I would say that introductions are in order but I think I always struggle to sound interesting and clever for a few sentences and it never quite works and I get frustrated and go do something else, always having this seed of a great idea in my head for what should be an article to share with my friends and fans, but ends up being something I trick myself out of doing.
So, if you want my origin story, check out one or another of my podcasts, or just hang out for a while and see if you like what you read.
What I want to talk about today is community. As a creative, you hear a lot about community. You have to build your community. You have to interact with your community. You have to follow hashtags and do virtual high-fives with influencers in your community.
And somewhere in there, you have to actually create content for which to share with your community. And hopefully, your community likes what you do enough to reciprocate and purchase your book or a painting or a design or what-have-you.
It’s not supposed to be a selfish venture, but it is: I am an author. I want people to buy, read, and review my books. In this way, I generate revenue and turn a hobby into a potential career. It’s a lifelong dream, you know?
But in order to achieve that dream, I need you. I need you to like my work and suggest it to your friends. I need you to sign up for my email lists and follow my social media pages and share my posts and articles. You hear about the dopamine kicks related to likes and shares? For an artist or an author, it’s not about pleasure, it’s frickin’ lifeblood.
Because of that, I wanted to take the time today to show my appreciation and gratitude for those who made Moonlit Road possible.
Desdymona was the artist for Tavistock Galleria, our haunted mall anthology. I wanted each story to have a single illustration that captured its essence and Desdymona delivered perfectly. When it came time to design the cover for Moonlit Road, she was my first choice and I must say that with only a few messages back and forth, she captured the essence of ‘Road’ just as perfectly. I highly recommend her work and plan to collaborate with her on many projects in the future.
Next, I’d like to mention Joshua Dartez or Chatterskull Art. Dartez designed the logo for my friend’s haunted attraction Terror Isle. I was immediately drawn in. Scrolling through his inventory, I found a picture that was the perfect companion to one of the stories in my book. I felt almost like it was custom made for me. I bought the piece and it is the interior illustration for Moonlit Road. I have a second collection of stories coming out in October and have begun preliminary cover design concepts with Joshua, so stay tuned.
Finally, this entire project would have probably gotten backburnered forever if it wasn’t for Michelle River of Eerie River Publishing. Someone in one of my author groups asked about formatting and such and she came highly recommended and I can tell you why: every step of the process was laid out simply. She explained everything that I needed to do to prepare, including gathering cover designs, acknowledgements, the actual size of the pages, etc. And then there was constant communication throughout and after the process. I cannot recommend Michelle highly enough. I suggest you hire her now before she realizes she is undercharging and raises her rates.
Now, before I go, I want to remind you about what I said before: reviews and social media shares are our lifeblood. Click on those links above. Give them a like and a follow. Check out their products and services and if you or someone you know is in the market for what they provide, then hook them up with a sale.
Lastly, but also mostly, thank all of you for buying, reading, and reviewing my book. I can’t wait to see what you think about it.
William Stuart
August, 2020