I recently published a book entitled Blackbird Fly. It’s considered “women’s fiction,” and it’s about a woman with a dog who meets a man with a kid, and, well, I’ll get back to the story at a later date.
Right now, I want to focus on why I chose to publish it. Please note: I published it. I did not write Blackbird Fly; Kat Chandler did. “Kat Chandler” is not a pen name for me.
So, why am I involved?
Here’s the story behind the story (at least, it’s my story behind the story. Kat Chandler, who is not me, has her own story).
I’ve authored and co-authored several books. I have used a variety of publishers, and more recently I have simply been publishing my books myself. It had occurred to me that a logical step for me as a publisher would be to publish someone else’s book, but I was not earnestly pursuing this. In fact, I was working on my own next book when this manuscript by Kat Chandler kind of fell into my lap.
I didn’t know her, but my wife, Angela, did. They were talking about Kat’s manuscript, and what she might do with it, and Angela mentioned that I had some books published. The next thing I know, I’m reading Kat’s first chapter just to give her some authorly feedback.
There’s more stuff that happens next, but in the interest of brevity, let’s skip to the important part: I eventually offered to publish the book, and Kat accepted.
Why did I make such an offer? Three reasons.
1. Our values were compatible. I couldn’t publish something that made me uncomfortable.
2. I felt that as an author, Kat would work to promote her book.
3. Kat is a very good writer. In fairness, it’s not like I’m an expert on love stories. I read one book like this in high school. See, there was this girl I knew, and I wanted to talk to her, and she, well, maybe I should save this story for later. Or never.
Bottom line: I started reading Kat’s manuscript, and I immediately became interested in the characters. I liked the woman, the man, and the kid. Heck, I even liked the dog.
Again, I’m not an expert on the genre, but I know good writing. That’s why I published this book. And I don’t need big themes–as a reader, I just want a good story–but this book wrestles with some important truths about forgiveness in a very natural, organic way.
Kat doesn’t write exactly the way I do. For example, if I were telling her story, I would have found a way to incorporate Kung Fu. But she is a great writer, and I am proud to have published Blackbird Fly through TDH Communications.
Blackbird Fly is available through Amazon.com and for Kindle.