Sue Sunshine
Four Star Member
Age : 58
Joined : 16 Jan 2008
Posts : 632
Location : Midwest, USA
 |  Subject: To Plot...My Story  Mon May 12, 2008 8:15 pm | |
| I wanted to keep this near the thread about To Plot or Not to Plot as what I am about say came from that thread. However, I didn't want it to get buried in that thread.
I don't think most of you know my story, so I am going to share it with you.
I really had no intention to write a book. I started waking up at 3am with a subject, title and first paragraph to what I thought were articles. If I wrote them down right then, the next morning the same thing would happen. If I didn't it would haunt me until I did.
In a week or so I wouldn't get awakened at 3am but would get the subject, title, and first paragraph upon awakening: whenever that happened. After a week or so of that it all started coming to me during the day as soon as I had written the previous info down.
As I would write the first paragraph the rest would come to me. Usually I had no idea how the chapter would end until I was finished. Sometimes I had to go back over what I had written to see what I had written. On very rare occasions the title was changed, but nothing else.
I started reading up on getting published as I figured if I was going to write it, I was suppose to get published also. I read Dan Poynter's book, The Self-Publishing Manual, and John Kremer's book, 1001 Ways to Market Your Book. I read up on ISBN numbers, getting agents, contracts, and cover designers. You name it, I read up on it. That is when the seed to start my own publishing company was planted. I did just that.
After the book was done being written and I had it in the format I wanted it and the number of pages I wanted it, I gave galley copies to people to edit for me. They were very diversified: a librarian, an office manager, a school teacher, and a housewife.
In the meantime I designed my cover. I actually drew it on my iMac. It sucked!!!! I showed it to my hubby and he said to go with it. So I sent it out to my friends to critique it. One of my friends sent it to a friend of hers. To make a long story short he ended up taking my general concept for the front, designed the back, and sent it to me. i kept asking him how much this was going to cost me as I knew it could get up into the thousands of dollars.
He said for some reason he didn't feel justified in charging me his $90 an hour as at that time he had already put in 10 hours of work on it and knew there was going to be more. So he made me a proposal.
He said he knew my financial situation so if I would (1). Give him credit (what I planned to do anyway), (2). Give him three books, one signed to him, and (3). a $100.00 he would call it even. Can you believe that!!!!???? I almost fell off my chair!!!! That was only one of the many blessings and "lucky" things that happened to me with this book.
After starting my company I looked at the ISBN numbers. At the time I read the cost as being $1500.00 for a block of ten. A little voice told me not to worry, when I needed the money for the numbers it would be there. I didn't need it yet. Six months later I went back to the site, only to realize I had read the info wrong and it was only going to cost me $625.00. Again that voice told me the money would be there when I needed it and I didn't need it now.
Finally the time came when I needed the ISBN number. I checked the site again only to find they were selling single ISBN numbers for $125.00! With my limited income that was still a problem but one I could deal with.
I ended up with Lightning Source as the printer. They had been recommended to me by a fiction writer that was editing my book as well. Then I came across the name of LSI somewhere else. Finally it was recommended to me by several on Book Marketing on ning.com. I went with them and I am so glad I did!!!!!! I didn't have to buy bar codes!!!! *grin*
As I was going through all of this, Peggy Collins, author of Help is NOT a 4-Letter Word, called me. I told her the whole story. Even parts I have left out here due to time and space. "That book is pushing you out of the way to be published!" she remarked. She was so right!!!!
The logo for the publishing company was created from my concept by the owner of another publishing company at no charge. He said he felt we all needed to stick together and help each other out. I also got a lot of help from an msn group that had iMac's as I was use to a Dell and would have had to learn all the great computer programs that were put on this iMac just for me to finish this book and write my others.
Oh, did I tell you? My harddrive on my Dell crashed. Someone sent me a Powerbook (Apple laptop) until they could get a harddrive to me. While waiting on the harddrive they sent me an iMac with programs worth hundreds of dollars. All because they wanted me to see my book published.
Other people would hand me money or send me money to put in a fund to get the book published. The purchase of the ISBN number and the first group of books that I had printed were from those funds and from pre-sales of the book. This was before Christmas and people I didn't even know where buying 4 and 5 books as Christmas presents. I have heard from most of the people who received a copy telling me how the book has changed their lives for the better. They in turn bought copies for others. So it has had a snowball affect.
I have been contacted to do interviews, author fairs, book signings, and radio interviews without making an effort on my part. Though I do seek them out and have been quite successful. I have even been invited back.
I am a firm believer that things happen for a reason. I didn't seek this out. It came to me. I believe that no matter if I sold 5 or 500,000 books I would be successful because the book reaches the hands of those who are suppose to have it. It is currently in Canada, Ireland, England, Australia, Brazil, Croatia, Greece, as well as all over the United States.
So I guess you can see why I have had the attitude I have had on this forum. I believe that there is not a 'wrong' way to write, to publish, to be successful. If I can do it, anyone can. I think that by putting restrictions on it, we are limiting ourselves or allowing ourselves to fail, through fear of success or for other reasons. You see, I was always afraid of success so I would put the financial issue out there and say It couldn't be done by me because of it.
As Peggy Collins said, "That book is pushing you out of the way to be published!" It was suppose to be something I did from ground up in all areas. It was to teach me that no matter what, if we are suppose to be successful we will. Even if we stand in our own way.
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http://www.weavingdreamspublishing.com
http://suesunshine.blogspot.com/
http://suesunshine.wordpress.com/ |
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lin
Four Star Member
Joined : 20 Mar 2008
Posts : 803
Location : Mexico
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Sue Sunshine
Four Star Member
Age : 58
Joined : 16 Jan 2008
Posts : 632
Location : Midwest, USA
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Brenda Hill
Four Star Member
Joined : 16 Feb 2008
Posts : 576
Location : Southern CA
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Pam
Five Star Member
Age : 42
Joined : 02 Feb 2008
Posts : 1358
Location : Nova Scotia, Canada
| | Subject: Re: To Plot...My Story Tue May 13, 2008 2:07 am | |
| Thanks for sharing that Sue. Great to see how it all came together for you, and a glimpse at how it can work.
Congratulations!! 
_________________
Pam Robertson 
http://andthebandplayedonmylawn.blogspot.com |
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Abe F. March
Five Star Member
Age : 69
Joined : 26 Jan 2008
Posts : 1229
Location : Germany
| | Subject: Re: To Plot...My Story Tue May 13, 2008 5:24 am | |
| Sue,
you have just proven once again that a person with a dream - a goal, and with persistence, can achieve it.
Congratulations.
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"To Beirut and Back"
http://www.freewebs.com/abemarch |
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