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If we listened to our intellect, we’d never have a love affair. We’d never have a friendship. We’d never go into business, because we’d be cynical. Well, that’s nonsense. You’ve got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down. ~Ray Bradbury
A discussion about going indie.
Mary: Visiting Spacedock 19 today is Michael Pierce, the very talented author of the science fiction novel, Provex City. Welcome, Michael. Care for a beer?
Michael: Would I? I can’t think of anything better on a warm summer day than an iced cold Boddingtons. Cheers, Mary! *clink* Thank you for having me on the Spacedock.
Mary: There is nothing better than a cold beer on a hot day. I chose the indie publishing route because it best suits my independent nature. What made you decide on this path to publication?
Michael: I love having the creative control. I don’t want someone else changing my vision, from the scenes I think are important to how I picture the covers. Maybe I’m just a control freak, but I love not having to compromise. Now the fate of my stories rest in my hands…no pressure. The one thing I didn’t fully understand is how much work it would be after the writing and editing was finished. That’s only one leg in the indie publishing adventure. What has been a key learning for you in bringing your books to the marketplace?
Mary: Finding an editor I could work with and liked was a bit of a challenge. Took a few tries. Even with a sample edit, it’s impossible to figure out whether an editor is a match or not. After that, getting notice among all that’s out there is quite a trick. What have been your greatest challenges?
Michael: Exactly what you said, getting noticed in a sea of great writers. I never fancied myself as a salesman, but that’s now what I have to become to get noticed. Be conspicuous. Get out there to be seen and heard. I am not an extroverted person, so I find this push to get noticed, to get my writing noticed, quite the challenge. What has been your favorite part of the indie publishing process?
Mary: I’m not an extrovert either. In real life, that’s my husband’s job. Although I don’t find it difficult to talk to other writers and through working at the observatory I’ve gotten much more comfortable with public speaking. My favorite part is fan mail. I really enjoy making covers and I love the process of molding my product start to finish. It’s a definite rush every time I hit ‘publish’. What’s your favorite part?
Michael: I need to get better about talking to writers and other people of the industry. And public speaking? I get nervous just thinking about it. I took some acting classes to get over the fear, but they didn’t work. I think I need another beer. Haha. I don’t have the artist talent to do them myself, but I also love seeing my finished covers. I recently received the final cover to my second book (which I’m waiting to reveal) and it felt what I remember Christmas morning feeling like as a kid. A wave of excitement. That’s when I feel like my book is really coming alive. Once getting past the cover, how do you go about formatting for an ebook?
Mary: I read the instructions and format them myself. Each site gets it’s own document. I keep a master and create the others from that. I start with a clean document, then paste special unformatted into the clean document. Then format. It’s important to make sure no stray commands are in the document. Then I check the file to make sure it came out how I want it. It’s not hard to format. It does take a little patience though. Do you format yourself?
Michael: I was overwhelmed with all the formatting advice and instructions I found online and in writing magazines, and ended up going to a company to format my ebook for me. But I wasn’t impressed with the job they did, so this time around I am planning to format for myself. As of this weekend, I found two free programs, Sigil and Calibre, that I’m starting to experiment with. Sigil seems to be a pretty in-depth program for formatting an .epub file, and Calibre can be used to convert the newly formatted .epub file to other file types (like .mobi for the Kindle). I still have a lot to learn, but I feel like I’m more prepared for the challenge this time. Hopefully, I can do it successfully without pulling all my hair out. Haha.
Mary: It seems more overwhelming than it is. I definitely learned to use MSWord better. Maybe I’ll get smarter and create templates for each site. Any marketing tips to share? I’d say my smartest move was giving away the first book in the Backworlds series. I’m not a bestseller, but I sell at a steady trickle. From there, I can build. The blog network helped me start, too. And I have an ad on Goodreads which gets me some sales here and there. I feel a bit like Sarah Palin lately, never turning down an opportunity for some publicity. Has anything you’ve done resulted in some traction?
