Still busy learning to be my own publisher.

 This has been a busy couple of weeks. I am trying to fit in the same amount of reading I did prior to publishing my first book. With the editing of my books, thank you everyone who is helping with this, and trying to figure out the different social media avenues, I am getting less sleep than normal. So here i am, trying to get a web page set up that will allow me to create a page for each book. I want to set the first chapters up so my readers can access the information from one place.

Another time eating process has been getting myself set up on LinkedIn. A very different environment from Facebook, which I am comfortable with. Twitter still confuses me. My brain is not processing that one. I will keep plugging at it and see if it finally registers for me. LinkedIn is a great place for me to connect with other Authors and learn about my writing and the process of publishing and getting my books out to the readers.

I also figured out how to create an email signature for my accounts. I've copied it and placed it at the bottom of this post. It was a simple thing to do once I figured out to go to my email settings to get to the spot for placing a signature on my messages. In a few short sentences I managed to get the information out for my contacts to be able to find my Author identity. They can click on the links and go visit my pages at their own leisure. I send email out for a verity of reasons and thought this was a great idea when I read about it.

What all of this activity is geared towards is building my brand. From everything I have found it is what will help to get potential readers to look at my books. Yes, I also recognize that it falls into the category of marketing my books, too. I am mindful of not pushing my books on my friends and family. however I also recognize that there is a growing interest in the process of self-publishing. This is why I am passing along what I learn as I get comfortable with the process.


Thank you all,

CJ


I am Author and publisher of the contemporary western series, NM Ranch Friends and Relations.  Pen name of CJ Hunnel. Visit my Author web page Find me on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.  Sample or purchase my eBooks at Smashwords

 

Interview with CJ Hunnel

A question from Smashwords

What motivated you to become an indie author?

I have been writing with the intent to have my work published for five years now. I sent out my first manuscript just over two years ago and have been trying to sell my stories to a variety of publishers. There is always waiting period of 8 to 12 weeks before you hear back from a publisher, so you can imagine the number of times I sent my work out over that amount of time. By February of this year I had three books written with a word count of over 100,000 words. I discovered one of the publishers I wanted to work with was looking for new Authors to submit for their new digital program they were getting started. The catch was that they wanted a word count of between 50,000 and 60,000 in the area that I write in. I condensed my first two books, changed the titles and submitted the one I was the happiest with. I was able to pull apart the third on to make two more books.

On the 18th of June this year, I received another rejection notice and said to myself, there has got to be a better way to do this, I did my research on Amazon and found a how to publish for Kindle and downloaded it. I learned how to format my document for that avenue and became a published Author on the 24th of June with Matt's Summer. I honestly thought that was as far as I was going to go with it until I had an outcry from my friends wanting to have a printed copy of my book. I learned how to self publish in print and then I had people asking if I was going to have my book available for the Nook. I learned a whole new formatting to submit to Nook and am crossing my fingers that it shows in the next few days.

The next request was if I had it available for iBooks yet, and here I am. I am still confused by the formatting requirements for Itunes, but thankfully I found Smashwords and my have that issue resolved. So the true answer to my motivation to become and indie author is that after all of the rejection letters I went looking for an easier way to get published. Everything for the last month and a half has been learning how to expand on my original submission to Kindle Direct Publishing. I am still learning through the process.

Read more of this interview.

Why I started with Digital Publishing

Why I started with Digital Publishing  

I own a Kindle. It took me a full two years to make the switch from the printed book to the digital book. I can honestly say that I now read exclusively on my Kindle. I have read a total of three books in print since getting my Kindle. I decided that the eBook route was the way I wanted to go when I received another rejection notice last fall. I researched the publishers I had been submitting my manuscripts to.

With the thought that I would gear towards eBooks I submitted first 2 books to three separate publishers. Mind you, I only submitted one of them at a time and to only one publisher. It takes 8 to 12 weeks to hear back from a publisher with the online submission process. I received a rejection from each publisher with both books, even after reworking them.

In June I made the decision that I needed to look at this process from a different angle. The first question I asked myself was, if I am thinking that my book has a place in the digital market, way am I fighting the rejections from the larger publishing companies? I had no logical conclusion for this question. 

Alright, I am at the point of wanting to research my options. My first stop was Amazon were I utilized the handy dandy search field. I typed in, self-publish on Amazon. Wow that got me a list of several options. I downloaded the free version of Building Your Book for Kindle.
 

This was the first step on my adventure of becoming a self –Published Author. It was also the best learning experience I have had since I graduated from college in 2002. I learned more about my Word program and the background language than I knew was part of that program. The formatting of the document was something I did not understand before I started this. 

Now just a quick note here for everyone, I have discovered that the formatting in this book is specific for Kindle. There are other formatting requirements for different reading devices. I know because I have made an effort to learn what I could for submitting to Nook and then iBook. What a difference. 

After I submitted Matt’s Summer I opted for the Kindle select program before I had an audience that has let me know there are other eBook devices out in the world. So this story will be exclusive on Amazon until the 20^th of September. 

This last two months has been a whirlwind of learning for me. From formatting the interior of my books to the many options available for a cover design. Through all of the learning I have done, I do not regret my starting point through Kindle Direct Publishing. It is a great place for a new Author who wants to self-publish to start. 

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