Hey friends!! Hard to believe (for me, anyway) it was May when I last posted an update about my book, but I promise, it’s been time well-spent.
I finished my much-dreaded work on the edits over the summer. (Which turned out to not be as dreadful as I’d allowed my overwrought imagination to dictate.) My publisher and I are now in the final stages of design and layout, and one of my favorite artists anywhere, my very longtime friend, John Hall, is working on the cover art.
As we finalize the design, I have some baseline work to do for marketing, so the actual timing is still t.b.d, but it shouldn’t be long. As in, by the holidays.
It’s getting real
As I spoke this morning with my publisher and she was walking me through some of the marketing activities they’ll be performing, a familiar fear began squirming in my gut. I’ve never really liked being in the limelight, and the idea of some of the things I might have to do for publicity sort of terrify me.
I walk a fine line with myself – downplaying any potential upside to keep myself calm (“no one is really going to be that interested in this,”) while reminding myself that I can’t go so far with that sentiment as to sabotage any shot at success. (Like failing to do the things I need to do to properly promote the book, because I’ve convinced myself that no one is really going to be interested. See how that works?)
The last mile is the hardest
I think it’s true of most large undertakings that just when you’re the most tired and most worn-down, you have to keep your foot on the accelerator. In that way, I suppose, the process of writing, publishing, and releasing this book are a microcosm of the renovation project that it’s about. Let up at the end, and you’ll never get there.
So it’s pedal to the metal for me. Even if this goes off a cliff, at least it’ll be Thelma & Louise-style. But if anyone knows a good website designer, please send them my way!!
4 Comments
Very much looking forward to publication. Public book signing events can be stressful, but I’m convinced you will handle them with Grace. But if Grace is not cooperative, send her home.
Hahaha!! I will, Marco!!!
Best wishes on your ongoing endeavor. .Never sell your self short . With your smarts and fortitude i believe you will successfully accomplish anything you set out to do /If your still on FB at all check out some of Robert Perry’s stories. He was a couple years ahead of us .He is also in the process of writing a novel ,and regularly posts short stories about his life in Wolcott .Best wishes Dave G.
Thanks Dave — on FB mostly just with my Fire Over Fifty page, but I’ll look up Robert’s stories!! I have such respect for novelists and their imagination and creativity. It was hard enough to build a story that reflected things that actually happened, never mind making something up out of thin air!!