This is just a quick reminder that this epic fantasy box set is set to revert to the normal price of £6.99 tonight. Act quick and pick it up for only £3.99 worldwide. Silent Sea Chronicles box set
The blurb
Tei has magic in a world where people like her are persecuted and forced into exile. Whilst fleeing their home, her father is attacked and his deathbed confession reveals a dangerous secret that will change her life forever.
Tei’s homeland, the magical island of Kalaya, is dying and without a Sentinel to restore the magic, it’s only a matter of time before all life is wiped out.
She must join the exiles in the search for the lost Sentinel, but they are not the only ones after the missing guardian. Sinister Masked Riders are on their trail and time is running out.
Tei must risk everything she loves to save Kalaya, but is she ready to make that sacrifice?
1396 pages of magic, adventure and intrigue.
This epic fantasy box set contains: The Lost Sentinel – Book 1 The Sentinel’s Reign – Book 2 The Sentinel’s Alliance – Book 3
Praise for Silent Sea Chronicles…
This is a story about war, magic, and destiny, which you cannot miss. Following the characters during their journeys has been incredible… (Goodreads) Sofia – A book. A thought.
Love this series!!…The Sentinel’s Alliance is an epic conclusion to a fantastic series. (Amazon) Jessica Belmont
What an epic journey this trilogy has been…There are some terrific battle scenes, with massive shocks, and mouth dropping moments that I just hadn’t seen coming, all delivered with Rogerson perfection. (Amazon top 1000 reviewer. Vine Voice) Susan Hampson
(The Sentinel’s Alliance) This has been a fantastic finale to the trilogy, it’s had everything that made the first two books to good and then some. All of Suzanne’s brilliant world building skills are still shining through… (Goodreads) KT Robson
Rogerson has managed to craft together a fantasy trilogy that is simultaneously complex and quick. So many layers and twists are woven throughout the books and yet it never feels too heavy, the pace moves at a determined clip and action holds one’s attention captive. (Amazon) Angela – Pooled Ink Reviews
Fabulous Saga… it’s well written and utterly magical! (Amazon) Shelley Clarke
This box set includes the Amazon bestselling book, The Lost Sentinel. A book tour has just finished for this first book in the series and you can follow the link for my wrap up post to see some quotes from the reviewers involved here.
Thanks for reading.
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
The book tour for The Lost Sentinel ran from 6th to 12th of September. In case you’ve missed the details here was the line up…
Timy gave a great round up of the tour you should check out, but I wanted to do my own post to highlight the reviews and as my way of saying thanks to the reviewers involved. Please click the links to visit their blogs.
‘For those of you who enjoy romance and the like, I would definitely suggest giving The Lost Sentinel a read. Even as someone who almost never enjoys romance in a book, I was still able to see that it was written very well, and lead to some quite emotional moments.’
‘The magic system was really interesting and I love the idea that the island has magic that the Mystics must protect but the none magical people have forgotten and don’t look after the island ass they should. I really wish we had more stories where the land was actually alive with magic…’
‘I think this book would be a good read for those just getting into fantasy or who don’t read it often but sometimes want an escape from their usual reading as it gives you all the things we love about fantasy…’
‘THE LOST SENTINEL is a solid fantasy tale that reminded me of some of my most treasured fantasy comfort reads. The magic especially is very well done and spun with an alacrity that is hard to come by these days.’
‘A true fantasy is as good as the world it depicts. And this world is amazing! …the twists, the magic, the world make you loose yourself a little in this breathtaking fantasy.’
Wrap up interview with some asylum related questions that made me look at my book in a whole new way!
Plus there’s a song list I used whilst writing the trilogy and some super cool Youtube videos too, so be sure to stop by for a read and a listen.
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Thanks to Storytellers on tour and to all the book reviewers who took part. Being an indie author and reaching readers is really hard, so I appreciate your support in sharing my trilogy with your followers.
If these reviews have piqued your interest, this is the last chance to buy the box set trilogy whilst it’s on sale – Pick up the Silent Sea Chronicles for just £3.99 worldwide. Why not take a chance and let me know what you think. Amazon link.
Thanks for reading.
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
Fantasy is a genre close to my heart. I love to read and write it. As mentioned in yesterday’s reading update post, I’ve decided to dedicate a whole post to the Indie Fantasy books I want to read in 2020. I’ve only picked a couple as I don’t have much time left in 2020 to read them, but it’s great to be able to give a shout out to some fellow indie authors.
This post is inspired by #selfpubfantasymonth taking place during the whole of September.
So here is my list of books to read this year.
Emma Miles – Raven Storm book 3 I’ve read the series so far this year and loved them. Here’s my joint review of Raven Tower and Raven Coven – duo review.
