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Congratulations to Alyson W of Shaker Heights, Ohio!
She is the winner in my CHRISTMAS IN AUGUST Contest. Alyson will receive her choice from my backlist. And I want to apologize to all the other entrants because my question was confusing this month. However, everyone who entered an answer of any sort was included in the drawing.
I thought about not having a contest per se on my website for the month of September because I'll be involved in a couple other give aways. One that runs until September 8th is the NightOwl Summer Love Webhunt. I'm joining Amanda McIntyre (you all know her!), Jianne Carlo, Lynne Connolly, Suzanne Rock, Celia Jade, Autumn Dawn, Michele Bardsley, and Raine Delight (who'll be visiting my blog at the end of September!) to bring our readers some serious book swag. There will be 3 Grand Prize Winners! See my website for details!
Then starting September 14th, I'll be teaming up with USA Today Bestseller Jennifer Ashley and Alissa Johnson for our 12 Days of Christmas Tour (12 days/12 blogs) in celebration of the release of A CHRISTMAS BALL on September 29th! And of course, there will be give-aways every day of the tour for someone who comments. Be sure to check here each day or on my Events page for our itinerary.
So now, I'd love some feedback from you. Do you enjoy contests? Are there any types that irritate you? Why do you think authors do them? (I will reveal my answer on that one at the end of the day!)
13 comments:
Emily,
It depends on the contest. I don't have a lot of time to chase around to different websites, etc., so those I don't like. Some people love those though.
so what was the actual answer? Was it a play on words, as in what does she do to keep him OUT OF the sack? Cause I'm going to feel very silly if it is
I'm such a dunderhead, Christine. Jane isn't threatened with Ian's firing until the second chapter as a way to force her to pretend to be her half-sister Sybil.
Sheesh! Not cool of me. That's why everyone who entered was in the drawing regardless of their answer.
A play on words would have been fun. How clever of you to think of it!
No more tricky (or in my case--stupid) questions. From now on my contest questions are going to be easy--like "When is the release date of A CHRISTMAS BALL, due out September 29th?" or "What is the title of A CHRISTMAS BALL?"
Sandy--Like you, I don't have time for scavenger hunts, but lots of readers love them and it's a way to surf the web with purpose. When the NightOwl Romance folks invited me to join their Summer Love Webhunt, I said sure! And each of the three winners will receive my VEXING THE VISCOUNT.
Hi Emily! I enjoy contests and have discovered favorite authors who I normally wouldn't have known about if I had not won a book they have written. It's also not only about the book giveaways --- I also learn so much about the author as well as their novels and work in the process.
I only started entering book giveaways this summer actually and I'm becoming more selective in what I join.
What I like: One contest, one entry and it's OK to have a question or two that you're required to answer.
What I'm not fond of:
(1) when there are ridiculously so many ways to enter one contest like "go to so and so's site and enter that contest there and come back here and tell me you did" or "enter any of my other giveaways, one entry per giveaway you enter," or "leave a comment on a non-giveaway post or review or guest post and come back and tell me you did = 1 extra entry," or "post entries daily," and so on. It's just endless.
(2) contests that require too much work like asking you write a story or take a photo of yourself following a theme, etc.
(3) contests that require you to twit about them everyday.
LOL Emily, I didn't enter my answer, because it wasn't in the excerpt that we read, but that was my guess. I figured they were going to use him to make her comply to the plan.
I love contests! I feel guilty sometimes at how many contests I have won in the last year. I use to try the contests for Writerspace all the time, I started thinking that the winners didn't really exist. LOL then I started blogging and a friend of mine gave me the heads up on one that was giving away a book that I really wanted... I won. I became addicted to not only contest, but blogging and blog hopping. I stop by all my favorite blogs on a regular basis and try to leave a comment regardless of what the post is about. I have a few friends that don't get much traffic and they feel left out. But you have to visit to be visited... unless you are the author, then you just have to write a really good book!!
I like scavenger hunts, but they can be time consuming. The current one with NOR wasn't too bad though, There aren't as many authors participating as I have seen in the past.
Oh, I almost forgot... Thank you Thank you!!! I got the copy of Maidensong in the mail today!!! I am so hyped to read this book. I am going to try and squeeze it into my fall challenge!!
etirv- Wow! some authors get really creative about their contests! I never thought about asking for tweets! That does sound a little needy, doesn't it?
I did one once where I asked people to post my book trailer on their blog or myspace. I had like . . . 6 entries. Not so much fun evidently. No more of those.
Actually Heather, authors visit too. I have several blogs I follow and I try to pop in once in a while to leave a comment.
Ok, here's why I do contests.
Readers tend to stick with authors they have already read. Or if a friend recommends a new one, they might try it.
Running a contest gives me a chance to get my books into more hands, in the hope that they'll like what they see and then engage in that magic marketing tool that no one can manufacture, no matter how much money they throw at advertising--word of mouth.
Of course, I also hope people will sign up to receive my newsletter, but the books are the best way to promote.
So as I see it, contests are a win-win proposition. Readers get some freebies and writers get readers to take a chance on them in the hope of building a long term reader/writer relationship.
Congratulations, Alyson.
I did the scavenger hunt. Searched your site 3 times and never did find the color. It is probably some place obvious that I missed.
Contests are fun. A variety always keeps it interesting.
There are some formats I don't care for. Those that offer extra entries for a multitude of things like twitting. I haven't a clue what half these things are.
I'm looking forward to A CHRISTMAS BALL. I've always enjoyed anthologies.
Congrats Alyson!!
Hi Emily, I love contests and don't mind how they're structured, if something realy annoyed me about a contest (can't imagine what) I just wouldn't enter, easy.
btw I have a special romance award for you, you can pick it up at The Eclectic Reader
LibraryPat--My NOR Summer Love graphic is on my Books page, left hand side, half way down. You're the not the first to say it was hard to find. I think it's because the color works so well with the colors in my website.
Sorry.
Teddy--Hope you feel better real soon. In the meantime, give yourself permission to be waiting on hand and foot by your adoring fam.
Thanks for the blog award!
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