Barring acts of God or radioactive slime beast hellbent on scaling the largest tower in my city while simultaneously leaving a swart of destruction in its wake, by this time next week, my book children will officially outnumber my human children.
I am going to level with you – it hasn’t been easy.
When my first bookborn arrived, I didn’t have a clue what to expect. I did whatever any new bookparent would. First I converted a small underused space on the internet into a cozy little site where my bookbaby and my author platform might grow side by side. I overbought supplies (many of which I hadn’t the first clue how to effectively use) so I might be ready for any occasion. I sent out cards alerting the friends and family. I hung up bright shiny pictures of its cover positioned in various poses and dreamed about all the things I thought it might one day be.
I nested. I sanitized my words. I reached out to other new bookmoms and bookdads for sympathy, tips or other advice.
But I was overwhelmed and no matter how much attention I bestowed, my bookbaby still always demanded more.
I consulted the experts who all agreed that the best thing I could do, for us both, was to give my bookbaby a sibling.
I made a choice.
So after a lengthy labor of love, culminating on one cold rainy night, my second bookbaby made its grand first appearance. After the launch, I wanted nothing more than to get some rest and enjoy the benefit of my expanded catalog. Only things didn’t work between the two quite as smoothly as I imagined.
For one, the newest edition was a completely different genre, meaning, as I learned in short order, I wouldn’t be able to utilize most any marketing hand-me-downs. Nor did either book’s temperament allow me to bundle them together. Well… shoot.
I consulted the experts once again on what to do. The answer was the same.
Write more books (preferably this time in the same genre).
But at this point, my other children, my human children were no longer going to bed early or taking mid-day naps, nor was the day job getting any less demanding.
Then, to make matters worse, the words stopped flowing. Not all at once, but bit by bit until one day I realized that somewhere along the line, I’d let my story slip.
I found myself at the base of a mountain – a mountain of a goal – a goal I’d created.
I thought about quitting. I thought about it a lot.
I thought about quitting.
But I didn’t.
You didn’t. You could have. You didn’t let me.
I made a choice.
So now I’ve scaled a mountain – a mountain of a goal – a goal I created, only to see another mountain on the other side.
With your continued patience and more than a little of your support, I’ll scale that one too.
Thanks to you all.
I’d never have come this far without you.
Project Gene Assist Book Two: The Watch & Wand officially goes on sale Tuesday, December 5th. (Kindle Pre-order now available). You can read an excerpt here.
Allie Potts Writes 
Congrats on the launch of your second book in the series Allie! Do you get to relax a little now or is it time work hard at book marketing? May your books fly off the digital shelves! 🙂
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Thank you so much! It really means a lot.
I’m going to be busy on the marketing side for the next little bit, but I’m not going to wait too long before getting started on the next project.
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I admire your dedication to writing.
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We didn’t exactly pick the easy path, did we?
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No, and I’m not sure I’m even aiming to be a writer. 🙂
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Ha! Well that is a predicament
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You do so much each day and you do it so well. Congrats on the arrival of this bookbaby. May it bring you as much joy, if not more, than your previous books– er, I mean, babies… bookbabies.
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🙂 The first few weeks following a launch, in particular, are filled with restless nights and more than a little spit up. It always feels worth it though when you hold that sweet little book in your hands.
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Awesome – I’m so excited for you! I read the excerpt and found it very intriguing. Looking forward to adding another good read to my list!
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Thank you! I am super excited. It feels like I’ve been working on this one forever.
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I know that feeling well!
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🙂 I’m still looking forward to your follow-up.
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Next spring. I promise!
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So familiar, Allie. I know very few authors who haven’t climbed the mountain to see more mountains. It’s like those photographs of the Himalayas – they keep going! And I can vouch for the old advice of “write another book.” It does work. Each book makes the next mountain a little lower. So, congrats! You did it! Enjoy the glow and then put on the hiking boots and go for it. 🙂
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It’s a good thing then that I enjoy hiking 🙂
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Yup 😉
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Congrats, Allie! It’s very exciting to have three books out there, even if they are different genres. It just shows your breadth. Keep on keeping on!
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Thank you! As I like to read multiple genres, I figured why not write them. Only afterward did I realize why that might not be the best strategy, but here we are and I’m excited all the same.
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I so love your way with words, Allie P. Very cute, creative post. And way to go. Seriously. I can only imagine how difficult this all has been, and to put out another book despite all the hardships is awesome. They totally are like babies, aren’t they? I had my husband take a picture of me with my first book all printed out in ms form, ie a fat wad of papers, in one hand and my actual baby in the other because I wanted a pic of me holding my two babies. So much labor involved, indeed!
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They absolutely are! They cause about as many restless nights, heartburn, and hormonal-like mood swings. The only plus is I can drink the occasional glass of wine while one is in development.
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Ha! Although someone told me this with my FOURTH child (caps as in, why didn’t I know this sooner?!) that you can have a glass of red wine in the 3rd trimester. Or was it the last two months? Anyway, not white, but red is okay. NOW they tell me. And this was the day before my due date.
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Clearly, you do not need a cruel person like that in your life 🙂
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LOL!!! I don’t even remember her name…
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“It hasn’t been easy.” I can only imagine. I am so happy you persevered. Yes, write more books. That’s what I keep seeing. (Preferably in the same genre…hmm…) *sigh* I’m all over the place. I must say, I do like the look of your two sci-fi books together. Beautiful job on both covers. Congrats to you! Have pre-ordered and look forward to its official release in a few days!
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They are only experts. What do they know? 🙂
Seeing them side by side on my shelf is even better than I imagined. I really hope you like it and THANK YOU for hanging in there with me.
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