Today I'm setting out to answer the questions: Where on earth have I been for the past two months? And why didn't Quench the Day release when I said it would?
The simple answer is: Life.
I've been struggling for a long time with adrenal fatigue, and apparently letting a lot of things, inconsequential and otherwise, really get to me for a really long time, and it kind of all caught up with me at once. The fallout of all that accumulated stress ended up being massive, ongoing panic attacks, digestive issues, and nerves that were wound so tight I could've played the Orange Blossom Special on them. The month of April was not super fun for me. In the in-between times, when I wasn't having major meltdowns, I was pretty much glued to the couch reading books, and in the midst of all that I couldn't even look at my writing. Even though it was mostly complete, I just wasn't able to face it at all, let alone try to put together any kind of marketing for the launch.
But even in all that God has blessed me. He's been working on some things with my heart, and dealing with some of those issues that were stressing me out for so long. That's not to say I've become a perfect Christian and am completely healed... both items are a work in progress, as always. But the important thing is that there is progress. There's still some bad days, but there's quite a few good days now too, and I'm so thankful.
All that time off from writing though made me realize that I had been rushing a bit to get the book done and get it released, and that there were a few things that could be improved upon a bit, so I went ahead a made some more revisions, including a couple extra short scenes that one of my beta readers had recommended putting in, and that never would have made it without that forced hiatus. I think they make the story richer, and with those and the other revisions to be beginning, I'm a lot happier with the whole book. So, Yay!
Another result of taking some time off was that it gave me a chance to take a second look at an opportunity that I had dismissed earlier, the Kindle Scout program. If you haven't heard of it, it's a fantastic opportunity for both writers AND readers. If you're looking for new reading material, you can go on there and check out never-before-published books by both new and established authors, read a lengthy except, and nominate the ones you love. All you need is an account with Amazon. If a book gets enough nominations, it will get reviewed by the Kindle Scout team, and possibly picked up for publishing. For readers, that means that if you nominate a book and it gets published by Kindle Scout, they will send you a FREE advance copy of the Kindle book. For writers, that means if your book is well-liked, you could actually get paid for it (whaaaaaaat?!). LOL! If Quench the Day got picked up by Kindle Scout, it would mean marketing, a modest paycheck, and possibly an audio book. And I'd still be able to publish the paperback version of the book through Createspace, which I was planning on doing anyway. And it all happens pretty fast. Books are only up for review and nomination for 30 days.
So, this is an early plea for your help! Yes, Quench's release date will be postponed for a little while, but not super long (my Kindle Scout champagne will only run for a of total 45 days. 30 for readers' nominations, and 15 for Kindle team's review), but I'm hoping it will be worth it. If nothing else, it'll give me the chance to work on book 2 in the series!
I'm hoping to get Quench the Day's champagne started within a week or so, so PLEASE keep an eye on my blog and social media for updates. I need your help, guys!
In the mean time, check out the Kindle Scout program, see how it works, and start scouting for new reading material. Just save me a nomination!
