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Courage to press the publish button…
Hello Kristine and Welcome! Hugs! I'm not published yet, but can say I when I'm where you're at, I'll be pacing in front of my laptop, crying, hyperventilating, sitting down and leafing through my paper manuscript, scrolling through my electronic file, only to get up and start pacing again. This will go on for hours until I cry out for help... like you're doing now. So here's my advice:Sit down and get comfortable in front of your computer.
Gently place your finger on the button, but don't press it yet!
Take a very deep breath.
Say a prayer or mantra, whatever helps.
Squeeze your eyes shut.
Then push that button and yell out, "I DID IT! I DID IT!!"
Of course... make sure the file transferred first. ; )
Good luck! You can do it, Kristine! Hugs!!
Hi Kristine,Congratulations on finishing your book! That is always the most difficult. I went through the same fears that you have before publishing my first book... and my second book. I am sure it will always happen.
Some things that helped were having other people give me feedback and making sure I had done everything I could to put my best foot forward.
Eventually, you just have to hold your breath and push the button :) Whatever happens after that will either be a success or a lesson to learn from.
Good luck and I look forward to hearing about your book!
I just weighed my nerves against the regrets I was absolutely sure to have if I didn't put my stuff out there. Turns out the idea of not publishing it at all was worse, to me.
Congratulations, Kristine. Just sit, take a deep breath and hit enter. There will be plenty of time to get nervous after you are done. :)Good luck!
Well, Chris beat me to it. It's the not publishing it that's worse, because I've been through the years of unfinished piled up manuscripts and I'm not willing to go down that route anymore. It's when I'm so far away from publishing and think I am is when I feel the most radioactive. When its finally, finally, finally time to publish I do it and move onto the next, which is more frightening because you have to promote and market the new release while working on the next books, which is where I am now.
A glass of wine both softens and sweetens the deal too ;)
For me, it's about what I was trying to accomplish. I wanted the information out there. So at some point, you have to decide that it's good enough and release it onto the world. Else you could fiddle with things indefinitely.I started a blog long before I got working on my book. I made the decision and then spent a couple of months agonizing over what kind of article would be worthy of kicking the blog with. Then I realized that I wouldn't get anywhere. So I just wrote one.
Be bold and click publish! Then drink wine.
Sherri wrote: "Be bold and click publish! Then drink wine."I like this advice. :-)
First of all, congrats on finishing a book! That in itself is something worth celebrating.
For me, the first time I published through Amazon, I was right where you are, but instead of nerves I was skeptical. I'd been through the process of looking for publishers way back in the day, and I'd been through the 'beware of vanity publishers' bit as well, so to me, it seemed like ebook publishing was too good to be true. I probably spent a solid six months reading the terms and conditions and following discussions on the kdp community board (I didn't know about Goodreads at the time), and watching other authors talk about their trials and tribulations before I finally went for it.
I concur with others. You've done the work, now publish it for others to see. Delaying will most certainly increase your anxiety. Your next step will be to promote your work.Congrats and good luck.
Ditto to that. I was right there where you are a few months ago and I agonized over it. Think of it this way, you believed in yourself enough write a book. You believed in yourself to finishing it. Congratulations!!! Hitting the "go" button is just the next step in the journey. You'll be so relieved when you take that step. And yes, have that glass of wine. Congrats again and know that you can do it!
Mod
So, hit that publishing button and enjoy! I have a feeling that once it's done, the jitters will go away and you'll be filled with the anticipation of that first sale, then the second, then that first review...
Go for it! Once you have checked the Amazon previewer and all looks like you think it should, and if Amazon says there are 0 spelling mistakes, there is nothing to hold you back.And remember, you can always tinker with the Word document afterwards and then replace the one you've uploaded if you find bits that need correcting.
The book is not irretrievable once you hit 'publish'.
Push!
Kristine, congratulations on finishing your book! And I think you just answered your own question. When you've spent countless hours writing and perfecting a book, pressing the publish button is the easiest task of all.I recently finished writing my first book, and after remembering all of the hard work that I put into it, I was relieved to hit the publish button. Even with any flaws the book may have (I'll let the readers decide), I realized that possibly risking any negative feedback was outweighed by the satisfaction of publishing the book itself. That's given me the confidence to continue writing many more books down the line. The first step of any journey is the hardest one.
I hope this helps answer your question. Good luck!
Oh, it's terrifying, isn't it? It's gotten a little easier with books two and three, but I can't imagine a day when I'm completely past the jitters. Just go for it, be proud, and celebrate.And know that Amazon makes it easy to make corrections/revisions :)
R. wrote: "It's always after I press that button when I find the typo. :)Congratulations on completing your work! That is truly an accomplishment and something to celebrate."
Right?!? I have been through this seventeen times and so have three other people, how can there still be that one typo?!?
