Sightings, support, signings, and sweat: A week on from publication
And a bestseller! Kind of.
I write this after a day of writing my gothic horror novel, so forgive me if the words don’t flow as well as they should, I’ve already wrote 4,000 of them. Tomorrow, Thursday 3rd of October, it will be one whole week since Look Up, Handsome published.
One whole week of being a published author.
One whole week of being able to say with (some) confidence that I am a romantic novelist.
In that week, I’ve had sightings of Look Up, Handsome out in the wild. I’ve cried at the support. I’ve signed the book a few times now to almost perfect the Saturn inspired signature of mine. And I’ve woken up in anxious sweats, worried that this is happening and that people are reading the book.
Let’s start with the gross bit.
The sweats
The sleep thing is probably the most negative thing of this experience so far. Leading up to publication, I had this anxious knot in my stomach that this was really happening. Reviewers were sharing their opinions of my work. An author should never read their reviews, and I tried, I really did. Mostly, they were great reviews. Occasionally, not so great. But this being the first time my work has reached audiences like this, I had to adapt and accept that my work was going out there. That it is no longer mine. That this is now part of my experience. That for every less than enthusiastic review, there are those who resonate with the story, the characters, and find enjoyment in what I write, and that is all that I can ask for. I don’t berate anyone who didn’t enjoy the story. I’m grateful they even gave me and my book a shot.
My negative thoughts and raging paranoia, however, told me that they were just going to get worse. That my average rating would plummet. That people were going to hate this story and that it would not resonate with them like it did me and my publisher. So, come release day, and the days that followed, I’ve been waking up sweating at all hours, worried that it’s all been a fluke. Worried I’m about to be ripped apart online and told to never write ever again. Why is it that we always focus on the negatives?
I suppose that’s why I opened with it, so I could move past it quickly. My goal here is to share all facets of the author experience, and this is my experience.
But it’s not all doom and gloom.
The support
If you saw my Instagram on publication day, and even leading up to it, you will have seen that I was overwhelmed with so many people sharing their support. My friend said she had to stop clicking through my minuscule Insta stories because it just got too much. I was overwhelmed with how many people shared congratulations, told their friends and followers about the release, celebrated with me. People shared my cover, and helped get the word out that Look Up, Handsome was now out in the world. I even had people share their wonderful reviews of my work - thanks to Insta Book Tours and all those who participated on this tour, which is coming to an end in a few days. Your reviews have made this so worth it, and you have also helped me stay calm and collected. I’m so glad the story found you and I’m so glad you found me.
There have been so many supportive reviewers, too, who have told me they enjoyed my work. That they laughed and cried. That they loved Quinn and Noah. That they want to visit Hay. That they loved the writing. That they can’t wait for book two. That they’re going to re-read Look Up, Handsome. That it might even be their favourite romance of the year. That they might even read it every year! I mean, all of this is so amazing and I can’t quite believe it is true. That this is real life. It’s made the whole publishing thing worth it. To hear from readers on how much they enjoyed it, to hear what stayed with them, means the world. More of that, please!
The signings
On launch day, it was like a regular day, bar the Instagram tags. I woke up, feeling oddly calm. I went to the gym, worked up a sweat. Sorry to keep mentioning sweat. And then got home and merely mulled around. I don’t actually remember what I did in the day now. I might have wrote something. I might simply have been absorbed in my phone, celebrating the release. But by 5pm I was in Hay-on-Wye, in Gay on Wye, getting ready for my book launch party. Gay on Wye had my book in the window, on display on the shelves, on the tables. I couldn’t quite believe it was there. That was my first reminder that oh balls, here we go. It’s real. It’s out.
Rain bucketed down, the roads flooded, but by 6:45pm I was on the stage in Hay Distillery, being interviewed by Dale from Clocktower Books, in a room of 60 people. 60 people who came out to support me and my book! The audience laughed in the right places, and they listened as I told them about what inspired Hermione, and as I shared my love for Hay. They nodded as I told them Look Up, Handsome is meant to be a joyful experience. That I wrote it to let people escape. That Noah and Quinn aren’t perfect, that they’re flawed, but that is part of their journey.
