Time has flew by, it’s weird even to say it but I have finally accomplished one of my major goals in life and became and Indie Author! The name of my book is Slice and no it’s not the first book I have written but it is the first book that I have poured my soul into! So let’s lay it all out there.

First thing first… Editing is by far the most difficult part of the process. You have to write this beautiful master piece and then once you go back through and read it you think… oh dear God what have I written? That was the initial thought of my first draft. I think back and even wonder why I let so many people read it. For future advice to myself and other indies… don’t let anyone besides you read the first draft. The first draft for me was a display of words scrambled onto paper in mass quantities. It was garbage. I took a week break and dived back into her and the second draft made more sense. But editing is never done. I mean NEVER DONE! When you have your final draft done I guarantee you will see a few errors that you want to slap yourself for. Editing took all of two months then there are about six hundred more things to do.

I published my book through Createspace. And I can honestly say it is one of the easiest platforms to work on for beginners. They lead you step by step and  most importantly they do answer any questions. Choosing this platform helped me with very concept of what it takes to publish. Once I found my book acceptable enough to be in book format I decided it was time to develop a proof.

There is no better joy than receiving the first proof in your hand. I almost cried. It seems unreal. Writing is a passion for me, so it was overwhelming almost. I just wanted everything to be right. A proof copy doesn’t necessarily have to be a printed copy of the book. It could have been on paper in a three ring binder but I made three proofs over six books. They all had different covers and they all were different sizes and paper. Finding the perfect look for your book is important. Obviously… JK  Rowling, Maya Banks and a few others have even changed their covers of their books. Had I known what I know now I would have stopped being cheap and had hired a designer for the cover at first. I designed three covers for my book and the final one stuck with me… until I found the perfect stock photo! Then I changed the eBook cover.

The first one was created by me… but things I have learned about covers are that they must stand out. It’s not even a choice. You must not chose a white background. The white knocks your book into the background in sites like Kindle and even Facebook. The second was not done by me, but it looks better and has actually increased my internet sales. FACES draw people in.

Then there is the marketing. My novel has been successful locally. I have sold over 100 copies in the first complete month but there is so much to learn when it comes to this business. In general, this process for me was a learning experience but I loved every minute of it. And I am using every lesson to help with book two of the series: Havoc. Please stay tuned! I plan to be a little more active with this BLOG and trust me, you will be seeing more of me! Until Next time people… HAPPY READING!