When books get wings, they fly....

Within an hour or so of publishing The Ninth Step last August, I was elated to see a few sales. I (naively) imagined the trend would continue and figured I would just keep writing another book while The Ninth Step flew off the virtual shelves. Hah! I was wrong of course, but then I have always been enamored of Pollyanna and I loved the movie Field of Dreams and its message “if you build it, they will come”. In a sense writing and sharing my work with others is my field of dreams and even now six months later, I’m loathe to relinquish the notion that if you create something out of a vision you hold in your heart and mind, that it won’t draw attention. It’s a simple enough idea on the surface, to make a thing and assume its success in the marketplace, but almost nothing will fly on its own. Even the Wright brothers’ machine had wings and a propeller. And of course the Wright brothers persisted; they wouldn’t take no for an answer; they had tremendous determination. So these are a few more things you need in addition to your burning faith and desire.

And once the thing is made, there’s another essential element to the process if your goal is to bring interest and attention to your creation. You’re going to need visibility, preferably of the sort that is targeted to your particular market. There are a wealth of resources available in the indie publishing world, and one of the most valuable are book bloggers and reviewers who out of their sheer love for books devote so much time and care to reading every sort of book, fiction or non fiction, and then generously share their thoughts across a network of virtual venues.

Jersey Girl Book Reviews is the creation of Kathleen Higgins Anderson. I was lucky enough to find her website almost immediately after publishing The Ninth Step and I was drawn in first by the artwork on her site and then by the genuine warmth of her reviews. She provides such full-bodied and richly detailed commentary that in no way reveals too much of the story, but rather it fuels your desire to read the book for yourself. When I contacted her, she got back to me immediately and was so gracious in her response. I was new to the indie publishing game and a little nervous; her professionalism meant a lot. Today her review of The Ninth Step is one of the books featured on Jersey Girl Book Reviews and she has included my guest post on her blog. I am fortunate that she has given wings to my novel and to my hope of sharing it with a widening circle of readers. Many thanks, Kathleen.