Writing...Just because!

Book launch for @Home in Dubai at Central Perk, Dubai (2012) I'm writing a bit of a different blog today that puts the spotlight on the publisher of my first book, @Home in Dubai - Getting Connected Online and on the Ground . Jo Parfitt of Summertime Publishing was among the first to see a proposal I had written for a book I had in mind called 'A Year in Dubai'. I'll never forget the rush when she told me she thought I had a great idea and then how my bubble burst when she suggested I shelve it! She quickly brought the light back when she asked if I would write about life in Dubai from a bit of a different perspective... more of a 'how to' peppered with my personal experiences and interspersed with interviews with other expats and lots of links to online resources. The contract was signed and @Home in Dubai was born! And, Jo and I have since become great friends and collaborators ;) Expat Books Fast forward four years and Summertime Publishing has c...

Now with three self-published books under my belt I thought it might be a good time to share a few of my favourite self-publishing tools that I have in my repertoire. There are hundreds to choose from and these are a select few that keep cropping up each time along with a couple new ones I found (or that just evolved) as I prepared to publish Deep Deceit .  Photo of me and Burj al Arab in b/g by Katie Foster, book covers all designed by Creation Booth Kindle Formatting Template from Shelley Hitz It was about three years ago that I started following Shelley Hitz and getting her newsletter, participating in her ebook publishing webinars (Get Your Kindle eBook Done!) and reading her books. Since then she has partnered with Heather Hart and they continue to offer great resources to indie authors through their company Training Authors . I still pull out her template and re-watch the video each time I get ready to convert my manuscript into a Kindle ready document for uplo...