Population Miniscule – Behind the Scenes of Grassroots Self-Publishing

The Possibly Boring Backstory

I submitted Population Miniscule to Amazon for their Kindle Serials program? Or whatever it is. After not hearing back from them for a couple months, I decided that I was done waiting. I’m not a very patient person when your two months is restricting my forward motion. It just dawned on me, last Friday to be exact, that I could do this myself. I have a website, I’ve self-published before,  have all the tools, and so why not distribute the book in serial format myself right here on ProWebWriter.com?

About Serial Format

Just in case you’re wondering…serial fiction is basically a normal length novel that is released in “episodes” like a TV show. It’s a forgotten genre that Amazon is seeking to revive. Charles Dickens wrote some of his works in serial format.

Evolution

Population Miniscule has gone through a minor evolution with the title. When I was naming the story, I wanted something cooler than The Tiny People. I love Latin, so I had initially selected a Latin title: Populous Minisculum which means “Tiny People”. My beta readers (that’s you, Tina and Lisa) decided that this title was ineffective since the average reader wouldn’t know what it meant and they don’t care if I like Latin or not. Consequently, I chose the English equivalent: Population Miniscule which may or may not be cooler than The Tiny People.

 

The Cover

I was at a loss when it came to what the cover should be. Even though I’m a dabbling artist (actually studied Art in college), I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to creatively and effectively illustrate this book in a single cover image. It was Lisa (yes, beta reader Lisa) who suggested making the cover a photo of a room that would be in the tiny peoples’ home inside the wall.

Which Brings Me Behind the Scenes…

…of the home of a tiny people. The cover would have to be a photograph, and it would have to depict tiny things. Did you ever build a diorama as a project when you were in school? Who says you wouldn’t use those skills as an adult. Thus began a day’s work. I gathered my materials:

A cardboard box to build in
A pocket watch for a wall clock
An image for a magazine suitable to become a framed picture for the wall above the couch
Maxi pads – No, this post didn’t take a turn for the worst. I actually made the couch out of maxi pads wrapped with leather. Laughing is cool.
A nightlight for a lamp
My cell phone as a TV
Tacky wrapping paper

I painted the “floor” of the box to look like wood since the tiny people live inside the walls of our homes. I glued the wrapping paper to the “walls” since it talks about them using wrapping paper as wallpaper in the book. It all came together and I shot some still photographs…several actually using different filters and lighting.

Putting a New Idea Behind “Trailer Trash”

I’d read quite a while back that creating a trailer for your book to promote it with video isn’t a bad idea. Yeah, a trailer like a movie! Go figure. I watched a few examples on YouTube…just a few. They were professionally acted, and well, that’s not going to happen here. I can’t afford to outsource any aspect of this project, so everything is kind of limited by my skill set. I don’t feel this is bad…it’s been a fun experience.

You can see the trailer I created in THIS POST.

Sorry, no bloopers.

So This is How It’s Going Down

My next post will be announcing the official release. There will be a new Page on this site where you can purchase your copy of Episode 1 in the following digital formats:

.mobi for Kindle and Kindle Apps for Android
.ePub for Nook and iPad
PDF

ONE price will include ALL future episodes to THIS book. If I choose to write a sequel, this purchase will NOT include that content. A new episode will be released every two weeks until the story is completed. I’m using you all as my motivators to finish this novel.

Once it’s completed, I will compile all of the episodes into one book and publish it through Amazon in both digital AND paperback.

So, stay tuned. IT’S STILL COMING.

 

 

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