The Book Launch That Wasn't

On April 23, my book The Witness made its way out into the world. This was my eighth published novel, but the release of this book was completely different than those which came before. I’ve been a published author since 2015, when my first novel, The Spirit of Grace, was published by Black Opal Books. For my first book I was able to do a talk at my public library, sit for a five minute segment on my local news channel, and with the help of a couple of friends, have an actual party where I practiced my book talk in front of people who I knew wouldn’t laugh at me if I messed up. I practiced, rehearsed, and worked my tail off, so I could bring my first book child out into the world in a professional way.

As the years went by and future books released, I developed a readership and figured out what worked best for me. By the time House of Lies, the third Cat Carlisle made its way out into the world, I HAD A SYSTEM! Namely, I would flood my schedule with Facebook Live events, blog tours where I provided content, and a handful of author takeovers on various social media pages. Believe me when I tell you this schedule was a wonderful, exciting, flurry of bookish celebrations that left this writer totally and utterly enervated.

And then came Covid… No need to spend a lot of time belaboring the state of the world since March of 2020, when everything came to a screaming halt as countries far and wide dealt with the blow after devastating blow resulting from the global pandemic that still affects us today. Although my family and I were lucky enough to be able to hunker down at home, stress and exhaustion as we tried to navigate new waters have definitely taken their toll. I had notes in my calendar in February and March to reach out to social media influencers to book events for my release. I ignored them, and The Witness released with little fanfare. And you know what? I’m totally okay with that. People who read this book seem to like it, and – most importantly – I had the best time writing it! At the end of the day, as we writers worry over covers, marketing, reviews, and the dreaded Amazon algorithm, we must all remember why we signed on for this crazy making career: because we love to write and love to tell stories. That’s what is important. Everything else is gravy.

I have another book releasing in November. I’m not sure what I’ll do on launch day. And that’s okay with me.

Do you have a book coming out this year and if so what do you have planned? Drop a comment below and let me know how the pandemic has changed things for your writing life.

All the best,

Terry