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A Life Less Ordinary

Tag: self-publishing

Book & Promo Update June 2022 – Reaching another Milestone

June 24, 2022 / / 34 Comments

Now that my travel/sailing/adventure memoir Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary has been launched more than 1.5 years ago, these book updates, or better, promo updates, will become less frequent. I’m thinking of sharing book news here a few times a year for the following reasons: to update people interested in the journey of an indie author, to inspire/inform fellow authors about my process, successes, and failures, and to – hopefully – entice new blog readers to check out Plunge. This page here provides the blurb, reviews, free chapters, and more. You can find my previous update here.

My book news

Let’s start with the biggest accomplishment… After I published Plunge in November 2020 (on my 45th birthday), I had three quantifiable goals for the first year after publication: 

  1. Make back my investment in the book, which was $2,700. This chunk of money was spent on an editor (two rounds), cover artist, a packet of ten ISBN numbers, and miscellaneous costs related to the publication process.
  2. Gather 100 ratings/reviews for my book on Amazon.
  3. Sell 1,000 copies of Plunge.

I only managed to reach the first two goals by November 2021, one year in.

Eighteen months after publication, I’m happy to report that I achieved my third goal (in May 2022): 1,000 copies sold on Amazon; this is a combination of eBooks and paperbacks. If you add other markets and personal sales to this, the number is slightly higher. While this might not seem like much (it isn’t), all these books have been sold via word of mouth, personal efforts, and free “promo posts” on Facebook. I have yet to pay money for advertising, which I probably have to do soon if I want to keep selling books.

Crossing the 1,000 mark

If you are curious about my actual earnings for these sales (and who isn’t?), here is my royalty statement for those 1,020 books sold above. Don’t forget that $2,700 of this number went to creating Plunge. So far, I’ve made about $1,400 on a book that took five years to write. 🙂

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Book Update March 2022 – Ups and Downs of an Indie Author

March 5, 2022 / / 54 Comments

It’s been a while (three months to be precise) since I put together a post about how my travel/sailing/adventure memoir Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary (published in November 2020) is doing. So… time for a little overview. I share this information for a few reasons: to update people interested in the journey of an indie author, to inspire/inform fellow authors about my process, successes, and failures, and to – hopefully – entice new blog readers to check out Plunge. You can find the blurb, reviews, free chapters, and more here.

Exploring the “undiscovered” sand dunes with Maya
Camping along Camino Cabo Este, Baja California
Camped next to our “private” beach, which is too soft to park on

My book news

As most of you know, Mark, Maya, and I have been nomads for almost twenty years and are currently “on the road” in Baja California, Mexico. This means not much is going on regarding promoting or selling Plunge, because I’m often without internet. If I don’t actively try to sell my book, not much happens. In December and January, when internet was still part of my life, these events occurred:

  • I (mostly unsuccessfully) tried to encourage members of specific Facebook groups, like Women Who Sail, All Things Sailing, and Women Reading Great Books to check out my book on days when promotional posts are allowed. I’d pick an incredible photo from my sailing life and write up a compelling anecdote, putting links in the comments. Because these groups are so large, any post that doesn’t stand out immediately disappears in a big, black hole. Sometimes, a troll enjoys bashing me.

Somebody bashing my book, without even reading it. This comment was removed by the admins of this sailing group.

  • Plunge was mentioned in SpinSheet, the local sailing magazine of Annapolis, MD, in January 2022. The cute city of Annapolis plays an important role in Mark and my life and a couple of the early chapters are set there. I was counting on a review in this magazine instead of a short mention, so I was a bit disappointed.
Plunge mentioned in SpinSheet
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Author Interview: Liesbet Collaert – Guest Appearance on Dr. Sock Writes Here

January 29, 2021 / / 1 Comment

This week, fellow author, blogger, and educator Jude has me over on her blog Dr. Sock Writes Here, for an interesting Q&A. She is another virtual friend that I had the pleasure meeting (on Vancouver Island) in 2018. I enjoyed answering Jude’s thoughtful, organized, intelligent, and inspiring questions and I think you will enjoy our interaction!

Liesbet, Kali, and Darwin in the Bahamas

Today I am happy to bring you an interview with the writer, Liesbet Collaert. Liesbet has recently published her travel memoir, Plunge. It is a fascinating account of ten years that she spent living on a sailboat and exploring parts of the world that most of us only dream of. 

Jude: 

You have spent most of your adult life travelling throughout the world, and you describe yourself as a nomad. In what ways is your nomadic life different from a typical western lifestyle?

Liesbet: 

The beauty of a typical western lifestyle, in my opinion, is the stability, comfort, and familiarity it offers. You know what to expect, you have neighbors/friends/family/ colleagues around, you easily find products in your grocery store, you have favorite restaurants, trails, outings, hobbies, and your planned activities usually work out.

Life on the road, or the water, as a nomad is insecure, unfamiliar, and rather challenging because of these reasons and others. Yet, the adventure and freedom make it worthwhile. My husband and I love that novel feeling of each new place, have learned to be flexible, and keep our expectations low or non-existent. We are self-contained, fix issues ourselves as much as possible, and don’t rely on people. We figure things out as they come and enjoy discovering unique locations, cultures, foods, …

Another big difference are the amenities everyone takes for granted: running water, unlimited electricity, reliable internet, a washer and a dryer. Each time I stay in a house of relatives, I embrace my hot, pressurized shower, the space in my room (I can walk more than one step before I bump into something), the fact that my computer can stay plugged in, and the real bed. If there’s a comfortable couch, I might never leave! 😊

 Jude: 

Your memoir, Plunge: One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary, spans about a decade. Why did you focus your memoir on those ten years in particular?

Liesbet: 

That’s a great question, Jude! I knew so little about writing books that the first time I ever considered this project, I didn’t even know that my kind of story was called a memoir.

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