If you subscribe to my newsletter (sign up and get a bonus story here) you know that beginning in June, I will be publishing my Beguiling Bachelor series on Galatea. I am super excited and have been looking forward to this for weeks. Then, suddenly this morning I woke up with a burning question.
“Who the hell was Galetea anyway?”
What is Galatea, and who was Galatea?
Not that it has anything to do with reading books online, but Galatea (Galateia) was one of the fifty Nereides* and the goddess of calm seas.
Huh?
Turns out that was probably not the inspiration for Inkitt to choose this name for their interactive reading experience. Perhaps it is Galatea’s other claim to fame? She frequented the coast of Sicily and there attracted the attention of the Cyclops Polyphemos. The giant wooed her with tunes from his rustic pipes and offerings of milk and cheese.
Ah, Galatea was wooed by her man – er, I mean her God – with tunes and offerings. Now we are getting closer to the Galetea reading experience. You see, Galatea doesn’t just offer a novel in serial formats, like Radish, or the new Vella from Amazon. If that was all they were doing, you could continue to read books like mine, chapter by chapter, on Inkitt.
But Galatea is different. Sure, you can just read a book – hey wait, what do I mean just?? You can read a book, a great book that will take you on a wonderful journey of the imagination.
Going Beyond: Welcome to the Interactive Reading Experience
What if you want to augment your imagination a bit? Well, Galatea’s got you covered. They offer immersive experiences that go far beyond reading a book. They add music, action, so much to increase the experience for you – all for FREE!
Yep, the app is free and the books you may download? Unlimited.
Take it for a spin but be prepared to be wooed – the pipes are anything but rustic. You’ll be back for more.
Are you an Author Considering Serializing your Story?
Charles Dickens knew the power of a serialized novel. Do you? Amazon’s entry into the business is proof enough that there is demand here – and a chance for genuine success.
There are several ways to serialize your story, with or without help from major distributors. Now that Amazon has introduced Vella, serializing is likely to be a game-changer.
But you should at least consider this option, but not before you know your readers and their tolerance for a serial story. Short stories and novellas do well here, but in the age of binging and instant gratification, you need to know if your readers will tolerate waiting for the next installment. Younger readers flock to this model. No surprise, there.
Romance and erotica perform well, adventure and fantasy too.
Galatea discovered me, not vice versa because I was an author on their Inkitt platform. I loaded a 38-chapter novel and watched readers’ behavior for more than a year. The statistics were fascinating with 93% of readers immediately loading the next chapter of my novel when they finished the prior chapter. That told me I was a good candidate for serializing.
I tried again, with a shorter novella that I serialized on my blog. Readers stayed with me, week after week, looking for the next chapter, but not complaining about the wait. Okay, a few asked if they could just buy the book and cut to the chase, but that’s not a bad thing, right?
I wouldn’t serialize everything I write. I don’t want to lose the perks of Kindle Unlimited, for one thing, or that massive Amazon audience. But my series was ready for a new audience and Galatea should deliver that to me.
If the idea appeals, look at Inkitt and Radish where you upload your books to potential audiences and they read for free, or Vella where you pay to read with tokens purchased in the Amazon App. Weigh your options and do your homework.
The Beguiling Bachelors – Coming Soon
The results for the Beguiling Bachelors and Galatea remain to be seen. Want to know what happens? Follow along in my newsletter for updates as they become available. Better yet, get your free Galatea App today in the Apple App Store and Google Play, go to the “coming soon” section and sign up to be notified when the books become available on Galatea.
Then let me know what you think.
** In mythology, the Nereides are fifty beautiful, sea-nymph daughters of Nereus, the old man of the sea. They were goddesses of the sea’s bounty and protectors of sailors and fishermen. In mythology, the Nereides aided those in distress. Each represented a facet of the sea from waves to seafoam to currents. The Nereides lovely, young maidens, who rode the backs of dolphins, fish or other sea creatures.