My second book, Solivagant: Steps for Solo Travel Around the World, will be published on Monday, July 8! This was not the next book I was planning to publish, but after I made the decision in May to write and create art full-time for a season, I attended a webinar on some creative ways to start gaining income. When I considered writing a short, non-fiction book, the pros entirely outweighed the cons and I thought, Why not try it? More information about my books can be found on my website hannahmarieartwork.blog under “Books.”
Solivagant is taken from a Latin word that essentially means “to wander alone.” The outline for this book has been in my head for a while, but I’m finally doing it! I am publishing my book on solo world travel! I had fun with the format of the book, and since I published it through Kindle Direct Publishing, I could create the layout however I wanted.
The writing part was fun. The book is a travel guidebook, so I deliberately attempted to keep the length to 100 typed pages (more in the paperback because it is printed as a 5.5 x 8.5” book). With self-publishing I am responsible for everything, though KDP makes it pretty self-explanatory. They gave me one free ISBN number and I purchased another bundle through Bowker Publishing to make Solivagant an e-book and to use for future books.
During this publishing time, I have realized that there are lots of little details that I am not accustomed to doing myself. I get to be the one to decide the font, the spacing, the layout, and even what the beginning of the chapters look like. I’m sure it will get easier, but these are NOT elements of building a book that I consider “fun”. It is a lot of detail that I must decide: Looks good or doesn’t? Legible or blurry? In addition to designing the front cover, I included a few drawings of mine within my manuscript. I’ve had to work around these, deciding which works only for the paperback and which for the e-book.
In the long run, I know these hours of formatting work will be worth it. I’ll have another published book! And each future book will be better than the last. The formatting will get easier because I’ll know where to look in the first place and not have to find YouTube videos to help me every step of the way.
My goal is to publish books. I wasn’t planning on self-publishing them all, but who knows what the next several years will hold? That might be the way to go. Until then, I hope to inspire people who pick up Solivagant to develop a love for travel and appreciation of new cultures. Then each of those people will spread what they have learned and encourage others to travel.
In my mind, as an author of a new book, I hope that my book is not a flop. Instead, I hope that it is an inspiration. There’s always that nagging doubt in the back of the mind — of any author, I would imagine! — that says I am not knowledgeable enough to write this book. But how many countries must one see before writing a book about travel? Twenty? Fifty? I wrote what I know and I hope in ten years to republish another edition, with even more travel stories included!
Until I get my next publisher, I will continue reading long lines of text, following detailed formatting instructions, and arranging my book with the fonts that I choose. It might not always look perfect, but it will include the words I want to share. I will get a chance to tell stories and relate lessons. Then maybe one day I can even make a living writing my characters into existence.
- So tell me, what challenges are you currently attempting to hurdle?
- How have you figured out the puzzles in your career?
- What dreams are you following?
