I came to thriller writing after a decade as a clinical therapist — and it turns out a career spent understanding how brains work is a significant advantage not just for writing twisted crime fiction, but for marketing it. Over the last ten years, I’ve built a catalog of hard-boiled crime and psychological thrillers that I’m sincerely proud of, and developed a marketing approach that works for my specific personality, catalog, and goals. It’s not glamorous or time-consuming. I don’t have a single TikTok video of me dancing. But it pays the bills and then some.
So let’s get into this.
Six Figures Without the Fuss: My Approach to Free Content
My very first BookBub Featured Deal was on my debut, Famished, from the Ash Park series. At $0.99, it shot to the top of the entire Amazon store and held there for weeks. But I’m a “bank over rank” girl, a phrase common in wide author groups. Who cares whether you hit number one if it doesn’t pay out in cash?
Luckily, the cash flow was as impressive as the rank. Across all platforms, that one deal generated five figures in the weeks that followed, and I only had three books out at the time. Neat-o.
The BookBub Featured Deal remains the gold standard, but over the years I’ve leaned more heavily into free deals, including BookBub’s Free Reads. I find Free Reads to be just as effective as the standard free features in terms of downloads, and, at a lower price point than a Featured Deal, they pay out for me the same day.
Some authors dismiss free books as a stale tactic that no longer provides the boost it once did; others feel that giving your work away devalues it. To this I say: You do you. I’d never argue with another author about the choices they make for their business. Not all tactics will work for every author.
But for me, free deals drive tons of follow-on sales and have become my most useful marketing strategy, which is notable for the things I don’t do. I’m not big on social media. I don’t run display ads. Instead, I rely heavily on organic visibility, and free books are the best way I’ve found to generate it. Rather than going permafree on a series starter, I rotate free novels every few months to catch the organic boost on platforms like Kobo, Apple Books, Google Play, and Barnes & Noble. And for advertising, you can’t beat BookBub for both return on investment and a low time commitment. Take five minutes to submit for a feature and you’re all set, instead of constant ad monitoring.
Rather than going permafree on a series starter, I rotate free novels every few months to catch the organic boost on platforms like Kobo, Apple Books, Google Play, and Barnes & Noble.
Hot tip: Being accepted for a Featured Deal is proof to wide platforms that you’ve already been vetted — they love to know you have a BookBub feature coming. Apple, Draft2Digital, and Barnes & Noble all have promotional opportunities, so let them know about your feature by applying for an in-house bump.
Why I Prioritize Email Over Social Media
This is another version of “bank over rank.” When it comes to what and where I post, I ask myself the following:
- “What do I enjoy (or despise)?”
- “What actually brings in the readers?” and
- “What is the return on investment?”
Some authors are fantastic on social platforms. I am not that person. I’m a neurodivergent goblin who could comfortably live in a swamp and rarely speak to another soul. I do have a lovely group of readers-turned-friends who tell me dirty jokes and post morally questionable murder memes in my Partners in Crime Facebook group (shout out to those maniacs!). But for me, being “on” is genuinely exhausting.
Many say that social media is free advertising, but it still costs, mostly in time you could be using to write the next book. Trying to write while running on fumes after a live stream you never wanted to do is not a recipe for success, especially with the decline in organic reach as platforms prioritize paid content. I’m also a fast writer (10–12k words a day if I’m in the zone), so it’s rarely worth it to spend an hour babysitting social media.
For these reasons, I don’t link my social media pages on my author website, in my newsletters, or in my books. I exist on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, TikTok, etc., but I never direct readers there. Instead, I use my funnel the other way — if they find me on social, I direct those readers to BookBub or my newsletter. BookBub followers get my new releases and sales along with my book reviews. My newsletter gets that and more. Facebook buries announcements in a sea of advertisements.
I never direct readers to my social media pages. Instead, I use my funnel the other way — if they find me on social, I direct those readers to BookBub or my newsletter.
If you love social media, far be it from me to discourage that — joy matters whether it converts for you or not. But it’s always worth it to analyze your sales funnel and figure out where your time is best spent.
What I include in my newsletter:
The newsletters I read are those that create value outside of constant sales pitches. I can go on any platform to purchase a new release… but what extra pieces am I getting for opening my inbox?
- Reader bonuses. Subscribers get short stories they can’t find anywhere else, plus a rotating selection of free books when they subscribe.
- Book recommendations. Every few months, I send out a newsletter with a curated list of book recommendations — things I’ve read and loved that I think my readers will appreciate. These books are not my own work, and are also not newsletter swaps; they are genuine recs that my nerdy behind stayed up late to finish. I’m not opposed to swaps, and I know many authors have great success with them, but I’d rather ask my newsletter for their recommendations instead. They love it when their recs make the cut!
- New releases and preorders. Yes, we want to make sure our readers find value outside of purchasing, but they are still there for your books. As an extra bonus, I give subscribers a few chapters of each new release to read during the preorder period — more than they’ll get anywhere else.
- First access to sales. My newsletter subscribers always hear about deals first, including upcoming BookBub promotions. I also sometimes use flash sales that I don’t promote through any advertising channel, and I don’t share those sales on social media. Newsletter subscribers get more from me, period.
