It has happened to all of us, right? At some point in our lives, we all get LEMONS dumped in our path when we were expecting our path to be lined with confetti and flower petals! But we can all learn to make lemonade out of life’s unexpected lemons! Keep reading to see what my plan is!
The Back Story
My dreams of becoming an author were realized in 2019, when my first two de Good Life Farm books “My Name is Mocha” and ‘My Name is Merlin” were published. After searching for a publishing company for more than a year, the owner of this one believed in me! She cheered me on and during the years I was with her, she published a total of 15 books.
The Lemons
Unfortunately, she sold the company to someone she thought had a vision for improving it. However, after buying the company and making changes, the buyer ended up downsizing the authors and then at the end of 2024, officially closed the business. I have to admit, I have felt quite sad and discouraged…almost like my authoring days were over.
Now, you may or may not be like me, but wrapping my head around doing something new almost cements my feet and makes my head spin! Learning to make lemonade is not an easy mind-set change. At some point you have to stop juggling the lemons. As I see it, I have two options: find a new publisher to republish my already-published books and new books I have written, OR, learn to self-publish. Both are a bit overwhelming, however, I have made a decision…
Learning to Make Lemonade
Learning to make lemonade, especially for the first time means following a recipe. It involves doing research to find the right recipe for success!
For me, deciding between finding a new publisher and self-publishing is a matter of doing a lot of research on each path, making a pros-cons list, and then taking the leap. Check out these articles I found while researching this topic online. Click here for one perspective where the author chose a traditional publishing company. This article presents the pros and cons without concluding that one is better.
As explained above, I have been published by a small traditional publisher. Thankfully, I have some people in the publishing industry who are willing to educate me about self-publishing. I think there are several advantages that make me lean in this direction.
Additionally, I might have trouble finding a traditional publisher willing to take on an author with 15 pre-published books and 2 additional books formatted and ready to be published? How would I choose if they weren’t willing to publish them all?
There are also the issues of profit and marketing. If I can learn to do the work, maybe I should publish my books and not have to share the profit with a publisher. As for marketing, I have learned a lot in the past year and will continue to learn how to market!
My understanding is that traditional publishers used to help the author with marketing. I don’t think that is often the case. I have learned a lot about marketing and will continue to learn more. Who knows my books better than I do? They are unique and engaging. Take a look here.
Making the Lemonade
So, for me, I will make the lemonade from these unwanted lemons by self-publishing. It will be a slow process and I’m not great at being patient, but I am willing to take the time to learn the process and then begin publishing.
I have contemplated which of my books I will publish first as I begin my self-publishing journey. I have decided to publish one of my unpublished books. One is Book 2 in the “Micah Books” series, “Just the Right Size“. The other is “Dream Big, Little One.”
Follow me on social media to stay updated on my progress!