I did a thing.
And it is not great. I don’t feel good about it. But that was the whole point. And I’m proud of myself for doing a not great thing.
I published an ebook. The first thing I’ve ever put out into the world that people will have to pay for.
I’d say it is pretty typical as far as first attempts go, in that it’s mostly rubbish.
As my brother always says, the first step to getting good at something, is being crap at something.
So yay! I’ve taken the first step in self-publishing!
(For those who missed the post from a few weeks ago: I decided to write a novella (a trilogy of novellas, actually) just for my EOM readers. Original fiction that will hopefully be enough like EOM to get and keep their interest, but different—quite different— in that they will be shorter and sweeter. A modern fantasy novella (series) with a guaranteed happy ending. With any luck, this can be a stepping stone from my fan fiction to my original fiction? An experiment to see if this is something I can actually do.)
And as far as experiments go, it wasn’t a total failure. I wanted to see if I could write a novella in 10 days. And I found that I could! It just took another 18 days to get my act together and get it up on Amazon. There is definitely room for improvement–of course in writing–but also in formatting and navigating rigmarole involved in e-publishing. I kept dragging my feet on learning how to put it up. In the end, I put in the minimal effort required because the more frustrated I became, the more I wanted to just forget the whole thing and not bother with it at all. Terrible, I know. So, we’re going with the logic that a bad book is better than no book? That’s probably not true. But, it’s what I need to tell myself in order for me to actually start making a career of writing.
I write this Thursday evening. When you read this, the ebook will be available, and I will be off in the woods, putting a roof on my tiny cabin, far away from the internet or any kind of cell service, so I cannot check the stats and be immediately disappointed that no one has seen it or bought it yet.
Rather than look at amazon obsessively when I get home from building, I will make some tea, read some poetry, and refuse to open my computer until the weekend when I publish another EOM chapter. Wish me luck in not looking at my KDP account for at least three weeks. (Well that failed. It is not even three pm on the same day and I am on my computer, posting EOM and checking stats and doing other things. Sigh… so weak.)
That being said, if you do read and like it, please review. That would help me out bunches. You can get it here.
(But look at his lovely cover my brother did. Quite possibly the part of the book with which I am most pleased.)
15 replies on “New Novella and EOM chapter… coming soon.”
Hey Kathryn! I hope you haven’t gone offline as you said you would!
Soo I’ve never bought ebooks from Amazon. It says ‘The Kindle title is not currently available for purchase’ on the link you’ve given here and I can’t find it on my country’s amazon.ae either ;-;
I do know someone in Canada though and maybe they could buy it for me from amazon.ca?? I have no idea if that’d work though…
I’m clearly a kindle noob, so help me because I’d love to read your work!
I haven’t actually left yet, and I saw this comment in my email.
I know I put it up on the international market, but I don’t see the UAE listed on all the countries websites it says it has.
I see the UAE has an amazon now, but do they have ebooks yet? If you have a VPN, try using that. If not, we’ll have to think of something else! If all else fails, I can email you a pdf, lol.
I think Amazon does offer ebooks in this region, at least that’s what it looks like on the Kindle app. I even tried buying one just to make sure but idk. I did some googling and it might be a copyrights thing? Idk. Anyway, I’m gonna get someone to buy the book for me on amazon.ca and then log in from their account. Let’s see how that works!
(All the credit for my name goes to my mom! Though I will gladly take the compliment on her behalf :D)
Look what I found! https://www.justkindlebooks.com/article_jkb/how-to-change-your-kindle-country-of-residence/
It tells you how to get ebooks from other countries!
HI SORRY I forgot to update youu!!
I bought your novella from a Canadian account and currently have it on my phone …except I don’t know what I was thinking, getting myself a little treat when I already have the craziest, most definitive semester of my life?? I keep thinking about whether I should read it now or save it for later when life gets crazier and I wanna slow down a little. A novella is the perfect length for people like me who get too addicted lol!
I did read the first three chapters and I know I’ll love it! I love the woodsy vibes and I’m an absolute sucker for such storylines & pairings.
I’ll be sure to update you when I give in to the urge!
Oh, hurrah! But hmmm…. yes, quandary. To read or not to read, that is the question. I’d say keep it for a reward, or, if you are really down and need to treat yourself.
(Also, Nuha was the name of my very first Arabic teacher. It’s so lovely!)
Dear Kathryn,
I’m so happy for you! Congratulations on your first published book, may it be the first of many! I’ve already bought it and I’ll read and review it soon.
As an EOM fan, I’m glad to hear that I’ll get more readings from you.
