My horror novel, Rave, is officially released! We had a killer digital launch with a virtual gallery, reading, and music from the novel’s score. I’m incredibly excited to have shared the event with everyone who was able to show up. Rave has been in the works for three and a half years and was one of the most challenging books I’ve written to date. Just before Rave, I had finished up Fire, Pain, & Ruin in audiobook format. Before that, I had finished the Into the Macrocosm audiobook, and a little earlier, the short story collection itself was released in February 2021. That’s A LOT to do in five months. It’s time to pump the brakes.
Welcome to Another Edition of Unprocessed Thoughts
Alberta has had two lockdowns over the winter and spring of 2021. As I’ve mentioned in previous months, I used this as an opportunity to learn how to record audiobooks and finish up some new books. Now, I’ve reached the light at the end of the tunnel! Rave marks the 10th book published, and I am pretty relieved that I can slow down for the summer and enjoy the heat. This doesn’t mean I am done writing. Oh no . . . I have many more things in the works that I hope to share later in the year.
I’ve learned from self-publishing that the process takes a lot of time, commitment, and a budget if you want to do it right. Sure, you can release a book without any edits, with no professional design and no marketing plan just to say it’s done. However, you’re not doing yourself any favours to reach readers if you do not put a solid packaging, presentation, and promo plan in place.
Someone once told me – or maybe I watched it on our YouTube video – that you need about $5000 to launch a self-published book right. That includes everything from editing, design, and marketing. I don’t think I’ve ever quite reached that amount. I have come close with some releases. Making that return can be a bit of a challenge, especially now without conventions. All of the self-publishing does make me appreciate some of the small-press releases I have had. Maybe traditional is a direction for the future? Maybe.
The book signings and cons were my go-to, and I did well enough to come back the following year. In 2020, I had to quickly learn the e-book world that is constantly evolving. Let me tell you, I have learned SO MUCH about the e-book world over the past year, and it has become abundantly clear as to how difficult it is to market online vs in person. The marketplace for e-books is an entirely different beast compared to conventions. There was a lot of work for me to migrate over to this strange new market. There are perks to the e-book marketplace, such as being able to do it from anywhere. You also have access to a much wider audience. The problem is you do have to sell a whole lot more because e-books are drastically cheaper than print copies.
Regardless, I am excited to pump the brakes for the summer. Other aspects of my life may be changing over the next year, and I need to focus on that. I’ve been freelancing for seven years as a graphic designer and web developer. The industries have changed here in Alberta, and so have my clientele base. Time to update the portfolio and think about big-picture life stuff! Like, “why am I here?”
Summer will be a good time to decompress from the weekly and sometimes daily deadlines. Deadlines from clients and producing a weekly audiobook and blog posts brought me pretty close to another burnout. I do plan to cut back on some of the online releases I have been doing. This does include the newsletter. I wasn’t exactly sure what to do with it until now. I’ve decided it won’t be a monthly release. I will only be sending the newsletter out when I have a new release to free my time.
The Unprocessed Thoughts will be where I share most of the writing updates. There is also the Patreon that I will be expanding now that Rave is out. There’s plenty of opportunities to grow there and if you haven’t checked it out, definitely do.
So, keep watch for more writing updates. Do check out my new novel Rave. I’ll be kicking back with a new beer and pumping the brakes from all this publication. Lots for me to think about, and I’m very much looking forward to diving back into the craft of writing and not worry so much about the business side of everything for a few months.
Beer note: Ravens Brewing Co. Smooth Jazz Neilson Pale Ale
For this month, I tried another pale ale. Yes, that is my new preferred type. The beer is exactly as described, smooth. It comes in a four-pack and only sits at a 5.1% alcohol level. The drink didn’t have a bit more of a sting from what I’d smooth. But still, it was far smoother than your average pale ale and quite lovely to drink on a warm summer evening.
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