A Flash of Insightful Awareness

The sun rises big and orange through the early morning mist. In that instant I have a flash of insightful awareness: never apologize for self-publishing. It is an art and a gift. (Photography credit: Wayne Reidinger).

Self-publishing allows an author to put his/her work out there for the pleasure of others without the pressure of an editor’s deadline for the next book. A manuscript is like a fine wine that grows in richness and flavor with time and patience.

You cannot–must not–rush the process.

Lynda Purinton of New Gloucester, ME, says of Beware the Sleeping Dog self-published under my plum de nom K.A. Libby: I so enjoyed (the book). I was hooked at the first paragraph. I didn’t figure out who the villain was and look forward to reading more. You are amazing!

 

Failure Is not an Option

What is perseverance? The steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.

But what does it mean to me?

1. I must have moxie. What is Moxie? It’s Maine’s signature soda, a mainstay with my Libby-Keith family, but something for which I never acquired a taste. Or shall we say it’s the courage to proceed even when failure is looming.

2. I also need a bit of backbone. Beyond my skeletal spine, I must have the will to stand up to confront the obstacles. Failure is not an option.

3. To risk another cliché, I must be like a dog with a bone and not let go of my goal. Write that book. Done. Publish it with fortitude. Done. Achieve marketing success. A WIP (work in progress).

a. Fish where the fish are. Trying to do that in social media. Facebook. LinkedIn. What else?

b. Let my core audience lead me to my adjacent audience. Trying to figure that one out. Any suggestions? (continued at c. below.)

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From http://www.amazon.com  Sally Ande says re: Beware the Sleeping Dog by K.A. Libby: “I enjoyed the subject matter very much, as psychological abuse is not addressed very often. The author is very good at describing her surroundings and soon you are knee deep in suspense and intrigue. I would certainly recommend you read her book!”

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c. Become a mastermind of SEO (Search Engine Maximization). This week’s goal is to rework my ADP tags for my book. When I figure that one out, I’ll share.

4. Exercise sedulity. Now there’s a word. I must be diligent. I must work hard. And I must remember that the only time success comes before work is in the dictionary.

Please reply!

A New Era in Publishing

This morning I read a dialogue between Barry Eisler and Joe Konrath at http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2011/03/ebooks-and-self-publishing-dialog.html. It offers a strong argument for choosing the self-publishing and e-book path over legacy publishing and paper. It’s titled “A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing”, and it is an excellent read.

I’m still opting for the standard route of submitting to literary agents. But it feels good to have a viable back-up plan.

What does it mean to self-publish? In the words of Barry Eisner: You become your own “editor, line editor, copyeditor, proofreader, jacket copy writer, bio writer, cover art designer, and digital formatter”. And you assume “various marketing and sales elements, too”.

Quite daunting, but perhaps, most rewarding–from a profit perspective and as a model for success.