A Different Perspective: Updating websites lead to wobbly handstands, eBook publication | Features

Every severe author wants an internet site. It’s the first car readers use to join with an creator. When my first quick story printed in 2015, Jennifer Preyss-Mathlouthi coated the story for the Advocate, then helped me arrange my first web site. Not certain how I might have gotten began with out her beneficiant assist.

I recurrently wrote devotionals and discovered how to put up them as blogs, then upgraded to a month-to-month e-newsletter, however that was the extent of my web site interplay. Several years handed as I tackled lengthier writing tasks. I grew to become immersed within the studying curve of fiction writing and stopped writing devotionals. My month-to-month newsletters additionally halted as I continued to wrestle with story arcs, characters and the revision course of.

With the appearance of the pandemic, websites have been not optionally available — they grew to become a vital software for advertising and marketing. However, by that point, my web site was dated. Technology had additionally gained floor, and the problem of an improve was daunting. I’d conquered a number of technical points, however constructing a brand new web site was akin to rocket science.

One writing guru is fond of claiming anybody can construct an internet site. I suppose that’s true on some stage. Unfortunately, even when I may watch sufficient YouTube movies to perceive the numerous completely different components, the clock was ticking sooner than my capability to make it occur.

Stymied, I prayed about it and looked for digital assistant assist. Then I acquired a suggestion for a brand new enterprise that focuses on serving to authors cross the end line with all of the technological necessities.

I employed the newly minted crew of 4 girls, higher generally known as The Author’s Write Hand. They have been excited to repair the technical points that gave me a headache. The duties they achieved have been: 1) Resurrecting my e-newsletter and connecting it to an e-mail server. 2) Adding the free eBook to my web site. 3) Outsourcing the web site modifications and safety points. 4) Provide ongoing assist with social media posts to drive readers to my web site. These issues wanted to be in place and working easily earlier than advertising and marketing my first guide.

Though difficult for all, we labored laborious to meet a time-sensitive deadline.

Before we knew it, Labor Day weekend rolled into our lives. I wasn’t certain till the evening earlier than if I might make our household gathering in New Braunfels, however my contact particular person and I labored out a plan so we may each benefit from the vacation.

It was a beautiful break. Our household indulged in cheeseburgers and tried out completely different snack-type desserts. The younger cousins, ages 3-9, have been delighted to see one another and performed collectively continuous. I drank sizzling tea with my daughter and daughter-in-law and caught up on the newest information.

The males engaged in rounds of chess, and the canine wrestled.

Later, the adults tried to contact their toes whereas the youngsters took turns doing handstands and cartwheels in the midst of the lounge flooring.

Our time collectively was stress-free and peaceable. My e-mail faithfully waited till late that night.

Two nerve-wracking days later, my web site was completed, and my first e-newsletter rolled out after a two-year hiatus. If you need to hear extra guide information, try my web site at marypatjohns.com. Sign up for my e-newsletter and get a free eBook. It’s a brief story about our son’s deployment in Afghanistan and was first printed by Chicken Soup for the Soul. It finally grew to become the inspiration behind the sequence of books I’m writing.

My arms and ft get wobbly when it comes to the guide publishing course of, however “Behold, God is my helper: He is the sustainer of my soul,” Psalms 54:4, NAS/