Maverick: person who takes chances,
departs from accepted course
Thesaurus.com

It was a Saturday morning late in April. I was nervous. This was the day I would research the publishing process for The Happy Place. This was do-or-die time. I’d already spent eleven months writing and editing it.  What if I couldn’t find a publisher?

For an hour online I combed Canadian publishing sites and for another hour I researched self-publishing options. Both prospects looked dismal. I considered publishing it as a long report or an E-Book PDF but neither of those options felt right.

After two hours of research I sat there feeling stunned, wondering what to do. I’d spent nearly a year writing this manuscript! Had it all been for nothing?

I determined that I would find a way! That was when an idea popped into my head offering an unlikely and unfamiliar solution: publish directly to Kindle.

I had read Brankica’s post months ago about publishing blogs to Kindle. I had looked into it only to learn the service was not yet available to Canadian bloggers. While I was on the Kindle site I read one line I had vaguely noticed but now recalled- something about publishing a book on Kindle. Was it possible? Could I publish an unpublished book directly to Kindle? I went back to the site and started reading.

Yes! I could.

I made a decision; this was what I’d do! It felt right! It would take me off the beaten path, but that wouldn’t be anything new for me. I’ve never spent a lot of time on that path anyway.

That was five months ago. Since then I’ve learned that I’m not really such a maverick after all. It seems I’m called an “Indie Author” and I’m in very good company. Self-publishing a book to Kindle is a whole new trend in the publishing industry, one I believe will change it forever. Publishing this way offers a significantly better deal to the writer and to the reader:

1.  Most Kindle books sell for less than $9.99: the reader gets a better price!

2.  Kindle royalties are higher than what conventional publishers pay: the writer earns a better royalty.

You don’t even have to own a Kindle Reader to buy Kindle books! You can get a FREE Kindle app for your PC, Mac, BlackBerry, Android, iPod, iPad and iPhone! This means anyone can download a Kindle app, go to Amazon.com, buy a book and be reading it within minutes!

Have you ever bucked the trend and forged your own path? Are you a maverick?

photo credit: Steve Juveston

The book, The Happy Place is available today! Come and see! Follow the links to Amazon to have The Happy Place delivered instantly to your Kindle Reader or your free Kindle app – a free program you download which lets you read Kindle books on your computer! Note: The Happy Place is now also available in print!