Gay on Wye sold copies of the book at the end of the talk, and many people came and asked to get their copies signed. Some even bought more than one copy, to give to their friends.
I saw friends I haven’t seen in years. Met new people. I truly appreciate everyone who came by to show their support. It’s surprising who turns out, isn’t it?
The sightings
I dedicated Saturday and Sunday to finding the book in the wild. The moment of truth: would it be on the shelves of bookshops, or would this be a wake up call that this book existed online only?
Well, first stop at Waterstones Hereford I found it on the shelves! I almost cried. There it was - IN A WATERSTONES! I held it for ages, waiting for the queue to go down, finally braving it and joining the queue and telling the person behind the desk: ‘hey, I wrote this! Can I sign it? Am I allowed?’ Spoiler: I was allowed! And I signed it! And it had a little ‘signed by the author’ sticker and everything.
The person behind the counter was lovely, and I really cherished that moment. I did visit WHSmith and Hereford’s indie bookshop to see if it was there, but no luck.
Next, we traipsed all the way to Bristol, where the app told me two shops had it in stock. The first one in Cribbs Causeway was a bust. Despite the app saying it was there, we couldn’t find it. We then went to another Waterstones, and it wasn’t there either. On the way to carpark, dejected that we’d travelled all the way to Bristol for nothing, I realised we’d gone to the wrong Waterstones. We located the right one, and…it wasn’t there.
About to leave, my partner chanced a glance at one of the overflow shelves. And there it was! Noah and Quinn, waiting for us. Waterstones Bristol were lovely, and let me sign the copy there. It made me realise that it probably was at that first shop after all, but was probably on an overflow shelf.
Sunday, and we went for a walk in Devil’s Bridge, with a stop to Aberystwyth town later in the afternoon. Now, on the Waterstones app it says Look Up, Handsome is in shops up and down the country. People have sent me photos of it in Sheffield, Chester and Newcastle. But it doesn’t come up on the Welsh side at all. Odd, considering I’m Welsh and the book is set in Wales!
So, knowing it wouldn’t be there, and confirming it with a look of the shelves of Waterstones Aberystwyth, I asked the person behind the counter who turned out to be the manager. Thankfully, she was nice, and she took my details and asked about the book. She’s gone to the buyers meeting to ask to get it stocked, and prompt the Welsh Waterstones to stock it. Oh, and maybe an event announcement soon?
The bestseller
I admit, I knew I wasn’t going to get Sunday Times. And as publication drew closer, I knew I wasn’t going to crack any Bookscan charts or be one of those books that was everywhere. Especially when I realised just how many books were releasing on the same day as me. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel like the bubble has burst already. I’m yesterdays news now, and that’s okay. Maybe it will pick up again as we get closer to Christmas - it is a festive read after all. But publishing is fickle, and I know I am a nobody. Truly, I’m just thankful it has sold at all and has already surpassed anything I could have imagined.
But, I did get an orange bestseller banner on Amazon. Look Up, Handsome’s kindle edition was a number one bestseller in gay romance for a few hours! It even ranked well overall in Kindle books, too. For my debut, I was pretty ecstatic about that. The rankings keep moving up and down, but that coveted number one continues to allude me. But I’ve tasted it, and I enjoyed it, and I am so fucking proud of myself.
Oh, and P.S: the kindle copy is 99p for all of October!
Thank you
There are too many people to thank: but everyone on the Insta Book Tours, thank you. Everyone on the One More Chapter readalong, thank you. Everyone who requested early access and took a chance on me on Netgalley, thank you. Everyone who showed love and support on release day and this past week, thank you. And to you for reading this far, thank you.
Thank you for making this so special.
Thank you for this excitement.
Thank you for bringing me joy.
There are some exciting events coming up, including a winter romance talk with Kissing Booth author Beth Reekles, and authors with some festive reads, Lizzie Huxley-Jones and Rachel Rowlands. Would love to see you there!
Now, I have to go and try and sell some books and promote this book. I’ll continue to do so until Christmas comes. Any tips on how to do that?
This was such a lovely read and I relate so much to all your feelings here! Laughed a bit at the apology for talking about sweating. 🤣 Glad you had a good release experience overall and looking forward to meeting you in Wales!