The Book Stacks

The Importance of Book Covers

I was blessed with having a good friend of mine who was a photographer help me with my cover photos. What made this so special was that he was recovering, too. He was finding his way back from a physical illness that had almost taken his life. At the time I approached him to help me, he was not quite ready for the rigors of wedding photography but he had regained enough energy for studio work. I also had a friend who was talented with book cover design. These two wonderful people helped me produce a terrific cover without the outrageous cost.

How to Recover from Writer’s Block

Did someone say “recover?” Well, now, that’s something I know a little about—recovery that is. If I find myself fighting with words or struggling to write, I walk away from my computer for awhile. I find that when my creativity is low or flat, physical activity always helps. If I don’t have time to take a walk, I’ll just stop and do the dishes or some other household activity. I also come up with some of my best thoughts when driving, shopping or hiking.

How to Write Self-Help

Being a wounded healer is a great advantage when writing self-help. A wounded healer is someone who has suffered from the issue being written about and is in successful recovery. Someone who has been in the trenches knows much more than the medical professional who is trying to help but hasn’t actually suffered from the medical condition being addressed.

I find nothing more enjoyable or more important than writing or speaking with the purpose of helping others. Nothing is more gratifying (for me anyway) than knowing that my writing might lift someone’s spirits, give someone enough encouragement or provide enough information to lead someone else to a better quality of life.

Tips for Finding a Publisher

I searched for both an agent and a publisher and when that didn’t work out, I realized that what I had written was important enough for me to move forward and self-publish. My passion is to help reduce the stigma of substance abuse and mental illness. So, I knew I had to get my book out to the public.

Whether to self-publish or not is a big decision on many levels. Basically, when you decide to self-publish, you then have to learn about the publishing industry. Things like:

establishing your company, finding a printer, cover designer, interior designer and many, many more decisions will need to be made. And you’ll need some upfront money to accomplish these things. The good news about self-publishing is that your book can potentially come to market much sooner and the proceeds from sales will mostly be yours.

To help with your decision re: self-publishing a good book to read is: The Well-Fed Self-Publisher by Peter Bowerman.

How I Got Published

God directed my decision to self-publish. In a separate bank account, for years I had been saving money. I didn’t know why at the time. It just felt good to be setting money aside. The final balance came to almost the exact amount I would need to self-publish.

I also knew that a big part of self-publishing would be the job of promoting my book. Right about the time that I received my finalized books, the hospital where I had been working for six years due to a financial crisis had to cut my whole department of community outreach. And so I was given plenty of time for my publishing and promoting endeavors.

Practical Advice for Beginning Writers

1) Join a writers’ critique group
2) Join writers’ networking groups (online and off)
3) Take writing classes
4) Keep writing and rewriting
5) Never give up

Five Mistakes Writers Make When They Self-Publish

1) They think that when the book is finished that their work is done.

2) They fail to network and market their book every chance they get. A good book to buy or borrow is John Kremer’s 1001 Ways to Market Your Book.

3) They don’t take advantage of the media and press releases (online and off)

4) They don’t set up a website and blog

5) They get discouraged way too soon. Publishing and marketing a book is a marathon, not a sprint.

The Rejection Pink Slip:

Hey, we can’t please everybody all of the time! We just have to find the publisher which is the “right fit” for our book. When I don’t get what I want, it’s usually because God has something better in store for me. It also helps to know that many great writers were rejected over and over again.

Believe it or not, I recover from rejection, the same way I was taught to recover from alcoholism. It’s times like these when I pull out my 12-step recovery tool kit and start reminding myself to: “Do the work and leave the outcome to God,” and “Let go and let God.” The Serenity Prayer always comes in handy, too: “God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

*Click here to find out more about Vivian’s virtual book tour!