From a Mom who worked full-time to full-time Indie best-selling author with 28 books - Ann Charles

At this time, I'm an "Indie" author only, no connection with any other publishers. However, I didn't start that way.   I initially struggled to land a big publisher, making it up through the levels at a Big 5 publisher back in 2010, but at the final acquisition meeting, the marketing department thought there wouldn't be a big enough audience for my award-winning novel (Nearly Departed in Deadwood). So, I was rejected. Another publisher liked my writing style but didn't want my book--they wanted me to write stories per their templates, but I knew I wouldn't be happy doing that, so I turned it down.    At first, I thought that this was going to be a horrible ending for this particular book, but it was actually a beautiful beginning to my best-selling series. My agent at the time and I decided to go forth with the book and create a small press. We published my books and several other authors for a few years while I continued to work a "day job" as a technical writer, putting in 80+ hour weeks at the two jobs combined while being a wife and mother of two young kids (my husband has been a major player in helping to make this publishing career possible, playing full-time father while I was juggling my two careers).    In the middle of 2013, I was finally able to quit my day job financially and write full time, but I soon realized I didn't have time to be a mom, write books, publish my own and other books via the publishing company I co-owned, and maintain my sanity. In 2015, I broke off from the publishing company, took back all of my books, and went forth on my own, publishing as "Ann Charles" and that was it--no publisher umbrella. I haven't looked back since. As of May 2020 and the release of the 11th book in my Deadwood Mystery series, I'll have published 28 books (2 of these are co-written with my husband) since January 2011. I have 5 different series running at the moment. They are a mix of mystery, humor, adventure, paranormal, romance, and whatever else feels right.    I have found some amazing readers who not only support me by buying my books but help me tell others about each release and my backlist. A bonus is that every June I go to Deadwood, South Dakota (where the Deadwood Mystery Series is set) and we have the Ann Charles Fan Party Weekend with several book signings, other fun group events, and a big fan party with special guests toward the end of the weekend. It's been a wild ride so far and I'm looking forward to seeing where I go from here in this business.   Website: www.anncharles.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnnCharlesAuthorPage/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnnWCharles Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Ann_Charles/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/AnnWCharles/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDthaBTOMKJ7Yfl7RS40REQ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/becoming-parents/message