December 14, 2017

How I made a big mistake with book prices...

When I meet people, and they buy my books in person, I charge them the price that’s on my site, which is $22-25 for novels (that includes the higher-quality printed book plus the kiss and the time to kiss, and the personalized message).

Recently a few lovely ladies whom I sold the books discovered that on Amazon my books are within the $7-9 range and got very upset with me. Hell, I'd be upset too. How could they know I print my paperbacks for a little more money so they look prettier? How would they know I spend the time on kissing them and writing a custom message? And wrapping them in beautiful paper? And adding bookmarks inside which also have to be printed? It isn't clearly spelled out anywhere.

December 10, 2017

Selling your books face-to-face without sounding like a TV ad

by Ksenia Anske

Jabe Stafford asked me to write a post about "pitching/selling your book to others face-to-face without sounding like a TV ad."

You got it, Jabe. Here goes.

The reason why we feel sounding like a TV ad when selling face-to-face is because we think we have to sell to the person instead of buying with them.

I’ll explain.

The typical understanding of selling comes from our experiences being sold to. We only know what we're experienced in life, and because many times we've been burned by bad being-fooled experiences, we despise selling.

November 28, 2017

The Art of Selling Art

by Ksenia Anske

My dear friend and writer Lily Gearhart has nominated me for a TED talk by the name of The Art of Selling Art, and I fell in love with the name. It’s what she said I do, teach artists how to sell their art, and there is an art to it (not to twist your brain...or maybe just a little). Plus I promised you this post one post ago, so here goes.

How do you sell your art?

What I’m about to tell you will require you to leave your old life and step into a new one, and in the process learn to step outside of yourself to sell, then return to yourself to create.

I’ll explain.

October 21, 2017

On selling books…just a little encouraging message to motivate your butt

by Ksenia Anske

Books (Please)! by Alexander Rodchenko, 1924

I can’t stop selling for the life of me. Really, it’s like I was born to sell. I do it with everyone, everywhere, at all times. I used to be ashamed of it. I used to not even understand what it was I was doing. When I was a little girl, I learned to survive by talking people into selling them on the idea of not hurting me. I had to. So I practiced it every day, from very early on. Then, when I understood I could make money with it, I was told it was an egoistic, capitalistic desire that was shameful, and I shouldn’t be selfish, and I’d never be able to do it, and I must be altruistic and self-sacrificing, and on and on and on, the glorious bullshit of patriarchy teaching me to be subservient and non-ambitious and mediocre and quiet and compliant.

February 14, 2015

How to sell books like hot cakes

by Ksenia Anske

Let me give you a little lesson on selling. I'm at RadCon, my third convention, and two hours before it opened I have made my first sale. In about an hour I'll be giving a talk on how to pitch your book in one sentence which will lead directly to a sale, usually. By "usually" I mean, it needs a little help. And by "little help" I mean, you need to come up with what works for you, but if you think you can sit and do nothing and your books will sell themselves, you're mistaken.

ASK.