My focus is on self-publishing this year

A woman walking into a book filled with a forestFor a while now I’ve been trying to work out what I wanted to do with this blog.

I’ve largely talked about the process of writing and traditional publishing, which is the journey I’ve been on until a year or two.

Because of that I don’t want to make this my author website, so if you’re interested in my stories (as opposed to my writing processes) visit My Author Website and subscribe or sign up for my newsletter to keep informed.

As I’m about to focus on self-publishing my first novel soon, so I thought I might share my experiences here.

Therefore…

So far I’ve written several novels, with the main focus on the novel now called Divine Prey (formerly Prophecy of Power or a similar iteration).

I gained an agent and a publisher for it. Unfortunately the agent quit the business and the publisher folded, leaving me where I before landing the agent.

I could have started that process again – looked for another agent and publisher, but the process was drawn out over several years and there were a few things involved in it that I really don’t want to revisit, like the time it took or giving other people control of the process.

Traditional publishing wasn’t an experience I felt comfortable with, though having an agent in your corner is a really good validation for your writing.

However, having chosen to go down the self-publishing path I have full control of everything, but I also have to take responsibility for everything.

The first part of that is ensuring the story is in a state fit for publishing; a product as good as what you’d see from any big publisher (hopefully).

Big ask.

So after far many rounds of editing and rewriting, I’ve now got it to a state I’m happy with. At the end of last year I also had it proofread by Jo Clay, a fantastic author and editor.

Les Petersen has also produced some professional cover art for me.

The next steps are:

  • apply the proofreading Jo did for me
  • complete the cover, including:
    • front
    • spine
    • rear (including the blurb)
  • lay out the interior (text), including:
    • front matter
    • story
    • back matter
  • publish
    • ebook
    • print (three versions which I can take to trade shows like Supanova and ComiCon)
      • I might need to produce slightly different layouts/covers for the different versions

I’d like to have all that done by the end of February. If I get the time, I’ll outline the process here as I go, or if not, afterward.

Don’t forget to visit My Author Website and subscribe to the blog or sign up for my (highly infrequent) author newsletter.

4 thoughts on “My focus is on self-publishing this year”

  1. This is a huge step. It must be daunting and exhilarating at the same time. I admire you for making the decision and commitment. You have much to accomplish by the end of February. I’ll look forward to reading about your process and experiences when you have time to post. Best of luck!

  2. Ditto, Chris, really impressed you have the energy and are prepared to put the work in. (Speaking as someone who doesn’t and isn’t. 😜) Wishing you all the best with “Divine Prey.”

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