So… There is so much to being an indie author/publisher that you really don’t end up finding out until you have made mistakes in doing it. To start with as the author you are responsible for every part of the process. That means the writing, the editing, the layout, the cover design, the title, picking the places the book will be available, setting everything for sale, and marketing. Now some of this you can and probably should hire someone else to do.
Personally I always hire an editor. While I am capable of editing, I find that it is better to get a second set of eyes on my work. It makes the chance of unnoticed errors less. I have two that I personally use. One is Kelly at Xterraweb and I also use Deedra Nichole Editing. Both are excellent. Both will not try to change your voice. In your story your voice is what makes your story unique.
After the editor finishes you have to give your story to beta readers. This is a group of people who you trust to read, and give you feedback. This feedback can be anything from suggestions for grammar mistakes that got missed in the editing process (if any) to title ideas or plot holes.
Many people hire someone else to do their covers. I do all of my own covers, and I am always willing to discuss doing covers for other authors. My price would be reasonable.
Now, as for places to publish your book… Everyone has heard about Amazon. That is the basic place for indie publishing. They have a program for Windows and Mac called Kindle Create. This helps with layout. Amazon is the best place for doing paperbacks. The other place I use to distribute my Ebooks is Draft2Digital. They also have audiobook distribution. (Which I am working on.)
Marketing is an area that I am still working with. It is something that I personally not great at.
I am always willing to help new authors, or even discuss the process with those who are already in the know. This is something that I am truly interested in. So, feel free to ask any questions or to just strike up a conversation!
There is quite a lot coming up for me. I am close to layout for Dream Drips. I will be working on writing the last few poems needed for it.
I am on the editing of the anthology I have previously mentioned titled Under the Mists. We have some really great stories from some wonderful writers.
I have been accepted for the summer edition of Creatives Rising E-zine. I will have more to say about this as the time comes closer to the release.
My Patreon is seeing daily updates this month as I am doing #Mermay.
Serena is still working on her sequel to Rust, Gore, and the Junkyard Zombie. She has been working hard to get the story put together.
I have been working on recording the princess lost in an audiobook. This was put on hold for the last month as I have been adapting to a sleep schedule change. This has left me lethargic and derpy. Thank goodness I was able to schedule my blog ahead.
I also have life, gardening and other bits of creation that will happen. I think that I may do a post about my garden this year once I get it done. We got a tiller this year so I am looking forward to a full veggie garden this year.
I am also planning a trip in June to see people I love. It may mean that I will not be posting the first week of June. I will have to see.
I will be doing the monthly link post on Saturday. I will be doing a post about the indie publishing process tomorrow. Then I am taking Sunday as a break. I have been posting every day for a month. I have no idea what to do for another day. Lol
So what are you doing? Do you like gardens? Which of my upcoming projects are you the most excited for? And a true curiosity… Anything else you think that I need to address?
This week has been a personal mess. So I have been trying to think of topics for upcoming blogs. April will be a huge poetry push. I will likely be posting not only my own poems but I think that I will be posting some of my favorite pieces from poets of the past with information about the poet. Note that I will be sure to credit the poets for their work. Even if most are no longer with us.
I always do writer’s digest poem prompts in both April and November. I am going to try to post the poems with links to the prompts through the month. It is also time for camp nano. I think Serena will be continuing to work on Life, Guilt, and Undeath.
We have decided to do as the first audiobook Bedtime tales: the princess lost. It will give me a smaller recording to start with. I have to record it, and then work on editing the audio until I think it worth publishing. I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist where my published books are concerned. I try to give my readers the best material that I possibly can. Most authors that I know are. I will be posting the link as soon as I have it for the audiobook version of each of the books.
So what would you like to see as far as topics here? Is there a poet who you want to see my favorite poem of?
Ok, here is the thing with writing… No writer is perfect. At least not alone. We all depend upon other sets of eyes to catch the mistakes before it goes to print. Alpha and beta readers, editors (of both developmental and copy types), these all give the feedback needed to polish the manuscript for publishing.
Copy editors (like Xterraweb or Deedra Nichole editing) go through the manuscript for grammar and spelling mistakes. They check for tense and wording. These are your basic editor.