- What should I write next? This one isn’t for all authors, but I sometimes give my newsletter a list of potential “new book” or “new series” ideas. If one idea is far more well-received than the others, I have a better idea about where I should spend my time. And the value proposition remains: If you want a say in what comes next, subscribe. I do post on socials about this, just as an extra cookie to drive readers to my newsletter.
- Ridiculous jokes. Puns. One-liners. I can’t prove that this creates “value” on a spreadsheet, but it does generate a lot of reply emails from readers who want to trade silliness. And getting a dirty joke first thing on a Tuesday morning makes my goblin heart happy. Call it my exception to the “bank over rank” rule — this one is about joy.
Here’s an example of one of my newsletters announcing a collaboration with another author for a new series. It’s mostly promoting her, not myself, to my readers, and it’s a good example of providing quality that isn’t a sales pitch.
Building a Catalog Readers Want to Explore
My single most important piece of hobbit-gremlin marketing advice is also the least sexy: write a good book. Make sure your covers will stop a scroll and that your blurbs are on point. Giving away free books doesn’t work if readers aren’t excited enough to plunk down money for the second in series.
And series do work wonders for sell-through, which is why my thriller catalog is built around them. My Mind Games series features four books, Born Bad has five, Ash Park clocks in at 11, and I have a crossover series that connects Born Bad to Ash Park coming out later this year. I also have Between Us, a cowritten domestic thriller series, a number of standalone thrillers, and a slew of short stories for those readers who aren’t ready to commit to a full series or even a full novel.
But wherever they start reading, the goal is to make it effortless for someone who loved that book to find the next book. Back matter is crucial. The space after “The End” is free advertising — a passive sales funnel that every author should take advantage of.
The space after “The End” is free advertising — a passive sales funnel that every author should take advantage of.
Most of my novels get two “next read” recommendations. For series books, I link directly to the next title in the series with a cover image and a tagline. After that, I include a recommendation outside that series, either a standalone or the first of another series. With a standalone, I pick two other novels I believe those readers will adore.
I also include first-chapter teasers with each of these recommendations rather than just a blurb. I’ve consistently found that full chapters convert better than jacket copy. Once a reader is invested in your voice, getting them to click purchase is easier. This isn’t a ploy, mind you — readers are smart and can usually tell if they’ll like the next book after a chapter or two. If you have a strong premise and a character voice they love, you’re home free.
But don’t link the same books in all of your back matter. I have a spreadsheet where I keep track of which books I’ve linked in each novel. I mix it up to make sure that readers get to sample multiple books as they make their way through my catalog. If any reader takes every one of my back matter recommendations, they’ll have read my entire backlist.
It isn’t just about the next sale — it’s about the 10 sales after that. Keep readers in your backlist for as long as possible. And they can’t buy what they don’t know exists.
If any reader takes every one of my back matter recommendations, they’ll have read my entire backlist.
How I incorporate boxed sets:
Boxed sets are one of my favorite tools for a few reasons:
- Organic reach with minimal effort. All platforms prioritize new releases, and boxed sets count. You’ve already written the books, so you get a visibility bump between book releases without much extra work. Software like Vellum makes bundling them easy, and the time cost of a new blurb and cover is negligible compared to the sales upside.
- Provide value (again). I always send boxes to my newsletter — they love a good deal between releases. And boxed sets are a good way to give readers a discount without a deeper sale. This also works in conjunction with free series starters, because if a reader loves your free book, they’ll often pick up the rest of the series in one go, particularly if the box is less expensive than purchasing the novels individually.
- Popular on subscription platforms. Boxed sets really shine on Kobo Plus, where subscribers read all they want for less than they’d pay for Kindle Unlimited. They offer tons of in-house promos if you’re direct with them, too, often prioritizing collections. The best part for authors is that Kobo Plus doesn’t require exclusivity, so you can still have your work available everywhere else while their readers binge your catalog.
- Sales on boxed sets. This is a rarity for me, but I will occasionally drop a boxed set to a lower price, though I don’t do this with complete series — I’m still relying on read-through to the rest of the catalog. But if you’re having trouble getting a BookBub deal, boxed sets are compelling Featured Deal candidates at a discount.
Keep Going, You Rockin’ Piece of Awesome
I’ve been doing this for a decade (gasp!), and the authors I’ve watched build sustainable careers aren’t always the ones with the biggest ad budgets or the most TikTok followers. They’re the ones who know that strong voices in quality books matter. Write something worth reading. Make sure your cover and blurb are doing their jobs. Build a newsletter that gives readers a reason to open it. Use free reads and BookBub to drive discovery. And for the love of swamp gremlins everywhere, use your back matter.
Or don’t. I’m thankful to have turned writing dark, twisted books into a career I love over the last 10 years. But my “do less for more,” “bank over rank” strategy won’t make sense to everyone. It’s your job to figure out which tools fit your business model, your personality, your life.
The views and opinions expressed in this guest post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of BookBub. Results from BookBub Featured Deals vary by a range of factors, and your experience may differ.