I set a date. And I told people the date. And then I had to stick to it! It worked. I was nervous about a lot of things around the release, but actually taking that final step was not one of them.
And like Jana, I have been blogging a long time. Lot of practice hitting that Publish button.
One thing you can try is letting the 'logical' left brain take over:- it takes several days to show up in the Amazon system
- it takes 5-10 days for the 'look inside' option to show up (seems to be taking longer than it did)
- if you need to change anything, that adds more time
So, if everything is ready to go, done all the due diligence, etc., the longer you take to push the button, the more the other stuff is pushed back.
Good luck! And be sure to celebrate after pushing that button! :)
Congratulations on having a book ready to publish, Kristine! Dwayne wrote: "I envy you Kristine. I do. I'm the exact opposite, so I'm afraid I won't have any advice. I get a high from the publishing button. I love seeing the work go out there. I get a thrill from pulling u..."
Same here, Dwayne! :)
Kristine, how have you been doing the last couple of days? Have you decided to publish, or are you still staring at the publish button? During the years it took me to write my first novel, I never realized how frightening it would be to commit my work to the world. Shortly after publishing, one of my first reviews was a scathing one-star review. After licking my wounds, I realized that it was actually a blessing in disguise as I learn important things from every critique.
It was much easier to commit with my second novel a couple of weeks ago, as I realize that every experience is positive. I derive happiness from the positive reviews and grow in my craft from the negative ones. I just shake my head at the trolls and thank them for helping remind me of the Golden Rule to treat others like I want to be treated.
Good luck, and let us know how it goes!
Kristine,What excuses are/were keeping you from publishing your book?
Tassa
Hello everyone,Thank you so much for the words of encouragement. I apologize for not jumping back on; however, we had a death in the family yesterday morning so that has thrown me for a loop. I will be pushing the publish button and letting the words fall where they may. : ) May 2017 is it. My goal is to have it up on Amazon no later than 15 May 2017.
What has kept me from publishing is the "what if no one likes what I wrote" train of thought. I know...I know...not everyone is going to like it. I just published my first blog and I was nervous as a cat in a room full of rockers! I am holding myself accountable by stating my book will be published by 15 May 2017.
Thank you everyone for the words of encouragement!
~Kris
I'm sorry to hear about your loss. Worrying if anyone is going to like what your wrote is a common fear, but we never know until we put it out there. You got this!
Mod
Kristine wrote: "What has kept me from publishing is the "what if no one likes what I wrote" train of thought. I know...I know...not everyone is going to like it. "
You are right. Not everyone will like it. But, I have doubts that "no one" will like it. Some will, some will not and some may be indifferent. But, at least you will have your work out there and the people who do enjoy it will greatly appreciate you for what you've done.
So sorry for your loss. You certainly don't need to apologize. Big hugs to you and your family.I understand the fear of publishing, but it's like anything else. You'll never know if you like swimming if you never go in the water. Or potato chips as a matter of fact. Sure, there'll be highs and lows. But never let that get you down. You wrote a book! That is a feat by itself. Some people will love it, some won't. Some will leave reviews, some won't. But if you never press the publish button, you will never know.
Good luck, and be courageous. <3
I'm so sorry to hear about your loss, Kristine. All the best to you and your family. What G.G. said, you wrote a book, that's a huge accomplishment!
Kristine wrote: "Hello everyone,I am new to the Goodreads site, thank you for sharing such great information in this group. Although my dissertation is published (which is totally different from publishing a book..."
Kristine wrote: "Hello everyone,
I am new to the Goodreads site, thank you for sharing such great information in this group. Although my dissertation is published (which is totally different from publishing a book..."
Hello There! First, I just want to say congrats for writing a book! Celebrate your success! Most people don't get to that point.
I think that finding out why you have the jitters is a good starting point. Is it because you are afraid of success? Are you afraid of failure? To find out why you are afraid, pay attention to your thoughts. When you think about hitting the publish button, what comes up? When you find out what your specific fear is, start shifting your mindset. Challenge your thoughts by writing them on paper and stating what you'd like to feel instead. Hope this helps. Blessings to you.
My other half kept spamming me with the shia labeouf 'Just do it!' gif until I pressed it lol.
I'm almost at the same point myself. I used Amazon's KDP to put the manuscript on their site, and it processes it, then I downloaded it to my Kindle. A great way to actually feel like I'm reading my book. Only a few chapters left to edit. Then.... scary. Glad not to be alone.
I agree with everyone else. Just do it!The beauty with e-books and print on demand is that you can always edit the manuscript and switch out the file.
Better than that is letting go of the old so you can focus on the new.
All the best!
I love this thread! I was right where you were, just weeks ago. I actually set up a promotion for my book, so I HAD to have it published by that date. Otherwise, I knew I'd keep delaying. Great luck, and let us know how things go!
