Ever wanted to write a book? My self publishing journey.

Hello Hedge School,<br/><br/>The past few weeks have been entirely focused on bringing my book "alight to the lament" to daylight. I chose to self publish so I could be in charge of the whole process. The book was too personal for any other option. The freedom that self publishing brings is matched by the information overwhelm of what to do next. There are so many moving parts to getting a book out into the world. I had delusions of having the book out earlier but each step has taken longer than anticipated. Wary of rushing the final stages, I've learned to temper my expectations and thoroughly embrace each step of the process. To honour that process and to provide you with a little light on your own self publishing endeavour, I'm going to outline my journey over the last few years. I'll unfurl this process over a few posts so that I can go into depth without walloping you with information overwhelm. <br/><br/>&#8220;alight in the lament&#8221; will be available for purchase in the next few weeks.<br/><br/>Sitting in the chair<br/><br/>Writing brings me great joy. And frustration. Words flow. And don't. But a book doesn't get written without a dedication to discipline and a love for words dancing across the page. Daily writing has driven this for me. Every little bit counts. For this book, I have written numerous versions. Many shitty words have led to volumes that will never see the light of day. But necessary for the gold to show up. <br/><br/>Quantity counts here. <br/><br/>Writing every day, no matter how small, leads to a large amount of writing. It leads to a flow, which can lead to a deluge. <br/><br/>Sitting in the chair every day is paramount. <br/><br/>So is enjoying the process. <br/><br/>Collation and curation<br/><br/>Collating the words into a program like Roam Research, OneNote or Notion, help provide inspiration for the next day's writing. Like Hemingway, I leave sentences unfinished as a jumpstart for the slow day's of writing. Being organised as a writer helps you notice the patterns, see the g