Donell Barlow wrote and self-published her first book, a creative nonfiction memoir entitled Medicine Tracks, in 2018. Publishing her book brought to life a vision she had had for some time, but she also had a realistic understanding of the kind of multi-faceted marketing necessary to succeed as an author in today’s market.

I began working with Donell in 2017, with the first draft of her manuscript and have assisted her with various stages of her journey with Medicine Tracks.

Substantive editing: On the first read of Donell’s manuscript, I provided a “substantive edit,” which is a round of editing that focuses on ideas and concepts. Is the story compelling? Can readers follow the storyline easily and clearly from beginning to end? Is it emotionally engaging and satisfying? Does the story fulfill the expectations that the author has created? I provided comments within the manuscript, a 9-page feedback and discussion document on the story, and a write up of coaching-style writing strategies for rewrites.

Copy editing: When Donell had completed a second draft, I read the document again. This time, I provided copyediting, focusing on final, polishing details. I corrected grammar, punctuation, and tense errors, making the document readable and error free.

Manuscript design for print and ebook: When the manuscript was finalized, we created and applied beautiful interior formatting and an original, full-color cover design for print-on-demand through Amazon. We also converted the design for ebook distribution via Kindle.  I set up the Amazon distribution channels, research keywords, provided a product description, and submitted and reviewed the proofs.

Marketing strategy: We created a marketing plan for Donell to organize all her options for marketing her book. The plan included direction for integrated marketing across her website, two social media channels, and email, as well as sample posts and suggestions for gathering supplemental content (like photos). We also consulted on a book trailer video.