Welcome to the world, little book!

Today is the day! Although it seems almost anti-climactic.

Weeks ago, when I set the release date for my US, NOW AND THEN as April 1, it was just far enough in the distance that I figured I could fix things and make changes until that time. Then when I uploaded the paperback version to KDP, it went live on Amazon right away. <gulp> By the way, I learned that any changes to the docs themselves needed to be made by my formatter, not me.

Then Smashwords invited me to take part in its Authors Give Back promotion. It went live last week. So, if you can read an epub file on your device, you can download US, NOW AND THEN for FREE until April 20.

I guess you could call this a “rolling launch.”

That being said, I am grateful to finally have this project off my desk and onto virtual bookshelves almost everywhere. If you already have it in your hands or e-reader, thank you.

Special thanks to these folks who helped with the final steps in my indie-pub journey.

• Judy Bullard at CustomEBookcovers for her cover design. I think it looks great!
• Ray Hoy at Misty Mountains Productions. I recommend Ray without hesitation. Thanks for the quick response and support for this newbie.

But my job as an indie author is far from over. There is still marketing to consider. And since launch parties and book clubs are out of the question now, I will focus my efforts on virtual gatherings and platforms. The tricky part, of course, is to do that without constantly nagging and alienating you, my readers and friends.

Here’s my current plan, when I’m not washing my hands that is. I’ll keep writing and posting in all the usual spots. I’ll continue to post Book Reports and a few evergreen newspaper columns from the past. And I’ll start a new Friday Field Trip feature with photos and a little history of some of the settings in the book. Of course, I’m always happy to answer questions about the book or what I’ve learned about publishing. Feel free to ask.

Today, simply raise a glass of something and join Leo and me in celebrating US, NOW AND THEN finally making it into the world. Cheers!