Bridgetown is live!
What a week! Bridgetown: A Harm Reduction Novel just dropped on #BlackBalloonDay and hit #1 in the Drug Dependency Category on Amazon. All around, it was a wonderful launch and I was able to go live with both Jen Cutting and Haven Wheelock, MPH. Those videos are live on my Facebook and Instagram author pages if you’re interested.
As with all launches, there always has to be something that doesn’t go as planned, and this go around it was an incorrect publication date on Amazon. I still don’t quite understand what happened (or why) but my paperback version posted with a release date of July 31st, 2021 . . . about 8 months prior to the actual launch. This error did two things: it made the paperback version of the book appear to have been out for 8 months (with zero reviews) and also led BookBub.com to believe that the book was out for some time. This temporarily prevented them from including Bridgetown in the New Release Alert email, but only until I cleared up the issue with Amazon. Fortunately, everything is handled, and at no point did I feel overly stressed. It’s amazing what acceptance can do for stress.
And if that was the worst thing to happen for this book, I am happy.
There are so many moving pieces that go into any book launch that it’s easy to let some benchmarks slip through the cracks. But with everything I am sure to have forgotten, I am grateful for a series of amazing reviews from early readers and audiobook sales are much higher than expected. I am grateful to be in a position where I can send/donate a few cartons of books to both Haven and Jen to do with as they please. I know Jen has already ordered some copies for clients/friends of hers and that’s the best feeling.
I’ve also taken this “downtime” to do something I’ve been looking forward to for some time. My wife and I agreed to convert a shed on our property into a writer’s studio and I’ve been knee-deep in construction. I’m finishing off the walls with shiplap and drywall, I’ve insulated the gabled ceilings and added a ridge vent, and we’ve even purchased a nice patio door that opens up to the garden. I have to say . . . this writing full time gig isn't half bad. I get to do what I love, help a few others like me in the process, and create. Life is good, and now it’s on to the next one.
Bridgetown is available here.