What does it feel like to have a book published?

Wowzee! What a fab feeling!

 

YAY!

 

Monday was the UK publication date for Stolen with Style, Axelle’s new and exciting New York City mystery!

 

Needless to say, I’m thrilled…and, also needless to say, I cannot wait for my next trip to the UK so that I can actually, truly, really see the book on shelves in UK bookstores! It’s hard to explain what an amazing feeling it is to see one’s own book displayed in a book store (next to other real, live, published books!!!). I don’t know what feeling even comes close, frankly…

 

As anyone who has written a book will know, seeing your “baby” all the way through to publication is a lot of hard work. Days and months, sometimes years, of sitting in a bubble, working in silence, while the outside world seems to exist outside your dimension (not to mention everyone thinking you’ve become a nut-case for locking yourself away of hours on end, supposedly “writing”). Then, finally, after who knows how long a time, your agent calls to tell you the good news: a publisher has accepted your book!

 

Yay! You’re walking on clouds – until the work of editing begins, followed by the pressure to get the next book finished, followed by more editing and writing, and more editing and writing, and more pressure to get yet another book finished. But you know what? It’s all so worth it! Writing is a wonderful thing – the best job in the world! (I would say that wouldn’t I?) And for me as an author, that moment when I hold my brand new, freshly published book for the first time…well, like I said, there are no words to describe it. I especially love the peace that comes with it, that certainly that, yes, I am doing what I’m meant to be doing – finally. (It came to me late, writing did.)

 

Not that writing isn’t without its moments (spoiler alert: sometimes those moments can become days!) of total frustration…without forgetting the fear, desolation, and major attacks of procrastination that seem to hit me bang between the eyes whenever I’m feeling confident that things are finally, maybe, kinda, sorta, going well. ARGH!

 

Anyway, I love it all, the entire process, from putting those first few words down on blank page one, to promoting the finished labour of love on a book tour. It’s all quite magical!

 

I’m one lucky girl.  :-)

 

Carina x

 

PS: Just a reminder to US readers that Stolen with Style will be published in America on February 6th, 2015. The book will be titled Model Undercover: New York.

PPS: In case you’re curious, I’ve been helped along the road to publication by my fabulous agent, Jenny Savill at Andrew Nurnberg Associates, and by my wonderful UK publisher, Usborne Publishing. Please do check them out. If you’re interested in being an author too, these are the kinds of people you want to work with!

 

Hard to describe: holding the freshly published book in your hand!