How I Almost Killed My Series and My Best Book

by L.J. Sellers, author of provocative mysteries & thrillers

I've been reminded of that nearly tragic scenario because Dying for Justice, the fifth book in the Detective Jackson series, just won the silver in the 2012 Readers Favorite Awards in the Mystery category.

But I almost abandoned this novel and the whole series back in winter 2009/2010. I had decided to give up the series because it was floundering under a small publisher. I'd had two failed launches in a row and I wasn't making money. I thought if I could launch a new series with a new character and new publisher, I might be able to save my career. So I mapped out a plot in which Detective Evans, one of Jackson’s sidekicks, was the lead character with Jackson as a strong secondary character—hoping my readers would come along with the new series. I thought I had written my last Jackson book.

Then everything changed. I was laid off my newspaper job, e-books started to take off, and I re-envisioned my novelist career. I set aside Dying for Justice  to rewrite two standalone thrillers and publish them on Kindle, then to regain the rights to my other Jackson novels and self-publish them as well. That took six months.

In October, my Jackson stories became bestsellers on Kindle and readers were asking for more. At that point, I was ready to start writing again. After reading through my outline for the Evans-based story, I decided I really liked the plot and would go ahead and write it, giving the two detectives equal POV roles.

Dying for Justice went on to become a readers’ favorite and the highest-rated crime-fiction novel on Amazon. It also fully launched the Evans character who later took a starring role in The Gauntlet Assassin, my futuristic thriller, another reader favorite. So today I'm celebrating the Jackson story that almost didn’t make it to publication, but I’m so glad it did.


Here's a link to an excerpt if you're curious. 

Have you ever abandoned a novel and regretted it? Or brought it back later in a new form?

Tweaking Titles and Covers to Improve Sales

by L.J. Sellers, author of provocative mysteries & thrillers

In December, I did Amazon-sponsored giveaways of The Suicide Effect and The Sex Club, and between the two, I gave away more than 55,000 ebooks, and they both have sold really well since.

So I thought I’d repeat the effort with The Arranger, a book with nearly all 5-star reviews that had never gained any traction. After two days, I only had about 2500 downloads. I couldn’t even give the book away!

Not everyone likes futuristic thrillers, but The Hunger Games is huge bestseller, so there is an audience for the genre. I decided that the problem was the name. The Arranger just didn’t have enough intrigue or power. It was one of two choices at the time, and my husband really liked it, and I let him talk me into using it—against my better judgment.

So I changed the title to The Gauntlet Assassin and did a two-day giveaway...with a terrific download response. The ebook has been selling steadily since at five times the rate of its previous sales. Yeah! But I think it has even more potential, so I’m having a new cover created, and I’m contracting with a new designer, one that specializes in thrillers. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with and how it affects sales.

I’ve also recently changed the cover of Secrets to Die For—for the third time!—and changed the font on all my Jackson books. They all instantly jumped up in the rankings on Amazon’s police procedural list.

This is one of the best things about digital publishing—the ability to quickly and inexpensively make changes. Sometimes I worry that it’s disturbing to readers but I hope they understand. I’m running a small business, and I have to ensure that my products are selling as well as they can.

Readers: What do you think?
Writers: Have you made cover or title changes and did it work for you?