Behind the Scenes for Broken Patterns.

Broken Pattern’s publication marks a milestone for me. It’s the first book I’ve had traditionally published, instead of doing the whole thing myself. Each time I’ve put out a book myself, I’ve done a behind the scene’s article about it. Now that I’ve experienced the other side of the coin, I want to share that with you as well.

First off, Broken Patterns is coming out cutesy of Solstice Publishing. I can’t tell you if other companies do things the same well, but this was my experience.

The first step was getting Broken Patterns to an editor. She and I ping ponged the book back and forth for a few months, revising and discussing everything from word choice to structure. Silly me, I thought the book had been done before. It was a lot tighter after a fresh pair of eyes had gone over it, though.

While we were working on that, we were also designing the cover, writing blurbs and making decisions about categories. I was involved in every step, which was great. You know, my greatest fear was that a publisher would take the book and run with it, doing whatever they thought best despite my opinion on the matter. That wasn’t the case, though, and I am relieved.

Finally, Broken Patterns went to a proof reader. We both went over the book one last time and did simple, line edits. By this time, I was a little sick to death of it. I’ve put it through five edits and a line polish myself, then re-read the whole thing during the editing process. Now, I had to read it one final time, searching for even the slightest mistake.

Even so, I was thrilled to see the whole thing, polished and ready for publication.

Now that it’s out, the real fun begins. I’ve got some copies of Broken Patterns on their way to me, and I get to start scheduling book signings! It’s been a very long journey to this point, and it’s not done yet.

Stay tuned.