I would love to catch up with Ian Gregoire’s series. Book 2 Apprentice in the Master’s Shadow which came our earlier in 2020. Here’s my review of book 1.
I’ve been wanting to read Talis Jones’ Otherworld trilogy for ages. I bought Crooked Raven book 1 in 2018 and still haven’t managed to read it. I can’t believe the whole trilogy is already published but at least that means I won’t have to wait for the release of the following books!
Now I know I wont have time to read any more books this year, but these are books I’ve picked up in 2020 and hope to read at some point soon. Click the book titles for Amazon links.
I’ve just reached my reading target for 2020, four months early! Ok, so I only set it at 15, but I have been really enjoying reading again and have to say the standard of the books has been so high. I’ve read a mix of fantasy, romance, spy-thrilllers and urban fantasy, plus a non-fiction book and a bio by Monty Don – Nigel.
What I’ve recently read
Book 1 and 2 S.A. Chakraborty’s Daevabad trilogy. I plan to do a trilogy review as soon as I’ve finished book 3, which I was kindly given a copy of via Netgalley.
Currently reading
During lockdown I’ve been taken with the idea of writing some Romance novellas so I’ve decided to always have a romance book on the go. I’m currently reading…
Chocolate Wishes by Trisha Ashley.
and I’m almost finished reading Escape to the French Farmhouse by Jo Thomas. It is such a lovely read and I’ll be sad to finish it.
As mentioned above, I’m reading book 3 in Daevabad trilogy, Empire of Gold. I hope to finish this asap and get the reviews up for all 3 books. It’s a such a brilliant series that I can’t wait to tell you about it.
What I plan to read over the next few months
My book group have chosen Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen. I’ve been wanting to read this for the last few years so I’m looking forward to digging in before the end of September.
I would like to catch up with the next Carrie Harris book by GJ Stevens. I read the prequel a few months ago and couldn’t put it down. See my review here.
I also have plans to read some non-fiction books as research for my writing. Now the kids have returned to school I’m wondering if I’ll have more time on my hands to tackle these books;
I’d also like to revisit some non-fiction books I read last year and put into action their suggestions and hopefully review them this time!
By the end of the year I hope to support some of my fellow fantasy indie authors. I’ll share those books in another blog post in support of #Selfpubfantasymonth.
I think that is plenty of reading to be getting on with. Have you read any of these books? Are they on your TBR?
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
Today is the start of the Book Tour for The Lost Sentinel! Here’s the line up…
Thanks to Storytellers on Tour for organising everything. I’m so excited for the upcoming week and hope you can join all these great bloggers and instagrammers.
The Lost Sentinel, an Amazon bestseller, is book 1 in Silent Sea Chronicles trilogy. To celebrate the book tour, the complete box set is on offer for only £3.99 worldwide.
Here’s a couple of Ads I’ve been playing with.
I’ll be sharing more information about the book tour during the week, so please pop back soon.
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
Today I’m happy to introduce a newly published book – a travel adventure that I’m sure will be of interest to lots of would be travellers and those who haven’t been able to get away this year due to covid-19.
First, here’s a few words from debut author Dawn East about what inspired her to write and publish Heading East (great title btw).
‘Before I went on a one year sabbatical around Asia, Australia and Eastern Europe, I thought I’d write a blog about my travels to let my family and friends know what I was up to. However, it soon turned into something much bigger and I found myself writing for hours about each place I visited. My friends loved it so I kept writing.
This book is all of my blog posts combined into one and covers the honest ups and downs of solo travel as an older female traveller. From sad histories to funny anecdotes, there is something for everyone. If you’re tempted to follow in my footsteps then I’ve included a helpful Q&A at the end. I hope you enjoy following my adventures.‘
Blurb
The very thought of home ownership and settling down was enough to send Dawn East running for the hills – otherwise known as the Trans-Mongolian Train, where her adventures across Asia, Australia and Eastern Europe would begin. But how would a self-confessed fussy eater, who worries about everything from bag-snatchers to parasitic skin infections, cope with a year of strange foods, noisy dorms and leaving behind a blossoming relationship?
Join Dawn, a forty-year-old primary school teacher, on her one year sabbatical as she navigates her way through twenty-six different countries.
Thanks for stopping by. If you do pick up a copy of Heading East, please consider leaving a review to help out a debut indie author. (Dawn is not on social media, but if you have any comments for her I can pass them on.)
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
It’s September and we’re into the last 4 months of the year – that’s scary! Like most people I think I’ll be glad for 2020 to be over.
To help me through I’ve decided to plan my writing projects for the rest of the year. I’m not setting huge goals, so hopefully I can stick to them.
First it’s always nice to look back and see what I have achieved this year (and gloss over the fact I had originally planned to have published two books by this time in 2020)!
