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In Detour: Lose Your Way, Find Your Path, I talk about a personal spiritual journey, but it is also universal. In addition to the personal story, there is a universal element that readers can connect with in their own lives.

I went with a hybrid publisher, Atmosphere Press. They have a vetting process that does not accept everybody. If they do accept you, their arrangement is that you pay them for the layout, editing, and publishing, and then the sale proceeds go 100% to the writer. Before I submitted my book to them, I already had a website, a social media presence, and a complete manuscript professionally edited once. They took it to the next level. It was not a requirement to have all of this complete but it does increase an author’s chances of being accepted by this hybrid publisher.

When I was writing the book, I was a single mother of a young child and had a corporate job, so I would get up early to write for 30 minutes each morning, Monday through Friday. That is how the book was written, and it took 8 years to complete. The past two years were social media and publishing, so it was a total of a 10-year effort.

In most instances, I changed the names of the characters.

You have to just sit down and do it. This is the most difficult part.

There are no images in the book, but the cover design is indicative of my brand, which is also translated into my website and social channels. I worked with a graphic artist to create the cover, and we went into a lot of detail on color, fonts, etc. I had a vision in my mind of what I wanted, and this artist was able to translate that. I use the same images for my events. I also created a logo that has to do with the Zia symbol, a native American symbol used in the state of New Mexico flag and license plate. It is a variation of the Zia symbol and I use it on the Detour cover.

I don’t have any unpublished books. I do have ideas for a second book.

I have a website and two social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram. I have a marketing representative that I hired to do monthly posts for me in those areas. I also do book signing events that I arrange on my own. I would like to add even more book signing events in 2025.

When I give books out, I ask people to review them. Atmosphere also provided me with a few book review services.

I am old school, and I prefer to read print books.

My favorite authors in my genre are Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat Pray Love) and Cheryl Strayed, who wrote Wild.

I would have entered more writing contests first before going with the hybrid publisher because some contests will not accept you if you are already published.

Write, write, write!

As I was leaving Santa Fe and reflecting on the 7 years I had spent there, I wanted to convey to others the transformation that I had experienced while there and the people I had met that had influenced my transformation. I wanted to tell my story.