How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months [Paperback]

There is a key piece of advice crucial to his success that he left out of this book: pay readers to leave fake reviews. In an interview with Locke in today's New York Times, he admitted that he paid for 300 reviewers to heap praise on his books, a sleazy promotional technique that seems to have worked for him. Locke admits to buying reviews because "Reviews are the smallest piece of being successful, but it's a lot easier to buy them than cultivating an audience." I have some advice for Locke on a more honest and ethical approach he might want to try: Actually write good books. That's how to build an audience. You do not gain readers, or recognition, by swindling readers into buying your books with fake praise. It's unethical and shows a startling lack of respect for your reader.

This book is fine if you're only interested in reading page after page about the author's own success. I was, however, looking for tips on how to be a successful indie publisher, and there are none here you probably couldn't figure out on your own.

Here's what you will find:lots of ads for John Locke's other books, ads that start even before the first page; lots and lots of bragging interspersed with cries of "I'm not bragging!" (the author doth protest too much); lots of talk about why e-publishing is better than traditional publishing; how he spent $25,000 making mistakes (which might be helpful to the few indie publishers who think paid advertising and the like is worth it); lots and lots of promises that he will tell you how he did it (which never goes beyond the obvious) spread over many pages; stuff like "What? I'm giving you a ten thousand dollar idea in a $4.99 eBook, $9.99 paperback? Yup. And I'm including a wealth of other valuable ideas, too" (sounds like an infomercial, doesn't it?); a question and answer session where he asks himself questions like "Where do you get your confidence? How did you know you were going to be successful as an author?" and "How does it feel to have a best selling book?"; a lot about the target audience he writes for and how he interacts with it; an entire chapter about all the things he says you're doing wrong (because who doesn't like an author who assumes his readers are doing everything wrong?); setting goals and how this relates to the time he spent as an insurance salesman (yup, he was an insurance salesman. You can write your own joke here); join Twitter!; develop a brand!; keep writing books!; create a website!; and lots of other things ending with exclamation points!

So don't make the mistake I made, and don't waste your money on this book. Instead, check out J.A. Konrath's blog, A Newbie's Guide to Publishing, and Zoe Winter's hype-free book on the same topic:Smart Self-Publishing: Becoming an Indie Author.

From the "The Best Book Reviews Money Can Buy", NY Times, August 26th, 2012:

One thing that made a difference is not mentioned in "How I Sold One Million E-Books." That October, Mr. Locke commissioned Mr. Rutherford to order reviews for him, becoming one of the fledgling service's best customers. "I will start with 50 for $1,000, and if it works and if you feel you have enough readers available, I would be glad to order many more," he wrote in an Oct. 13 e-mail to Mr. Rutherford. "I'm ready to roll."

...

In a phone interview from his office in Louisville, Ky., Mr. Locke confirmed the transaction. "I wouldn't hesitate to buy reviews from people that were honest," he said.

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Here's the thing, Mr. Locke: paid reviews that don't disclose that fact are NOT honest. They are fraudulent. And your $0.99 empire is apparently built on a foundation of fraud and deception, something you failed to disclose in this lackluster book filled with obvious social media tips.