Tomorrow,
May 15th, I will sit on a Panel of Indie Authors at the Colorado Christian
Writers Conference (CCWC). Over the weeks, I’ve thought about what I have of
value to share. What I have to say may astonish
some of my colleagues and peers.
Two years
ago, I hit my first sink hole to publication when I lost a
contract on my suspense novel, Light Out of
Darkness (then titled Casting Down
Shrines). Later, after I discovered that my agent had pushed my project to the
bottom of her pile because she had not found a publisher, I allowed these
events to derail my determination to see this book through to publication. That is, until last fall.
A voice
inside my head kept saying that I wasn’t done with the book yet. I decided to
use a yearly event called NANOWRIMO (national novel writing month) to make one
more edit on the book. I added a chapter that I now consider a pivotal chapter
in the book, shored up some language, changed the title, and then sent Light Out of Darkness to a professional
editorial consultant for review.
Though the
editor had a few corrections, he also said the book was definitely publish-worthy. He believed I could find a traditional publisher. The
impetus was there, yet I had traveled the traditional route before—even had an
agent. What should I do? After much discussion with my husband and a lot of
prayer, I decided to take the leap of faith into self-publishing.
At this
point, it would be easy to mislead the reader and talk about the glowing
successes of self-publishing. But I believe it would be a disservice to the
audience if I wasn’t candid about the process—the good, the bad, and the ugly.
I can
hear many of my indie friends as well as traditionally published authors groan.
“You can’t! It’s a death knell to your sales!” I hope not. I have to trust that
God controls the future of my book.
In the
last ten years, traditional publishing has demanded that an author take on
increasing responsibility to develop her platform and market her own books.
Therefore, it only makes sense to explore the world of self-publishing, since the expectations and lines of success are blurring more and more.
The truth
is that self-publishing is exciting! It’s
like building a new house. You do the research (do your homework), design the
plan (marketing strategy, social media, website design, etc), decide on a
builder (who will distribute your book—a company like Bookbaby or youself), and
all this with the anticipation of finally seeing your book launched into the
world. It’s an adrenaline rush.
But the
process can be overwhelming and intimidating. It’s a lot of hard work and many
laborious hours. It can take the focus off what you love to do—write—and on what you must do—build. And you can make a lot of costly mistakes along the
way. I did—big ones that almost caused me to throw in the towel and call it a day. Thankfully, I have been able to recover and am in the process of rebounding
back.
A recent
blog post from Marlene Bagnull, director of the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, reminded
me of God’s faithfulness even when we don’t feel him nearby during the challenging
times. She quoted from 2 Corinthians 4:8, which says, “We are pressed on every
side by troubles, but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, because we don’t
know why things happen as they do, but we don’t give up and quit” (TLB).
Why don’t
we quit? Because while the journey may not always be smooth, we who
claim faith in Christ have been called to tell a story that shines light into
the dark places of the world and bring a message of hope to those who would
otherwise have no hope.
This
journey of writing has never been about me but “For the joy set before Him…
(Hebrews 12:2). My job is to press on, even when times are tough and the road
seems daunting, because I’ve been called to remain faithful to the call to
write even as my God remains faithful to me. It’s what I must do. In the end,
it’s what I love to do.
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