Writing...Just because!

Image from FreeDigitalPhotos.net by Photostock With only 11 days to go until launch day the butterflies in my stomach are getting agitated and the anxiety is rising for many reasons: Will anyone buy my book? If so, will they love it or hate it or (even worse) be unmoved?  and... OMG! How am I going to get everything done in time? When I made the decision in late December to self-publish, March seemed a long way away. The upside was that I had already done huge amounts of research on self-publishing and chosen the path I would take and had a basic book marketing plan already hammered out from my last book, @Home in Dubai . As I look back over the last couple of months I see a lot has been accomplished - final proofreading and edits done, ISBN and bar code secured, testimonials gathered, cover design created , interior page layout done, Kindle template prepared, upload to both Kindle and Create Space successfully performed, electronic and print proofs checked... and...

Image courtesy of Photostock on freedigitalphotos.net As I hurtle headlong towards my self-imposed launch day of March 8 th , the To Do list is waffling between a satisfying series of checks and the inevitable daunting additions that hadn’t even occurred to me! Am I enjoying the process? Absolutely! Is it riddled with moments of elation as well as bursts of sheer panic? Oh yes! And, the unexpected, that every good planner knows should be factored into the timeline (especially when attempting something you’ve never done before).   I always appreciated my publisher of @Home in Dubai (Jo Parfitt at Summertime Publishing ) but I’m starting to have a whole new appreciation. Here’s one item that I thought would take just a few minutes… The Kindle Template I really thought I had this one locked down. I had taken a few online webinars and bought a video series and template and even tested it on a short e-book. I was ready to roll. Not! There’s a little thing t...

How timely is this? As I'm approaching the self-publishing date for my first novel, one of my favorite bloggers launches her book today. I'm happy to post here all the details and am definitely going to get my copy ASAP! Here's the skinny straight from the horse's mouth: HOW TO PUBLISH AND PROMOTE YOUR BOOK NOW! By L. Diane Wolfe   Publishing and promoting made simple! Have you always dreamed of publishing a book but didn’t know where to begin? This book walks you through the steps of identifying markets, budgeting, building an online presence, and generating publicity. Get the whole story on: ·         Traditional publishing ·         Self-publishing ·         Print and e-book setup, formatting, and distribution ·         Finding your target audience ·         Generatin...