Robert E Kreig's Blog

My First Blog

Hi.
My name is Robert E Kreig and I make things up.
​This, my first blog, will be used to discuss my first book, Long Valley.
There is a page dedicated to Long Valley on my website where you can find out more regarding the book.

Why I chose to write Long Valley.
My reason behind Long Valley was to use it as a form of escape. My day-to-day job of teaching is one that I whole heartedly enjoy, but there are some strenuous times that occur in and out of the classroom and I needed a hobby to help me unwind. I chose to write.
I found the experience of creating, and ultimately destroying, a great way to relax. If anyone is considering writing as a form of relaxation, I can highly recommend it.
It's easy enough to do.
You just need to start.

Releasing Long Valley.
Completing a book is one thing. Selling a book is another.
This is something that could be either a real self esteem builder or leave you feeling smashed to pieces.
I reached out to the big publishers and literary agents with little response. I could have let that end my hope of getting published but I pressed on. Eventually, with no luck following the traditional roads to publishing, I turned to releasing the book myself.
Some research on the internet led me to a website for self-publishing. The people at Fontaine Publishing Group have been exceedingly helpful with my endeavours and I would highly recommend them to any new author, particularly Australian writers.
Yes, I had to pay some out of pocket expenses, but my book was published.
No, I haven't made all that much money back from my investment, but my book was published.
I then used social media to help promote my work and have had some great responses. There are many other authors out there doing the same thing and they are all so encouraging. 
We writers have a great online community.
Kind words, review exchanges and helpful criticisms have helped with future projects. I feel encouraged to press on and write more.
I also created a book trailer to promote Long Valley, using movie editing software. I brought some stock photographs, wrote some catchy words and hit a couple of keys on a piano to make a simple (and I mean simple) soundtrack. Uploaded to YouTube and watched by me several times.
Too easy.
It was less costly than paying someone else to do it for me and I believe it correctly reflected the tone of the book.

Where To Next.
Whilst Long Valley is out there, sitting on the cyber-shelves of stores like Amazon and iBooks, I've decided to pay more attention to my next book and the one after. I will, on occasion, post something on Twitter and Facebook in hope to spark people's interest, but my focus is the stories that I haven't told yet.
I think that if we become too bogged down in what we've completed and how it is doing in the market, we can get discouraged. The first book of any author, realistically speaking with some exceptions, is not going to do all that well. It's the FIRST book.
So, I'll keep my hobby of writing as a form of release and escapism, fun and enjoyment. Making it a business was never my intention.
Writing shouldn't be a task. Writing needs to be fun.

So now I must go to have some fun.

​Robert E Kreig.