Writing is a process.
So too, apparently, is publishing.
Especially when one has never done it before.
My books have been out on Amazon for ten days, and during that time, I've learned some things. First, nothing is so broken it can't be fixed in the ebook world.
I discovered that my edits never appeared in my final product. It was embarrassing, because I know I made those corrections already. I have corrected what I can as soon as I can. Fortunately, my sales are slim and seem to only be affecting friends and family. And friends and family are SUPER forgiving. Yea!
The staff at KDP/Amazon are beyond helpful and quick and supportive. If you find the forums confusing, bypass it and go straight to the customer service button.
Let me tell you, what I have walked away with at the end of these two business weeks is solid, foundation-building knowledge. Knowledge that I feel pretty confident I can help others with now. From obtaining your own ISBN numbers to formatting in Word. Yes, Word isn't perfect, but there are ways around everything if you know what you're doing. After two months of wrangling, I'm confident I can do it. I will soon be offering basic formatting services to them what want them.
And I found an awesome cover-art guy. He's inexpensive, quick, and friendly. And his premade stuff even blows some of traditional published titles out of the water. And so Hagatha Kittridge Must Die has an awesome cover, and additional markets. It is available from the Kindle Bookstore, Smashwords in almost all formats, and today it should be appearing in the Nook Bookstore. 32k words for $2.99 across the ebook-universe.
The Trouble With Henry is still only available through Kindle. But I've commissioned my cover-design guy and we will soon see a less frustrated release across the other formats as well.
So far, I will say, the most disappointing experience I have had has been with Kobo. The site is basic and extremely user-friendly, but that wasn't the issue. The issue I had came from my unrecognizable American bank. Kobo being a Canadian company, I expected to have to do a little finagling. I didn't expect for it to refuse to cooperate. Now, as with all of my other frustrations, it could just be user error. But I decided that this was my match and I had met it. I call it a draw for now.
Soooo there's the update. Introducing Hagatha Kittridge, again.
When Adam Bingham’s grandfather dies, the family gathers at the farm for the reading of the will and a proper wake. Unfortunately, that means the deceased’s sister Agatha – called Hagatha behind her back - will also be in attendance. While Hagatha proceeds to torment everyone she comes in contact with, it becomes clear that drastic measures are needed to put a stop to her. So as Adam plots Hagatha’s demise with his cousins, he finds an unexpected ally in Grandpa Lum’s peculiar neighbor, December Ashby, and brokers a tenuous peace with Sauerkraut, the feral barn cat.
Hell breaks loose when Hagatha is discovered dead in the cellar and Adam’s dysfunctional family falls under the scrutiny of local law enforcement, which is convinced that Hagatha died under suspicious circumstances. Adam soon learns that he and December are top of the suspect list, and that when such unspeakable evil comes a-calling, murder is best kept a family affair.
Parental Control Assessment: The author would like to make it known that this story contains material that might be considered PG13 in nature. Some mild language is used in "everyday expression" situations. Illicit drug use is implied of some minor characters, as a "mentioned in passing" situation. Alcohol is prevalent, used only by legal drinking age characters in casual situations. Firearms are present, and discussion of firearms takes place between characters. Violence exists, it is after all a murder-mystery, but it is kept to minimum and should not be too graphic. A bedroom scene is implied, but otherwise the romantic elements are of the clean, fade-to-black variety.
