The Inevitable Imposter Syndrome—oh, yay.
I've had my ebook ready for pre-order for six days but couldn't post about it.
The day is finally here! Ebook is ready for Pre-Order!
I could use the excuse that I've been "crazy busy," and yes, I was, but reality sunk in that people will read this! I mean, that's obvious, and you're probably saying, duh, Michelle—isn't that what you wanted? But now this thought is TERRIFYING and freezing me in my tracks!
Don't get me wrong—I was giddy holding my paperback proof in my hands. It was one of the most rewarding moments in my life—for about 30 seconds.
Why? Because I knew what came next and that part I hated the most—self-promotion! I'm notoriously good at self-sabotage, though. 😆 The "fake it till you make" has never worked for me, so I knew what I was up against.
“Don’t waste a good mistake, learn from it.” ~ Robert T. Kilosika
But I've learned so much during this book writing process—the beauty of storytelling, the art of writing, and the pains of self-publishing—and I especially learned so much about myself writing this memoir. Part of me wants to keep that all to myself—because what if all my work wasn't enough? I didn't write a literary masterpiece, I didn't turn 50, and I suddenly realized that I'm a gifted writing savant! Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
I need to quiet my brain that keeps shouting—What if the book receives terrible reviews? What if no one buys it, and all I hear is crickets? What if people hate something I worked so hard on?
Am I selling you on my book yet? 😂
I need to continue reminding myself that this story was so powerful that it pushed me to do something I've never done before—let me tell you, this was not a simple task.
It's not about me so much as the experience. It's a story of Ted's rollercoaster journey and how our family held on for the ride of our lives. I share about the unbelievable strength and dedication of the staff at Mount Nittany Medical Center and how part of that released me from my medical anxiety. It's about the complicated grief of a parent's death, my father, that I couldn't process because my husband was expected to die at any moment—for weeks on end!
I'm going to ask you to read this book. I'm going to ask for reviews. I'm going to do all those things because of the people in this book, the people who cared for us, the medical staff that witnessed so much tragedy and came to work despite it, all the selfless support received from friends, family, and neighbor, and because so many lost their lives during this time. It's a story of how prayer helped give us strength and allowed us to survive to the end.
Most importantly, thank you for your ENDLESS support through Ted's illness and your encouragement throughout this book-writing process!
Amazon is now accepting PRE-ORDERS for eBOOKS, which will be available on Tuesday, October 1st, 2024.
Pre-orders and reviews are a tremendous help in getting our book noticed and into the hands of readers!
