A Day in History - 2003

Although I had had some publishing experience with tracts, books were a whole new world to me. And as fate would have it I met a fantastic graphic artist by the name Ajam Sunnie de Great, who has now become a long time friend and without whom a lot of my publishing success would never see the light of day. Working with Sunnie I understood the process required to successfully publish a book. From editing to typesetting, proofing, cover design, printing everything, he worked with me through every step and connected me with some of the best hands in the industry at the time.

Together with a group of remarkable friends we published Debbie’s Diary in November of 2003 with 1000 copies in the initial print run. I remember that night at the printing press, I remember very well picking up a copy of my book and exhaling with gratitude that I decided to do this. In that moment I didn’t think about the sleepless night I had trying to finish the manuscript or the rejection letters from other publishers. All I could think about was ‘finally I have it in print”.

Now the book was out and I had a stack of 1000 books to sell. Luckily I have a great sense for marketing so that kicked into action. With strong support from my family, their friends and my friends we pulled off an excellent book launch on the 22nd of Nov 2003 at PI hostel in Ibadan and till date its one of my proudest moments.







Fast forward 12 year to date, I have 5 published books and a blog www.hersides.com  which I update weekly to show for my persistence. If there were any lessons I learnt along the way it would be: to know what you want, go for it in spite of the nah sayers, learn from experienced people to avoid mistakes and when it’s all said and done, celebrate yourself in spite of how it turns out.

So raise your glasses with me, here is to 12 amazing years of book publishing, to all my family and friends who stood by me, to all my readers whose criticism and positive feedback helped me hone my skills better – I pray for you all that you will experience the joy of truly living and making the most of your times.

Cheers!!!
 

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