Births, Baptisms and Book Launches

When my daughter asked me if I was going to do a book launch for my second book, Between Fracture Lines, it was like asking if I planned to have a baptism for a newborn baby.

There are many parallels between the birth of a child and publishing a book. This same daughter, a published indie author lovingly refers to all of her creative work as #bookbaby. She makes a valid point. Both processes have an uncannily resemblance from research and planning, to lifelong commitment and debt, fear and worry, optimism, hope and joy.

The Writing Process Is Like Giving Birth

It begins with a glint in the creator’s eye, that idea where you dare to dream of conceiving something beyond your own existence, by making an indelible impression on the world and fulfilling a desire to leave this earth a better place just for having the guts to take a risk on something unique—the ultimate sacrifice when sharing of one’s self.

For the development of the book, (known as a pregnancy for a fetus) is the act of writing, cover design and editing. Sometimes this process is a relatively easy filled with the predictable morning sickness, restless nights, mood swings, physical discomfort; weight gain and bloating. (All things a writer experiences). Sometimes the process maybe imbued with complications, preeclampsia, gestational onset diabetes or worse—miscarriage. For an author, it would be akin to losing a valued editor or starting over.

A fetus has a predictable term date. The timeline for a story could take years before publishing. Labor and copy print have their own set of complications too numerous to list, yet the euphoria associated with the sense of completion after a long laborious delivery makes all the agony and suffering worth it.

BUZZ

My daughter, Kimberlee Ann Bastian recently released the third book in her Element Odyssey series and actually considered NOT having a book launch. My response to that was, “nonsense, of course we’re having a launch party” and together we planned the baptism of our respective births.

BUZZ—The Ultimate Guide to Book Marketing, contains several suggestions and helpful tips on how to organize a successful book launch. Kimberlee and I followed just one—“do something fun and memorable.”  I can’t think of anything that gives my heart greater joy than celebrating new life with my family, community and friends. Can you?

A risk associated with self-publishing is that an author may never see a financial return on investment (ROI) in their lifetime. If we think all we have to do is deliver without continuingly investing our time, talent, treasure, and energy into marketing, it’s inevitable. The rules of nature dictate creation requires nurturing and there is no timeline for measureable outcomes to define success. It’s possible we may never see the seeds we have sown come to fruition. Consider the countless artisans whose work became famous after death.

That doesn’t mean success doesn’t exist. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. It would be easier if success was simply defined by the amount of money, awards or other accolades we earn. Unfortunately, the ultimate Creator didn’t design life that way.  Consult any religious doctrine and you’ll find this to be true. Besides, we’ve invested too much sweat equity, pain and suffering, patience and persistence, trial and error in our creation, all part of the pathway to true happiness and success. Can I get an, “Amen?”

A Big Thanks

To all who attended the daughter/mother book launch this past Friday and to those whom have graciously supported this author’s journey through the years, I am humbly grateful. Birth is the greatest gift of life, and a #bookbaby is no exception.