Wow! What words can I use to express how great 2009 was for me! I am a published author. I released my first novel, Dreams Thrown Away, on August 14, 2009. Opening that first box of books and lifting out that first copy was like, and I know this sounds cliché, holding a newborn baby. It is an awesome feeling to see your work in a finished product. I carried it around, smelled it, flipped its pages, and floated around for the rest of the day, weeks, and even months. When people purchased it and called me or emailed me to let me know how captivating it was to read. The characters in that book, until August 14, 2009, had belonged only to me inside my mind. Hearing people’s reactions was the beginning of an addiction. I wanted to hear more. And, the desire to create more culminated.
However, along with the birth of a book comes a new responsibility. Just as the newborn needs to be fed, bathed, clothed, and kept safe, a new book has to be presented to the market. It has to be fed to an audience, it has to be clothed in a package that makes others want to read it, and it has to be tended to on a regular basis. You can’t write it and hide it in the closet. So, a new journey began.
The 2009 year had begun writing, polishing, editing, and developing Dreams Thrown Away. Then the second quarter began the journey of putting all the research I had done on self-publishing to the test. I chose a self-publishing company, Outskirts Press, and submitted my material. By the beginning of the last quarter of the year, I had to put my research and my experience to use marketing my book. My first attempt was daunting. At first, I wished I had pursued the traditional process of submitting it to agents and traditional publishers. Then, I met other authors who were published traditionally and were out there marketing their own books. So, I took a deep breath and dived in. Letting people know about Dreams Thrown Away by Dilsa Saunders Bailey was my job, regardless of the publisher and I take this job very seriously.
Here are a few things I did to market Dreams Thrown Away through events and networking:
Sold above average number of books for a first time, self-published author within the first four months on the market based on averages quoted in articles and at seminars. I am on my way!
If you want to learn how to become a self-published author, stay tuned. I believe in sharing.
Happy New Year!!! May 2010 be a stellar year for all!
I hate commas, and I love commas. Commas are the source of my greatest weakness in writing. That is why, I hate them. Commas are also the greatest source of my research, so I love commas. I don’t know why, but commas cause confusion in my overly active, highly distracted mind. I have always been under the assumption that commas were meant to either separate singular words, phrases, or clauses or, they were meant to indicate pauses in a sentence. When writing fiction, I write the way the character speaks or thinks. So, there are places I might automatically insert a comma for a pause effect. Where’s the buzzer, let it buzz loudly(NOT!). Just because the pause sounds perfect in my mind as I write, it does not mean it is the perfect place to put a comma.
Just in case, you suffer the comma ze this, comma ze that-itis that I suffer from (where’s my editor), here are a few tips on comma usage I have learned along the way.
1. A series of three of more items should be separated by commas.
The roses in the vase were red, pink, and white.
2. Commas separate related adjectives that modify a word. If the adjectives are not related or connected in meaning, commas are not required.
The tall, thin man leaned against the wall.
The tall tan man leaned against the wall.
3. Commas follows words, phrases, and clauses that have an introductory function.
Finally, Jim scored a home run after striking out the whole season.
As a result, the whole class began to follow the teacher’s lead.
As if that wasn’t enough, the dog barked louder than ever.
4. Stop. Interrupt a sentence with a comma.
The hurricane, unfortunately, turned back toward the shore.
The school, that held the highest scores for the SAT’s, was located in a surprising location.
5. Commas separate two independent clauses separated by a conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so).
I could have sworn I heard a train, but it was actually the screeching sound of a low flying airplane.
6. Commas separate the ordinary (this is probably where I got the pause theory from).
Hold still, Kathy, so I can take a great picture.
Stop running inside, Johnny.
The source of my comma tips range from many websites to many books. My favorite book for learning to write effectively is an old text book called “The Confident Writer” by Carol Kanar. I love writing and do my best to alway find time to jot down a few words here and there, even if I have to use commas.
