The Journey

by Cindy Callinsky
(Burdine, KY)

Wow, where do you start? For me, traditional means of publishing was never an option. I really wanted total control over the end product. I also wanted to maintain all rights. Being a first time author, I didn't figure I would lose a lot of money by self publishing. I really wanted to see my dream become reality.

I looked into many different self publishing companies. Many cost a great deal ($2,000.00 and up) and that's not including fees for editing your work. Although, I could have scrounged up that kind of money over time, I was having a hard time wrapping my mind around the concept of paying someone to publish a book when I make a modest income and don't have much that's expendable. I ran across an online website called Lulu. Basically you can do everything yourself and just pay for the distribution of the book which ranges from $50.00 to 150.00. That was definitely more in my budget. They do offer other services at cheaper fees than most of the other vanity presses just in case you need help.

I didn't have the money for a professional edit so a friend of mine, with an English major, did the edit for me for a modest fee. Once that's done you have the process of figuring out how to format the book in Word to make it look right. It was challenging. Luckily, I work with some extremely bright people at my "day job". When I couldn't figure something out there was always someone I could ask. If they didn't know how to do it off the top of their head they would take the time to help me figure it out. So after spending weeks making sure it looked right, the different parts and chapters landed where they should, and stuff, I had the Word files to upload and convert to PDF.

Then comes the whole process of the cover art. That is taxing. You usually have a good idea of what you want but getting it on camera or drawn up is a different story. My friend, my son, and I headed out one warm afternoon and took photo after photo for the cover. I knew I wanted something colorful on the front. An eye-catching cover is VERY important. I knew that much. Then I bought some flowers and took lots of photos of them to play with for the back cover. I kinda knew what I wanted for the back but I wasn't sure how I was gonna achieve it. I was much more decided on the front cover before I was ever decided on the back.

All that being done, I got the first print. I got it sent to me and cried in the bathroom at my day job as I opened it up and held it in my hands. That's the cool part about how my press is set up. You can order a copy at any point, even before you approve it for distribution.

Now comes the hard work. I really wanted some reviews for the back cover. Now, being a nobody, how do you achieve that? I asked people that weren't my friends but that I was somehow acquainted with. I tried others but no one would take me seriously. Some people were actually very mean about it because I didn't know the "proper" way to ask. Apparently, there is some secret way to request reviews. I'm still not sure how to go about that. Anyway, I managed to get three reviews for the back cover.

After much more editing and final touches to the book, I was ready to promote it. It was now on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other online retailers. Rockin'. That's an incredible feeling.

Once the book was online getting people to review it wasn't as hard. I had to think outside the box though because the "professional" reviewers weren't taking me serious. I looked for people online on Amazon that reviewed books or movies that were of similar genre to my story. I emailed four people and heard back from one of the four. I did the same thing on Associated Content. I read different articles to find a few people I thought would enjoy my story and emailed a few of them. I got one reply. Then, I networked through Myspace to get even more reviews posted online. In the process I met a musician and he loved the book and together we did a soundtrack for the book. Yes, that is right. Who makes the rules anyway? Do what you want and what's in your heart.

As for promotion, I have done some festivals. I have advertised online and on the radio through Google ads. I've made all of my online image, video, and audio ads on my computer. I created my radio ad by hooking my son's karaoke microphone up to my P.C. I used some free audio software to put some of the soundtrack music in the background. I designed my own website and run multiple blogs.

I'm currently at 203 books sold. It's not a lot and I've definitely sunk more money into it than what I've made. That being said, I've only spent slightly more than what I would have if I had gone through a different vanity press. If I had thrown in professional editing I would have spent more out of the gate to publish the novel than I have so far.

Here are some things to keep in mind. Take your time and make sure you are absolutely blissful with it before you publish. Once you publish, it is very frustrating and costly to change anything.

If you plan to enter any self published contests a professional edit would be worth the money. An English major can do a fabulous job on an edit. For 98% of Americans an edit done by someone that majored in English is totally acceptable and unnoticeable. When it comes to competitions, they are very picky. I learned that by entering contests. A professional editor, although expensive, is always totally up to date on current English and book standards.

The last thing I want to share is that if it's in your heart; don't let anyone stop you from going for it. Know your strengths and weaknesses. Make up for your weaknesses by getting help from someone that is strong where you are weak. Chase your dreams for inner prosperity. Do it because it makes you feel stellar to do so. Know that financial gain would be nice but always keep in mind that it's just a benefit. Giving a voice to your inner creativity is the real payoff. Even those that publish through traditional houses don't tend to become rich. If you write to feed your mouth rather than your soul, you will have a much harder time succeeding, and you'll probably be too stressed out and hungry to get into your creative mojo.

Cindy Callinsky

Visit Cindy and hear her book's soundtrack!