Achieved in 2020
I finally set up my mailing list with Mailchimp. This is a task I’ve been putting off for years. I haven’t started advertising it yet, but if you want to join please follow the link here. I’m working on some free and exclusive stories for my mailing list subscribers set in the worlds of my novels, so there’s a great reason to join me.
My big news for 2020 is that the audiobook for The Lost Sentinel is coming very soon! We’re just waiting for approval from ACX and then it will be on sale through Amazon, Audible and iTunes. Watch this space for more info.
Last month The Lost Sentinel hit number 1 bestseller in several free categories in the US, UK and Canada. It was a pretty big deal for me and I shared a post about how it happened here.
What’s to come
I’ve been writing a romance novella that I hope to publish in 2020. It’s a departure from my preferred fantasy genre but it’s been keeping me sane during lockdown and I’m really excited about it. I have yet to have beta readers feedback so I’m not even sure how good the story is, but I do have my editor booked in very soon so I need to get on with it!
Those short stories for my mailing list subscribers need to be a priority after the novella has gone to beta readers.
I’m writing a spy story with a friend. We’re not sure how long it will be, but I’ve already suggested we publish it at some point. This will be my friend’s first self published book and it’ll be great to share a joint project with the world. Again, testing out a new genre is exciting as well.
I have other romance novella ideas that I hope to start drafting over the coming months, but I really must get back to my first love – Fantasy! Which leads me to…
My planned trilogy. If I can just get on with it I might be able to publish the complete trilogy in 2021. That is a big ask, but book 1 is almost complete (if I don’t end up planning any major rewrites) and book 2 only has about a 1/4 to go. Book 3 is another matter, but I’ll worry about that later.
There are always more projects in the back of my mind including the book of short stories I’ve been itching to put together and a non-fiction book on writing and self publishing that keeps rearing up and forcing my attention away from other things. These are ideas I’ll sort out one day, I’m just not sure when.
Other News
Silent Sea Chronicles has a blog tour running from 6th to 12th September. Run by Storytellers on Tour, there will be some fun Q&A’s and lots of reviews and promo posts hitting over the week.
I’m also planning an Audiobook 1 day event for The Lost Sentinel in the next few months with the help of Rachel’s Random Resources.
I’ve signed up for an online social media course to help me understand some of the platforms I’ve been ignoring, so hopefully I can learn a few tips to reach a wider audience.
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I think that’s about all I should consider for now before I dig myself an even bigger writing hole to get lost in.
Tomorrow I have a book post from a debut author to share and then I’ll be blogging about my reading plans for the rest of 2020. Thanks for stopping by.
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
I’ve been looking into advertising my audiobook (soon to be audiobooks!) but I’m struggling to find ways to do it.
Then I realised I haven’t posted about the book for a while, so I’d like to share it with you now and offer my readers the chance to listen for free. All I ask as that you consider leaving a review on Audible, Amazon, Goodreads, wherever you feel comfortable posting.
To tempt you here’s a sample performed by the very talented Guy Barnes.
Blurb
Two wizards, 350 years apart. Can they save the realm of Paltria from Zarua’s dark past?
An ancient darkness haunts the realm of Paltria. Apprentice wizard Paddren is plagued by visions of a city on the brink of annihilation. When his master dies in mysterious circumstances, the Royal Order of Wizards refuses to investigate. Helped by his childhood friend, the skilled tracker Varnia, and her lover Leyoch, Paddren vows to find the killer. The investigation leads Paddren down a sinister path of assassins, secret sects and creatures conjured by blood magic. But he is guided by a connection with a wizard from centuries ago – a wizard whose history holds the key to the horror at the heart of the abandoned city of Zarua. Can Paddren decipher his visions and save the Paltrian people before the dark menace of Zarua’s past is unleashed?
You can also buy the audiobook on itunes or audible where it’s free to listen to with your monthly credit.
If you don’t have a audible account, you can follow these links to set up an account and receive a free months trial
I’ve been lucky enough to feature on Writing and Wellness. I’ve shared my experience publishing a trilogy and how to go about turning them into audiobooks.
Last week I did something I said to myself at the start of my indie career that I would never do, I gave away a book for free.
I’ve done a fair amount of 99p deals and sales drops, but to set it to free and then pay to advertise it didn’t make sense to me.
But being the start of a trilogy it can be good business to give away book 1 for a limited period. If people enjoy book 1, they will hopefully go on to buy and read books 2 and 3. And, all going well I’ve gained a new, avid reader for future books. Still it is a risk and can be an expensive one too.
My Tactic
I set book 1 to free for the full 5 days allowed in my KDP Select 3 month period. Then I set book 2 and 3 to 99p each for the 7 days allowed starting on the same day as the free 5 day promotion.
I stacked ads for each day to maximise the reach of my free book offer. This was great for achieving downloads but it has meant I’ve no idea what ads were any good. (List of ad companies further down in this post).
