My Paper Baby Learns to Crawl (by Samantha Bryant)
There are so many other talented authors at my publisher, Curiosity Quills! One of them is the clever and funny Samantha Bryant, whose debut novel GOING THROUGH THE CHANGE about menopausal superheroines is unique, witty, brilliant, and even important. I can’t remember the last genre book I’ve read where women over fifty get the spotlight! I loved the book and you all should definitely get a copy to see it for yourself. The following is a guest post from Samatha herself as she talks about the process I’m currently going through: the first few months of your book’s life. Enjoy!
My Paper Baby Learns to Crawl
Whew, motherhood! They grow up so fast! My baby is already three months old as I write this. Not my literal baby—those are 8 and 15 (!)—but my paper baby. My debut novel: Going Through the Change: A Menopausal Superhero Novel. Paper babies grow up faster than the flesh and blood sort. She’s only a few months old and she’s out there in the world, making her way with or without me. It’s an exciting and terrifying time. What if she falls down? What if she becomes huge?
Like any mother, I want the best for my brain-child. I want her to be successful and well- treated. After all, I worked hard to bring her into this world and make her the best book I could.
Like any first time mother, I’ve been a little overwhelmed and unsure what the best things to do might be to help make that happen. I’ve done and continue to do what I can to clear the path for her, to help her have a good shelf life. I seek reviews and promotional opportunities so people will know about her and read her. I reach out (and that’s no easy thing for a dorky introvert like me).
But, the truth is, she’ll stand or fall on her own now. I’ve done my part, and now it’s up to her. I just hope I raised her right, and that she’ll be a good book.
It’s been quite a start. I’m proud of her. She’s stood up to criticism (we’re up to twenty-three reviews now), and found new friends. In a reversal of the usual pattern of child rearing, it’s she who is opening doors for me now.
Because of her, I was able to participate in the Read Local Book Fair in Durham, NC and will be a guest at Atomacon this fall. She’s the reason I was interviewed for a local radio show (Carolina Book Beat). She got me an invitation to write a novella for a superhero anthology, too. I guess we’re already to that “mother of an adult child” stage, where we are friends and can help each other.
Oh, and did I tell you the exciting news? I’m pregnant again. I’ve just finished the sequel and sent her to the publisher. With a little luck, she’ll join her sister in a bookstore near you in early 2016!
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Going Through the Change is going through a change in price for a couple of days in early August. On August 5th and 6th you can get the Kindle edition for free on Amazon. Check it out at: http://bitly.com/face-the-change
Samantha Bryant is a middle school Spanish teacher by day and a mom and novelist by night. That makes her a superhero all the time. Her debut novel, Going Through the Change: A Menopausal Superhero Novel is now for sale by Curiosity Quills. find her online on her blog, Twitter, on Facebook, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on the Curiosity Quills page, or on Google+.
