If at First You Don't Succeed...

   To be honest, the past few months have been very busy, stressful, fun, and exciting times, all rolled into one. When fellow authors, Amanda M. Thrasher and Jannifer Powelson, and I decided to get our feet wet on the publishing side of this business, I must admit that I had many more questions than answers.
 
  It was really all of the little things that I just took for granted. Things like what is the ideal font size for a book? What about margins? Anyone know how to layout a cover? What fonts look good on a cover? How do I get all of the text to stop at the same place on the bottom of each page? (That one was tougher than you might think...) How is a normal print file laid out differently than a file for an e-reader? The questions just went on and on.


   So, with so much unknown, why did we continue down this path? The answer, as with any tough problem, was simply a willingness to learn and a drive to to see it through. All three of us had had our share of disappointments in the past, and we were not looking to see those repeated. If we didn't know how to do something, we figured it out. We asked questions. We experimented. We looked to those who have gone before us. We tried. We failed. We tried again. And I guess that's a big difference with us here at Rising Phoenix, we're not looking to be "good enough". We want to be great!

   Now, do we have it all figured out? Of course not. We've got a whole slew of mistakes ahead of us, and something to learn from each one of them. We're gonna' get up, dust ourselves off, and be even better for the experience. That's life. That's progress.

   As they say, though, actions speak louder than words. So it is my wish that every piece that is released by our label will reflect our passion to do it right and to see a project through. If not, you be sure to let me know. To date, we have released Amanda's The Ghost of Whispering Willow,  along with my children's book, Just Line Around, and Jannifer's children's book, Rachel and Sammy Learn About Trees, which will be re-released in the next couple of weeks. Look them over, pick them apart, and then let us know what you think. I greatly look forward to all comments, suggestions, questions, and critiques. After all, we all make mistooks!


-Kinsy