As a burgeoning author, I become terribly self-involved, and when I say "terribly" I do not do so with any hyperbole. My tendencies toward self-involvement and self-aggrandizement during my own process have been horrible--if not in my word and deed certainly through my thoughts. Working for Craig's team in this instance has been enormously valuable to me in that the process has forced me outside of myself. While I have my criticisms of his book, I am vested in its success as one who supports its purpose and message: that we all need accountability (not just those of this with this or that sin).
Promoting the book has required setting aside specific, focused time for the benefit of another's exposure rather than my own, which has been a considerable task given my limited time after beginning my new job last week. Giving up time is a hard thing for a writer to do. We have so many tasks already before us with our own marketing, generating content, and revising on our way towards publication. Working on another's book pops that bubble if only for an hour or two on a regular basis, and that is very worthwhile. And rewarding. And empowering. Despite my own failures in Stronghold's launch, I know that Open's release will prove successful, for it is not the project of a lone writer but of a group of people coordinating their efforts that a message might be spread. Being a part of that is exciting for me.
And frankly, it's been immensely humbling to be part of a book launch that will likely have far more readership and benefit to the earth than mine ever will. I do not say this flippantly, working with the Open team and promoting it will likely bear far more fruit than Stronghold, and I am indeed humbled by that — to come alongside of projects so much larger than myself and be considered a participant in the success is a great privilege.
Overall, it's shown me the joy of serving other authors for both the benefit of their careers and, also, the readers who will experience their book. The practice of doing so has proven emotionally and psychologically healthy for me to get outside myself and my own world, and it has been a means to use my abilities, knowledge, and talent as a way of serving others with more than my original work. If you are a writer, I recommend you spend some time considering how you can help other writers' work get exposure (and no, I am not begging for more help on Stronghold).
Frankly, I hope that my work with Open is just the beginning of my assisting other authors and creatives in their ongoing success. I do not know to what degree my work will result in tangible sales, but I feel an inherent joy simply by spreading the word from another author in whose work I believe.
Open is available NOW on Amazon.com, but you can win a copy from this blog!
Here's how it works: Tweet/post with a link to the site Get Open site or the Open's Amazon page and the message "Accountability = Being Open" before Saturday, August 3rd. You do not need to link to my site, just the book's site, and then hit me back at cj@3lcpublishing.com with a notice of your linking/post. Though you are encouraged to post about the book as much as you like, only one entry per person/twitter account will be accepted.
That's it. You will be entered into the running for a free copy, mailed to you, and two participants will be selected on Sunday, August 4 and notified by e-mail!
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