fall in love. If we compared our stories, chances are they will be completely different from one another.
So, with that being said, don’t be afraid to start with a simple, used before plot and make it your own.
I find ideas everywhere, from movies I’ve watched, Instagram pictures that people have posted, stories online, etc. I have literally been at a baseball game, watched a couple interact and come up with story ideas. There are ideas everywhere; you just have to look for them.
Point of View
When deciding what point of view to write from, there are three points of view to choose from.
First Person - This is used when you are writing from the perspective of the main character. This perspective uses the pronouns I and me.
Second Person - This is when the author is tells the story to another character using the word ‘you.’ This point of view is rarely successful in romantic fiction.
Third Person - This is used when the author is like the outsider looking in. The pronouns he, she, it or they are used.
I enjoy reading books that are from the perspective of both the leading male perspective and the leading female perspective. That is why I use the First Person, Multiple Perspectives point of view when writing. I always write from the perspective of the male lead and also the female lead.
When you are deciding how you are going to write your book, I recommend you write in the point of view that you enjoy reading.
Writing Formula
One of the biggest things that helps me get started is to follow these steps:
Write descriptions of the male and female lead –I take a small notebook. The first page I write all about the male in the book. I write down his hair color, eye color, height, weight, job, description of his body, parent/family information, personality, any history on him (armed services, has he been married before, been hurt before, etc.). Basically, everything about him.
I then do the same thing for the female.
Write a summary –
I then jot down a quick summary of what will happen in the book. This does not have to be in detail. I will just write down what happens in the book.
Write a chapter breakdown –
I will then write down what happens in each chapter. This does not have to be in great detail; just a snippet. You are not writing the book here, just getting the chapters organized. I literally have written “Chapter 5 – Sex.” Just write down the main thing that happens in the chapter.
Write the story –
Sit down and focus on your book. Use your notes and write your story. You do not have to follow your chapter breakdown exactly, it is only a tool that you use to shape your story.
How many words do I need to write
This is up to you. I sometimes write one book a week. My books range from 4,500 words to 7,500 words. Because of the publishing timeline I keep, I want to get as many books published as possible. So, I keep my books short. I suggest you do the same.
The time it takes to write large full-length books will cut down on your number of books published. You can write three to four short story romances in the same amount of time as one full length story. In my opinion, the more books you put out the better. I will go further into this in the chapter, Publishing Timeline
Formatting and Editing
Formatting with Kindle Create Add In - To format your book, I recommend you download the Kindle Create add in for Word. This is a great tool to help you format your book and it is FREE. There are also multiple videos to show you how to use it. However, it is very easy to work with.
Editing – I highly recommend editing your book.
1- You can pay someone, there are plenty of editing services advertised on fivver.com.
2- You can have literary friends read it and proofread.
3- You can edit it on your own. I have edited all my own books. This is not necessarily a good thing. Many of my negative reviews have been for grammar or spelling errors. I have really had to put more effort in editing my work. If you do edit your own work, be thorough.
Choosing a Title
I don’t know if there is a good way or bad way to pick a title. I don’t really put a lot of thought into it. I write the story and the book pretty much names itself by the time I am finished writing. One thing I do that really helps me is my subtitle. I always have a subtitle that is heavy in keywords. For example, most of my books have the subtitle, “An Alpha Older Man and Younger BBW Steamy Sweet Romance.” This covers a lot of keywords that people would use when searching for a book. Also, there is a software I use to help me when picking a Title and Subtitle. You will read more about it in the #1 Helpful Tool To Be An Amazon Bestselling Author chapter.
Cover Design
There are many services you can use to purchase a cover design. Some of them are up to $500 for one design. This is not necessary. You can easily design a cover for a lot less. First you will need the software to design. The two I recommend are very inexpensive. One is ten dollars a month and one is free.
Adobe Photoshop – You can get Photoshop for ten dollars a month. It is a high-tech software that will take some research learning how to use it. I use Photoshop because I already had it for other purposes. I have experience with Photoshop, so it is easier for me to create a cover from nothing.
Canva – Canva is an image creation software online. It is FREE. You can find numerous YouTube videos showing you exactly how to create a design. I feel that Canva is easier to understand than Photoshop if you do not have any design experience. It offers a large span of fonts and you can easily upload an image.
Next, you will need an image for your cover. You can find cheap images online. Just make sure they are royalty free and you can use them for the purpose of a book cover.
I purchased one month of photos from Big Stock Photo. The one-month fee was seventy-nine dollars and you can download five images a day. I downloaded one hundred and fifty images in one month. I now have enough images for one hundred and fifty covers. So, I paid approximately one dollar and ninety cents for the cover image for one book… not bad.
When you are looking for images, search for images that stand out to you. Honestly, I searched for tattooed men. When I felt an attraction to the image, I purchased it.
My covers all look a lot alike. They all have a shirtless, tattooed man on the cover. I then put the title, subtitle and author name on the cover. A lot of my covers look similar. I change the man on the cover and I sometimes change the text color, but that is it.
Marketing
&
nbsp; Facebook - I do have a Facebook page where I post my new releases. However, if you look at it, you will find that I do not put a lot of effort into it. This is not something I am proud of, but the truth. I worked diligently in the beginning to post and add friends or fans. I have not put a lot of effort into it recently. I have focused more on writing and publishing.
Mail Chimp – I do have the FREE service with mail chimp. I think you can have up to 2000 people on your subscribers list before you have to start paying for the service. For Mail Chimp, I have a link to subscribe in each of my books and also on my website. I then send an email each time I publish a book.
Website – I had purchased my domain as soon as I picked the pen name. However, I did not start my website until I had multiple books put up. I contacted a local web designer to create my website. I am very happy with the results. You can see my website at: http://www.authorhopeford.com If you are interested in a quote for creating your website, you can send an email to [email protected]
