10 Things I've Learned While Launching my 1st Book

10. My mother was right. If I never say it again, I’ve at least said it here. It was six years ago when she first told me I should write a book. And what did I say? “Ya, right. I could never do that.” Yet here I am, less than three weeks before the launch of Out Of Play. Mom was right. That time. But the home-haircut craze in grade two? That was not right. That was horribly wrong.

9. The world is a good place. People you’ve never met will help you. They might even say remarkable things about your book. I’ve received several reviews already, NICE reviews. From people I’ve never met. People I’ve never bought a coffee for, or watched kids for, or bailed out of a department store backroom after getting caught shoplifting (you’re welcome, Keri) for. Granted, Keri was young. And blood-related.

8. People are excited for me! Like, really excited!

7. Writers aren’t always good with words. Take me, for example. When these excited people ask about the book, you would think I could describe it. I wrote it. I rewrote it. I revised it. I worked with two editors making it better. I wrote the back cover blurb. And yet elevator speeches are THE WORST THING EVER!

6. The writing world is collaborative, not competitive. I have met experienced writers willing to share and support me in my journey. By providing marketing tips, revision advice, sharing tweets and facebook posts, answering questions at conferences, inviting me to events, and introducing me to other people who can help me. I'm better prepared because of the fabulous members who make up the writing community.

5. My husband has my back. He's willing to rearrange our schedule, live on a tighter budget so I have time to write, and buy me noise-cancelling headphones. He’s not, on the other hand, very supportive of the finches. Those would be the birds I purchased while he was on a weekend trip to Vegas. But you know, these things happen.

4. My children are proud of me. Embarrassingly proud.

3. My child thinks marriage is synonymous with romance. I was surprised when my amaze-balls publisher, Crooked Cat, described Out Of Play as a feel-good romance. I suppose it is. A realistic, we've-been-married-a-long-time-and-don't-always-like-each-other romance. But my daughter was not surprised at all. She said, "Of course it's a romance. It has marriage in it." Um...and she grew up in this house!! Me and the hubby must be doing something right.

2. Putting a book out into the world might lead one to developing addictive traits. You may find yourself checking for new reviews or possible sales about every seven minutes. All this addictive checking requires loads of data on your phone and it's best to make sure you've got your wifi on. If you don't, this can create other challenges (please refer to point 5). But you know: Blood in, blood out.

1. The journey is just beginning. It's never too early to start writing the next book.
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Here we are during the height of Mom's haircutting craze. That's me, second to the left. Keri, the future department store adventurer, is in my mother's arms.