Release days are like bees. (How’s that simile?) If you’re like me, you both hate and love bees…and I’m unusually (and pathetically) terrified of them…even though I’ve only been stung once…and even then, I hated them long before one stung me at a bus stop while I was innocently sitting, doing nothing to deserve the pain of a sting. (I promise.) But, despite all of this, bees are necessary. They are BEYOND necessary. Watch one, tiny documentary on them and you’ll know that. Reading The Secret Life of Bees helps the phobia too…not to mention getting a giant stuffed animal bee at the age of seven that you named Whassup-B when it was cool. Yay! The 90’s!
::bangs head against desk::
I cannot, for the life of me, get over my fear of bees, and much like my phobia of the little stingers, I cannot overcome the emotions of book release day. On one hand, I should bee excited—(See what I did there? See?)—on another, I’m petrified it’ll sting me. Sting me with what? I have yet to figure that out. A book release has, in fact, never stung me. I don’t even KNOW what I mean by that. How silly am I? I only know that there is a fear (a phobia) that doesn’t make much sense, and yet, I keep facing it over and over again, year after year.
What exactly am I afraid of?
I’ve written about this quite a few times on here, and have yet to get the answer I’m looking for. I think that’s because there are more than a couple of answers that would suffice. Originally, for instance, I used to think that it came down to sales, but then, I realized it didn’t. Not at all. Having just one reader is enough for me. (But having hundreds is great too. :P) I moved on from sales, thinking it must be something else, and went to book reviews, but realized a similar thing. Book reviews aren’t even for me; they are for the readers. So, I moved on to future contracts…and knew it wasn’t that because I’ve been okay thus far, but this did get me thinking about the future in a new way.
Maybe it comes down to not knowing where the next step will lead you. Maybe it comes down to a moment that you know your adventure has ended and now you must take a new one. Maybe it comes down to letting go of the past and moving forward into the future.
A book release is a new adventure for the reader, but it’s the moment of letting go of that adventure for the author.
It’s a very contradicting feeling, one I have yet to fully grasp, but then again, I think that’s the beauty of it. It’s complicated, and messy, and scary, and all-around lovely.
I think I’m ready for all the adventures to come.
Even if they sting,
~SAT
Death Before Daylight releases in 10 days! You can pre-order the last book of The Timely Death Trilogy on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, and basically everywhere books are sold. If you want to be a part of the release day, you can sign up for a release day blast by clicking here! I will also be sending out an opportunity to win prizes by helping via my newsletter.
That being said, some big things are happening, and I can’t wait to tell you all about them, but until then, check out the first book in the trilogy. Minutes Before Sunset is free! (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks.) The sequel is out too. In fact, we’ll be celebrating the sequel, Seconds Before Sunrise, September 7-18 during the blog tour.
That’s all for now. 😉 More to come soon!
Shannon A. Thompson 
I think a new book release definitely has a sting of the unexpected. For myself, I always worry that the newest book won’t do very well and that’ll be the end. There’s always that sense of limited control for me because I can promote a book until I’m blue in the face and it still comes down to people wanting it. So those periods of low or no sales feel like a sting because I worry that something I missed went horribly wrong. Guess this is paranoia and I just released my first attempt at a series box set today and waiting on the cover art for my next book (a month late due to an oopsie), so that mentality is running on high. Forget bee stings. I’m going to go with hornets on this one. 🙂
Oh, yes! The unexpected. It’s always such a surprise. Even nothing is a surprise on that day. lol Hornets works! I hope you get that cover art soon. 😀 I think it’s always fun to have other things to be working on already, but it can also feel crazy. Like, if you’re traveling, instead of coming home for a little bit, you just leap into the next adventure. Which is fun. But it can exhaust you too. Thank you for reading and commenting!
~SAT
I’m actually used to coming home and diving into things. Come from a family that doesn’t let the grass grow under our feet for some reason, so it’s kind of the norm. Really hope to get that cover art soon too. At least the bundle gives me something to work with. Good luck with your new releases. 🙂
I’m excited to see your cover art come in! I appreciate the congrats. 😀 I’m hoping once the trilogy is out I will have more time to start focusing on publishing November Snow.
~SAT
Thanks. Hope you do get to tackle that book. Always sounds like it has a special place in your heart, which is a project worth getting to.
It does. 🙂 Agreed! It’s always nice to chat with you, Charles!
~SAT
Always fun to talk to you too. Enjoy your weekend.
You too!
~SAT