A New Start (For the Third Time)
Follow me on my quest to get self-publishing right
This year, I’m switching focus from literary short fiction to my true love — childish humour.
Don’t worry, I’m still a serious author (kind of), and my hard-hitting short fiction remains in print. But I had a cool idea for a children’s book, so I’m going ahead with that. The Pulitzer Prize is just going to have to wait.
But wait, don’t children’s books need illustrations? Well, I happen to know someone…
Caterina Baldi is a children’s author and illustrator. We’ll be working together and publishing our new book: The A-Z of Rotten Uncles.
It’ll be a low-effort, high-reward gift for your niblings (nieces or nephews). Pinky promise.
The slated release date is December 2024, and I’ll keep you updated every step of the way.
You may notice that the name of this publication has changed. Now it’s called Third Time Right.
That’s because as well as my traditionally published books, I self published two collections of short fiction (2018 and 2021). Needless to say, they didn’t sell thousands of copies. I’ve learned a lot about Amazon and the publishing industry since then, and this time, I want to get things right. We have six months to plan and execute a great book launch, and you’ll be able to follow along.
If you have children (or a childish sense of humour like me), your feedback will be invaluable. And if you’re a writer who wants to avoid the same mistakes I made on my first attempts, you’re welcome to come along for the ride.
I’ll be posting every couple of weeks about how the project came about, progress on the journey to publication, and probably a few stories about me being a truly rotten uncle.
Please let me know the answer to at least one of these questions:
What kinds of books do your kids love and why?
What’s your greatest tip for self publishing?
Why do you think I’ll succeed and sell between 500,000 and 1,000,000 copies?
See you in a couple of weeks.
Be nice to your niblings.
Excellent idea! A good children's book is hilarious for adults too - perfect to read aloud. I love Just William stories and so do my children. Even though they're ancient, they're silll so funny! Looking forward to following your journey.
Sounds very interesting! Children love books :)
The first two questions are too tough for me, but the third is easy: The world is like an open book to you, so you just have to turn it around and make sure that it is _your_ book that is open to the world. Voila!