In preparation for the creation of a publishing company to bring The Nine Devines of Chippewa Falls into the public light, I listened to countless podcasts and read a multitude of blog posts. There was one common theme of the people who walked the path of independent publishing before me: “you are going to make a lot of mistakes.” I tell my students the same thing when they are learning something new, so that sentiment rang true. What I didn’t anticipate is the sheer number of things I got wrong. Who knew that book cover art needs room to “bleed”? (Well, lots of people know, but that’s beside the point). There have been, however, a couple of things that I have gotten right. Two examples came into focus when a man named Craig Swoboda contacted me.
The mere fact that Craig was able to reach me was the result of the first thing I got right: the placement of my email address on the back page of the book. In his correspondence, Craig wrote affectionately about Jim Devine, the only grandfather he knew. Jim was the stepfather to Craig’s mother, Dianne Claire Robinson. Craig wanted to let me know how much he enjoyed the book, but in a very tactful and considerate manner, I had made an error. In the Nine Devines, I mentioned that Jim had three stepsons thanks to his marriage to the former Lorraine Robinson. Well, the truth was that Jim had two step-sons and a step-daughter, the aforementioned Dianne. Craig, then went on to tell some poignant stories about he and his siblings’ relationship with Jim.
Here is where the second thing a got right came into play. Throughout almost the entirety of publishing history, a printer would push out “the first run” of a new book. Often the minimum for this first run is 1,000 to 1,500 books making it quite the investment for a publisher. Many a fledging author have been buried by the literal weight of unsold “first run” books. The last decade, however, has been dominated by a new tool in the arsenal: print on demand. While this feature mitigates the risks of having lots of leftover copies, its other advantage is what ultimately sold me: the ability to make immediate changes.
When Craig kindly pointed out the mistake, I was happy to tell him that not only could I make the correction, but I could use it as an opportunity to tell more of Jim’s story thanks to the memories Craig shared. I had used this feature before including after a frantic phone call from Aunt Mary Kay (Uncle Lefty’s wife) when she was reviewing an author proof. A day before the Nine Devines was about to be released to the world, a correction was made that otherwise would have led to an awkward future exchange for the family! It was Mary Kay who suggested that we need to keep track of these previous and future adjustments and so “the Mary Kay mark” was included on the copy right page of each book. The first copies purchased by readers are inscribed with (v3) for version three. (v1) and (v2) exist only as author copies.
At the book signing event at the Local Store in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, I had the pleasure of meeting my second cousin, Craig Swobada, in person. It was there, I proudly presented him (v4) that included the mention of his mother and some wonderful details about Jim. I suspect – and, actually, it’s my hope – that there will be more versions to come as this book is passed and shared from one family member to another. And now I have another real-life example to recount to my students about how you truly do learn best from your mistakes.