I can’t put into words how much I like what you write. I’m usually a silent reader (sorry!), but I’ve been following EOM since 2012 and in some year since then I discovered your blog while looking for updates. I love your posts about places you’ve traveled and hope to see more in the future.
Good luck on your new journey as a writer!
Also, I would love to know more about your travels. I’ve always wanted to travel alone and see places, but I think I’m afraid to take the first step. Any advice?
<3
Thank you so much!! If you read it, I hope you delete it from your device and re-download it before you do! (I made some mistakes that I had to fix. Oops!)
First step to travelling alone: Don’t travel alone! Get comfortable being abroad first with someone else. You won’t enjoy it if you are nervous all the time.
Step two!: First place you do go on your own, make it as hassle free for yourself as possible. Don’t go somewhere you don’t understand the language. Make sure that one of the official (or at least widely spoken) languages is one you can get around in, otherwise your entire trip will be more about the stress than the fun.
Once you are comfortable going to a place on your own and speak the language, try someplace else! Maybe a country that speaks a romance language that you can read, if not speak, but be able to get around well enough with cognates. Or go somewhere entirely different! You can still make sure that your accommodation speaks English or your native language, and can direct you if you need help (and a lot of hotels and hostels will speak English) and they can direct you to cool things to see or do that might not be on the obvious top ten lists. And if you stick to the major cities to start, there will almost always be resources for English speakers.
But….. seeing as there is a pandemic and international travel is tricky, try travelling alone within your own country first, and get used to doing things by yourself: going to a museum, famous garden or trail, local tourist attractions. Pack yourself a picnic lunch and take yourself on a date to an interesting cafe or restaurant. And be sure to watch and listen. If you journal, jot down things that you find especially beautiful or interesting or confusing.
When you are by yourself, you really get a chance to soak up the atmosphere and go at your own pace.
For me personally, I would advise you not to wear yourself out trying to see everything you possibly can in the short time you have. Take your time in a few places and you’ll create better, more vivid memories and impressions of the place. But that is just my opinion. I know people who like to travel fast and see as much as they can because they may never return, but hurrying ruins the experience for me. If I’m tired and cranky, I won’t be able to enjoy what’s around me–which is rather the point of travel, I think.
Sorry for the delay in replying! The last few days have been hectic.
I re-downloaded, read, liked and reviewed the book on amazon. It was a lovely read! I don’t usually review my readings – I just like it or dislike it –, so I don’t have any constructive criticism to offer. I hope to read more of your stories soon!
On the advice on traveling alone, I laughed reading the first one. And really, you are absolutely right. I don’t plan on traveling until things get better (I haven’t had my second shot of the vaccine yet), but your recommendations have given me a lot to think about. Thanks!
Ah, I forgot to compliment the fantastic book cover!!
<3
I’m glad you enjoyed it! And thank you so much for reviewing, I saw yours on amazon and it made me so happy. 🙂 🙂 🙂
(And I’ll send the artist of the cover art your compliments!)
I want to start by saying that chapter 84 was released right when I was having a bit of a crap day in lockdown (I’m in Sydney, Australia and we’re in a full lockdown for the first time since last May). It made me ridiculously happy – an old friend of mine messaged me immediately after the ‘ping’ on our phones to chat excitedly about it. She jumped into the reading the chapter right away but I’m showing some self restraint (somehow) Abd savouring it by re-reading the whole thing.
As much as people could argue that it is just fanfiction, there’s something about the characters and story that had made it an absolutely pillar of my adolescence and even into adulthood.
I don’t have a kindle and I am not sure that I can access your Novella on my
Mac / iPhone but I’ll research options and try to figure it out! Would you consider putting it on iTunes? I actually downloaded EOM as an ebook in 2013 where it’s lived permanently on my phone whenever I want a little dose of comfort.
All of that to say thank you for not giving up on the story! I get so swept up into it that I forget it has anything to do with Harry Potter and am just along for the ride!
Do you have a patreon / tip page? Even a venmo or PayPal? I’d love to pay you for the new chapters, as I would have gladly paid for them if they were new books! If you put a link to a page at the end of chapters, I’m sure you’d get some takers!! The friend I mentioned who also reads it was also talking about how she could donate, so you’ll at least have two of us!
All the best. So glad you’re out of your mental Azkaban xx
Hey! And thank you! I do have a patreon but ff.net won’t allow me to post the link, but it is in my author about section on this blog!
And if you have an iPhone or Mac, all you have to do is download the kindle app (its free) to read ebooks! (But you do need to make an account with amazon.au if you don’t have one already.)
Yay!!!!
Ok I finally bought and read the Novella. So so good! I loved it.
Congratulations!
Yay! Thanks!