I Self Published through Lulu press on December 10th, 2024, my poetry book;
Due to some life things, it took a lot longer than I expected, I moved to a different state and had some job changes, so it’s life for you. But I’ll give you a not-so-quick rundown on the writing process;
Behind the scenes;
Just a warning, this timeline is pretty loose sense a lot has happened- so it’s accuracy is generalized to be understandable.
This was my writing process as well as from Start of a thought, to publicizing.
I often get ideas that pop in my head, like reoccurring themes, and some of them relate to what I would say is ‘spiritual motivation’, more-so how to live life in a way that breaks the limiting beliefs and barriers.
I started getting into writing poetry last year, around spring 2023, after being infected with a drive for creativity after seeing AI art take up the mantle. I played with AI art and something about it gave this feeling of effortlessly making close to 70% of the way ‘work in progress’ Art, and that feeling resonated with me to making Art again. Something I stopped many years ago, I started painting and writing poetry again.
This lead to an underlying ambition to create in the world.
I was discussing with several friends at various points around October 2023, about the idea of ‘gestalt therapy’ and the power of being present in the ‘here and now’. That coupled with some ideas penned into my notes allowed me to have enough notes to want to continue writing poems.
I had a small collection of poems in my notes. I kept both Google Keep Notes and a personal private discord server where I put random notes. Then I had enough poems to really see something that wanted to be made.
So I started seriously writing
–and contemplating the Poetry in November of 2023.
In about two months of thinking constant “Be Here Now”, reading quotes and referencing material from Ram Dass to Eckhart Tolle to spiritual leaders speaking and their audio recordings (like Sydney Banks) or occasionally seeing something resonate with me on Tiktok (like Bashar), I kept writing and writing about Being Here and Now. On my way to work, I would listen and even come up with new poems, and at work, and at home, and walking and doing things. I was deeply resonating in the ‘idea of being in the present’ which -funny-enough- may not be the same as being ‘present’.
It got to the point where I would even Dream of the concept of being Here and Now. In fact, I had two or so poems that actually came from dreams. I woke up and quickly typed them on my phone or computer to the best of my recollection. Crazy, I know. I felt almost as if I was channeling a conglomerate nation of entities telling me to write specific things in the book. Which, feels both very supportive and also scary (in the sense that other people/beings are desiring a sort of ‘expectation’ or outcome).
After the intense two months of writing, in mid December 2023, I found a bunch of quotes that inspired my writing and thought to sprinkle in with the writing. Here and there. I did so with respect to where I wanted to frame the poems in a way that aligned with an interpretation of either the quote or the poem itself.
Ideally, I wanted to publish this book before December 2023, but well, it doesn’t always go according to plan.
I was nearly complete and wanted to look into publishing. Most people or places as a publisher required either a great deal of backing or great deal of money. I didn’t like that idea so much after being quoted a bunch prices ranging from a thousand to tens of thousands of dollars. So I was looking at self-publishing.
As I was looking into self-publishing; I am not a big fan of Amazon, so I didn’t go with Amazon or AmazonKDP. I tried going with Barnes & Noble, but the self-publishing suite there was not user friendly and ran into a lot of issues. After a bunch of digging, I found LuLu press, and they were easier to understand and get through and they also offer redistribution to places like Amazon and Barnes and Noble. So I went with Lulu.
After having decided to self publish, I had a vision for the cover art and hired someone on Fiverr to make it for me. Then I hired two editors to review my works to give me some feedback, one from Fiverr, and another from Barnes & Noble advertisement recommendations. The Fiverr one ended up being more helpful because she ‘got it’. The Barnes & Noble recommended some website, and I had a guy from New York view and edit my work but they didn’t ‘get it’.
This is about January 2024.
Due to some life struggles, drama, silliness, chasing squirrels, doing kickflips, and having to move across the United States. I put the book writing process on the back burner.
After settling in my new State, I am doing photography as a hobby (looking to make it as either a profession or art), and I had downloaded Affinity 2 suite/bundle on sale on Black Friday 2024. That made me think, “wow, I have all the tools to publish my book”. This reignited my drive to write the book.
Fast Forward to December 2024, and I have a few more notes and poems that I placed in the book. I then edited and revised it and added more quotes. I then used Affinity and google and ChatGPT to help format everything. lots of youtube videos. I also spoke to Grok 2.0 to see how some of the poems land, and I made slight tweaks afterwards.
Then I put everything on Lulu press.
Feedback from Fiverr;
This was the feedback I got from Fiverr that I found really helpful, from Matilda;
Hi dear,
I trust you are doing great.
FEEDBACK
“The Place Is Here, The Time Is Now” is a captivating journey through eloquent verses that skillfully intertwine emotion and information. Each poem serves as a carefully crafted piece, drawing readers into a realm where time and place converge in a poetic dance. The author’s choice of words is nothing short of exquisite, creating a tapestry of language that resonates with both heart and mind. The collection’s ability to evoke deep emotions is commendable, as it seamlessly weaves together the intricacies of the human experience.
With meticulous precision, the poet communicates a rich blend of sentiments, allowing readers to explore the depths of joy, sorrow, and everything in between. The thematic unity within the collection enhances its impact, creating a cohesive and immersive reading experience. “The Place Is Here The Time Is Now” stands as a testament to the power of carefully chosen words, making it a must-read for those who appreciate the artistry of language and the poignant beauty of poetry.
Your delivery is enclosed, however, do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions.
Thanks again for your order.
