tell me the stars chose me,

let me feel the touch of the universe in my soul.

The way it holds me gently,

roaring with it’s silence.

leaving me the deafing screams of dead stars,

a graveyard of dust and dreams.

I remember the light, crushing my throat,

creating holes in my flesh.

and I implode from within.

a black hole left from the ashes of the stars in my eyes.

it gets harder each day

to go on my way

and never hear you say

“stay.”

we could be fine again.

you could be mine again.

it could all be like before

you slammed the door.

you locked me in.

i’m waiting for the same old sin.

longing for it to begin again.

you swore on every star

i could always be where you are

but that wasn’t enough for you

to stay and see this through.

I like it, but it can be fairly complex. I just published my first book A Collection of Short Stories through KDP. It has a cover creator, which can come in handy. You can go ebook or paperback. You can also opt for expanded distribution for your book to be distributed to other stores, but you make less that way because the stores make so much, then amazon makes so much, and then you make whatever is left. Amazon charges you for printing costs too. So, if you want to make money, you'd best opt for the 70% royalty. It's good if you're jst starting out or are intimidated by the thought of being turned down by a large company, or if you're just publishing a collection of short stories or poetry like I did. I've heard of D2D, which another entry covers, and I have an acct, but I'm not too sure if I'll use it. I'm a bit intimidated. But I'd check out both, see which you prefer!

OK I know the Challenge asked about KDP but I’m going to pitch these guys AND KDP and list reasons: https://www.draft2digital.com/

I learned about these guys from this lovely author’s YouTube which I will credit/link here for reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uz1YC6_EAC8

So why I liked D2D is because they simplify the whole process and they also kinda “stick it to the man” (the “man” being Amazon - let’s face it, bookworms, they shut down our sanctuaries! these people are evil!) / you can use them to publish both on Amazon as well as a bunch of other ebook platforms including Barnes & Noble (I didn’t realize they still lived), Apple, Kobo/Rakuten Kobo, and Tolino. They even distribute to LIBRARIES!!! WOOOHOOO!! And if anyone is a Hoopla/digital library fan (as I’ve had to be during this pandemic) you can boldly support your librarians here too!

**The BIG caveat you gotta remember here though is if you DO select this platform to publish you CANNOT sign up for Kindle Unlimited. The point of Kindle Unlimited is Amazon wants to lock authors in to accepting exclusivity with them as the only publisher - they’re essentially paying you pennies to keep their monopoly. Now, I understand for some folks this pays more and you need that revenue so if you do go for it, don’t let anybody judge -- it’s still the biggest book marketplace out there -- but if you ever feel little guilt twinges maybe try D2D instead, or put a few titles on D2D and see how it goes.

The other reasons I like D2D is they truly love little self publishers - they send out emails with actually insightful, helpful tips for getting started as a new author. They’re really focused on helping people succeed, and that’s something you don’t get with the Amazon folk who treat you like another cog in their writer machine.

As the YouTube I listed above also notes? It is WAAAAAY easier to format your ebook with D2D. First of all you DON’T have to upload an epub file -- you can just straight up use your Word or Google doc file and THEN this beautiful platform will format it FOR you! They even have really cute little style options you can use to make your book “pop” a bit more, and when I tried it the interface felt much more intuitive than Amazon’s ekindle previewer. Once you format your book there you can also download - for free - an epub or emobi file to distribute to ARC readers or - if you wanna fight the evil Amazon separately - directly to KDP publishing too. The YouTube link above talks about why you might want to manage your Amazon separately, since it does have different promotion tools and it’s a big marketplace -- just remember if you do this DON’T SIGN UP FOR KINDLE UNLIMITED.

Last but not least what the D2D guys give you are 1) a free ISBN number which you can then plug into Amazon 2) a Universal Book Link that you can easily copy/paste that will allow you a one-stop shop to plug your book. No more giant Amazon links or “here’s all the places you can get your book” links - just one simple router. It’s beautiful.

[Note: If you do publish on KDP separately then you’ll have to use two - the evil and the non evil links, mwahahaha]

I can’t plug these guys enough, honestly, I think they’ve really captured the pain of self publishing along with the desire to wiggle out from under the big publishers’ grip.

