🚀 It's here! 🌊 Starting From Zero is open for business 💅


Huge news this week!	View in browser

Hello sailor,

Big news today! Starting From Zero is open for business and I finally have a release date for the second edition of Amazon Decoded.

But before we get to either of those two attention-grabbing headlines, I think this week's blog post will be of real interest to anyone waiting for Amazon Decoded.

The research for Amazon Decoded 2 took me to some pretty interesting places, such as the entire history of recommender systems, papers written by the guys who designed Amazon's algorithms, and various revealing presentations Amazon has made at developer conferences and the like. Stitching that together with what I already knew about the system was fascinating.

But nothing was more fascinating - for all the wrong reasons - than the hilariously schlocky world of drop-shipping internet marketers climbing over each other to sell you the secrets of the "A9 Algorithm" as well as the "A10 Algorithm" and even the "A11 Algorithm." It gets weird, people.

Podcast, yo

Less weird, but just as interesting I hope, is this podcast I did with Nathan Bransford - publishing expert, author, and former literary agent for good measure - about how authors can find their first readers, how every author, even those not ready to advertise, can harness the power of Facebook, and the critical importance of building a community of readers.

Starting From Zero opens for business

That headline news: my new course Starting From Zero has officially thrown open its doors. If you have already enrolled, you can jump in now and start your lessons. And if you haven't enrolled yet, and were waiting for the Grand Opening, I strongly recommend that you enroll now.

Don't forget, this course is free. Yup.

Uptake on the course is way ahead of projections and I might actually cap it in the short term, just to ensure everything is functioning smoothly and we can handle it all logistically. Last I checked, we have well over 1,000 authors enrolled already, and I haven't even announced it publicly yet, let alone done anything like advertising.

So… yeah. A good problem, for sure! But definitely enroll now if you were interested in it, because if it does blow up further, I might just cap it — just as a short-term measure to make sure everything is running smoothly. I had my team of betas go through it carefully over the last week and all remaining bugs should be squashed, but putting 1,000+ people through it simultaneously is a different matter, of course.

If you are still deciding whether Starting From Zero is suitable for you, view the course curriculum here. You can make your own mind up, but I personally think it's most suitable for beginner-to-intermediate self-publishers, although I'm sure there are bits there which will be useful to others also. It's 27 lessons broken down over 5 chapters – so it's pretty comprehensive, and designed so you can skip through bits you don't need quite quickly, and focus on what you do want to learn.

And you can do it all on your own pace. If you need to slow down and take some time to implement my suggestions on branding, or platform-building, or metadata, you can totally do that. There's no time limit, you can learn at your own speed, and the whole system I'm teaching is designed to be flexible and modular, and also to grow with you as you grow your business. There's a whole section at the end on Advanced Marketing too, not just pointing you to all my recommended resources to continue learning after the course is done, but also exactly how to slot them into the marketing plans you learn in this course.

Advanced authors: I've got something for you too.

Amazon Decoded launches August 7

We finally have a launch date! I know the delays were frustrating, but I promise they will be worth it when you see just how detailed and comprehensive this book is. Not just in terms of concepts and theories, but in practical application. It's filled with all sorts of actual marketing plans and tactics you can use right away, to put all that theory into practice – wide authors, exclusive authors, those seeking to build audience, those seeking to maximize income, writers with a long series, and those with shorter ones; there's something for everyone here.

And you won't just be handed a rolodex of killer tactics, you will also walk away with a deep understanding of how Amazon works, and all the ways that the Kindle Store recommends books to readers and the changes you need to make to thinks like your marketing and metadata to make your books more visible, more discoverable, and more likely to get Amazon to take over and do the selling for you.

Oh, and you'll be getting it for 99¢ too. Just you. Everyone else will be paying $4.99 like a bunch of schmoes. But as a subscriber to my mailing list, you will get a chance to buy it for an incredible discount. Make sure to keep those peepers on your inbox though, this discount is a mailing list exclusive and will only last for a day or so. Procrastinators, dilly dalliers, and assorted heel-draggers be warned!

Talk to you anon, the big blue is calling.

Dave

P.S. Writing music this week is from The Waterboys with And A Bang On The Ear.