I was nervous about self-publishing. I was worried about the time it would take, the response to the book, and whether it might somehow damage my “brand” (God help me if I really have a brand!). I invested a bunch of money in editing and a little on advertising, and wondered if it would be well spent. I hemmed and hawed. Finally, I hit the publish button.

The result was Exposing Alix. And it’s been totally worth it. Maybe not financially–it’s early, and while I haven’t made back my investment yet, sales are pretty good and I’m hopeful that I will. But more importantly, I am getting the opportunity to try things in real time, and see how they affect readers.

This is something traditionally published authors don’t get a chance to do–try things out. You’d be surprised how divorced authors are from the business end of things. Agents negotiate contracts. Editors and marketing people make covers and titles. Someone writes the back cover blurb. Sometimes, sometimes the author gets input. Usually, they do not. And forget about sales. That data belongs to the publishing house and they HATE sharing it. (Again, I’m talking traditional publishing.) People used to ask me how my first book, The Candidates, was selling. I didn’t have any idea what sales were until I got my first royalty statement–eight months after publication. Writing for Entangled I get information more often (quarterly) but it’s still hard to get real time data.

But with self publishing you are in control. I write the blurbs. I make the ads. I choose the cover. And I can check my Amazon dashboard any time and see how many copies have sold. By the day. Twice a day if I want (I try not to. That sort of thing can make you crazy.) Which means I can change all those things I created and see if it affects sales. I can even do something drastic–change the whole darn cover, for example–and watch the response.

So that’s what I’ve been doing. Tweaking. Watching. Changing. Experimenting.

And damn, is this FUN!

Apparently, you all like this ad:

He won’t let her hold anything back…but can he keep his own heart locked away forever?

better than this ad:

She won’t settle for anything less than love….He won’t let her hold anything back.

Interesting, right?

And now here’s the big question. Which cover do you like better?

The old one is at the top. Here’s the new one:

Very different, right? I can’t wait to see how the response differs between the two. And I’d love to hear from you all on this one.

Which cover do you like better? Which makes you more likely to buy the book?

To entice you to give me your feedback, I’m offering a copy of any of my e-books to one commenter–Rules of Negotiation, The Boss’s Fake Fiancee, or Exposing Alix!