The long road to self-publication

The idea for my first novel Run to Me was rolling around in my head for two years before I finally got the confidence and motivation to start writing it all down. I wrote the first few drafts of the novel in 2007 and 2008. After that it was time to get some feedback and start the long process of edits and rewrites.

Then I did what most writers do next – I started submitting my cover letter, synopsis and opening chapters to agents and publishers. I remember being excited, and hopeful. With my submissions out there in the world, I duly sat down and began writing a second novel. I was serious about this writing thing, after all. :-)

Over time I got my share of rejections, and some small bites of interest. But no contract. Run to Me sat on my hard drive, and I focussed on other things. It was always there though, in the back of my mind. I wanted Run to Me to have a life outside of my computer. I may not have written something publishers were desperate to sell, but I knew my story wasn’t the worst thing ever written. I wanted to honour the time and energy I had put into getting that story out of my imagination and onto the page. A part of me is forever embedded in Run to Me, simply because I was the one who created it. And I knew that part of me deserved to be heard.

So what’s a writer to do? Take matters into her own hands, of course!

Late last year I decided the time had come to self-publish my novel. I’ve spent many hours researching the many companies that offer self-publishing services, and many more hours editing and formatting the manuscript. My sister has worked hard on creating my cover for me. So finally the novel was ready and so was I! I order the proof copy and sat back to wait for the delivery. Again I was excited and hopeful. I couldn’t wait to hold my book in my hands, to see it as a finished product rather than just a Word document. Here was the moment of completion. A moment that had taken me five years to reach.

Then the book got lost in the mail.

I still have yet to hold my book in my hands. But everything happens for a reason, and the time will come. As soon as that replacement proof copy arrives…

No time like the present, though, to launch the e-book version of Run to Me. The good people over at Amazon offer unknown writers like myself a real chance at finding an audience and seeing their work out there in the world. It’s a wonderful opportunity and just goes to show how much publishing is shifting these days. We no longer have to leave our fate up to others. I’m so grateful.

So as of yesterday, the Kindle version of my novel is available to purchase on Amazon! If you fancy buying it and supporting me in my creative work you can do so here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Run-to-Me-ebook/dp/B007R3SA6Y/healscri-21

(This is the link to Amazon UK, but you can also buy the book on any Amazon site. Just go to your country-specific Amazon and search for my name in the Kindle Store.)

To read the book you need a Kindle, or the Kindle App for iPad or iPhone, or you can download (for free) Kindle for PC or Mac and read it on your computer.

If you’d prefer to wait for the print version, I promise you it will see the light of day soon. Stay tuned…