Michael: I didn’t do a blog tour for my first book, Provex City, but now that I’ve been blogging a little while I feel more confident about setting one up. So that’s my plan for the release of SUSY Asylum, hopefully in January. *Fingers crossed* I’m still learning about Goodreads, so I’d like to utilize that more in the near future. I’ve done a few Amazon free ebook giveaways, which went well and led to some sales. I’m at the trial and error stage right now, researching ways to be introduced to new readers. If I uncover some great secret I’ll be sure to reveal it to you, right here, over another beer (or two). Thank you so much for having me.
Mary: It was pleasurable to chat with you, Michael. You’re welcome to come back when you release SUSY Asylum. Interesting title.
Check out Michael’s Provex City —-
Fifteen-year-old Oliver Grain begins his school year fighting off bullies, learning about the boy who committed suicide in his room, and trying to understand why his history teacher, Mr. Gordon, has taken such a personal interest in him. Do you believe in ghosts? Do you believe you can make bullies simply disappear? Do you believe you can walk through walls? Mr. Gordon tells Oliver: “When you truly believe anything is possible, you will be able to open doors where there were only walls.” And one of those doors leads Oliver to Provex City, which puts him in far greater danger than he can possibly fathom.
Michael Pierce lives in Southern California with his wife, daughter, and two ultra-protective Chiweenies. Provex City is his debut novel and the first book in the young adult fantasy Lorne Family Vault Series.
Find Michael Pierce: Blog / Twitter / FB / Goodreads
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I’m not an extrovert either, Michael. I do better online than in real life. And you need a tour stop for your next book, just let me know!
Chiweenies?? That cracks me up.
Great to know you, Michael. I’m open to a tour stop if you need one. That’s something I’ve yet to do but need to. So many writers are introverted. It’s tough to stand out and be noticed.
I had trouble concentrating because you guys got me salivating about a cold beer on a hot day. :D
I loved Michael’s book and look forward to reading the next in the series. I can totally relate to being an introvert and having trouble with the marketing, I think that’s something a lot of us struggle with.
Great post, guys. :)
Mary, thanks again for allowing me on the Spacedock. Security was tight, but I made it. Next time I can just walk right on by saying, “these are not the droids you’re looking for.” :)
Alex and Laura, thansk for offering to be stops on the SUSY Asylum tour. I’ll probably set up a Linky sometime in November for a January or February tour. Now I need to lear how to use Linky, haha, so much to learn!
Julie, thanks for reading my book and I’m looking forward to yours coming out! :)
I really enjoyed this! Being an indie is a lot of hard work, but I completely agree with Michael about wanting to keep control. I feel the same way about my work. :)
That is an awesome cover. I think every indie is in the trial and error stages when it comes to getting our book in the hands of readers. Who knows what will work?
I’d suspect most writers are introverts, Alex.
It’s a great initial push to do a blog tour, Laura. At least to do a party and have everyone post up your book is out.
Yeah, that beer sounds real good, Julie. The initial start is the hardest part.
It’s great having you on, Michael. You can use my Linky if you need it to set up a tour, and do come back when promoting SUSY Asylum.
It is a lot of work, Kyra. It’s exciting when it starts to pay off.
Alex gives the best advice on doing blog tours. This is a great interview and very personable. And Provex City is a fun book!
Hi, Michael and Mary,
Interesting discussion. I guess many of us struggle with the same issues. As to formatting an e-book, I’m quite attached to my hair, and do have a tempter so I haven’t tried that yet.
The subject of the book sounds very interesting.
I agree with you, Libby, and I think the answer may differ from writer to writer.
Alex certainly has that down, Michael.
lol, Joy. If you read the instructions at each site, it’s not so terribly awful. Formatting looks more intimidating than it is.
Sigil and Calibre are great tools. It sounds like something that can be DYI if you have the right motivation.
Awesome to know more about you Michael! I looove that cover. Self publishing is a lot of work, but I think it’s worth it to have your hands guide every step of bringing your story out into the world .
Nutschell
http://www.thewritingnut.com
Fantastic interview!
