Publishing Day Reflections

It's that time again, something that happens once in every 7 years (haha), but I've published my second novel and it has come with an array of emotions. I thought I'd share a post about those feelings and what goes into an indie author marketing their own work. Before I get into that though, I want to thank everyone who SHOWED UP for me during the launch of this new novel, Chasing Time. It's because of people like you (or you), that I want to continue to write new stories and share this passion of mine with the world. So thank you. 

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It's no secret that my first launch didn't go very well. By the time Shattered Yesterdays launched the first time (and was called Broken Tomorrows), I had hit an ugly patch of social media that really took me down a dark and winding path that I didn't think I'd ever pull myself out of. I got mixed up with some people who weren't right for me (nor was I right for them), and the more I tried to climb from the hole I'd dug myself into, the further down it buried me. 

This time, I wanted things to be different. Some people removed me from their lives (and that's fine. The universe/God knows when we've served our purpose in people's lives and they in ours that it happens when it needs to even if it's not HOW we want it to be done). Cutting out the noise really helped me this time around to feel more grounded and in control of my own plans. 

I had researched marketing a little more, and connected with those who were not only good for my soul, but allowed me to help them as well because I don't like taking and not giving back in return, at least in some way. I can be a very loud cheerleader and most of the time I am. I took the mentality of "do unto others as you'd like them to do unto you," with low expectations that it would be returned. 

But, I didn't need to lower the expectations, because the connections were finally the right ones. 

I made a plan for this launch that started back in October when I announced the title of my new book. Looking back now, I can't even tell you how I came to the title Chasing Time, except to know that I can't picture the novel being called anything else. 

Then I shared other things including snippets, blurb, cover, and newsletter all leading up to the publishing date. I wanted this time to be different, so I selected a date well in advance that allowed me to move across the country and settle into a new reality while still meeting said deadline. 

This launch I also consulted an editor who did two rounds of editing in this book, in addition to my own. Will there be mistakes? I won't say no. Mistakes happen, but reading the sample available on Amazon already shows me how much better this novel is over my first. 

I took the skills given to me through a blog post from a fellow indie author who graciously shared how to make a full wrap cover in Canva --- it's still my most favorite blog post. I'll link her site here (CLICK HERE), because even though we don't talk anymore, I still think she has some of the best indie advice out there...so if you're an indie author, give her a look. But through that incredible blog post, I managed to create a cover that got so MUCH positive feedback over on my FB author page. 

Then, you have the story itself. The character growth in this story still surprises me because I feel it's so well done. 

Overall, it's been a good launch...minus a couple of hiccups. Like how Amazon gives readers 10% of e-books, and 20% of paperbacks freebie samples. This was hard to take because my chapters are short so readers practically get the first 5 chapters for free. I'll need to account for that the next time I publish, but you're welcome, ha! 

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Later, I'll share a post about what I would do differently with my next book, but for now, I'm going to relax in these feels. It's been an exhausting few months and I only have about a month long break before I dive back into things with a writing trip out west! 

Thanks for reading. This truly is a rambling post, but I'm settling in my feels at the moment. Thank you to my readers and I really hope you all love Chasing Time. I know I do! 

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