Kristine....congratulations! You finished! Pat yourself on the back for so many people have the desire to write but never quite attain that goal! You wrote a book! That in itself is an accomplishment to be proud of. As far as publishing, I read a great book called "The Courage To Write" and you are definitely not alone in feeling nervous about taking that final plunge. Some of the world's best known authors hesitated over that final step. But don't let fear stop you. Press that button! Publish! You're an author and you deserve to relish the feeling when you cross the finish line!!!
Good luck and keep us posted.
People with a lot more experience than I have all said "it's a marathon, not a sprint." So, if you wrote what your heart told you to write, and edited what your head told you to edit, press the publish button and take the first steps in the long run.
Here's hoping you have a long and lustrous writing career.
Here's hoping you have a long and lustrous writing career.
I think of it more as an adventure! :) and the build-up to pushing the publish button is adrenaline - w00t! :)
Just do it.You will never be ready, it will always be scary.
But as long as you've edited it, had it proofread, and got a snazzy cover...press the button. :-)
Little late (as usual lately), but sharing my version.I uploaded the almost ready work to KDP and set it to pre-order. There... There was no turning back. :)
Thank you everyone! As soon as I push the button I will post here. It will be before or on 15 May. No turning back...the whole world knows now. Lol!
Mod
Today is before May 15th! This minute is before May 15th!
What if we're all wiped out by a giant meteor on May 14th? You'll never know the excitement of getting that first book out there. That would be a shame.
Honestly just do it......Before you talk yourself out of it.
Listen to Dwayne. He is making sense.
Lol! A meteor? Wow! Seriously, I had to take out a reference in one section and I have fixed that. I didn't think I would do a physical book but decided to do one as there are activities in my book. I did the whole createspace process. I will be ordering my review copy today (crossing fingers). It will be done, it is so cool to see my book on my kindle.
Mod
But, *ahem*, maybe I shouldn't admit this part to you, but sometimes I pull them up and frown and think, "I did this? What was I thinking?" But, you will not have that reaction to your book. Yours is heaps better, I'm sure.
Kristine wrote: "Lol! A meteor? Wow! Seriously, I had to take out a reference in one section and I have fixed that. I didn't think I would do a physical book but decided to do one as there are activities in my book..."I agree with Dwayne, just do it! It's scary exciting! Then be sure to buy your book too! You should be quite proud of yourself, as we all know it's not easy to write an entire book! Mission accomplished when you do it!!!
I can't stand it... PUSH THE BUTTON!!! There's a whole slew of typos, repeated words, crummy sentences and non sequiturs that you'll never find until after you publish (okay, just kidding - sounds like you've thoroughly vetted this one - but for some of us...)You can always fix the flubs and re-load, it's no big deal. But better yet, in fact best of all, you now get an extra week to start on your next writing project. Surprise the heck outta May 15th and just jump that gun. Do it now and raise a glass, not to your first book, but to your next.
Have you not pressed it yet. Get on with it before I lose the wil to live
For my first book, I too had a hard time pressing the publish button. I kept fiddling with it, purposefully finding little things here and there that needed "correction." Finally, there was nothing left to do. I stared at the publish button, trying to get up the nerve. Finally, I just closed my eyes and pressed the button. What a relief!
Kristine wrote: "Hello everyone,I am new to the Goodreads site, thank you for sharing such great information in this group. Although my dissertation is published (which is totally different from publishing a book..."
Kristine, just do it! You wrote it, be proud of it and publish so others can enjoy your story. Otherwise you'll just keep wondering "what if" and drive yourself crazy. Pull the trigger and it will be easier for your next book.
A few months ago when I was first going through this, I was a nervous wreck. But when I finally did it, I was so excited I could have floated on air!!Even if no one was interested in it, I finally took that step.
Just do it! Best of luck to you.
This thread almost made me push the button a day early. :) But managed to stay on schedule, will push it today--*or by Monday. for a Book 2--and hopefully the 'look inside' will be there by next Friday or Mother's Day :) I think May must be a good month to publish. :) Good luck!
Well everyone...it is done! I hit the publish button for the ebook and paperback versions of my first book! According to KDP, I have to wait up to 72 hours before the books will show but I DID IT! I am as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rockers...
I have to admit, I thought my files were ready to go but it seemed like every time I went into the file something else needed to be fixed. I did have a Scrivener issue that they helped me with and that took a few days to fix (the apostrophe in my title did not go over well in the Kindle app).
Thank you all for your words of encouragement. I felt like I had cheerleaders in my corner.
~Kris
I am new to the Goodreads site, thank you for sharing such great information in this group. Although my dissertation is published (which is totally different from publishing a book), I find myself terrified to hit the publish button for my book. My book is done and ready but I keep finding excuses not to publish it.
How do you/did you get over the jitters and downright terror of publishing?