Author?

Author.  I almost hate to use that word in connection to myself.  On the one hand, the word "author" conjures up images of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, or <insert your favorite author's name here> and I would not dare to classify myself with them.   On the other hand, I have written a book and I did self-publish it and people have and are buying it which technically makes me an author.

This has been an interesting experience for me.  I started writing my book almost six years ago.  That was before there was any such thing as electronic readers or ebooks.  Publishing meant getting an agent, hoping to find a publisher willing to even look at the book and usually a huge expense to initially publish.  Now publishing is much cheaper and easier, but as a self-published author there is no marketing or advertising.  I have become very much aware of how helpful the internet is to an author like me.  I am astounded when I Google my name and the title of my book, Best Laid Plans.  It seems like every time I do, I see it pop up on another site.  I am so thankful for every post, mention or review my book is given.  Each post, each sale, gives a little more credence to that term "author" which just boggles my mind.

There was nothing scarier or more intimidating than publishing my book.  I was putting myself out there in a way that made me completely vulnerable.  I had no idea what would happen.  I had no control over what would happen.  I really felt like I had to do it though. I felt like it was what God wanted me to do.  In spite of that though, I'm not sure if I could have actually gone through with it if it hadn't been for the support of my husband and my family.  They truly gave me the encouragement and support I needed to get it done.  I'm not sure that I would have had the courage to do it without them.

So what's next on my journey?  A second book, of course!  I wrote my first book with the idea that it would be the first of a four part series.  I am about half-way through writing book two and I hope that it will be published around the end of the summer.  I am also looking at expanding my market for Best Laid Plans.  Right now it's only available on Kindle, but I'm looking at making it available on Nook as well.  The problem is that it requires me to reformat it which is just time consuming.  And lastly, I've started a blog!  It's something I've felt like I should do, but I've been putting it off.  I felt like I couldn't put it off any more.  I'm hoping to let people know how things are going in my publishing adventure and share what I've learned or hope to have happen.  If there are any questions to answer or if anyone has any advice to share, I would love to hear it.

http://www.amazon.com/Best-Plans-Consulting-Series-ebook/dp/B0098O5A7M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1366776303&sr=8-1&keywords=best+laid+plans+courtney+lyman