Mind-set shift: Your very first readers are assets. Ten people on your list today can snowball into hundreds—and then thousands—because each launch gives you more emails to market the next book. Curios is built to accelerate that compounding effect by giving you every buyer’s address automatically.
1. Why Email Is Your #1 Long-Term Asset
| Social Follower |
Email Subscriber |
| Algorithm decides if they see your post |
You reach their inbox 100% of the time |
| No buying data |
You know exactly what they bought (and when) |
| Hard to export |
Downloadable CSV from Curios in one click |
| Platform can ban or throttle you |
You own the list—portable forever |
2. Set Up Your Curios “Reader Magnet” Funnel
- Create a Project: Click ➕ New Project → name it “Series Starter Freebie”
- Add a Collection: Title it “Short Story Prequel – Free Claim”
- Upload Private File: Drop the EPUB or PDF
- Sales & Pricing: Choose Free (Claim)
- Publish Project: Hit the green Publish button
Every Claim adds reader name + email to your Curios Orders table automatically.
3. Export & Nurture Your List
- In Studio → Statements → Orders → filter by freebie title → Download CSV
- Import to Mailchimp / ConvertKit
- Send a 3-email welcome sequence:
- Email 1: thanks + reading instructions
- Email 2 (T+3 days): ask for reply or review
- Email 3 (T+7 days): tease Book 1 and link to presale
4. Traffic Tactics for First-Time Authors
| Channel |
Simple Action Items |
| Social Posts |
Pin a “Free Short Story” post; repost with new visuals every 10 days |
| Author Website / Link-in-Bio |
Add “Download Free Story” button |
| Friends & Family |
Ask each to share 5x |
| Genre Groups / Subreddits |
Offer story through your Curios link only |
| Cross-Promos |
Swap newsletter mentions with other debut authors |
5. Math of Compounding Readers
| Month |
New Emails |
List Size |
| 1 | 10 | 10 |
| 3 | 10 | 30 |
| 6 | 15 | 90 |
| 12 | 25 | 240 |
At 240 engaged readers and an 8% conversion at $4.99 = $95 in launch day sales—yours in full.
6. Launch & Upsell Sequence
| Funnel Step |
Curios Tool |
| Lead Magnet | Free Claim collection |
| Book 1 Presale | Blank collection priced $4.99 |
| Launch Discount | Timed listing at $2.99 (72h) |
| Deluxe Bundle | New collection with Q&A, extras |
| Price Bump | Remove discount → revert to $4.99 |
7. Posting Cadence Cheat Sheet
| Week |
Touch |
CTA |
| −4 | Cover reveal reel | Claim free prequel |
| −2 | Character art | Pre-order Book 1 |
| Launch | IG / TikTok reading | Buy direct on Curios |
| +1 | Review graphic | Upsell bundle |
| +3 | BTS email | Join list for Book 2 |
8. Level-Up with Curios Lite or PRO
| Plan |
Benefit |
| Lite | Featured genre email, carousel slots |
| PRO | Homepage, top search, promo banners |
9. Action Checklist
- Publish Free Claim magnet on Curios
- Share across 5+ channels
- Export Orders CSV every Friday
- Write welcome email sequence
- Create Book 1 presale collection
- Schedule launch-day posts
- Consider Lite upgrade for reach
Need feedback? Reach us at [email protected]—we love helping first-timers turn strangers into lifelong readers!
