When I first started self-publishing, it was more a means of getting my books into print without the fear of being cheated or disappointed again. I never really saw myself as s publisher, so I surprised myself late last year by agreeing to publish a children's book for a retired woman who I met through my women's walking group.
It is impossible not to get carried away by Lynn Taylor's enthusiasm. She has a wealth of ideas and great stories for children. In addition to penning the charming tales of her character "Miss Mousey", Lynn has also narrated the story to CD and composed songs to go with it. The book has been whimsically and delightfully illustrated by Heather Dickinson. It fits perfectly into the 'Tabby Cat Press' camp.
It is impossible not to get carried away by Lynn Taylor's enthusiasm. She has a wealth of ideas and great stories for children. In addition to penning the charming tales of her character "Miss Mousey", Lynn has also narrated the story to CD and composed songs to go with it. The book has been whimsically and delightfully illustrated by Heather Dickinson. It fits perfectly into the 'Tabby Cat Press' camp.
I've spent many hours over the past few weeks formatting and designing the book. It is well documented that I got so stressed out by trying to get the cover right for my first book, "The Adventures of Sailor Sam", that I gave myself shingles. It's a wonder that I haven't done the same again. When I went to download a cover template from my distributor, LightningSource, I discovered that they are no longer available in Indesign CS2 (the software that I use). Unable to afford to upgrade at the moment, I've wasted hours and hours in forums and engaging in all sorts of diggery-pokery before hopefully creating a cover in the format required. I will now be on tenterhooks for the next few days waiting to see whether it is accepted. Each revision is a costly mistake.
As if this wasn't enough, I've completely revamped my book website and added a fantastic widget for each book so that potential readers can look inside. You can get your own book widget for free from Bookbuzzr. I am also having to start building a new website from scratch for my artwork as my current host is closing down next month.
Tomorrow, I will escape the computer screen. I shall be rising before 6.00am to travel down to Birmingham to deliver a painting to the RBSA Gallery, before later going to the private view of the 8th International UK Coloured Pencil Society exhibition.
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