How To Accidentally Self Publish Your First Novel

You know the feeling when you're just sitting on the porch watching the three-year-old play with dandelions, and your husband texts you that your book might have accidentally gotten published? I'm owning it. This utterly weird feeling.

Let me back up. I finished my manuscript nearly two years ago, having gone through the editing process with my dear editor Jamie Chavez. I had finally started talking with an agent over at Books and Such last August. Then that same month we moved our family of six, and my second oldest son got sick with a life changing virus. He was hospitalized for 7 months. My manuscript took the back burner. So, a couple of weeks ago when that text came, my birthday would be coming up in the next week, and as a gift my Goodman had two copies of my book printed. For us to have. Our family treasure. The week it arrived, he showed it to his friend Dave while eating a GMO-Free Steak and Black Bean Burrito Bowl at Chipotle. He casually mentioned, "Hey man check this out, isn't this cool? I did this for Cyndi; it's a book she wrote." Dave was impressed, and thought it indeed was cool. So cool in fact, that as he and my husband continued their lunch together, Dave searched Google for the book, found it on the printer/seller website, and Amazon, and purchased. The. Book. 

AND THEN! Posted about it on Facebook!

And then! The post got SHARED by someone else!? 

It was at this point that my Goodman realized the need to alert me, via that unbelievable text message, that my book 'might' have accidentally gotten self published.

My nerves made my stomach queasy. I was busy that night. I couldn't stop my world to set facebook straight on what exactly was happening, as people were liking posts and commenting with congratulatory inquisitive remarks.

Wait what exactly was happening?! I could have contacted our two friends and asked them to remove their posts. But I honestly laughed and thought, "You know what? Leave it to me to have this accidentally happen. I've accidentally self published my first book. That sounds about right. That's rather 'Cyndi' of me."

So that's how that all happened. That's how The Adventures of the Brothers Brave and Noble: The Existence was introduced to the world at large, and is now available for your reading pleasure on CreateSpace and Amazon, and why I was about the 26th person to know about it.

I am proud to say that it's a great story, and I'm excited that it's available for others to enjoy. 

Brave and Noble, and their entire family, are near and dear to my heart, and I'm excited for readers to come to love them as I love them.

From under the kitchen table,
Cynthia xo