My journey to Self Publishing

So last night I was up until four am-yet again-obsessing over everything I need to do to self publish.

Honestly I think this is the hardest I’ve ever worked for anything in my life, but it’s well worth it. I chose to self publish because most of the agents and traditional publishing houses I looked into weren’t accepting queries due to a high volume of clients and or my book just didn’t fit their criteria.

When I first began this journey around a year ago, I wrote my entire first draft (based on some crazy dreams I was having at the time) in a week. I probably could have pounded it out faster, lol, lord knows I wanted to but I am a mother and a wife and a fairly responsable adult.

Recently I finished my third and I believe the final draft of my first book ‘Prophecy of the Seven’ the first installment in ‘The Genesis Project Series’. I am beyond overjoyed at this…but this is where the hard work truly begins.

I now have to market my book, find beta readers (had some but would love for a few more to have a look), find someone who can and will do my book cover and it actually looked targeted toward the age group I wrote it for (18+) and be able to afford it!

Has anyone else struggled with finding and affording a quality cover?

Then I thought well I would love to have a few copies of my book printed…thus I stumbled onto a blog about Create a space a subsidiary of Amazon…Well would you look at that! I can have my book out there in paper-how exciting!

But the cost of POD is a cost no matter how you spin it….but I’ve talked to my husband and we decided that maybe after a week or two of the Kindle and Barnes and Nobles Nook version being out there we would go ahead and order a few and see how they do…You never know…I may be in for a super surprise, then again maybe not…but at least I tried and saw the whole process through.

What other eReader do you use? I would LOVE to hear.

Are you self published, or attempting like me to stumble blind through everything, reading anything and everything you can find on self publishing?

If you are self published what was your experience? DId you POD?

And what do you believe the best form of marking is? Facebook, WordPress, Twitter, Goodreads?

How did you grow your audience?

 

These are all questions that flow through my mind all day long. How…How…How… lol.

In the end I suppose it will all be done…My early May release date is almost threatened due to this cover mishap *Sigh* but in the end I know when it does release it will be phenomenal.

 

Can’t wait to hear your side of the ‘story’.

C.L.D.

Questions for Aspiring Authors

I’ve read a few blogs where aspiring authors have asked these questions, and I find myself super curious as well…

Was it hard for you to write your first novel?

What word count do you think is best for a well-rounded novel?

Are you published?

Self-published or traditional?

Do you have an agent?

What genre (sub-genre) is your book(s)?

 

I wonder these things because I feel as though I’m stumbling blind in my attempt to write my book.

So here are my answers.

Was it hard for you to write your first novel?

It wasn’t hard for me to write my first novel, but now that it’s finished I’m second guessing myself with it–probably has to do with the fact I need more imput from Beta Readers and have had a hard time finding some.

What word count do you think is best for a well-rounded novel?

Honestly, I really don’t know. I do know that a lot of traditional publisher I looked at want 80,000 to 100,000 words.

Are you published?

No, currently I am not published but I plan to self publish early May if everything falls into place.

Do you have an agent?

No, I do not have an agent and honestly have no idea how to get one. lol.

What genre (sub-genre) is your book(s)?

The current book I’ve worked on is the first installment of a series, (The Genesis Project series) Prophecy of the Seven, which is a YA 18+ Contemporary Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, with a hint of Magical Realism.

 

 

I would very much love to have a discussion and I would love to hear about you and your book(s).

C.L.D

 

 

 

Workin’ hard or hardly workin’

After a week of family visiting, totaling 10 people in my little three bedroom 1500 sq. ft. house, and not working on editing at all or much of anything for that matter (lol) I was wondering what you expect from your Beta readers…

I was wondering what you expect from your Beta’s?

Do you expect them to read like you do? Read as fast as you do?

For me I place no expectations on anyone, I allow them to go at their own pace, but know my deadline for publishing and hope that they would have their comments in at least two weeks before.

That being said what do you expect from your Beta’s? What questions do you ask them if any, and what kind of window do you give them to read?

Comments are welcome! XD

C.

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THE GENESIS PROJECT : PROPHECY OF THE SEVEN

THE GENESIS PROJECT SERIES
Prophecy of the Seven

Synopsis for The Genesis Project

 

“A group of seven will champion those in need. They will be the new beginning, and the end to war, without them, all will be lost. To the one who is above all, none are more important than her. She who is born under the full moon and who has been kissed by fire, she who has no beginning and has no end, she who wields five will lead the Seven. She who is marked with the seven stars upon her skin. Without the one, the six will fail. The world would fail and all will have been for naught.” –Excerpt from The Genesis Project

 

 

What would you do if you had the power to save humanity from the face of dark and the seemingly sealed fate of ultimate death? Would you gather the courage to stand up and fight, or would you break down, buckling under the pressure of almost certain death?

 

Reighlyn D’Crey lived a normal teenage existence until her eighteenth birthday – then everything she knew crumbled to ash around her. It was a time that should have been filled with joy, but quickly turned into the fight of her life, the fight for her life and the fight for all of mankind.

 

Reighlyn is different than other teenage girls. Gifted. She possesses rare talents that most people couldn’t even dream of. She kept them a secret all her life, until the day of her eighteenth birthday. Reighlyn’s mother received a letter from Reighlyn’s father – a man long though to have been dead. The letter details a horrible truth: The world as they knew it would cease to exist if a group of powerful terrorists called The Militia, had their way. The Militia were planning a takeover extraordinaire. Their main focus was to capture all of the gifted from the earth. Reighlyn and her mother, Rowan, were left with little choice; they had to run. Escape was their only option and they fled to the one place where Reighlyn’s father said they would always be safe: The Sonora Caves.

 

After an intense run-in with the Militia, sparks fly between Reighlyn and a dark and mysterious man with strange but alluring eyes. He does the unthinkable: Before letting Reighlyn, Rowan and her friend Blaine leave without reproach, the man promises to find Reighlyn again. Who is this strange but undeniably sexy man?

 

Reighlyn’s entire existence is redefined once again in Sonora where she learns she is the leader of a prophesied group, who have waited patiently for her to find her way; to lead them all in more ways than one. The prophecy reads, “A group of seven will champion those in need. They will be the new beginning, and the end to war, without them, all will be lost. To the one who is above all, none are more important than her. She who is born under the full moon and who has been kissed by fire, she who has no beginning and has no end, she who wields five will lead the Seven. She who is marked with the seven stars upon her skin. Without the one, the six will fail. The world would fail and all will have been for naught.”

 

Reighlyn must learn to come into her own as a woman as she learns to fight, lead and love with a fire emblazoned heart. Balancing love, the heavy weight of being a prophesized leader and learning to move forward in a strange new world can be quite a load for any girl to bear. As the war rages on, can the Seven defeat the evil Militia with Reighlyn at the helm? The Militia, who so efficiently and effectively destoyed modern civilization with their careless tactics, will not go down without a fight. Let’s hope the Seven area not too late.

 

~ Set for publication May of 2014 ~
(C) 2014 C.L. De Leon
All Rights Reserved