Schools out for summer (cue Alice Cooper) which can bring a love/hate experience for parents. On one hand, you're excited to be done with another year of scholastic hustle & bustle and dress up days but on the other hand, now you have to figure out filling in the...
The Nest
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Burnout: Identifying, Treating, and Preventing
Burnout Definition: "A state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by long term involvement in emotionally demanding situations." – Ayala Pines and Elliot Aronson Work, family, school, and social life. These are just a few factors that can contribute to...
FREE Kindle Books! World Read Aloud Day 1/31 & 2/1
FREE Kindle Books for World Read Aloud Day! SAVE THE DATE!! I have teamed up with some amazing authors to offer 19 FREE Kindle books to celebrate World Read Aloud Day Season!! Grab them all with this ONE click. To grab all the above 19 books free, here is the ONE...
BLACK FRIDAY SALE!!!! All Titles 40% off 11/25/22 ONLY!!
BLACK FRIDAY SALE!! Avoid the lines and fighting for that cheap flat screen T.V. Instead, give the gift of reading this holiday season with ALL books on my website 40% OFF 11/25/22 ONLY! This is an excellent time to stock up a library, classroom, or reading nook for...
FREE Kindle Days! Veterans Edition 11/10 – 11/12
Did you know November is Military Family Appreciation Month? 🪖 To honor our veterans, the Kindle version of my book, Super Max's Hero Surprise will be available for FREE from 11/10 to 11/12. Military families are on an extra special level of human. The sacrifices they...
When Sports Begin to Die Out for Girls
I first picked up a softball when I was seven years old and never put it down. I fell in love with sports. In middle school it kept me busy. In high school it kept me out of trouble. I continued my passion to play into adulthood and try to stay active today. Softball,...
Spread the NEWS! 10 book purchase= FREE Virtual Visit!
A free virtual author visit with a 10 book purchase? Really? Yes! I’m offering a virtual visit feature on my site with any ten book purchase combination (hardcover, softcover, etc.). What does the author visit include? The 30 minute author virtual session includes: A...
Rainy Days
As Echo and I watch the rain play a game of tippety tap with the outside world, I’m reminded of my love of the sound of rain. Being wet in it? No. Having to do anything IN it? Also no. I remember as a child, in the house on Seville, anytime it rained I would grab an...
FREE KINDLE BUNDLE!! 12/20 and 12/21 Only!
Perfect timing for winter break, A VERY BIG FREE KINDLE BUNDLE SPECIAL!! Two days only! You can get all FIVE of my titles free on Amazon. ALL FIVE!! This offer is only available Monday December 20th and Tuesday December 21st That’s four children’s books to keep the...
Super Max’s Ultimate Try Cover Reveal!
The cover for Super Max's Ultimate Try has arrived and I am loving it! What exactly do I love about it? Thank you for asking. I love: The Girl Power this cover radiates. The way we are displaying a variety of different body types in this new book. The new amputee...
As an indie author, everything is on you. Finding your editor, illustrator, book formatter, marketing, design, print runs. Everything
and boy does it cost a lot! And since you don’t have a team covering costs for your book, then you have to figure out how to save some money.
So you get creative on the things you can control. You spend days upon days and hours upon hours figuring out website management with wordpress so you can update your site yourself and avoid paying a website designer to constantly update your author website when changes need to be made. Money saved!
author website
Then you learn the ins and outs of the process to create a kindle version of your book and how to upload it to Amazon. Added in the learning of html code to properly post a book description. Money saved!
Then you figure out how to record a read aloud through a program like Camtasia and iMovie, and get those uploaded to your YouTube for easy sharing when you reach out to organization and programs, because paying someone is expensive. Money saved!
Then you figure out the beast called Kickstarter to help manage the cost of a print run, illustrations, and editing instead of paying out of pocket. Money saved!
And in between all that, you’re learning marketing, promo, signing up for farmers market and offering classroom reads to help spread the work and get your name out there.
Canva becomes your best friend. Amazon ads becomes your worst enemy.
No team is doing it for you. You’re rolling solo. But it’s worth the extra hours you put in after you’re day job if over and the entire weekend filled with book launch planning.
Why? Because kids and families like your stories. They help some laugh, and others cry, but all relate in some way or another and that makes the process worth it.
So yes, being an indie author is really tough…but if you’re willing to do the work, the outcome is as magnificent as you can imagine.