Developmental editors (one of the listed also has developmental prices…but there are quite a few out there. Those are the editors I personally have worked with.) work with the author who is stuck. They will help find plot holes and flaws in the characters and story. They help find solutions for the author who can’t see where to go with that story.
These are just before it goes to publish. At publication there are even more possible people involved. It depends upon your book. Children’s books often require an illustrator. Then there is a cover designer. (I do my own. Not everyone does.) Some even use publishers, and marketers.
So everytime you pick up a book… Consider the amount of work it took to get it to you. No author is alone in creating the book. And it takes effort and skill to get it in your hands. Do everyone involved a favor. Review what you read.
Three days of insomnia has me Maudlin and Derpy…and oddly enough it has made me more productive. I have been writing more in the last three days than I have a month prior. I feel like my brain is on fire…and it is not necessarily a bad thing. I was starting to worry….2019 has not been seeing much writing from me. I had ideas…folders full. It was not a lack of ability, or ideas. Ability never leaves. Not truely, though we sometimes feel like it has. It is similar to the question of whether you would want to have talent or skill. I have, I think, broached that topic on this blog before.
No, my issue was something broader. I couldn’t seem to create. I was in a fog. I could write, but it was like pouring molasses out in winter. Last year I was writing like a madwoman. Poetry and novel both were going out well. It was colder and felt like winter last year. This year it has been muddy and wet, and I have been feeling it. I am a spring child. I love my cooler temps, but I hate the deep cold of winter. I have not had the winter I was expecting. It feels like I am whining.
So, three days ago I sat in front of my computer. I usually do my writing on my phone. The computer is for editing and layout usually. I just wanted to try something different, hoping to snap myself out of the funk. Routine is often a writer’s best tool…I am the exception to that. I get panicky over routine. I obsess over it. Which takes away productivity. So, I was trying to put some randomness back into my writing. I chose a story that I had barely touched. Something I have less invested in. So if I failed in writing it would not hurt Serena’s Life, Guilt and Undeath. I got a little over a thousand words written. Suddenly, Poetry and stories were flowing.
Then my brain wouldn’t shut down. It was like I had to make up all of the time I had lost. So today I am tired. This wasn’t what I planned to post, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what I did have planned. I hope to sleep tonight, but I will settle for just relaxing today. I will be doing more writing. I think I will put the computer in a rotation to make the writing easier. I use evernote for most of my writing anyway, and I have it on my computer to make things easier.
Nothing I can do about the insomnia, it happens often enough. I can control my writing though, to some extent. I can seek to improve my craft, make it easier for me to do what I need to do.
Fridays, I usually do writing advice on my Blog, Instead I will be posting a couple of word games to give my brain a break. So, I will leave you with a question. What do you do for routines? What can you do to improve your outlook, or your craft?
In trying to convince myself that I am not the only writer who struggle with the promotion aspect of publishing, I have been reading many blogs about writing. Writing is for me necessary. Whether I ever put it out there, it is as much as breathing. Now that publication is able to be done independently, and costs me nothing, it seems that is common sense. That being said I have never been good at self promotion.
As a writer, each thing i write feels like a child of mine. That being said, promotion feels like i am selling out. I realize that is the purpose of publication. However it still cuts the grain.
Reading these blogs really have given me perspective. Every one of the writers in these blogs seems to share my insecure issues about publishing and the trials involved. Many of my dreams about being a writer did not include the actuality of selling. Then again nothing of the actuality of publication is as i dreamed. I honestly believe many writers feel the same.
Being a published author seems glamorous and likely to end one up famous and rich…right? Not really. Some of the best writers were paupers and completely unknown in their own time. So for me, knowing that, I really didn’t expect fame and riches. I think i only planned slight acknowledgement to be my reward. Silly isn’t it? I really didn’t expect disillusionment. Which is what I have been seeing in so many authors and poets.
That same disillusion is responsible for me deleting half of what I write. Even for this blog. After all, if is sounds whiney….why would anyone read it? That’s what diaries are for. So when it becomes too difficult to keep my writing in perspective, time to surf other writers and their thoughts. Time to remind myself, I am not Alone.
Pattimouse 