The doubts and fears of an indie author

     There are times when I wonder why I decided to venture down the path of an indie author instead of attempting to become a traditionally published author. I had no clue about either path or what it would involve from me. I had heard the horror stories of manuscripts sent only to die unread in some editor's office because no one wanted to gamble on the unknown. I believe they call it a "slush pile" which honestly makes no sense to me. If I'm being completely honest, a lot of what's involved in the publishing world makes no sense to me. But i digress, so let's try to stay focused.

    While scrolling through my Facebook I saw an ad for self publishing through something called Book Baby. It promised my book would be published on ten different e book formats, and Kindle and Nook were the top two mentioned. It was a pay service, of course, and I went with the deluxe package as I had no clue what I was doing and I figured the extra "hand holding" might be worth it. 

    As for a book cover, I was fortunate in that department. I worked with a girl who was a talented artist and she was attending art school. She agreed to design both the e book cover and a paperback cover as well. Her price? Being able to submit it for an assignment. She got an A and some mad bonus points and I got a stunning, original cover that still gets compliments.

    Then I discovered Amazon's no-cost print on demand self publishing division for both e books and paperbacks. So I jumped feet first into something I knew absolutely nothing about let alone what the costs might be on my end and not just financially. 

    But that's a story for another day that may or may not be told.

    Here I am today, many years and six books later and if I'm being completely honest I feel as lost as I did on day one. But I still persist, learning as I go and meeting some wonderful people along the way. I can only hope that someone out there is enjoying what I write. After all, isn't that what it's all about? 





    


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