When I started writing, that was the dream: publish the book that took me months and months to write. I told myself it would all be worth it if I got an agent with that book and got a book deal.

Now, I am so thankful my dreams didn’t come true!

I’ve recently been getting more acquaintances (or strangers) asking me how I went about this process so they can learn from it themselves. Everyone’s path is different, but hopefully this very basic introduction can help those just starting out.

I’m almost three months out from publication. What kind of emails pop up in my inbox? What are my publicist, editor, and agent talking about? I’m giving you a sneak peek to find out!

I may have an English degree, but I never took a single creative writing class in college or otherwise. I have, however, learned a lot from other resources. Here are a few of my favorite.

Book 2 really is hard.

If you talk to nearly any writer, they will explain that book 2, or a sophomore book, is harder than book 1. My journey so far…

Reader reactions to books are fickle friends.

Before I got to peek behind the curtain of publishing, I thought everyone had to wait until a book went on sale to read it.

I was wrong.

Writing a query was one of the hardest parts of getting a literary agent. My second book didn’t get any requests, and while some of that may be from querying in the pandemic, I also know my query was not strong. Here’s how I made a difference for the book that got me an agent and a book deal.

Getting to see a book cover is one of the most exciting pieces of the publishing process so far, but it has not been easy. Everyone has a different experience, but I thought it might be helpful to share mine.