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What I Learned from Self-Publishing
Six years ago, I published a book for the first time. I’d been working on the story since I was 15. Ten years of editing and revisions, and I could finally say I have a book. Finally, I was fulfilling a dream!
Then, I opened the book. My face fell when I saw it. To me, it didn’t look like a book at all. There were no title pages, dedication pages, or even page numbers! There were typos and grammar errors that I was sure my friend and I stamped out, but there they were, staring at me in the face. It was the most bizarre thing I’d ever encountered with a book. I felt like an amateur. Granted, I was an amateur. Still am, but that just showed it. So much for publishing an instant bestseller.
When I talked to others about their experiences with self-publishing, it seemed like I was the only one with this problem. So it made me wonder. Was I really that dumb? Was this me being careless, or was it something that just never occurred to me? Did anyone else have these problems? Clearly not. It seemed like I was alone in this.
Even though, I found myself disappointed in the final product, I learned. I’m going to take those lessons and eventually revise my book so it can look like an actual book.
So what’ve I learned from this?
