How's Your Book Doing?

An Interview with...Me

Hey Y’all,

So, my book’s been out almost a month. Yay! It’s been an incredible ride, and it’s not over yet. I wanted to write a little about how it’s looking a month out, practically and emotionally speaking. Here’s an interview I did with myself.

Kate: How’s it going? How do you feel now that you’re a published author?

Kate: Frankly, it’s awesome. I see my book in stores sometimes. People have said such nice things about it, personally and out in the world. People are getting exactly what I hoped from it—publishing info with humor and grace. Honestly, it couldn’t be better right now.

K: Really?

K: Well, I am a little disappointed I haven’t gotten an trade reviews yet, from places like Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Kirkus, etc. I’m not super surprised, though, because this kind of book is not high up on their list of oft-reviewed books, so I’m not taking it personally. It’s not my publisher’s fault, either. Reviews are getting harder and harder to get, and often they come after pub, so there’s a tiny chance one will come out. Also, it doesn’t matter. It won’t affect sales much (though librarians, I hope you’re ordering it for your collection!!) as the general public doesn’t really read those reviews. Still, I want them. Both of those things can be true.

K: How are you feeling about the publicity cycle?

K: It was rough there for a minute! Not rough in a bad way, but it was hectic right around pub, and that was a good thing. Lots of people wanted to talk to me! I was and am very flattered. I did have moments of wow, I can’t wait for life to get back to normal though. And it mostly has. I have more events and podcasts and things coming up, so it’s not over by any means. And frankly, that’s how I wanted it to be. This book is going to have a long tail, hopefully. I’d rather talk about it a little bit for the next several years than 24-7 for two straight weeks and then nothing. I’m hoping to do some visits to MFA programs, in the Fall and Spring. And Verona, NJ! I’m coming to The Collective Bookstore next week! Come see me! Want me to come to your event, talk to your group, Zoom in to your bookclub? Let me know!

Tickets!

K: Be honest, are you checking Goodreads?

K: Yes. I am. I can’t deny it. Luckily, it hasn’t been bad! Sure, a few people have given me two-stars on Amazon with no review to back it up (cowards) but you know what? That’s fine. They can think whatever they want. Maybe they are my nemeses and I’m all:

There will be a point when I don’t check reviews because I will be doing other things. I’m luckily in a good place mentally and emotionally that if I see something I don’t like, I can go ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ and move on. If that’s not you, DON’T READ REVIEWS. Know yourself. Protect yourself.

K: How’s it going social media-wise?

K: Oyyyyyyy, I feel like I should be doing so much more with social media, which I think is the way everyone always feels. I’m not worried about going viral or getting more followers or whatever, but I know I could do some (relatively) easy, or at least low-lift, videos or whatnot and that might help. Word of mouth is what is going to sell this book and you have to give people something to talk about. It’s always tempting to do the five things you should NEVER EVER EVER write about in a query letter type things, but I really try not to do ragebait, or panicbait. It’s not me. It feels icky later. I have fun with social media, so I need to just lean into that. But the most important thing is to just DO something, and I am tired, so that’s where I’m a little stuck. I’m trying to remember that something is better than nothing and it doesn’t have to be perfect. People want to share your stuff, if you make it easy for them. That’s what I’m going to do.

K: Any goals going forward?

K: NPR, call me. Also, I want to write my next book. I think I might have figured it out, too. And I’m excited. Also, my clients have been writing some incredibly stellar books and I can’t wait to send those out this fall and have people read the ones that are coming out soon and for the rest of the year. Life is good. I cannot complain.

OXOXOXOXO,

Kate (and Kate)