The journey towards a September 1, 2021 publishing date began with a first step this week. ISBN# 979E8533J533H106. The number above identifies my 1st book from now into eternity. Plain and simple, that number is the International Standard Book Number (ISBN#) found with a bar code on the back cover of any modern paperback. Learning to publish is my #1 bucket list item being realized.
Deciding to self-publish was an easy for me, discovering the process is one of following steps toward a finished product. With the push of a button, the computer does the hard work of assembling information into book form for purchase. So far, the entire dream of blogging and publishing has been free. Every bit. Organization, editing, proofing, and more proofing of the material now begins. My book will join tens of thousands of others for sale on Kindle and Amazon. Only the best work rises to the top, so others will need to make room.
Watching a webinar yesterday by L.J. Ross, (a very successful author), I took her words to heart. We are our own worst critics. There are winners and losers. It’s just as easy to join the winning side as the losing. Winners never quit. They may fall down and skin a knee, but they slap a bandaid on, get up, dust off, and keep going. I plan to be on the winning side at the top one day. Why not? Someone needs to take the top spot. New authors are born every day, having taken the risk of publishing their newborn words in a way all their own. It’s my turn to climb that mountain and plant my flag.
If your dream is to begin the journey of writing, just do it. Journals are as simple or elaborate as you choose. The information kept inside is up to you and you alone. Ranting or raving, the words on the page are cathartic and an authentic representation of growth, day after day. Your personal life line into the next day, when Widowhood’s path travels through the deepest and darkest forest.
In my case, blogging became my beacon of hope and direction, with over 32,000 readers cheering me on along the way. Readers in countries I’ve only dreamed of visiting in six of the seven continents. A Nepalese bibliophile will never know how much their continued support helped a little Red Necked Woman from the high deserts of Northwestern Nevada cope with a loss so deep. The identity of my readers is not what matters. It matters that Provo shows up every day. And Concord. Washington, Virginia, and Amsterdam. In the early days, if anyone read my blog during the night, I was squealing with delight the next morning. Five daily readers doubled to ten while blog grew along the way.
Since September 24, my blogs have been written with the intent the words would find their way into my first book, WIDOW (by Joy Hurt). Did I mention it will be out September 1st? Just a little excited here. Yesterday, all printed copies of the blog, held in large white binder, were separated into 15 piles. Chapters began to take shape. Hours later, the binder was reassembled into a crude form of my first book. The very first one of many.
Just thinking of the cover had me on pause for months. How could I create a cover on my own? What picture? What to write for the Bio? How to compel readers to buy the book with a catching synopsis? All those creative paths were shut tight, like a rose bud that is in the early stages of swelling before bloom. Each time the urge came to start, another nay-saying voice popped up in my head telling me why it wouldn’t ever be possible. I went back to the day I wrote my essay to win the Morgan horse. Failed then, I would fail now. I heard this until a very brave, unwavering Viking Woman voice stood up and said, “Listen Sistah,” (my Viking woman inner voice often speaks this way to me in slang), “Believe you are already doing it and it will be done.” I love that Viking woman voice. She’s rarely wrong.
With an empty house and fresh AC, yesterday was the day. Flicking the switch, my new computer sprang to life. Visiting the publishing site, I filled in a few boxes and in the blink of an eye, my new cover became a reality. For my first book, I’ve chosen to use Kindle Direct Publishing, which dovetails perfectly with Amazon. Cover Creator was the imbedded program I used to create the cover, taking form in less than an hour.
There’ll be two choices for you, my precious Readers. E-book or Paperback. At least one paperback copy will sit proudly on my bookshelf. The realization of a life long dream. So many troubling things have occurred in the last 18 months. The thing that kept me alive and well were my words, written before dawn in the safety of Winterpast with Oliver snoozing at my feet.
Please continue the journey with me. I love hearing comments. If there is something you’d consider a must for inclusion in the book, drop me a line. Hawaiianhurts@att.net. I promise, a real editor will correct grammar and spelling before it hits the market. If you want to help with that, drop me a line. I can use all the help I can get. 54 days and counting down. Publishing my first book on September 1st, 2021 , a wonderful dream will be realized, with two more books completing the trilogy. Nothing can stop me now.