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Tired of the Charade and Other Things Peppy Happy “Christian” Girls Trying to Sell Books Are Told Not to Blog

 

My life is not perfect, I’m flawed …which is why I write about flawed women. A couple of years ago I shared more personal, quirky things on my blog, but I was told by several “industry experts” this would not help me “build my platform” or “gain readers”. 
Well, guess what…
I DON’T CARE… Everything in life is not about selling a book. 
So since I’ve gone and started toward the ledge, I’m gonna pick up the pace and take a flying leap off of it!
Here are things I’m not supposed to tell you in no particular order. 
1. I don’t make enough from my books to live from day to day, I have other sources of income (and I’m very thankful for them). I’m not by money to change the core message of my stories to fit the industry requirements to be “traditionally published” in Christian or mainstream fiction (which is why I self-published.)
1B. I work hard to make each book the best I can, most books with complaints about editing have been edited several times by other people … if you want a perfect book STOP READING (yes I’m being sarcastic) … I find typos and grammar mistakes in traditionally published books. 
2. I’d love to travel the country and meet readers but it is not in my budget see #1.
3. I don’t aspire to be on Oprah/Television/Radio for my books. I get more enjoyment hearing from readers than chasing media opportunities because even when I’ve gone on television and mainstream radio in the past, it didn’t affect my book sales.
4. My life is not perfect, I’m not always happy, smiling or without stress. 
5.  While I love Jesus, am filled with the Holy Spirit and live a life dependent on GOD, I don’t go to nonprofit ministry organizations aka “church”.It is not because I don’t like people. Quite the contrary. I LOVE people. I don’t forsake the assembling of God’s because I visit other believers in their homes. That is the original context of the scripture people drag out when trying to manipulate folks into going to Christian social clubs. 
6. I don’t think being in full-time ministry is the end all be all … I’m looking forward to expanding my career aspirations once I complete my college education from a public university.
7.  Taking a month offline taught me how much I miss interacting with people in person, so I did and am doing something about it.
8. I love what I do and what I’m going to school to do even though it may never make me millions of dollars, make me famous or land me on nationally syndicated television shows (Christian or mainstream.)
9. Reviewing books is something I used to do because I like to read. Not because I am trying to get readers from other authors’ books, as authors are told is the reason we should do them.
 I rejected the box people have tried to place me in… they kept ignoring my polite refusal so I stepped out of it, doused it with gasoline and BURNED IT!