24 hours ago I launched a Facebook page in honour of my novel-writing journey.  It is a bit premature, as I am not published, so the ‘author’ bit is not official.  But the point of the exercise is to start that process.

Part of that process, I decided, was to include friends, family and others who have expressed keen interest in this book on the journey to being published.  And that’s where you come in.  If you’re a regular reader, or even if you’re not, I’d love for you to head on over to Facebook and “like” my fledgling page.

If you have no idea what I’m talking about, well, that’s probably because it’s been a while since I last shared details about progress on my book!  So, if you’re just catching up now, here’s the skinny:

I completed a children’s novel in July of this year.  Set in 2010, it begins when a homeschooled, 12-year old boy, Simon, finds a fascinating bottle on Muizenberg beach.  When the bottle shatters shortly after he returns home, Simon is disappointed.  But, his disappointment soon turns to intrigue when he discovers that the bottle contained a 30-year old letter.  The letter is written by another 12-year old boy, Joseph C.  Simon and his 10-year old, twin siblings, Nic and Kim, decide to track down the boy.  What they find leads them on an adventure they could never have expected or hoped for.

Since completing the story, it has gone through numerous edits.  And, it became apparent to me that the hardest work happens after the book is written!  But, it’s been magical watching the book take shape as it has been worked and reworked.  I am in awe of the talent of the people who have helped me and so grateful for their honesty.  I’ve been incredibly encouraged by the overwhelming support of friends, family and even strangers.  It’s been a fun journey so far.

But, the next big step is yet to be taken: publishing.

I’ve always maintained that I want this book, and any other that may follow, to take the backseat to the more important aspects of my life.  In this season, one of my priorities is being a homeschooling mom.  If I am to do that effectively, along with being a wife to my husband, I can’t let a writing ‘career’ slip into the driving seat.  So, the concept of publishing has been one of much prayer and careful consideration for me.   I realised that even if I did get the awesome break of having a publishing house show interest in my story, I may not be able to fulfil their obligations of deadlines, marketing, publishing schedules and so on.  And I discovered that first hand when it happened not once, but twice. After numerous conversations with numerous people in the know, I’ve come to the conclusion that it would be in my, and my family’s, best interests to self-publish through Kindle and Createspace and, hopefully, a local print-on-demand company to print copies for the South African market.

Which is where this Facebook page comes in.  I want to share my journey with those who are interested without flooding the feed of my own Facebook friends who may not be interested!  Plus, numerous people have asked if they can stay abreast of what’s happening.  A Facebook page seems to be the most effective way to do that.  Eventually, if all goes well, and the book is published in the first half of next year as I hope, then the page will also be a part of the marketing process.

Ah!  The marketing process!  It’s daunting!  I started the Facebook page in July as part of a writing contest proposal.  But, the whiff of flagrant self-promotion has prevented me from publishing the page publically.  But, after a really great seminar with Val Waldeck, South African author numerous times over, I realised that the only way to get the wheels of this bus in motion is to start them rolling myself.  So, as of 24 hours ago, I clicked “publish” on my Facebook page with the hope that others will join me on the ride to seeing my book stamped “publish”.

Please join me on this daunting, but exciting ride.  Click “like” on my Facebook page: Taryn Hayes (hopeful author)!

UPDATE: It seems that the Lord had other plans that didn’t include the ones reflected on this page!  Soon after choosing to pursue self-publishing, a great publisher picked up my book and I ended up signing a contract with them.  You can read more about it here: Contract with Naledi Books.  But the long and the short of it is that Seekers of the Lost Boy is now available to the public.