Part One: The Whirlwind of Writing and Promoting
By Michele Walsky | Assistant Editor

Photo by Brianna Stevens
Have you written the Great American novel but are not sure what to do next? Perhaps, poetry, memoirs or a comic book awaits. Last year my dream of becoming a published author came true and I am happy to share my experience so yours can too. And the best part, it is free!
Independent Authors are Boss: Just because something is free does not mean it is easy street. Indie authors wear all the hats. We are writers, editors, formatters, publishers, cover designers, promoters, marketers and our own PR firm all rolled into one. Some authors shell out big bucks to hire them separately, but I am in the starving artist stage so I do everything except cover design. It takes work, but Indies have more control than traditionally published authors.
There are several online companies that offer free self-publishing. I plan to branch out, but so far I have only muddled my way through the Amazon maze and that is mainly due to the luck of successful friend Mary “M.P. McDonald” who bushwhacked the territory years before.
I have been writing since sixth grade but in the midst of life, things got busy and writing was pushed aside. And then a few summers ago, an idea for a book kept circling my brain like a vulture and would not go away. It was a juicy tale based on real life events and I was not so sure it was a good idea. But it got me writing again!

Photo by Brianna Stevens
Jealousy is a Catalyst: The road to my dream actually started with jealousy. A few years ago, I spotted a Facebook post by a mutual friend beaming about Mary’s published book. Suddenly, the Green-eyed Monster roared, pulled me up by the collar and said, “This was supposed to be your goal, Dummy!”
Envy gets a bad rap, but in this case, it was a good thing. It was the kick in the pants I needed. I reached out to Mary and bent her ear. I was antsy to get started. Too bad I needed to finish writing that story first. The funny thing is, the initial novel I was working on was not Behind Frenemy Lines, the book I published first. Nor did it become the second, The Pearly Gates Phone Company. However Confessions of a Goody-Goody will be published someday. In the meantime, an excerpt appears in our college’s literary magazine, A Certain Slant.
Unlocking Writer’s Block. Are you chomping at the bit to write but find staring at a blank page or screen daunting? If writer’s block is standing in the way, leave your desk. Do something physical. I find mundane chores let my mind rest while setting creativity free. Dishwashing leads to daydreaming. Also, there are magical powers in a shower stream. The only downside is the mad dash to jot down the fantastic formations freed from the brain cells. If only a cranial flash drive existed!
Spill the Story: Get it all out. No worries if it is not your best work. You will rearrange, revise, copy and paste later. Once the story is complete, go back and add details to make it more dimensional. Since I write off the cuff, I was happy all my storylines tied together in Behind Frenemy Lines. But I realized my female assassin, Galaxy O’Jordan, did not act very kick-ass. She was too much in love. So I made her more ruthless. I added unique gadgets to her arsenal and made sure her protagonist spy partner, Lee Clancy, struck back with his own sly vengeance.
Rise and Revise: Edit to the best of your ability, and then edit again. Weed out typos and grammar mistakes. I am an obsessive revision queen but it helps to have fresh eyes look over the work. Typos are pesky fleas. A few still get left behind no matter how fine-toothed the comb.
Despite bribes of homemade cookies, I was only able to lure one test reader for my first book. Thank goodness my 70 year-old cousin stepped up from Pennsylvania. He offered valuable adverb advice, as in “ditch ‘em!” He made me laugh when he said, “If I see one more ruefully, nervously, or wryly, I’m going to scream!”
He was right. They were bogging down the dialogue. (Funny, I just discovered Stephen King gives the same advice in his book, On Writing.) Unfortunately Cousin Obie became ill and was not able to fully devote much time detecting anything else, but he did finish the book and give feedback. I appreciate his selfless service. Since I was mainly on my own, I splurged on Grammarly and walked through the story thinking like a reader, covering any possible plot holes. Reading my manuscript out loud also helped the war on error.
I read CreateSpace and Kindle: Self-publishing Master Class by Rick Smith and Mary recommended Go Indie by David Neth. But after my rom-com espionage came together, I had more fun inspecting my favorite novel, Summer Sisters, by Judy Blume as a study guide. For good measure, I flipped through a spy novel by Lee Child and perused John Graham’s work too.
Take notice how dialogue is set up—separate lines and paragraphs for each character. What surprised me most was how the first paragraph in each chapter and scene change were not indented. I then compared how the authors separated those scene changes. John Grisham centered three simple asterisks while Blume used nothing at all. Notice also how the publishers handle the front matter: copyright, title page, dedications and disclaimers. “This is a work of fiction, any resemblance to actual names and places is coincidental,” and all that jazz. I tailored mine since one of the plots involved a former president and a Hollywood starlet. I never want to libel anyone, even people no longer living. We must keep our image in mind as well.
Promoting Tricks: Peddling yourself and your books feels more like careening into a terrific traffic jam. There are so many indie authors. Sometimes it gets discouraging. Writing is a lonely job, and while I love the solitude, stumbling into a Goodreads discussion thread on review swaps opened doors. I read genres I would not have read otherwise and my books gained a few reviews. I met other Indies who have shared tips and helped me out. I have more resources now, a relief to Mary’s ear I am sure. I am still figuring things out. The authors help each other by hosting “takeovers” in each other’s Facebook groups, celebrating new cover releases, presales, and reviews. We tease readers with excerpts, games and giveaways. It is not very lucrative but we gain exposure. It is about getting our name out there.
Speaking of which, I write under the pen name Chele Pedersen Smith. I have author pages on Amazon and Goodreads, which means cranking out third-person biographies, which is weird at first. I also keep book and ad descriptions exciting and write a blog on Goodreads.
Indies are always looking for new ways to promote books, preferably cost-free. Advertising with Amazon gets expensive and is hit or miss. I use social media, give out bookmarks, and have mailed free paperbacks in Goodreads giveaways. My newest pieces of swag are coffee mugs and I have reading/signing gigs at libraries and craft fairs.
It takes a lot of creative cogs to get a book noticed. Some days there is not much left after pouring it all into a story. And to be honest, it is does get tiring. But my saving grace is, I love to write, and in the big scheme of things, that is why I do it in the first place.
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