One year ago, I published my first book! I cannot believe how fast this year this year has gone. Here are five things that I learned in this journey of self-publishing.

1. Hire Professionals for Editing, Formatting and Illustrating
   If you want a professional look, you must hire professionals. Hire an illustrator that you trust and that you can work closely with. The beauty of publishing my own book is that I could decide on the cover, the colors, the font, and how I envisioned the characters. It’s great having control. 

2. Expectations
Even though I had read and understood expectations about publishing and promoting my book, I was still naive about expectations. It takes time to get the word out, and then after all your friends and family have ordered, then the real work begins. You are your best marketer, as uncomfortable as that may be, but you need to be the one to toot your own horn about your book.

3. Amazon
Amazon forces pricing but my book is available to global markets and more selling opportunities. Amazon sells more books than any publisher in the market today. If you can’t beat them, then join them, and I receive my royalty payment faster than traditional publishing. 

4. Marketing
I just want to be a teacher, hide in a library and write. I don’t want to be a salesperson, but if I don’t tell people about my books, who will? So, I need to be a writer, a marketer, and on social media. And design a website. And blog or write a newsletter on my website. I actually enjoy blogging…but it’s a lot. The easy part is loving the readers or reading a great review. 

5. Trust your instincts.
The book you have created is your baby, so trust yourself. Follow those dreams that started with that little story in your head and is now on paper.