If anyone else has tried them out post a comment!

It’s far easier to self-publish on KDP than on some of the other platforms. KDP has an easy-to-use free service to format book covers if you’re wanting to sell a paperback. You can also create the cover illustration for a kindle format, and they link the different types of books for you. Make an author page, if you like. It’s all free. They’ll report taxes for you. They pay monthly after you’ve been selling awhile. You earn royalties with no minimum, as long as you link your banking institution. You can publish in multiple countries.

Be aware that you can publish free on Amazon and other platforms (Apple, B&N, Kobo, Google Play, etc.). But if you’re wanting to go with KU (kindle unlimited), you cannot have simultaneous ebook publication on any of the others for the first 90 days you’re on KU. (If you’ve already got an ebook on another platform or more, just take it off sale if that’s the way you’re wanting to go.) KU pays by # of pages ‘read’ (or ‘viewed’).

Here's not so much of a con as a caveat. I saw where an author published a book, only to have it removed because it had the same title as another. (She alleged that the publisher said it was not her work. I'm not positive this was through KDP.) This author was beside herself. According to her, there was no recourse. I haven't needed to contact anyone there, but it is a huge company. So I wouldn't doubt that a mixup like that could create havoc. For that reason, I'd opt for a title that's not a duplicate. If nothing else, add a discrete subtitle to differentiate it. Forewarned is forearmed.

I have an author friend who earns his main living from his books. He advised asking readers to review your work and explaining why it’s so important on the final page. He told me to not even set it up where they’d have to turn a page to see it. I guess he means not to click, too, if it’s in ebook format. (I published a couple of books in January on Barnes & Noble. To date, I have one book that has not gotten a single review. Ha! Ha!)

I know of free websites that have beaucoup information on this from authors who’ve published far and wide, 100X more than my limited experience. One is ‘Insecure Writers Support Group’ (IWSP). You can find the website online and/or it has a presence on Facebook. Another site has a TON of excellent info. But its administrators are much more serious about no self-promotion on that site than IWSP, who does allow it, but only on a specified weekly prompt on Fridays. Just ask me if you want that other site’s info. :)

i wish i would've told you i love you

when i still had the gift of nearness

but i choked on the words at the time

and resigned myself to basking in your presence

i wish i would've told you i love you

when we were gazing into each other's eyes

and wrapped in each other's arms

the words hung in the air like a poisonous gas

they had the strength to change us forever

but in the air, they stayed, for another eight months

i wish i would've told you i love you

when all i had to do was reach out

and i'd feel your skin on my palm

the screen is so cold, you know

i long for your warmth

i wish i would've told you i love you

when you were close enough to kiss

because now you're far away

and we still haven't shared our first

even though i told you i love you

months after you were here

I wish I would've told you

That I only went along with it

Because I didn't set standards back then

For whom I'd call a friend

I wish I would've told you

That I was too weak to intervene

That now, I would've put an end

To their torturous regime

I wish I would've told you

That it shattered my soul

To see the people I knew

Hurt someone I didn't

I wish I would've told you

That things will get better

That one day they'll grow up

That one day they'll feel guilt

I wish I would've told you

That I'll stand up to them, for you

But all I told you was

"It's just a prank"

And now I can't tell you anything.

I wish I would've told you how much I wished to tell you

about myself.

I wish I would've asked you more questions,

wondered more about your past and your loves.

I wish I could stomach the foods we used to eat together,

the chocolate cake we shared every Thursday.

Wishes haven't yet freed me from the pain of two years

but I know your own flutter next to mine.

And each time I'm able to share a piece of cake,

my thoughts will always shift to you.

I wish I would’ve told you.

I lied.

A sweet and somber tale.

Coming freely.

Ever so fleetingly.

It seemed right; I didn’t try to fight.

Yet I must be true.

I don’t love you.

I wish I could have told you

Before the war,

Before all this,

Before I became the only person to walk these streets,

Before you left,

Before we all did,

We were never meant to be together,

But never to be apart.

So please, forgive me for what I am about to do.

I truly am sorry.