It has been over three years since my very first book was published, so I thought it might be a good time to revisit and take stock of where things stand with the paperback. My little baby is all grown up.
Happy 3rd birthday to Fat Gay Vegan: Eat, Drink and Live Like You Give a Sh!t.
It had been a dream of mine to publish a book ever since I was a child. I grew up in a family with not a lot of money and books were my only escape. It was pre-Internet and pre-cable TV, so most of my education of the world came from books.
The day I opened my email account as a chubby, hairy adult pushing middle age to find an invitation to meet with Nourish Books was a wonderful day.
The months after I signed my contract were a whirl. I was writing so much. Daily word count targets kept me on my toes and I loved the journey of mapping chapters and filling in the framework of the book.
I think the writing process took more or less six months and then there was a few ‘colourful’ discussions with my copy editor in order to beat the text into a presentable final product.
I loved seeing the cover take shape ( I asked for the colours to be gayer) and when the book was finally in the world, I took it on a mini book tour which included a reading in Los Angeles.
The UK mini tour was fabulous fun and I was blown away by how many people showed up to the Coventry stop. We even had the BBC on hand to interview me and some of the attendees for a radio show on veganism.
One memory that will stay with me always is getting to present the book and take questions at the event at Stories bookstore and cafe in Echo Park, Los Angeles. Standing up in front of a few dozen people in a courtyard in California to chat about a book with my name on the cover really happened!
Another highlight of my book experience was being asked to record the audio book version in my own voice.
Two full days in a Central London recording studio left me with a sore throat and plenty of unforgettable memories. My producer regaled me with stories of famous people he had recorded in the past and I was chuffed to discover insider tips, gossip, and secrets.
And what about all the money I made? That wasn’t really the case, but I’m happy enough with that part of the process. The desire to spread my message of compassion was my main drive.
I was paid a small (but typical) advance to write the book. It wasn’t a lot of money (let’s just say my understanding is that first time authors get paid an advance between £1,500 and £2,500 usually and mine was within that range) and my contract stipulated I couldn’t earn any further royalties until my advance was recouped.
Recouping that investment doesn’t sound too tough, right?
The tricky part is that my advance needed to be repaid from MY share of profits on each copy sold. This amounts to a few pennies per book.
Three years later and I just got word that my advance has been paid back in full! If for any reason my book climbs to the top of the best sellers list, I’m going to get some cash. I won’t plan my future around it but it’s nice to think it COULD happen. Maybe! LOL
The audio version of my book is currently number 670,364 in the Audible chart and 496,762 on the regular Amazon book chart. If you want to help me inch a little higher to celebrate finally settling my advance debt, Fat Gay Vegan: Eat, Drink and Live Like You Give a Sh!t is available for less than £5.00 in both paperback and audiobook at time of writing this blog post.
If Amazon is not your cup of tea, many independent bookstores around the planet would be so very happy if you ordered my book via them. HIVE is a UK web shop that fulfils book orders via independent retailers. Click here to see my book and ebook on their platform. Or shop with your fave local bookstore. They will order the title in for you.
Three and a bit years after my book was published is a strange time to reflect. I don’t owe any money to the publisher, veganism is EVERYWHERE, and the world is still in the midst of a global emergency. It feels like a million years since my book hit the shelves but it was only three years.
So much has happened since my childhood dream came true. Maybe it’s time to start putting another dream into action.
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