Photo by Gemma Evans on Unsplash
A few months ago, my friend Amanda Cleary Eastep read a letter I wrote to a group of writers and replied with this gentle encouragement: “Have you ever thought about putting your letters into a book?”
At the time, I was torso-deep in fundraising for fertility treatments and unable to manage anything more beyond that an my normal day-to-day life, so I thanked her heartily and told her I’d think about it. Then, I decided to do it. Then, I miscarried. Then, I decided to do it again. (That is one of the great freedoms of self-publishing – the ability to change one’s mind easily.)
And now, finally, the book is compiled and is going through the final steps to come out on November 14th of this year. The book is called Love Letters to Writers: Encouragement, Accountability, and Truth-Telling, and it’s comprised of 52 letters I’ve written to writers over the past two years.
The topics range from how I manage when I feel overwhelmed to my thoughts about marketing to some more personal messages about the struggles that have filled my personal life this year, all with the hope that they empower the writers I love in this life of words that we have all chosen.
I’m very excited about the book, and I hope you all will find it meaningful, supportive, and even a little bit challenging.
My challenge, of course, is to get this book into the world as professionally and successfully as I can, and I’d love your help in that. If you’d like to help me launch this book, I would be thrilled. As part of the launch team, you’ll receive a free Advanced Reader’s Copy of the book as a PDF this Friday, and in exchange, I ask you to help me spread the word via social media and leave a review on your favorite book site. It’s a low-key dealio.
As part of the team, you’ll also have the opportunity to help me select the final book cover, offer suggestions about where I should market, and be a part of a fun giveaway when we hit key milestones during the launch week.
If you’re interested in helping out, just ask to join our Facebook group, or send me an email at andi@andilit.com to tell me you’d like to be on the email list instead (or in addition to the FB group if you’d like).
Thank you so much, my friends. I can’t wait to show you this newest creation of mine.
By the way, I’m giving away two copies of the wonderful book Gather at the Table over on my African American history and genealogy blog, Our Folks’ Tales. Come on over and make a comment to enter.