Blog to Book: DYI–or not

Earl and I hadn't been crazy about the original photo designated for the book cover.  So, he took a few that included our street, Skeeter and me and we sent them in.  If I'd known the cover picture would be so evident, I would have taken more time and care.  I'm just waiting to get a lecture from a well–meaning reader about the safe way to wear a helmet.  Whatever...

"You're an author!" a friend said.  It was very flattering and I was truly excited to be in print.  My grand children would now consider me a cool grandmother (they don't realize my "coolness" pre–dated them). However, I have to be honest, self–publishing is just this side of vanity publishing.  You can publish anything if you're willing to poney up money.

In self–publishing, you do all the work yourself, whereas with supported self–publishing, a company assumes the production duties.  Since I neither had the expertise nor desire to design, market, professionally edit, print, or distribute a book, supported self–publishing became my avenue of choice.

I was certainly no Patricia Cornwell or Clive Cussler, had no track record, so an advance wasn't part of the plan.  I had been warned about the royalty trap that may occur with self–publishing (royalties that often don't materialize).  By choosing and paying for a publishing package up front, I didn't know if I was avoiding a trap or walking into it, but wanted the surprise element to be beyond my concern.
 
Even though the process had it's challenges, the message seemed worthwhile.  
Not to say that:
1.  I don't think Scooter Sagas isn't funny–it is.  
2.  I didn't have anything of interest to say about ataxia and disability–I did.
3.  Skeeter and I didn't encounter many relevant issues around coping with any chronic disorder–we did.
4.  I'm not an OK writer–I am.


But the publishing company did something I didn't knowingly sign up for.  I was always encouraged to take time to think, write and express ideas to my satisfaction, on my schedule.  Advice from the company representatives was timely and ever present when solicited.  Although nothing was said, the regular phone calls and emails kept me from dawdling, getting side–tracked and losing sight of my objective.  Procrastination (an underrated trait in my view) is ordinarily a favorite thing to do.  Staying "on task" was a new experience for me.  It seemed from the beginning, that I was getting a lot of attention and service.  As I neared completion of the project, the publishing company and the pace of its marketing efforts dramatically picked up.  I did purchase the top–end package way back when this began, but I had forgotten what all that entailed.  Whereas marketing was a foreign concept to me, the company had it down to a science—efficient and fast.

When I received an email from Grace Allen about the book's website, my first thought was, "What website?"  Apparently, that was also a part of my package, along with flyers and business cards and posters —oh my!  I wondered what the flyers and posters were for.  I was informed that they were for the launch parties and book signings.  It was probably time to say, "Not in this lifetime" or "You must be talking to the lady in back of me".  I just needed to think of a non-snotty way of being appreciative, but resolute.  Book signing, indeed...Grace probably didn't remember the Handwriting post/chapter.
Absent face to face contact, it often helps me to put a face on anonymous email correspondents. She may be a petite, dark-haired, dark-eyed woman somewhere on the globe, but she'll always be Gracie Allen in my mind.  Grace and I began the back and forth process of making the web content consistent with and reflective of, the book.  There were times when editing the website seemed to take as long as the original writing.  In fact, it was relatively brief and like everything else, efficient.
I thought back on my job in the research office of the nursing school; what it was like to be formatting someone else's work.  Understanding another person's ideas was rarely easy or pretty.  By the end of a project, the author wanted the correct message, whereas I was often unjustifiably homicidal over the frequent changes.

Elphaba, Wicked Witch of the West*

Fortunately for me, critically evaluating websites had been one of Heidi's job responsibilities in an earlier career and Earl is a natural born critic.  They could be backseat quarterbacks and focus on the website content.  I could concentrate on reigning in my inner Elphaba*.  My early publishing company staff emails averaged two to five.  The Grace to me/website emails averaged ten to twenty.  

In all fairness, we were coming down to the wire—the end was in sight, but I found my inner Elphaba surfacing frequently.  Grace maintained an objective, marketing perspective, while I kept stressing my more subjective, "message" vision.  I wanted to explain my reasoning for changes; she just wanted the changes.  When she started using the diplomatic "kindly" in her correspondence, I could tell she had an Elphaba dwelling within as well.  It was time to keep my explanations to myself and just stick to getting the job done.

So I'm finished, the book is out, and I'm very satisfied with the end product.  The publishing company broke the book project into its component parts—cover, interior content, website, etc.  I approved each item before moving to the next.  When the single printer copy arrived, there were no surprises.  A slight increase in my heart rate, but no surprises.

The lesson:  Keep your eye on the ball.  Holding the inner witch in check has it's benefits.  

*Elphaba is a fictional character in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway adaptation, Wicked. In the original L. Frank Baum book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West is unnamed and little is explained about her life. Elphaba is modeled after the Witch portrayed by Margaret Hamilton in the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz: Green-skinned, clad entirely in black, and wearing a tall peaked hat. Maguire formulated the name "Elphaba" out of L. Frank Baum's name, taking the phonetic pronunciation of his initials: hence, L.F.B became El-pha-ba.

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© 2013 Author Solutions, Inc.
ISBN: 
Paperback (978-1-4759-7447-8)
Ebook (978-1-4759-7449-2)
 
Website:
www.scootersagas.com