Last day of FREE PROMOTION of Bound by Life

Dear bloggers!

Today is the last day of Bound by Life being FREE on Amazon. In the last four days, Bound by Life has sold 26 free copies, much below my targeted 100 copies. On a brighter note, though, the book is currently placed at #25 in Short Stories in Amazon Kindle Store.

So, if you have not downloaded your copy yet, I urge you to download it right away! Also, please feel free to share this with your friends and family, whoever happens to own a Kindle.

Thank you in advance for your help! Happy reading!

Buy Bound by Life on Amazon.

What is Bound by Life?

Bound by Life is the first book by Arpita Pramanick. It contains ten short stories.
The title story is epistolary. An old man writes a letter to his son before leaving for an old age home. Set in the backdrop of the modern nuclear family, the story contains references to the immigrant experiences of those who came to India from the then East-Pakistan (presently Bangladesh) to escape the wrath of the communal riots post-Indian independence.
One of the stories, I am Mala, has been previously published on the eFiction magazine. I am Mala is the tragic tale of a young woman who becomes the victim of the dogmatic caste system.
The protagonist of The Silent Victim, Deepa, has traumatic past. She just started college and is struggling badly with androphobia. Will she be able overcome her past and lead a normal life?
Arpita delves into the fabric of Indian life – its ethics, values, customs and superstitions. Her characters belong to different walks of life. From tea-vendors on the pavements of Salt Lake, a leading IT hub in West Bengal (Manorama Tea Stall) to the young village boy performing in a circus in a city (The Last Show) – everyone finds a place in Bound by Life.
The stories are simple tales of day-to-day lives of the common man. It is this simplicity that adds beauty to this collection.

Why Amazon is the convenient choice for self-published authors in India in spite of its limitations?

As an Amazon Kindle self-published author based in India, I face certain limitations:

1. Royalties received only in Amazon.com and Amazon.in marketplaces are directly transferred via EFT to my bank account. In all other marketplaces, the payments are to be paid via checks and check threshold is $100 (or £100 or €100 depending on the marketplace). So, if you’re a beginning author and are selling only a few copies in each marketplace, most of the sale is technically worth nothing until you meet that threshold.
2. Unless I enroll in KDP Select, I can not avail 70% royalty option for sales in my own country, India.

In a previous post, I discussed Amazon KDP Select program and said how I was ready to test new waters once my first 90-day KDP Select enrollment was over. Since that day is near (September 17th), I was looking for alternate options today.

First, I checked Smashwords. However, to sell books through Smashwords, non-US authors must a signed IRS form, W8-BEN, to Smashwords. You’ll also need a US Tax Identification Number (ITIN or EIN). The W8-BEN is also required in Lulu, another ebook vendor, else you have to pay the 30% tax witholding rates for sales in US.

When I signed up for Amazon KDP Select program, I needed no such paperwork, so the process was relatively faster and easier for me. I doubt if I am even going to do pursue the Smashwords route soon given how much paperwork and time is going to be involved.

The other vendor I checked was Nook, which is owned by Barnes and Nobles. Unfortunately, Nook press is not available to self-published authors in India at this moment.

Given this scenario, Amazon is undoubtedly the one true king of the Indian ebook self-publishing market. It is high time that e-tailers like Flipkart begin their own self-publishing units.

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Are you a self-published author based in India? Which other platform, apart from Amazon KDP, do you use to sell your books. Let me know in the comments below.

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Buy Bound by Life on Amazon  now! Or borrow it for free it you have Kindle Unlimited subscription!