From Paperback to Audible - An Author's Journey

Hi Thriver!

Many professionals and non-professionals alike, often declare, “I’m going to write a book about _________" (you fill in the blank).

When I hear people say this, I absolutely encourage them, but it takes a lot of grit and determination to complete this professed dream. The real work starts with finding the truth within you that you actually want to share. Once that step is complete, then the writing and editing begins.

There are very few things as poignant and empowering as reading your own thoughts in printed form portraying your fictional story or mission of truth.

Often, the final product is celebrated as the end of the race, the breaking of the tape and the moment to pop the champagne.

But the true victory came long before that book was ever bound.

The victory is truly the growth you experience every day when you commit yourself to beginning again and again.

The growth is found in curating your ideas in a way that will carry your readers toward a better version of themselves that is so engrossing that they lose themselves in your words. While reading your book, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, your readers detach from their everyday lives to spend time with you to ultimately find themselves emerging from the book cocoon you built for them a transformed person either through joy, tears or mental expansion.

And this book cocoon is not built overnight.

In fact, an author matched with the right writing support has also been in their own cocoon. Writing and rewriting and feeling a brief second of completeness only to be informed that another round of edits is necessary, and the writer needs to begin again and again and again until the author, along with the book, has experienced their complete metamorphosis.

Familius, the publisher of my first children's book, Angel Birthdays, once told me to begin in the middle of my manuscript. He preached that the middle was the most overlooked place within any manuscript because writers begin again so many times that the beginning is always flawless, as was the ending because special care was also taken there in an attempt to finish strong. However, it was the middle of the book that was often overlooked and forgotten despite it being designed to be the heart of the book where the reader is entertained and taken on a journey from the commitment promised in the beginning of the book to the end's conclusion.

I remember on my fourth round of professional editing of Establishing Equilibrium, I thought this round was sure to be a piece of cake. You can imagine my surprise when I received 13 pages, double-sided, single-spaced edits to complete. The first of which read, “You use the phrase ‘this book’ 57 times. Your writing is incredible and immerses the reader into your story. Even editing, I am having a hard time staying out of it, but every time you say ‘this book’ you take the reader out of your connection with them. Find 57 new words for the phrase 'this book'."

This 57-word edit was one line from that list of edits.

This was such smart, intuitive insight and this one recommendation triggered game-changing results in my manuscript. But upon reading that directive, I broke.

There was enough of a metaphorical carrot there for me to be lured on to edit in her telling me how engrossing my book was to her, especially coming from an incredibly experienced editor. But I was not expecting to be challenged this intensely by those 13 pages of single-spaced required edits.

It was at this moment, I cried so hard and went to bed early. I was exhausted. I thought after four years of writing, I was done.

It turns out, this was only the beginning.

I am an early riser and the quiet morning hours are my favorite time to write. So, after a good night’s sleep, I printed my edits, pulled out my computer and highlighter and poured myself a hot cup of coffee and got back to work, line by line, highlighting completed tasks one at a time until my page was all colored in.

And those edits made all the difference in the world to 'this book' and I could not be prouder of the story and healing Establishing Equilibrium offers.

So, when it came time to record my Audible, I took the same approach. Deep breath, early hours and crying only when I came up against the moments when it felt like I had to start all over again.

When the hours upon hours of recording began to feel belabored, I shifted my mindset.

I decided every time I walked in to record, instead of “recording” I would be “storytelling.” The tricky thing about Audible is that your heart and soul radiate through your voice that is recorded forever. If you don't believe what you are reading or feel frustrated about it, the dissonance between your heart and voice will be felt by the listener. Shifting from recording to storytelling brought fun and magic into my everyday experience as well as into the final result.

My all-time favorite volunteer position at my kids’ school had always been reading to the children at library time. I loved and still love storytelling. When my Audible recording hours felt unending, I simply envisioned myself reading in the library to captivated listeners hanging on every word waiting to hear how the story would unfold. That same magical feeling is now encapsulated within my recording.

Today, I am so proud to announce that my love of storytelling has paid off. My Audible for Establishing Equilibrium launched this week! I could not be more thrilled with this personal journey you follow throughout the book and the powerful healing process I guide you through along the way.

This book truly shows you how to establish your own equilibrium and find your healthiest and happiest version of you. It helps you find the patterns that are working for you, and those that work against you and how to remedy them.

If you'd like to own every room you walk into and feel empowered within your own life, purchase your copy of Establishing Equilibrium for your eyes or your ears and learn how you can establish your own equilibrium. And if you are currently writing your own dream manuscript, I raise my cup of coffee to you in solidarity and hope you decide to begin in the middle of your manuscript today.

Thank you for all your support this week!  We were able to move the Audible up to #45 on the Amazon charts. If you are loving the book, thank you for continuing to tell all your loved ones about it. I know she will #1 on the charts at the perfect time.  I am soo grateful for all your support and hope you are enjoying your healing journey! 

Join me for this week's podcast, What is energy screening and do you even need it? 

Much love,
Erin