April was a crazy busy month. A book release, planning for my kinky business future, plenty of conversations about money with John Brownstone. But I think I’m paving the way for some fun and interesting things in the near future. Several months ago, I decided I would treat what I do here as Kayla Lords as a business. There’s been no overnight success (a rare thing in general) but with slow and steady progress and my eye on the goal, I think things are slowly starting to happen.
So what happened in April? Take a look.
A Sexual Being
Total views: 17,994 – I think I went viral for a day or two. I had a day with nearly 1800 views (!!!)
Total posts: 29
Top post of the month: I Started It (from Masturbation Monday!)
Y’all, I have so many damn plans for this website, myself, and the business I want to build. But it’s not all about that, either. Some of it’s about community building and helping each other, too. In case anyone is curious what’s coming up in the next few months, here’s my (current) list:
- Grow the Fit for Kink group on Google+ – anyone kinky or kink-friendly who wants to lose weight, be motivated, and find a supportive crew is welcome! We’re also looking for kinky or kink-friendly health and fitness professionals to join, too.
- Online courses coming – I’ve got ideas for marketing and for D/s (no, really).
- Website upgrade – it’s going to happen fairly soon (hopefully before the end of May, but we’ll see). A cleaner look, more polished, and with even more features – like a forum, y’all!!
- Sell books directly through the site – whether you still want to get them from Amazon or you’d rather do a direct download, you’ll be able to do it directly through me!
- A growing list of fiction and non-fiction books – including erotic/sexy marketing, D/s relationships, and what it means (to me) to be a submissive
Whew! That’s a lot. Even I recognize that. And no, it won’t all happen at once, but it’s all in the works.
Masturbation Monday
Total views: 14,245
Total posts shared: 67
Last month was a decent month, but I think May will be better because it’s Masturbation Month! I spent all of April reaching out to contacts I have in the sex toy business, inviting them to join the fun and make May an even better month. Nearly everyone I talked to agreed! Every week in May, readers can enter a Rafflecopter giveaway for a sexy prize so they can make every day Masturbation Monday and every month Masturbation Month! Best of all, I have a giveaway for writers and bloggers who participate in May, too! I can’t wait to share the numbers with you next month. This should be the biggest month yet.
Erotic Author
Amazon: 29
iBooks: 10
Barnes & Noble: 1
Smashwords: 4
Not the best month for book sales ever, but certainly not the worst. My new release, Kinky Love Notes, came out on April 14 which definitely gave me a boost. This is also the first one I’ve released in paperback, using CreateSpace but so far, no luck with sales. That being said, I’ve given away a couple of paperbacks and printed copies of my upcoming releases will be available through my website (once I get that set up) and on Amazon. There is no better feeling as a writer than holding your printed book. None.
Sex Writing
Where was I in April? I feel like I was in a lot of places…
Kinkly published a few posts of mine (and I have more coming soon). Not sure which I enjoyed writing more – Does BDSM Have to Be Hardcore? or An Insider’s Look at the Mysterious World of BDSM Dungeons (which, to me, aren’t all that mysterious, lol).
At Submissive Guide, I was giving advice and answering questions – which I love doing, if you haven’t been able to tell. Learning How to Trust Your Dominant Again was a doozy (for which my response was called “nice” by a friend who read it, lol). Of course, the one I related to best was about a grieving Dominant and a submissive’s needs.
I was hanging out at Fuck.com and Fetish.com (of course). For the readers at Fuck, I shared a few tips on how to test your kinky side without getting fully into the BDSM lifestyle. Over at Fetish, I talked about the realities of taking a long distance D/s relationship and making it an in-person, all-the-time thing.
Loving BDSM Podcast
Total podcast downloads in April: 5640 – 1500 more than last month!
Top episode in April: What’s the Difference Between a Daddy and a Sir?
Earning a Living as a Sex Writer
Affiliate Earnings: $0
Patreon Support: $32.72 (thank you to my kinky patrons!!) I received more support in April so this number will go up for May.
Writing Jobs: $488.47
Book Sales: $26.48 (some places pay monthly and some quarterly)
Expenses:
Monthly Graphics Subscription: $4.95
Podcast hosting: $6.66 (this fluctuates monthly depending on downloads and will go up over time which is a great problem to have)
Monthly Newsletter Hosting: $9.98 (this will increase as my newsletter subscriptions grow – not a bad problem to have, either)
Facebook Advertising: $2.00
Pressbooks (Book formatting): $70.30
EroticStockPhotos.com (images for new book): $40
Createspace (printed book orders): $49.29
Shipping: $13.80
A net profit of $350 isn’t awful but a lot of work goes into making that amount. I have more expenses coming up in the month of May (thanks in part to my amazing kinky patrons and thanks in part to a low credit card balance, lol). Sometimes in order to make money, you have to spend it.
Yeah, it’s a lot. And yes, if it seems overwhelming to you, you’re not alone. Sometimes I feel like my head will explode with all the moving parts, spinning plates, and balls in the air. And sometimes I think of other things I could add (thankfully I have John Brownstone to pull me back from the edge of the cliff). I’m just one blogger in a sea of online resources. These numbers represent a lot of hard work, love, and commitment to doing something that feels important to me. It’s not all about the money (clearly) but the only way to know if what you’re doing is moving forward or not is to take a look at the numbers.
I can’t wait to see what the next few months bring!
