Releasing a Book is Like Buying a House #IWSG

 

The Insecure Writer's Support Group posts the first Wednesday of every month. The purpose of this group is to express your doubts and fears as a writer without feeling foolish. It's a place where we writers can come together to offer support and advice to one another and share our triumphs.

Thank you to our fearless leader Alex J. Cavanaugh for creating the IWSG and to all of this month's co-hosts! J Lenni Dorner, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, Lee Lowry, and Rachna Chhabria.

Every month, IWSG gives an optional prompt question. For June the question is: How long do you shelve a manuscript before editing it. Does experience writing make a difference in the time you take?

I have only completed two book-length manuscripts. The first one I put away for several years and I've never really finished editing it. 

My most recent I put away for about a week after completing the first draft. What about you? How long do you wait between drafting and editing? 

 

I have several insecurities this month. 

One Year On Broadway:
Finding Ourselves
Between the Sand and the Sea
My Debut Book!

I'm both thrilled and sort of terrified that my debut non-fiction book, One Year On Broadway: Finding Ourselves Between the Sand and the Sea, is set to come out this summer!

 It is a story of forbidden love, adventure, and letting go.

I'm a bit overwhelmed with everything I still have to do before launch day. But I also want to enjoy this whole crazy process. After all you only release your first book once in your life!

All the anxiety around releasing a book feels a bit like buying a house. There are so many pieces that have to fall into place and deadlines that need to be met and sometimes they just don't work out. What's most frustrating is that often they are out of your control, like when the house inspector finds radon gas and black mold in your dream house or the book cover designer needs to start over on your cover because his computer crashed and totally stopped working. 

Once the cover was completed I had a licensing issue with the subtitle (my fault), I had to come up with a new title and then we had to go back for another cover re-design. I still don't have the final cover.

Each time it happens, I'm disappointed, realizing I have to change the book's release date yet again. Though after missing my first two dates, I let it go. The only thing that really matters is that my story eventually makes it out into the world. 

So I'm tentatively saying my book will release this summer, though I keep wondering if some other unforeseen issue will pop up and delay it further.

I'm also insecure about the fact that I haven't blogged regularly in a few years and all my old bloggie buddies probably think I dropped off the planet. I've let my platform that I worked for several years to build up, slide into obscurity.  It has taken me quite a while to even relearn how to use Blogger, it seems it has changed a bit since I last used it and I kind of feel like the old lady who needs help from a kid to figure it all out again! 

And because I've been absent from the blogosphere for so long, I'm insecure about asking for help getting the word out about my book once the release date is set in stone.

But I am here now and ready to again be an active part of supporting everyone in this community. I can't wait to see what you have all been up to. Thank you all for being part of this amazing group!

I'd love to hear your book release stories.

What kinds of things do you do to prepare for your book launches? Do you hold physical launch parties and if so where? or do you just do virtual launches, blog hops and tours etc? What have been the most effective things you've done to get your book into the world on schedule? and what things have gone wrong?

Kathy