As for formatting, Smashwords Style Guide is a fantastic tool to use. I’ve used it to format and with a few minor tweaks, it works for multiple sites. I use Calibre to create my ePUB for Kobo, though. :)
Anyone who drinks Boddingtons gets a ManHug from me :)
Thanks for the post… self-publishing is intriguing, and I appreciate any and all tips, reviews and suggestions :)
Oh nice interview and a great topic. And I love the book cover!
The hardest part for me has been the marketing. I’m not an extrovert and haven’t been able to wave my own banner very well. But I’m learning.
This was an great discussion and I found myself heading for the frig to get a cold drink!
This was an excellent interview! I enjoyed the input from both of you.
I’ve used Calibre. I should try the others and see if I can get fancier. It’s a definite DYI, Maurice. All’s you need is word and the instructions.
I think it’s worth it, too, Schell. Michael does have a pretty cover.
I think I will start uploading to Kobo directly, too, Cherie. The Smashwords style guide is great, and it’s general instructions hold true for the other sites. I found Amazon and B&N very easy to format for.
Will be happy to say more, Mark. The observatory closes in a few weeks. Should give me more blog opportunities to talk more about my experiences.
It is a good topic, Holly. Best on your cookbook.
There is a learning curve to it, Karen. I’m going to take advantage of some coupons for advertising this week.
Thanks for stopping in, Heather.
I have heard great things about this book- but I haven’t gotten my hands on it yet. It was great to learn more about the author and how he feels about self-publishing. I feel like I was right there on the Spacedock with both of you. :)
Mary and Michael, this interview was so conversational and had a close look at how indie publishing worked for you. Michael, such a cool graphic novel feel on your cover.
Great interview! It’s always interesting to read about the nuts and bolts of self-publishing, as it were.
Being an indie is such hard work– I dunno which way I’ll go after my novel is done. It is good to read discussions like this Mary. Some day, it will all help me decide :).
Come on over and sit with us, Jess. We’ll get a pitcher.
Two opinions for the price of one, Theresa.
It’s interesting to learn about all the modes of publishing, I think so anyway, Eagle. There’s a lot of options out there. It’s a beautiful thing.
It’s good to understand the options, Damyanti. It’s great to know we have them.
‘I chose the indie publishing route because it best suits my independent nature.’
M, I loved reading that little blinkering gem about you.
The cover of ‘Provex City’ is very ‘Blade Runner’-esque. Well, not *very* but it is evocative.
Speaking of extro/introversion, it’s always kind of poignant to me, reading about fellow writers pushing past their natural introversion to get their work out there through the many options available. I just sent my 102nd (and final) query letter out on a project and it has been very, very hard going. I feel I have done all I can with this project in terms of trying to secure representation and am finally able to let it rest at that. I now turn my attentions to a new project and reading this interview I feel, for the first time, the awareness that I may not query it when it’s done. I may look into other venues. That frightens me a bit, but I don’t have to deal with all of that yet. I can still watch and learn from other authors whose fearlessness I can fake until I feel. :)
Such a great interview, and I adore the sound of your book. I love ghost related stories.
What a great discussion. The work behind indie publishing is what makes me shy away from it at this stage. It’s all a lot of work no matter which route we decide to take, but indie seems even more scary hard ;)
informative & eye opening interview!
i love the cover, the name & the blurb! looks like a homerun! thanks, guys!
Michaell, your book is on my TBR list on Goodreads. Mr. Offutt recommended it highly!
You are a very talented writer, Michael and I’m confident you will find success. I’d love to be part of that blog tour for your second book or maybe review it! Let me know when the time comes if you are interested. =)
I’ve never been a conformist, Suze.
Great, Tania. Ghosts charm me, too.
Maybe. Going into traditional publishing without a proper backing scares me more, Lynda. At least in indie there’s time to build and make it work.
Hope we said something useful, Tara.
I’m glad to hear he as another coming out, Brinda.
Thanks for stopping in, Georgina.
I love that this was more of a conversation than a full interview! Great information from both of you; thank you! Also, highly amused by the existence of chiweenies. Would love to see one of those. My brother has a long-haired tiny chihuahua (yes, tinier than the full-sized ones I’ve seen). Anyway, good luck to each of you on your releases.
Shannon at The Warrior Muse
Have a seat and join the conversation, Shannon.