Announcements on Publishing (Updates, Changes, and Generally Informative Nuggets)

So, after a great deal of looking-into, inward-mental-over-and-around, silent debating and evaluating, I’ve come to the following decisions:

A) Volume 2 will start out its published life as an ebook (available through me, copyright me, basically all me for now), probably by August, but the release date has yet to be determined. (I shall request a small donation for this service, but every order comes with a free copy of my short story collection if you wish!)

B) In the interest of increasing sales and exposure with less work by myself, starting most likely by winter, I will be switching my choice of printing/distribution companies. This will mean a reprint of Volume 1 (more on that in a minute), as well as then eventually Volume 2 will be in print (and probably new editions of ebooks will one day come to fruition, too).

C) I will be on the search for an artist to design my new covers. (This will extend to Volumes 3 and 4 as well.) I’m after a volunteer (since I can’t guarantee payment), whether it be a graphic artist, paint illustrator, or photographer (who would absolutely receive full credit for their contribution). Starting soon, I’ll be holding an open contest for my cover person! So keep your eyes peeled for that.

One reason for all of these changes is the cost factor; another is time; another is certainly keeping my stress level down. For those of you who have been around here for a while, it probably won’t be much of a surprise to hear me say that I really don’t need anything else in my life to stress me out. Doing the shipping myself is a bit tricky; I can handle it, but if I don’t absolutely have to, I’d like to take that option. Same goes for marketing; while that’s sort of an inevitable part of being an independent author, having greater exposure on the website of an actual store or company would help a lot in this area.

When I started this whole endeavor, I knew very little about self-publishing, and being able to find a local company that was so patient and calm about helping me through the learning curve was, in my view, invaluable. I am so very grateful for having that opportunity. But also, now that I know a lot more, I feel more equipped to broaden my horizons.

And of course I wouldn’t have gotten very far at all without all of you. I remain so intensely grateful for and humbled by all the winning reviews, the support on social media and blogs, the encouraging word of mouth that has helped build me a solid base from which to increase my empire — ahem, I mean, to share my work.

So, when I have the digital version of Volume 2 (Mach 1.0) ready to go, I will let everyone know! I’m aware that several people are very excited for this sequel, and I’m excited to see the initial responses!