2013 begins a concerted effort to encourage other Christian writers. I start today with an interview of my friend, Chris Vonada. You will recognize him as a monthly guest blogger, who has been sharing the 10 + 1 Building Blocks of relationships. He currently has two books published with Amazon, Common Ground…Geology Happens! and Believe…And You Say?

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CAROL: Welcome, Chris. I’m impressed with the speed at which you’ve gotten these books out. Of course the process your readers don’t see has taken you a lot longer. Could you tell us what the writing and publication process was like for your books?

CHRIS: lol... yes, much longer! I was encouraged by a few friends to start writing 3 years ago. They thought it was a gift, I never even recognized it. Maybe think of this as the "initial phase" of honing the craft, trying to learn how to write well.

My first book, Common Ground...Geology Happens! was originally a series of blog posts. I started writing these about 2 years ago. Some super great friend (by the name of Carol Peterson) came up with the suggestion to self-publish these 42 posts as a compilation and book. From there, the process was pretty quick and easy, thanks to Amazon and their self-publishing arm, Createspace. I was able to pull the book together in about a week by using their tools, including an awesome support community and a solid template.

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CAROL: I love the balance in your writing between your faith and your work as a scientist. How have each of those aspects of your life been challenged through your writing? Strengthened?

CHRIS: Great question! I would say that it has been a learning experience for me. I didn't accept Jesus as my Lord and savior until later in life, and was baptized in 2000 by Pastor Tom Bary at Neptune Baptist Church in Neptune Beach, Florida. My journey to get to know Jesus really began at that point, and many of the questions that I had then are still present now. My second book, Believe...And You Say? is about how I have been able to resolve my belief in God with my education as a scientist.

Guy Kawasaki said there are four good reasons to write a book: To enrich lives, for intellectual challenge, to further a cause, and as catharsis. My writing, in general, provides an outlet for each of these reasons at some time or another. It provides me strength to soldier on.

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CAROL: Can you share a little about what you’re working on now? Any prospective date for upcoming publication?

CHRIS: Well, I've found out quickly that a good author's job is only half done when the book is published. I'm spending considerable time now marketing my work. I really enjoy this activity too!

So far as future publications, I have three that I'm actively working on right now: A book about excellent healthy relationships (I will self-publish this most likely in April 2013); The Wellspring Of Life (targeting publication date in Summer 2013); and This Is A Love Story (no date set yet for publication). I have a page on my website  www.chrisvonada.com where folks can keep track of my books and their status.

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CAROL: What would you like our readers to know about you that I haven’t asked?

CHRIS: lol.. I guess the most striking factoid about me is that I'm quite shy.

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CAROL: Please share links to how folks can get their own copy of your books.

CHRIS: Please check out my "books" page on my blog to stay up to date. Believe...And You Say? is currently available on Amazon for FREE (through 1/13/2013). You can also find all of my books at Amazon by searching "Chris Vonada."

Thank you, Carol so very much for this interview and for all of your encouragement and inspiration!!

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You're welcome and thank you, Chris for joining us today. Congratulations on your latest book launch.

And folks, did you see that? "Believe…And You Say?" is FREE through Sunday. I already have my copy...

　

MUCH STUDY WEARIES THE BODY

Earlier this month I mentioned that Ecclesiastes 12:12 spoke to my heart as a writer.

Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.

I related that there is an unending stream of books I have written, am writing, plan to write, may one day write. Because there will always be books to be written.

Today I express my agreement with the second half of this scripture as it relates to writing books and the business of book publishing.

Because no matter how much of a craftsman or artisan a writer considers herself, if she writes books, they need to be published. And if they are published, most likely they are sold. Publishing is a business, whether you seek to become wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice, hope to make a tidy profit, or just want to get your ideas into the hands and minds of others.

I have been writing for publication for 12 years. I’ve had my share of publishing success, with four books published traditionally by educational publishers. I haven’t made big bucks. I’m not enormously famous. But I’ve achieved a measure of success because a publishing company has thought enough of my ideas to pay to have them turned into paper and ink products—to print them, bind them and make them available to those lucky purchasers.

But the publishing business continues to change. And it has dragged many of us writers along with it, amid much moaning and gnashing of teeth. Even my traditional publisher has turned some of my books into ebooks.

I recently purchased a kindle. I regularly purchase ebooks for it. And I have gotten past the I-miss-turning-the-page and the new book smell and the silky feel of the cover in my hands. Now, I look forward to the convenience of finding a book, purchasing it and reading it 2 minutes later; of locating an author I enjoy and purchasing several of her books for less than the cost of one print book.

That’s from the point of view of a reader.

From the point of view of a book creator, I’m still gnashing my teeth. If I consider self publishing ebooks or self-funding publication print books, then I must become familiar with:

• Kindle, nook, pdf, ebook, print on demand, apps
• Adobe InDesign
• Smashwords, KDP Select Pro, CreateSpace
• .mobi formatting
• pixel sizes and thumbnails
• verso, retro, folio, outer margin, inner margin, gutter
• trim size, font size, font type/size/words/page; lines/page
• typography; oblique spacing, open, expanded, touching, italic, sans serif
• old style, transitional, modern, square serif, sans serif, cursive and scrips, text letters, and decorative type faces
• half title page; frontispiece, bleeds
• widows and rivers
• calculating spine width and content
• Gimp; aliased; antialiased art; bitmap vs jpeg, vector based images, rasterize
• unembeddable faux fonts
• Lorem ipsum

That’s just some of the technical stuff. Then there’s the marketing, platform building, pricing, and on and on. All of it has to be learned.

…much study wearies the body.

I’m a writer. Of making books there is no end. So I write and I study and I endeavor to persevere.

Because God made me this way.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us minds. Please help us use them and our talents in the best way we can. Please help us create things that will glorify you and lead others to you. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? What study wearies your mind?