It has finally happened! The book I’ve been working on since 2023 has been published! You might ask how it feels to have Hidden by These Walls in the hands of readers. And I can honestly say it feels amazing, thrilling and deeply satisfying. Like all the toil and labor I’ve been through to get here is so worth it. When I hear how much the book touched someone, how they couldn’t put it down, or that this book needs to be read by everyone, I feel completely validated.
And yet, along with the highs, there are also the lows. It is so scary to hand your work over to someone and wait anxiously to see if they enjoy it. So far, the feedback has been positive, so I haven’t felt like I’m going to throw up, but that anxiety lingers.
One of the lows for me is that marketing the book now takes up the majority of my time. As an indie author, the marketing burden falls to me. I am my own promoter (which I hate), and I am always making content for social media or searching for the best promos in which to include my book. It’s exhausting and doesn’t leave much time to enjoy my other hobbies. I am struggling to even find time to keep working on my next book. I did not realize how time-consuming and stressful marketing would be before I actually started doing it.
Another low is worrying about sales. Not because I want Hidden by These Walls to become a best seller (not saying THAT wouldn’t be fantastic!), but because I want to feel like it was worth my time to write it. Indie authors take on quite a bit of debt when publishing. Paying for editors, proofreaders, and a professionally made cover is expensive and I’d love to get enough sales to pay for what I put into it.
Why would anyone want to publish a book then, you ask? I’ll give you a few reasons. Number one. I feel like I have something important to say. The entire premise of Hidden by These Walls is based on the secrecy of abuse and how it traps those who are victims of it. I want this book to bring awareness and hopefully help someone, anyone, who feels like my main character, Libby. I want readers to realize that there’s always hope, and that sometimes the very thing we MUST do may take all the courage we’ve got.
The second reason I wanted to publish a book is because I set a goal and needed to see if I could accomplish it. Now that we’re on the other side of Launch Day, I feel proud of the fact that I did it! I started with very little know-how, and I spent hours learning about writing, the publishing industry, and marketing. And I’ve enjoyed reaching the goal. That’s why I feel like I can do it again.
The community of writers and readers I’ve found is the third reason publishing a book has been a terrific experience. Who knew that my efforts on social media would pay off like it has? I was lucky to find several reliable and intuitive people to read my advanced copies of the book in order to facilitate early feedback and create an early buzz about the book.
If reading this has inspired you to write a book yourself, just know I’m here if you have questions. I could not have done it with that community support, so I’m happy to be a cheerleader for you too.
Hidden by These Walls has been a joy and struggle to finally get into your hands, but it’s performing very well so far. It’s the number one new release in two categories on Amazon and has great ratings. But more importantly, the book is resonating with readers. And that’s the best reason of all.