posted on December 5, 2014 by Carole Mortimer

Indie Publishing is Fun

by Carole Mortimer

Christmas AlphaI’ve been writing for Harlequin Presents for 36 years, and also the Harlequin Historical line for the past 5 years too, and yet the strangest thing happened to me in the middle of September this year—I dreamt a whole series of books, their heroes, heroines, and their storylines. I had even designed the covers for the first four books of the series while I was sleeping, too.

Nothing like this had ever happened to me before.

The books I dreamt about that night have now become reality in my new ebook series ALPHA. The stories in the ALPHA series have sexier situations and language, than my other books, and wanting to get the ebooks out to my readers as soon as possible, I made the decision to self-publish the series.

Which is when the adventure really began!

Never let anyone tell you that Indie publishing is easy, because it isn’t—but what it is a barrel load of fun! It’s also hard work and dedication, and I have a whole lot of respect and admiration for all you Indie authors out there who have been doing this for several years.

I’ve always written fast, and having written the novella to launch the series in just three weeks, I needed to also have my ‘team’ if I was going to become a publisher myself.

My son Josh is my #1 man—he is truly amazing, and has worked so hard to help me launch this series, with ads and blogs, designing the newsletter, and he always, always has my back.

My editor, Megan Stevens, was recommended to me by a close friend—and it has truly become a wonderful partnership. I can’t thank Megan Stevens enough for helping to make these stories better than I had ever dreamt they could or would be.

Dark AlphaI had a bit more of a problem finding a formatter who could do the work in time for a November 8th publishing date—my fault, for being so eager—but luckily Julie Cupp, a Formatting fairy, proved invaluable. My son Matt is currently learning to format—so we are truly becoming a family ‘business’.

Having dreamt the covers, and then had those covers designed by my website lady, Jo, we then talked it over and decided to revamp my website page, to reflect this new ALPHA series, as well as my Harlequin books. The result is stunning, thanks to Jo.

Along with writing the books, and finding the editor, formatter, cover designer, there is also the little matter of Copyright, and ISBN numbers to buy and register.

Are you having fun yet?

Because I was, and I still am.

The first novella in the ALPHA series, Christmas Alpha, was published on November 8th, and is currently available for download on Amazon, B&N, iTunes, Kobo, and Smashwords. The second full-length ebook, Dark Alpha, is also available for pre-order on the same retail sites, with a publication date of January 18th 2015. The third and fourth books will be published in March and May of 2015. And there are more books to come in 2015!

Indie publishing is not for everyone, I understand and respect that, but for those of you who want to publish yourself I can’t tell you how wonderful this whole experience has been for me. I love everything about it, from writing the stories, editing, designing the covers, to choosing the publishing date. Christmas Alpha was written in September, and just 5 short weeks later it’s now published.

Now that’s fun!

Carole Mortimer.

Website ~ Facebook ~ Email ~ Twitter ~ Newsletter

CHRISTMAS ALPHA is available at the following retailers:

amazon amazon canada amazon uk bn.com iBooks iBooks ca iBooks uk kobosmashwords

 

 

Carole Mortimer

Carole Mortimer

Carole Mortimer is a USA Today Bestselling Author and Recipient of the 2015 RWA Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award, 2014, Pioneer for Romance Romantic Times Award. She was recognized by Queen Elizabeth II in 2012 for her ‘outstanding service to literature’.

She has written over 200 books, in her bestselling Alpha series, Harlequin Presents, and Harlequin Historical.

She is happily married to Peter. They have 6 sons, and live on the beautiful Isle of Man. She also loves to hear from Readers!

http://carole-mortimer.com

2 thoughts on “Indie Publishing is Fun”

  1. Jane Corbett says:

    Great to read this and learn about Carole’s life and hobbies, look forward to the next ones!

    1. Jane, I would love do another blog on WriterSpace is they’ll let me!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Latest from our Blog

Have Your Heard About Mookies?

Discover “Mookies,” a delightful cross between cookies and muffins. These heart-healthy treats have all the ingredients of a yummy oatmeal breakfast in a to-go form. It is not only perfect for a morning boost but also doubles as a convenient snack for family gatherings and spontaneous social events. A few years back, I decided to… Read More

Read More