Beautiful greenery bordered the pathway while happy blossoms danced in the wind on an occasion or two. The path beckoned me to travel with it, a dare to see where it would lead me and if it would take me to exactly where I wanted to go. I answered its beckoning call with anticipation and accepted its dare with much enthusiasm. As I walked, the path became rough and bumpy, even narrow in places. I found myself lost at times wondering which path take, the left or the right when I came to forks in the road. And then there were the hills I had to climb around the winding bends hiding themselves from plain eye view. I trembled with fear at the beast who viciously pounced at me without warning bringing me to tears. But with quick reflexes, I managed to evade his terrifying attack, continuing my journey with a less heightened enthusiasm, reaching my destination. I was tired but happy, feeling very accomplished as I realized all the lessons I had learned along the way that got me to this place I longed to be.
No. This isn't the beginning of one of my incredibly engaging stories, but rather a metaphorical account of my personal journey to AUTHORPRENEURSHIP. It was a wild journey that kept me on my P's and Q's. If you have a minute, I would love to share it with you.
In The Beginning
I started my journey as an authorpreneur because when I traditionally published my first book in 2004 (It's Always Darkest Just Before Dawn), the publisher did little or nothing to market it. I personally knew nothing about marketing and didn't feel like I could really learn it. So, I stopped writing for a spell feeling like a complete failure. However, the desire to write continued to burn inside me. So, here I am, doing again what I enjoy so much. Writing.
Fork In The Road
This time, however, I prepared myself to do whatever it takes to reach my destination. I still knew nothing about marketing and promoting my book (s) when I started over. Very shortly after I started, I had reached a fork in the road. Get help or figure it out on my own. So, I researched marketing services and immediately got bombarded with outlandish offers that I didn't have the money for. I'm not sure if I would have pursued them even if I did have the money. I sadly admit, I have trust issues. My only other alternative was to learn how to promote my book (s) on my own, choosing the path that narrows on occasion. It was a grueling task that's proving to be ongoing, taking me around bends with hills awaiting. Up the one and down the same. But I was up for the challenge. Authorpreneurship is inevitable.
Bumps In The Road
The first bump in the road was designing an attractive book cover. I won't delve into this too deeply because I have a future blog on that very subject. (Journey To My Love Cover)I first had someone helping me design a cover. He was a huge help. We came up with several designs. But I was never completely satisfied with them. I had difficulty explaining what I wanted. So, I began playing around with cover design and eventually learned how to put together some pretty nice designs that I really like. My design artist still helps me out with the difficult parts. Now I'm better equipped at explaining what I'm looking for. And he's great at putting it all together. So, please be on the lookout for Journey To My Love Cover blog.
Hills In The Bends
Thinking things would be smooth sailing from here, I was quickly hit with a rude awakening when I stumbled over more bumps and climbed even more hills. I was painfully slapped in the face with ads, (Facebook, google, Book Bub, etc.), author pages and websites, social media platforms, book readings/signings, and interviews. It was all excruciatingly overwhelming for someone who has been in hiding all of her life. That being said, my biggest hill was social media. I've always been a seclusive person, spending most of my time alone enjoying the beauty of peace and quiet. So Social Media was not my idea of, well, anything. I know there are some people out there who can relate. Suddenly, I'm thrusted into the world; demanding that I share my personal space. It was indeed an uphill struggle. But I was up for the challenge. Afterall, Authorpreneurship is.... well, you know.
Destination Reached
Determined to keep a promise to myself, I tried my hand at building a platform on social media without success. I could never figure out what to post and most times felt uncomfortable just being on the sites. Needless to say, I found myself tumbling downhill like a hurling rock slide. Picking myself up and dusting myself off, I vowed to leave social media to the socialites. I did however, managed to hop over the other bumps; ads, websites, and book signings. Then, I decided I would join a couple of writing groups to learn from others who were on their own journey to their own place. I followed some valued advice that was given. I chose one thing to do I vowed to do it well; Blog. I joined the Atlanta Writer's Club and have become active in conferences and meetings. I attend online classes about everything writing. I'm enjoying my journey overall, taking in the views of lush greenery and blossoms waving in the occasional breeze. Or in layman's terms, getting involved in writing communities and meeting new people. And I can proudly say that I have finally reached my destination. Authorpreneurship. It truly was inevitable.
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