I’ve created and designed a lot of books during my lifetime, all for other authors, using their content and their designs. This is the first book I wrote and illustrated (and later self-published) to celebrate my son’s second birthday. What you see is the prototype. Only one exists and it is well-loved. I was pretty proud of the accomplishment, and even sent it out to several publishing houses, all of which rejected the book. That didn’t come as a big surprise since I tempered my expectations with the knowledge that getting a book published by a publishing house is very difficult, even more so for a children’s picture board book. So Noah’s Noodles remained in our home to be enjoyed time and time again. It took five years for me to realize that it would make a great ebook.
November 18, 2012, was the first day Noah’s Noodles became available on Amazon’s Kindle ebook platform. It’s a small self-publishing effort, even though it took a lot of work to get there. It introduced and demystified the process of self-publishing through Amazon.
In hindsight, I don’t know why I waited so long to do this. I think part of me was either afraid of failing or imagined the process to be too complicated and time consuming to attempt. As I dug out my old Photoshop illustrations, I realized the most important thing of all: what I had was just as good as the thousands of picture books I’ve read to my son over the years.
I read the manuals, consulted the Kindle Direct Publishing forums for tips, and dived in. For the most part, it was a pretty painless task. I had all the original illustrations. Working them into a Kindle format was not difficult. Amazon provides sample books that you can modify for your own needs. Once I had the book completed and compiled, I uploaded it and within a day it was live and downloadable. Noah’s Noodles was available for anyone to read. Three years later, the process is even easier.
When I shared the news with my family, my son immediately ran out of the room. I thought I had I upset him. Thankfully, I wasn’t left curious for very long. My son returned, presented me with one dollar of his own money and said, “I want to be the first to buy it!” His faith in me made my heart melt. I’m not going to spend that dollar. I may even have it framed.
Noah’s Noodles will surely appeal to any new parents with children in their formative years. I have yet to see a kid turn their nose up at noodles. If you buy the book for your children, first of all, thank you! I appreciate your support. If you enjoy it, please spread the word. Be sure to rate the book and/or leave a comment.
A lot has happened since my first foray into self-publishing. I’ve written a couple feature length screenplays and have written and sketched out another picture book. I have also completed the first draft of my first novel.
Exciting times lay ahead!
