Self Publishing Update (October 2025)

It’s been a while since I did one of these updates but that doesn’t mean I’ve been slacking. Instead I’ve been trying out different ways of finding my readership. And the main one I’m going to talk about here is collaborative book sales.

Setting a book either free or on sale on my own doesn’t tend to gain many sales or downloads, largely because my reach doesn’t extend sufficiently widely to get the attention of people who haven’t yet come across the book. So in order to mitigate this I’ve been taking part in a variety of collaborative events.

The first of these was a Stuff Your Kindle event. In this case the Dark Mode SYK. This had a really good reach and I put in Dragons of Dunmoray and was delighted to get over 4000 downloads from nearly 20 different countries.

However there was a downside. Firstly the books have to be set to be free downloads, so people are inclined to download many more books than they are ever likely to read. There’s no direct financial gain and it’s hard to determine how many of the people who download the book ever actually read it and whether any of these actually translate into reviews.

On the upside I did see an uptick in sales of my other books as well as an increased number of kindle unlimited page reads which coincided with the sale. So it certainly helped gain visibility.

I then had a go at participating in collaborative sales. These can be quite tricky to find – I often learn about them after the event, but I have managed to take part in five so far with varying results. In some sales I shifted zero books while in others I’ve done really well. In the latest sale I took part in, Permafrost ranked in the top 20 out of over 300 books, which was really pleasing.

I think the trick here is to match the right book with the right sale. For example in some sales different genres will outperform others. If your book isn’t a popular genre for that readership then you won’t get much traction. 

It’s all a bit of a learning experience and there are a couple more sales that I have my eye on and will be participating in over the coming months.

So keep an eye out. I’ll post here when they’re live. And grab yourself a bargain!

The Self Published Science Fiction Competition 2025

The Self Published Science Fiction Competition - or SPSFC5 - is now taking entries. So if you have a self published SF novel why not give it a go.

I've just entered Permafrost and this will be my third year taking part. I'm really looking forward to discovering some great new books to read and rave about on this blog.

Here's the link if you fancy joining me in the contest. SPSFC5

The Reviews Are Coming In

 My latest self published SF novel, Permafrost, has been out in the world for a couple of months and I'm delighted to see how well it it being received. It is gathering some great reviews, both on Goodreads and Amazon, and then there's this one at the Popular Science Books Blog to add to those giving it 5 stars!

And now for a reprint

I'm delighted to share with you that my short story, The Last Library, which appeared in New Myths Magazine back in 2020, will be reprinted in the forthcoming anthology from New Myths, Janus Gates, due sometime in 2026.

Let's Get Villainous!

The Bournemouth Festival of Writing has released a whole load of photographs, courtesy of Solid Imagery, and so I have included a selection from my workshop, Let's Get Villainous, which was a huge success. But don't worry if you missed out. I hope to run this one again so watch this space.

Back into the fray

The publishing industry is tough, and since the pandemic it has only got tougher. There was a time when agent submissions were almost guaranteed a reply, if only a form letter, but these day’s you’re lucky to get a reply at all, and that in itself can be so disheartening – it’s like sending your work into a black hole to be swallowed up and never heard from again.

Then if you are lucky enough to get published it’s no guarantee of future success. I’ve now been published twice. Firstly Red Rock with Curious Fox in 2013 and then in 2022 The Sleepers was published by Bloodhound Books.

Yet between these books, and before and after, I’ve never stopped writing. I’ve never stopped sending stuff out. I’ve never stopped receiving rejection after rejection.

So, here I am again. A new novel is complete and winging its way out into the world. I’m back researching agents, looking for publishers with open submission windows, eyeing up competitions that might help me achieve my goal. And maybe, just maybe, this one will be my third time lucky!

Wistman's Wood, Dartmoor

Self Publishing Update (May 2025)

For the past few years, in fact, ever since I received my rights back for Red Rock and dipped my toe into this alternative world, this alternative route for my books, I’ve been working my way through the Science Fiction backlist and self publishing those novels through Amazon under my SF author identity Kate Kelly. 

It’s been an interesting project and the latest, and probably the last of these for a while is Permafrost which comes out officially today. Permafrost is a post apocalyptic SF thriller exploring themes of climate change and geoengineering. It’s a story I’ve very much enjoyed writing, and I’m glad to be sending it out into the world.

So what of self publishing in general? Well I’ve learned a lot. Firstly the actual production of the book is the easy part. Holding the book in your hands, flicking through the pages, looking at the cover you designed – it feels so satisfying.

But creating the book is only part of it. The really tough part, the bit I’m particularly useless at, is marketing. I’ve been experimenting with different things and for me, finding a community has been the most rewarding part. I’ve done this by participating in indie competitions such as SPSFC (Self Published Science Fiction Competition) which introduced me to the indie SF scene and I’ve met some great authors through this. I’ve taken part in group sales and Stuff Your Kindle events, and all these have helped shift a few copies of my books, but I have yet to truly find my readership.

And this is the key thing. Who are my readers? Where do they hang out? How do I make myself known to them?

If I ever manage to find the answers I’ll let you know. But in the meantime do check out Permafrost, and if you enjoy it please leave a review.

Amazon UK

Amazon US