The Next Step in the Process
I had been waiting to receive a sample of how the layout of the book would appear when printed as an actual book. Up until now my publisher and I had been exchanging the manuscript and edits in 8-1/2 by 11-word document format. Coming from a zero-experience position on book layouts (except with being an avid book reader) I can say – I am pretty pleased with the setup, font, and style. It looks PERFECT! The print is soft enough to cushion the gut-wrenching (personal perspective) experiences being told in pictures and words.
How many pages?
I have been asked in conversation – how many pages is the book? My answer: I do not know and will not know until I receive an actual printed copy of the book. I do know, after receiving samples of Chapters 1 and 2 that the layout produced 7 and 8 pages, respectively. The book will include 24 chapters, about 25 illustrations/drawings/doodles, and the usual Dedication, Preface, Introduction, Conclusion, Bibliography, Acknowledgements, and About the Author pages. Another thing I know is that the word count is not more than 50,000 words which is what the publishing contract indicates. Word count is what they go by. Who knew? This made some chapters difficult to complete – how much detail to include, what was most important, and what could be omitted. It was a challenging endeavor.
Author Photograph
I received 5 professional “author” photographs (head shots) from which to choose. I had to pick two of the five. One for the book and the other for my social media accounts. It was hard to pick – because, you know, we are our own worst critics. Although, one did stick out to me, RB, and my AZBFF as a favorite.
Social Media
Social Media – aside from Facebook, I am not really good at keeping up on the other social media platforms. Consistency and ease of access is important so there is work to be done there. Connecting the accounts will help reduce the amount of posting work on my part. I did not contract marketing services. That leaves the marketing to me. The book will be available on IngramSpark.com and, I believe, Barnes & Noble… I’ll know more as we get closer – and we are getting closer and closer to a real book. But the more widespread marketing I can do, the further the reach when I go live, right?
Thank you for your follow.
First Marketing Action Item: Get more followers to follow the “Sabrina Beck, Author” page on Facebook. In order to view any “insights” on my author page I must have at least 100 followers and I have 61. I’ve been holding off on making this “ask” for a few reasons. I don’t want to bother anyone, a bit of insecurity, it is a difficult thing to do…. Ughh; I’ll have to get even tougher skin. So, consider this my marketing ask, thank you in advance! And thank you if you are already a follower of my author page. I truly appreciate it. I will use it to provide updates, plan events, and hold on-line discussions… Goals!
Until the next update and subsequent information on the go live date. Take good care.