Write On !

by June Austin
(Surrey, England )

My book Genesis of Man, could arguably fit into any one of several categories, as it encompasses so much information on a wide range of topics - as I say, from Atlantis to Zecharia Sitchin, with everything in between. That is why I decided to add the subtitle, the answer to life, the universe and everything in between. It falls best though into the category of religion and spiritualy, as the over riding theme is the need to work with and balance the two halves of our soul - both the dark and the light, and bring these to a point of completion and balance within ourselves. This I believe is the key to unlock the potential which is hidden deep inside.

I did not set out to write a book, but it sort of crept up on me. After my mother died at the end of 1999, I decided to take a year out, to figure out where I was heading. One of the first things I did was enrol on a course in crystal therapy. It was around this time that I was also introduced to crystal skulls, which will soon be popular again, as the film Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull is due for release in London later this week.

During the second year, we were asked to write a thesis on a crystal related subject, and I chose to write mine on crystal skulls. The more I began to write and research, the more links I began to find with other areas of interest, until it became obvious that this was to be a book, linking all the subjects together.

One year out became three, as I worked full time in order to get the book completed. I had decided by then that the book, which is essentially a potted history of our planet written from a spiritual perspective, would be divided into four different sections - the first of which dealt with the period from 35 million to one million years ago.

Part two dealt with the so-called lost civilisations of Atlantis and Lemuria, while part three discussed the various schools of Gnosticism, whose belief systems are I discovered, rooted in Lemuria and her colonies, one of which was Atlantis. Part four was to deal with the origins of the Christian faith, and how Gnosticism, which is basically the same as modern spirituality, evolved into the religion that we have today.

Parts one to three were relatively easy to write, but when it got to part four, there was so much information to wade through, that I did not know where to begin, and so I did not and the book went on hold for over a year.

It was at this point that I returned to work, as a supermarket cashier, eventually leaving that job in August 2005 when the stress became too much. By then, the Da Vinci Code was riding high, and much of what I spoke about in my book was highly topical. I worked flat out for 5 months to complete the book, doing a complete edit and re-write in less than five months.

The search then began for a publisher. I had made a few enquiries during the early stage of writing, but looking back, I was very green and wet behind the ears, so I am not surprised they all turned me down. The experience made me realise that I had to be much more professional in my approach, and so I began to research the book industry and how it worked.

I did not like what I discovered, as I realised that it may take anything up to 2 years after I had signed a contract to see the book in print, with no guarantee that it would ever be printed at all. After five years of writing and researching, I had reached the point where I wanted to get on with things, and so I began to consider self publishing as a possible alternative.

Short print run was quickly dismissed, as I did not have the space in which to store large amounts of books; neither did I feel that I had a sufficient understanding of business to be able to deal with wholesalers etc direct. Print on demand was for me then the obvious choice.

Some of the companies I approached seemed very keen to say how many books they had sold, but when you tried to get basic information regarding print costs and author royalties, it proved well nigh impossible. When I came across my eventual publisher, AuthorsOnLine, it was a breath of fresh air. All the information was clearly laid out on their website, in plain English, without the sales patter. When I spoke to Richard, the company director, I found that he was also plain speaking, and so I signed up and the process began.

I chose the company's modular service, whereby you pay for various services that you need, in my case, including bespoke cover design and full proof reading. I found that I was able to do most of the internal layout and formatting myself, including the index, which saved quite a bit of money and gave me valuable experience.

When my first book arrived on June 27 2006 it was a very emotional moment, and I cried for 10 minutes! When I recovered my composure I then set to work selling them. Initially, I managed to sell quite a few copies via my local non-denominational church, St Michaels in Ewell; it soon became clear however, that I needed to find other outlets, and so I started to approach local shops and discussion groups direct.

I was lucky enough to persuade the manager of my local Waterstones to order some copies, and I was overjoyed when I was booked to do a talk at Borders. Copies were also sent to a number of media outlets, newspapers and magazines by myself and Paul, the publicist who works on behalf of Richard's authors, himself a self published author.

Without exception the feedback from all of them was to say that although they loved the book, they did not like the cover, and so it became necessary to change the cover. With a house move at the end of 2006, it was put to one side until the spring, when I commissioned a brilliant new designer, Clifford Hayes, to do the work. At the same time I decided to increase the font size, and add some more new text, making it a second, updated edition. It would have been impossible to do this has I chosen a different printing method.

I received my first batch on May 22, and the universe in its infinite wisdom responded at exactly the right moment, since in the month following publication, I received three reviews from The Self Publishing Magazine, Paradigm Shift and Nexus magazines. I was also invited on to American radio. My role as editor of the local community newsletter has also ensured plenty of coverage in the local press.

Several months after the second edition was released, I began to ring Waterstones stores, initially just the local ones. Most of them refused to order copies, as the book was not returnable. I went back to Richard and asked what he could do. To my surprise, he agreed to ask Gardners Books, the largest wholesaler in the UK, to accept the book as a stocked title, an honour rarely afforded to such books.

I spent the next four months ringing all 330 Waterstones stores throughout the UK, as well as Borders and local independents. By Christmas last year, I had managed to get the book into one third of their stores.

However, I later discovered that a large proportion of the stores who told me they would order did not actually do do, and as a result Gardners had far too much stock. So much so that in January 2008, they were threatening to send 120 books back. By then I was back at work, four days a week, and so my time was limited. I did the only thing I could do, and spent the entire weekend on the phone in a desperate attempt to stop this from happening, managing to get the numbers down to a level less than they were threatening to send back.

A month went by and there was no sign of the books, until one day there was a knock at the door - 71 of them had been returned, without permission from Richard or myself. I was unable to get Richard on the phone, and so reluctantly signed for them, being forced since that day to face my biggest fear and negotiate with stores, dealing with all the business side myself.

Self publishing, through whatever method you choose is one hell of a learning curve, with very little financial reward. The reward comes though from knowing that you have made a difference to others lives, and each time I recieve an email from a reader whose life I have touched, I know that it has been all worthwhile, despite the sacrifices and despite the heartbreak and despair.

In addition to my main website, I also have a blog, Podding Along Nicely, which covers my experiences with self publishing in much more detail, both the ups and the downs (and there have been plenty of both). I also discuss topical issues within publishing which impact upon the self published author, such as moves towards firm sale, and the recent Amazon debate. To access the blog, go to my main website and click the relevant link as shown.

Visit June Austin.