I did use the tactic of using the biggest hitter for my genre (Book Barbarian) in the middle of the promo period, which helped me reach no.1 in the US. See more on this below.
The Results
Downloads of The Lost Sentinel over the 5 free days 10th to 14th August = 3862
Purchases of books 2 and 3 over the 7 day KDP free days = 143
KENP – pages read through Kindle Unlimited since 10th August to date = Over 5K
Reviews and Ratings. So far I’ve received a 4 and 5 star review, and a 5 star rating. I’m hoping to see more popping over over the coming weeks. I’ve also gained a few new followers on BookBub which is always good.
Amazon 5 Stars. Captivating… ‘I’ve been reading fantasy and SF for over fifty years. I recognize a born story teller when I read one. Suzanne Rogerson held me spellbound. The author is destined to become a legend.’
Goodreads 4 star – ‘Very interesting premise… The world building was amazing. The lands of Kalaya and Tei’s powers of astral projection were so vividly described that it was beautiful to read about it. Tei’s journey and the twist in the end added to the enjoyment of the story. Liked it.’
The Cost
I spend a few hundred pounds setting this up and have so far earnt back nearly half of what I laid out in advertising costs. That’s not bad, especially if it continues to help people discover my books and they keep reading them through Kindle Unlimited. Who knows maybe in time it will have broken even.
This experiment wasn’t so much about the money, but about reaching readers. I’m happy to have been able to reach 3862 new ones across the world!
The BIG BIG Benefit
The Lost Sentinel reached No.1 in three countries and in some cases held the spot for two/three consecutive days.
No. 1 best seller in US – Categories = Romantic fantasy, Woman’s fantasy fiction, Action and Adventure Fantasy, New Adult and college fantasy. At various times The Lost Sentinel held spots 2 and 3 in Epic fantasy, Sword and Sorcery and Coming of Age Fantasy.
The top sales rank it reached across all free kindle books in the US was 83 and it reached no. 4 in the top free fantasy books. That really made my day.
No. 1 best seller in UK – Categories = Low Fantasy, Fantasy Adventure Fiction, Contemporary Fantasy and Action and Adventure Fiction. It also reached no.2 in Coming of Age fantasy and Epic Fantasy, and 3 in Sword and Sorcery.
The Lost Sentinel also reached No. 4 in all free fantasy books and was no 5 in all sci-fi and fantasy free books in the UK.
No. 1 best seller in Canada – Categories = Coming of Age Fantasy. Placed 2nd in Epic and 3rd in Sword and Sorcery.
Top sales rank of all free books 29. No. 4 in top free fantasy books in Canada.
No.2 in Australia for Epic fantasy and 73 across the whole of free books in Australia.
As well as these four countries, The Lost Sentinel was also downloaded in Brazil, Germany, India, Netherlands, France, Spain, Japan, Italy and Mexico. I achieved high rankings in many of these countries too.
I’ve tried to do some research to understand the numbers but all I can find out is that there could be around 6 million ebooks available on kindle. I don’t know how many of those are free at any one time, but those are big numbers and I’m so proud to see my book reaching such heights.
Would I recommend running a free book promotion?
100% yes. But I would only do this for book 1 in a trilogy or the start of a series and I would wait until the rest of the books are available to hopefully encourage follow on sales and read throughs.
A Warning
Watching the downloads come in and getting to No 1 is quite addictive, so don’t plan on doing much else whilst your promotion is running.
It’s a heady experience, which means the come down is hard. When it’s all over you’re left feeling deflated. And it is a shame to see the ranking disappear after the free promo is over. My advice is to take screenshots so you can look back and say it really did happen!
Would I change anything?
I wish I’d booked more ads for the last day of the promo period. After all the excitement midway through, the last day felt like a let down with dwindling sales. It would have been great to go out with a bang.
Ad companies I used in my free promo.
Note – I can’t say for sure where the downloads came from. I’m just providing you with a list of the ad companies I used. There are so many to choose from that you should do your research and learn from trial and error.
Day 1 – Just Kindle Books, Book Reader magazine, Pretty Hot books (119 free downloads, 8 sales)
Day 2 – FKBT, Awesome book promo, James H Mayfield VA services (551 free downloads, 15 sales)
Day 3 – Book Barbarian, BK Nights (1291 free downloads, 57 sales)
Day 4 – Book Runes, Awesome gang, eReader IQ, Book Cave (1426 free downloads, 31 sales)
Day 5 – Book Doggy (475 downloads, 24 sales)
Day 6 and 7 after the free promo ended. 8 sales.
A big thank you to Bklnk.com This is a great resource to check what categories your books are in and their rankings across Amazon in the US, UK and Canada.
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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy
Suzanne Rogerson Author 