Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to my author friend Kathy Nickerson.
This week Kathy launched the last book of her Glory Circle Sister series. I’ve read several books in the series (some more than once!). They are very entertaining and carry wonderful messages about life. I have featured her several times here on TheMotivationalEditor.com. Be sure and read her author interview with me over at my author blog.
When I first met Kathy, she was being traditionally published, but later made the shift to indie publishing. Not the norm at that time, but certainly more and more authors today are making the decision to go straight to indie publishing.
Kathy is an author, speaker, and eternal optimist. She writes from her home in rural Missouri where she lives with her country-doctor husband. They are the parents of four children, who grew up to become their best friends, and who have given them sixteen grandchildren so far. She is the author of five novels including her newest release, The Reluctant Courtship of Madge DuPree, Book #5 in the Glory Circle Sister series. Learn more about Kathy and all her books at her Author Central Page.
The Reluctant Courtship of Madge Dupree is the last in your series. Is it hard to say goodbye to these characters? Why or why not?
This is the fifth book in the series, and saying goodbye is a little like sending your last child off to college. However, I thought Book #4 was the end. So, I am still willing to listen if one of the characters starts talking again.
You started out with a traditional publisher and later shifted to indie publishing. Was that a hard transition or not? Share some of the good and bad of the shift.
The transition from traditional publishing to independent publishing was a learning curve, and it was a big risk in many ways. I am so grateful to the small press that launched my first books. I will always treasure that experience and be grateful that someone believed in me. I felt completely validated and celebrated as a writer. I think I needed that before I could go independent.
After releasing three books, I began to want more control over the process, especially over publication dates and launch plans. I was already writing for a small publishing company in a local ministry. They had many of the skills I would need to produce a book, and I was already hiring them to do promotional materials. But I did not want to hurt my relationship with the traditional publisher who had launched me as a novelist.
Fortunately, the publisher understood my itch and graciously released all the copyrights back to me. It probably helped that my book sales had slowed. I wasn’t taking away a lucrative product. I had enough financial backing to invest in a professional editor, cover artist, and layout and design person. Unfortunately, I’m still the marketing department. That is the hardest job for most of us, but even big-name authors market these days. I have not become a big indie success story, but I am enjoying the process and hearing good things from readers.
So, I see advantages and disadvantages to both models. For now, I’m staying on the indie path.
What advice would you have for a beginning/intermediate writer?
Invest in learning your craft. Read books by people like James Scott Bell. Take online courses and webinars. Join a writing group. Get to know other authors, editors, and agents through conferences. Be patient and recognize the big wins that have nothing to do with fame or money: lives that are touched.
Kathy, thank you for sharing your journey with us today.
Traditionally or indie publishing takes a lot of thought and consideration, but I’m certain what you’ve shared here will help my readers with their own decisions in that arena.
About The Reluctant Courtship of Madge DuPree
Madge DuPree came late to faith and to friendship. Neither one is going to make her sentimental. She has spent years building up her reputation as the most independent member of the women’s group known as the Glory Circle Sisters. When a broken hip forces her to depend on other people, she squirms. Her plan is to mend quickly and get back to eating solitary suppers and driving her Oldsmobile anywhere she pleases. But then, Mr. Elmer Grigsby comes to call. Madge knows she is much too old and crotchety for any romantic foolishness. Elmer Grigsby disagrees.
The Reluctant Courtship of Madge DuPree is available on Amazon.
You can learn more or connect with Kathy at:
www.kathynick.com
www.facebook.com/kathynick
www.twitter.com/kathynick_
amazon.com/author/kathynickerson
Thanks so much for inviting me over today! Thanks also for your editorial input on this series. It takes a team!
Thanks for sharing, Kathy. It really does take a team. I think many writers either feel they have to or try to go the indie route all on their own. It can be overwhelming, but having a team makes all the difference.