The journey so far

Surviving Midas Launch day!!!!
​The journey so far...

In February of 2021, I signed my first traditional publishing contract with City Limits Publishing for the novel Surviving Midas. We planned launch day for August and preparations began. A cover was made, an edit of the text performed. Then, on an unhappy day in July, the CLP website crashed and never returned. 

Bankrupt. 

Two months from the launch of my novel, the entire company went under. Authors from all parts of the nation were dumped into a chaotic pool of uncertainty. What about our rights? 

My contract stated that if the publishing company crashed, the rights would be reverted to me, but here’s the problem: that’s not always the case. During bankruptcy proceedings, rights to the author's work are considered company assets. In order to repay debts, the company will continue to hold onto the book and sell copies to recoup losses. This prevents the author from moving on and trying to publish or self-publish elsewhere. 

I was lucky. 

Work on my novel had ceased a month before this final collapse, and so my novel sat unfinished on the overflowing work pile. My book was not considered an asset but a liability and I scooted on out singed but not burnt. At least, that was the case financially. 

Some lost thousands. 

What was damaged was my confidence. What did this mean for my book? Sure, it had been picked up by a publisher, but did that matter much if the company had little sense? Perhaps their financial prowess equaled their taste in literature. Maybe I was wrong! Maybe Surviving Midas (or the two other books that I had already written) was never meant to see the light of day! 

So I shelved it. I moved on. I wrote two more novels that had nothing to do with Surviving Midas, and then I pitched one to a local publisher, Walnut Street Publishing. 

They didn’t want that novel. At least, not right now. 

I left Surviving Midas up on my website complete with a description and the cover I had received from CLP. Walnut Street Publishing looked at THAT novel and requested that I send it immediately. After a few chapters in, they knew they wanted to sell my book–the book that I had given up on. The book that sat collecting computer dust in an abandoned file. 

On Tuesday, I received the first printed copy of Surviving Midas and held it in my hands. This was a ‘proof’ print from the publisher, the first of many to follow. Until that moment, I did not believe any of this was really happening. How could it be? How could there be this bright spot after so many dim times! 

I know this is the beginning of the journey. I know a lot more work is to be done, but my novel is ALIVE! And the future looks brighter than ever. :D