It's Getting More Expensive to be Independent

 So Draft 2 Digital sent me an email recently telling me that they'll be charging me twelve dollars a year to be on their platform, if my books aren't making a hundred dollars a year. Now I don't know about y'all but with all the fees they charge already, I'm not sure if this is an expense I want to take on.

At the current rate, they take 70% of my book sales so that even if I sell ten books in a month, I get like four dollars. To get to a hundred dollars, those sales would have to stack up. So I'm thinking that maybe I retrieve my books from mass circulation and put them on kindle unlimited only and whatever other sites I choose to use. 

The thing is, before they put up these changes, they made sure to merge with smashwords which is the site with the second most amount of traffic and which has a lot of useful features. So if I remove my books from Draft 2 Digital, I probably won't be able to just publish on smashwords independently.

My thing is, am I really benefiting from wide release even now? Most of my sales are from Amazon with honorable mention to Barnes and Noble. I can just take down my books from D2D and publish direct to these websites...

right?

I'm finding more and more and I know you're noticing it too, how the imperial overlords are trying to get us to price the little man out of everything. Are they pushing us to have to use Amazon nem? It feels that way honestly. I feel herded. I feel the dark presence of capitalism, seeking to reduce my quality of life minute by minute.

Or maybe I'm losing my mind...

I don't think so though. I don't think losing your mind is as easy as capitalism would like us to think. To me, 'losing your mind' is equivalent to 'having an independent thought'. Anyway, I'd really like to know your solutions to getting around these problems. I know you're experiencing them as well. Let me know in the comments.

5 Reasons Why My Ko-fi Bookshop is Better Than Amazon

I could tell you what they are or you could just watch the video.

Premium Ghostwriter

What does it mean to be a thought leader? 

Is it just meaningless corporate speak or does it mean something to the average consumer?
Let's simplify it a bit. 

When you're looking to buy make up for example and you want to get someone's opinion on it, are you more likely to go to Rihanna's instagram or Bad Bunny's?
They're both very well known, very successful musicians but who seems like they know more about make up?
Rihanna right?
Why her though?
Well, years and years of being photographed with her face beat was certainly a primer. The instagram videos where she showed step by step how she applies her make up cemented her reputation. The good reviews overall that her make up line got, was perhaps the cherry on the cake.
So, how do you, with your hundred followers and small niche call yourself a thought leader in the same breath as Rihanna?
Well, she might know a bit about music and make up, but I guarantee you that you know something much better than she does.
For me, it's writing and researching. I'd pit myself against anyone when it comes to that.
I'd put myself in the first line.
I"d definitely call myself a leader.
So when I say, I can put your thoughts into words and help you to connect with your audience, I can put my money where my mouth is. I've been ghostwriting for fifteen years. I've had satisfied clients from Australia, China, New Zealand, Sweden, Ukraine, the UK, the United States and of course, Kenya.
I've written romance novels, books on everything from ADHD to Social Anxiety, women in the workplace, legacy, and business. My niche is storytelling. I can tell you a story about anything and make you understand it.
So if you're looking for someone to tell your story, my commissions are open.

Get your christmas gifting done

It's time to thank your clients for their patronage this year and to remind them that next year will be an even more prosperous one for you both. Do so with my holiday bundle; A christmas greeting video, 2026 calendar and digital journal. My commissions are open.

The 'Writing A Book' Diaries: Muhammad Ali

The 'Writing A Book' Diaries: Muhammad Ali: Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explor...

Fantastic Books and Where To Buy Them...At a Discount

It's the end of year. The one known as Dezember. When people spend money like there's no tomorrow and life is one long party...allegedly.

Everybody knows that Amazon is owned by an evil man who exploits his workers. However Amazon is also the number one source for readers. When you're a writer, you can almost not afford not to have your books on Amazon. But every once in a while, smashwords hosts discounts that are popular enough to attract the attention of a bunch of readers you might otherwise not reach. 

So while you're spending your holiday budget, I just wanted to give y'all a lil nudge to remind you that I have some books you won't ever regret reading...and they are 50% off on the smashwords end of year sale until Jan 1st. 

Don't say I never gave you nothin'. 

Here is a little bite of In the Shadow of the Styx, book one of the Child of Destiny series to whet your appetites and remind you that there's fantasy/gothic romance and then there's some crazy shit Annemarie writes. 

Chapter Nine: Casper

Twelve hours later, Bernard was talking to a black-cloaked figure at the end of the morgue corridor. It wasn’t the gatekeeper; this one was much larger and more terrifying. His hood completely covered his face, so they couldn’t see what he looked like, but he towered over Bernard like a basilisk over its prey. They seemed to be having an extremely intense conversation. Phil and Lillian clasped their hands tightly together as they watched. It had been really close, but the god of craps had been with them, and they managed to beat the house. Now they waited anxiously for Bernard to get them the dark papyrus, apparently from Mr Hooded Cloak at the end of the corridor.

Bernard was coming toward them, a package in his hands. He held it out to them, his face betraying some trepidation.

“Here ’tis,” he said sadly. “May it serve you well.”

“Who is that?” Phil asked curiously, reaching out for it, with a nod of his head toward the Cloak.

“He is a purveyor of goods. Nobody you should be worried about,” Bernard shrugged in reply.

“Good then. So, how do we get the flames?” Phil said.

“Back to Armand?” Lillian asked.

“Yeah.”

“Now?”

“Yeah.”

They linked hands and turned as one, headed for the top of the hospital.

    “Armand?” They called as they reached the dark attic. 

    They walked around, peering in dark corners, but the place was deserted.

“Now wot?” Lillian asked.

“Severin?” Phil suggested.

“Where would we find him?”

“Andy.”

“Right. Reception?”

“Yeah.”

They walked back down to reception but Andy wasn’t there. There was a commotion down the hall though, as if some emergency were taking place. Without consultation, they knew that Andy would be there. They might only have known him for a day or so, but they knew one thing about him definitely—he always wanted to be in the thick of things. There was definitely nowhere thicker than right in the middle of a code blue.

Nurses and orderlies were rushing past them, pulling the crash cart and looking frantic. A doctor was shouting, “Clear!” at the top of his voice from a room at the end of the corridor. As they walked toward the commotion, they saw a figure standing just outside the door, staring in horror at the commotion inside. There was a jagged gash on the side of his leg like he’d been gored open with a blunt object. Blood was everywhere.

Hope that got you going enough to ask the question....

"And then what happened?"

Check me and all your other favorite writers out on the smashwords sales page.

When Female Characters Do Stupid Shit

I wrote an article on substack but it's about writing so here it is.

Musings on Characterization by Annemarie Musawale

Spoiler Alert: This is also kind of a rant

Read on Substack