Just as a note
If you plan on hiring someone, freelancer or otherwise, make sure they are aligned with being interested in your work and also have the skills or advertise themselves as being able to add good contributions.
For instance, Because I was writing a poetry book that also touched on philosophy, metanarratives, and psychology. I thought the New York guy-editor with the degree and love for philosophy and psychology who advertised being willing to read poetry, would ‘get it’. *Narrator voice* He did not. Not sure why, but maybe it was just a different type of psychology or philosophy and his feedback and editing was not as helpful.
Point being, when getting help, get the right help, and the help to do what it is you’re looking to do. If you can be more specific with your request or idea for what you want, that helps a ton. Vaguely asking for help isn’t a good idea, best to refine your question and requests so that you have at least an idea or concept to give to the person you’re helping.
Think of it like moving furniture using two people, you got to communicate your ideas. If you have no idea, then you’re just speaking gibberish. If you can’t communicate, then you’re speaking Gibberish. Prompt engineering and structuring your requests is all a part of language and communication.
Some notes for aspiring authors
You will have to read your book more times than you think anyone else will reasonably read your book. Like I at least read through from beginning to end at least 30 or 40 times. This is fairly easy if you’re a good reader and only have to deal with 180 or so pages, but it’s also a lot of work.
Additionally, when I was writing the poems, the first five or so read throughs, it would affect my psyche. I leveraged some of my background in Hypnotherapy, Neurolinguistics Programming, Psycho linguistics, and also my studies in Gestalt Therapy and Cognitive behavioral therapy. So essentially I was lulling myself into the Presence of Being Here and Now. So the first five or so read throughs, I would Literally pass out. Like dead asleep. In fact, there were times I could only read thirty or so poems and had to take a break because my psyche was remodifying my grounded reality. It was all positive change, which is good, but this is something to consider depending on the work you’re writing. You know, it’s not always a good thing to pass out in the middle of the day from this. (That’s also why I won’t be doing an audio book version, it’s arguably not safe to drive and hear or read these things).
I would say that 20% of the whole publishing process was writing the book. 60% was editing, and 20% was formatting for publication. All in all, I probably wrote the majority of the book in about two weeks of time and edited it in about 1 month of time and formatting took about 1 full week of revising and redoing to make it ready for print. So my journey of a year from idea to print took about 2 full months of time dedicated to thinking and aligning my ideas, writing, and formatting it to print.
Also formatting
One of the hardest parts was formatting. So before you venture too deep, think about how big the book is going to be because the cover, spine, and back designs will have to tailor to the size of your book. This also includes ‘how many pages’. For instance, a book with 200 pages is thicker than a book with 100 pages.
And another thing is making sure the formatting allows your words to be centered just right and also the right size text and margins, getting everything to fit is another issue.
So formatting is one of those things you want to keep as a note or reminder every now and then to make sure it’s good. Then when you’re done writing, really focus on it.
I used a lot of google searches and AI to help format this thing. Because I had no clue about formatting. Youtube videos galore. Looking back, I think I probably would have wrote it all in either Obsidian Notes or Scrivener, to be able to move pages, and then transfer it to Google Docs, to format it easier, then do the final touches in Affinity 2. Don’t necessarily copy my steps, you might find an easier way to do things.
Also, formatting for ebooks is also different, and I haven’t navigated that thing. I think I’ll stick to traditional paper back, because I like the idea of a physical object rather than an electronic one. From a marketing perspective I could be alienating potential readers, but this might have it’s own benefits that digital media might not have (like preservation longevity vice obsolescence). Additionally I like to explore the esoteric implication that certain items have a sort of spellbound frequency that the mere existence of it in a presence also creates a sort of landmark and vibrational effect. So I prefer physical things.
IF I WERE TO DO IT AGAIN, these are the steps in order that I think make sense;
- I would write the draft and get to a final that is worthy or feels 90% complete.
- During the writing process, I would be thinking about the cover design.
- I would probably get help from an editor when the final is to my liking,
- And then after getting some editor advice, implement changes.
- I would edit it myself over and over and over again. Lots and lots of reading and editing.
- Then after about a few weeks of being happy with it’s current state,
- I would hire another editor to check it again. I prefer a fresh pair of eyes, so I’d get someone new.
- Keeping in mind the page count, for cover design and formatting, and book size.
- Then I would hire the formatter to format the final copy for print.
- Then I would hire the cover designer.
- I would outsource my formatting and cover design.
- When all of that is done, I’d submit it.
And note, all of the above doesn’t include any marketing or anything like that. So consider that if you’re interested in the monetization aspect of writing a book.
Additionally, if you already know the amount of pages you have and your desired book size, you could reasonably hire a cover designer earlier. Just know that you might have to make edits to the cover design much later, so make sure you include that in your revisions and stipulations, that you might have to resize or something.
But also, Lulu press has a new cover design tool, so if you’re looking for simple designs, you could just Use Lulu press. The more time you spend adding detail to your design on Lulu, you could reasonably create a not-so-simple design. All through time and effort!
Epilogue;
If you want to support me, check out the book itself;
If not, I’ll live life just fine.
I plan on posting on my TikTok @Duke_of_words all the poems up to the intermission. FOR FREE. In about bite sized pieces of five or so poems.
I am currently choosing to not post beyond the intermission, because after the intermission, it sort of bends reality in a weird way, and it requires you to sort of read through the first part of the book to build the conceptual framework to be able to see or ‘get’ the second part.
I might post some of the second part poems, but it’ll depend if they can be standalone and widely received without being too misconstrued.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed looking under the hood.
And of course,
Words Mean Things
Words Mean Things 