My second book This Sea Within will launch on June 15. It’s been a wild ride getting this book out there nine months after my first book launched last September. The book had already been written and professionally edited by then, but I was on my own this time handling all the publishing parts that my good friends at Crippled Beagle Publishing handled for me the first time around. They helped me set up my on imprint Sea Stone Press to publish under, and taught me the ropes on how to publish my next book on my own.

So this time, for This Sea Within, I handled everything on my own: designing the interior, finding a book cover designer, finding a proofreader, writing the back cover copy, requesting blurbs, creating ARCs, choosing categories and keywords, uploading my files on KDP and Ingram Sparks, creating A+ pages and author page on Amazon, proofreading ARCS (I went through 3 rounds), getting editorial reviews . . . what have I left out?

Besides all that was creating a marketing plan and budget. And finally, putting together a virtual Book Tour that will start next week. Whew! I’m tired already. And excited.

GIVEAWAYS – GETTING MY BOOK INTO THE HANDS OF READERS

This is really the most important part of the book publishing process, finding ways to get my book into the hands of readers:

• Finding volunteers to read an advanced reader copy (ARC) and post honest reviews on Amazon and Goodreads
• Finding book bloggers willing to do the same and post on their websites
• Exchanging books with other authors to do the same
• Setting up a giveaway on Goodreads (it’s going on right now until June 9)
• Setting up a giveaway on Library Thing (it just started and goes until the end of the month)

PAID PROMOTIONS – GETTING MY BOOK INTO THE HANDS OF POTENTIAL BUYERS

• Getting a New Release promo on Book Bub (it will be sent to 8000 readers on June 16 as a New Adult Romance, which was the cheapest category that fit the book and my budget)
• Participating in a “Summer of Love” month-long listicle that will go out to Red Feather romance readers starting June 21
• Hiring Written Word Media to create a 5-day Facebook ad campaign in July
• Approaching local bookstores to carry my book on consignment

LIBRARY EVENTS

• In August I will be speaking at the Nipomo Library about both of my books to members of the Coastal Dunes Writing Group
• I’m working on another library event for September

SHARING THE LOVE

In case you missed it, intrepid supporter of all things Indie, Sally Cronin, shared This Sea Within with her readers on June 1. It threw a spotlight on my newest novel and included her review of my first novel When Things Go Missing.

Hop on over there if you haven’t already and share the love with her: Smorgasbord New Book Spotlight – #Thriller #Revolution – This Sea Within by Deborah J. Brasket

NEW WEBSITE PAGES

I’ve been adding and updating pages here on this website, creating a page about my NOVELS, and a page about each of my books that includes everything anyone would want to know about them, including excerpts and reviews.

Check out my WHEN THINGS GO MISSING page and give it a “like” if you approve. Do the same for THIS SEA WITHIN.

I also added a contact form for my “about page” and renamed it ABOUT / CONTACT. So far, the only people using that contact form are the same scammers who send me emails nearly every day claiming they want to help me promote my novels–for a ghastly cost, of course.

Last but not least, I created a SEA SAGA MEMOIR page, including photos and links to all my posts about our family’s six year adventure sailing around the world.

NEW REVIEWS OF THIS SEA WITHIN

Reviews have been rolling in and I want to share a few with you and invite you to visit these pages and, again, share the love.

This first is from fellow author and book podcaster Teri M. Brown. Her podcast interview of me will kick off my Book Tour next week on June 9. But before she even interviews me she read my book and posted a review on her website as well as Good Reads and BookBub. You can the full review here. Below is an excerpt.

“This Sea Within is a political thriller about Lena, a young woman on the brink of discovering who she truly wants to be. . . . When she meets Raoul, the leader of the rebel group known as the Aguileros, her world changes forever. This is an intense novel that doesn’t hold back. You’ll find yourself struggling along with Lena as she tries to reconcile her pacifist leanings to the freedom fighter mentality needed to overthrow the government. This is a must-read!” Teri M. Brown, author of Peg, Unhinged and Podcast Host

The next review is from Carole Wagener, author and screenwriter. I met her at my last library event and am so eager to read her book The Hardest Year: A Love Story in Letters During the Vietnam War. Visit her website https://carolewagener.com/

“The Sea Within tugged at my heartstrings with an American journalist, Lena’s, riveting love story with Raoul, the leader of a Central American country’s revolution, keeping my attention to the very end and wishing for more. I can’t wait for the sequel.” Carole Wagener, Author of The Hardest Year: A Love Story in Letters During the Vietnam War

This last is from The Reading Lane where you can find so many great reviews of books. Drop by to say hi and read her full review of This Sea Within. She also created this fun graphic about my novel (I have to learn how to do this!)

Here’s a short excerpt from the review: “This Sea Within slowly pulls you into its world and makes you feel emotionally connected to the characters and their journeys. What stood out to me most was how beautifully the story balanced emotion, romance, history, and self-discovery. The writing has a cinematic quality to it, and the atmosphere stays with you even after you finish reading.” ARC review from The Reading Lane

This Sea Within is ready for pre-order in ebook on Amazon, and in print on Barnes and Nobles and Bookshop. Release date is June 15!

Join me next week for my Book Blog Tour: two podcast interviews; two book excerpts; and three reviews.