This week I welcome two Indie published non-fiction authors to share their experiences and tips. Today, my friend and accountability partner Darlene Larson shares insights she learned getting her first devotionalEnableme,Lord, to Shift in book form.
25 Common Sense Warnings
To cross over the finish line of Indie publishing!
By Darlene Larson
Somewhere along the line in life, when an author feels that tug on their heart to write their first book, they step toward a writer’s conference. For me, it had been years since college and yes, I had thought of writing books but I buried my treasure, the writing craft. It would have made my life much easier in the last lap of indie publishing if I would have heard these warnings at a writer’s conference,
25 common sense warnings to wrap up your first book!
- Once your final manuscript is sent off to be published expect the final proof to take longer than you planned. You may need to see three proofs before you are pleased with the final copy!
- Did you include acknowledgments of people that you want to thank in your book?
- Did you add a dedication paragraph in your book?
- What about that copyright page, did you add everything that is needed on that page?
- Is your ISBN number on the copyright page?
- Is your book cover designer cited on your copyright page?
- Are your Bible translations cited on your copyright page?
- If you used quotes in your book are they cited with the author’s permission? If you do not know if you need the author’s permission, read author’s copyright page.
- Did you Goggle and check Amazon to see if other authors have the same name as you?
- Is your author name on the book binding?
- Enjoy reading proof one! It’s exciting!
- Have two to three people read over the proof or even look over the book covering.
- Make certain you only have one title page inside the book.
- Did you know page numbers begin with the front blank page? Count the blank page, but do not number them.
- It takes time for books to be shipped. Watch out for the holidays as that causes delays.
- Surrender to God’s timing when your book is to be released.
- Watch for tech issues. PDF’s and Word Docs can have issues during the final days of editing. It’s like they know you want to hurry up and get done!
- Watch for spacing on pages and images in the final proof.
- Did you know some images can get skewed and changed up in a book format?
- Margins can move too in a book format, so check that out in a PDF and in the final proof.
- Every author wants their book clean, but some spelling errors, missed letters, or even a word left out sneak by even the best editors. Do your best! Then let your baby go!
- Be on guard if your book deals with the Truth of God’s Word. You’re in spiritual warfare, Eph. 6:10-20
- While you wait for the first box of books to arrive to your home keep penning and or prepping for the book release.
- Gather folders, stamps, marketing material, and addresses to prepare for the book launch.
- Once that final product arrives, send out your free books to your influencers so they can rejoice with you, read your book, and push you out into their world.
Then do cartwheels, you did it!
Congratulations!
Back Cover Copy for Enable me, Lord, to Shift
Has your smile faded? Are you doing a battle beneath your masked smile? Serving in the name of Jesus, yet you live with doubt, fear, and anxiety only multiples. Your life is not making sense and you have many questions that are not being answered. Where do you turn?
I know these feelings. I lived in a deceptive war zone and wrestled with many questions to God, Are you relevant to meet my needs today?” “Is it worth my time and effort to pick up a Bible?” “Does Scripture speak to the pain I’m facing?” Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, is based on the principles I learned while living in an emotional abusive marriage. Doubt is a real weapon of the enemy still today. And I began to believe lies about myself and that I had no reason to live. But, I chose to turn to the Word of God daily to stay alive and to shift into Truth—to live!
In order to change, we must look at our life and evaluate it to the Word of God.
- Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, is an inspirational coaching devotional to teach women how to sow the Word of God to their heart, one verse at a time to shift into truth and experience transformational living.
- Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, teaches a model of healthy enabling. Jesus is the enabler for freedom living, teaching us how growth can occur from the inside out, and offering His followers real life.
- Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, offers a daily inspirational story that teaches a woman how to apply the verse to her life.
- Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, contains a self-assessment report card for each domain book. This offers the reader the opportunity to take an inventory of her life and then examine where she needs to grow.
- Enable Me, Lord, to Shift, offers coaching questions in each daily devotional, which allows readers to expose their current method of doing life. Then they discover where the gap is and plan a step to shift into Truth—and live!
Darlene Alene Larson is a Professional Certified Life Coach and founder of Hearts with a Purpose, coaching and inspiring women to live out their life purpose. She holds certifications as a Life Purpose Coach®, Grief-Loss Coach, Recovery Coach, and a Life Coach Instructor. She is a speaker for women events. Her books, coaching material, and contact info can be found at www.Heartswithapurpose.com. She and her husband, Bill, reside in mid-Michigan.
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Connect with Darlene on FB at Hearts with a Purpose
Author. Coach. Speaker. Teacher.
Coaching Speciality: Coaching women in toxicity to freedom to discover their life purpose.
Author of the Enable me, Lord, to Shift 31 day devotional series for Women.
Professional Certified Life Coach
Life Purpose Coach®, Recovery Coach, Grief-loss Coach
Strategic 2-Day LifePlan Coach
Instructor for LPCCI® Coaching Certification
616.824.1311(cell)
All you Indie published authors out there share some of your tips with us. Have you run into some these same problems?