When I decided to finally get my writing out there, i.e., put it into book form, print it, and have it available for sale, it was a fairly easy decision for me to make to self-publish. With a BA degree in English, and having worked in the computer industry as a Senior Technical Writer, and having written umpteen stories and even completed a couple of books, not to mention having read scores and scores of books since I was old enough to hold a book in my own hands, including books for children, young adults, novels, fiction, and non-fiction, I figured I was fairly well qualified to edit my own writing. I just had to figure out the steps involved in getting my first novel print-ready.

 Fortunately I also have an unusual husband who is both highly technical and also literate. He reads and not just technical manuals. He reads books, lots of books. He was a valuable asset when my book needed editing. I gave him the first draft which he edited and gave back to me. I made changes and gave him a second draft which he again read and gave me more edits. And then we both sat down and went line by line through the entire book until it was approved by both of us and ready to send to the printers. This, to me, is the difference between a well-written book and just another run-of-the-mill book. With the short-cuts we all make in texting and emails, it surprises me that we don't see even more errors in most of the printed materials out there. But filling a book with well-written sentences will get the attention of reviewers, who still are, fortunately, aware of sentence structure and are looking for the clever writers with the exceptional story ideas.

There is so much more to self-publishing than I can cover in one blog, so I'll continue this topic in future blogs. But I'll end with this. If you have the skills to write (see my blog "The End of the English Language"), and also have a friend who can write, and you and your friend have the patience to read and re-read your book again and again and be willing to cut and stitch it back together, and also have the patience to research all the parts that need to be included in your book, beyond the TOC and if needed, an index, then you might be a good candidate for self-publishing. We did it once and will be doing it again and again. And, hopefully, learning and improving along the way.