Beyond's Release
To start off with, I'd like to go ahead and admit I'm a little bit late (as always) in updating this blog, but... I'm glad to finally be able to write that Beyond is done. It's available for purchase on Amazon here:
Hardback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D83CQ4WZ
Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Ud-Din/dp/B0D83NGLS3/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
It's been a long journey to get here, one filled with the highs of completing any artistic endeavor, and the lows of facing repeated rejection. At the end of this journey I'm not quite sure how I feel... it's like a strange combination of being overjoyed and simultaneously underwhelmed. Being able to see the book on my desk, fully realized and formed is wonderful but... there's always a feeling of discontent lingering within me. Should I have not published it? Did I miss something major which everyone else will see in a second? Is the story even worthwhile?
Some days it's truly depressing to see how ultimately my book ends up as nothing more in a drop of a sea of hundreds of thousands just like it, one which is constantly expanding. This isn't even mentioning the recent rise of AI, which seeks to further sink my book like oil spilling into the sea. Even as I began to write this post, Wix has become much more aggressive in encouraging me to start using Artificial Intelligence to write for me. Admittedly in some strange way it's almost satisfying to see these AI writings, as they remind me that there are many who cannot even dedicate themselves to any kind of craft yet seek to reap its rewards. Yet generally, I find myself feeling as though my efforts are being washed away day after day.
I also can't forget about my attempts to become traditionally published, and the embarrassment that a single spark of hope still lingers within me telling me that perhaps Beyond might one day find itself upon someone else's shelf. That reminder that I had written something which didn't make the cut, only furthering that sinking sensation of failure slithering around me.
However, in saying all of this, when seeing my friends and family hold the book in their hands, and seeing them enter into the world which I have so carefully constructed... I feel pride. A strange sort of pride which slowly seeps its way into my soul and warms it from within. That comforting thought that at least someone, somehow, has found something inside of what I've created which they enjoy.
It's a mixed bag, and one which I'll likely spend some time stewing in for the rest of the summer until I begin to properly push forward into my next endeavor. SpringKeeper continues to thump in my head while The MayFly whizzes around it, so I hope it won't be too long before I'm able to set them free. Not to mention The Patchwork Soldier and Paper Prince wandering aimlessly alongside me, waiting for me to write them into reality as well.
For now though, I have to keep on reminding myself that it's only been a week since I released Beyond. I still have a few more cards up my sleeve to try and play to see if I can extend its reach, and who knows, maybe it will end up on someone else's reach aside from mine and those around me. Social Media Marketing is... truly something baffling to me as it buzzes back and forth that I can only describe it as a word which doesn't exist: Buzzling. We'll see how all of it goes I guess.
I'd say I'll be taking a break but we both know by this point thtat I hate waiting, so I'll just say that I'll be seeing you soon once the next journey begins. After all... this road never ends, and that's just the way that I like it. Or maybe it's the journey that doesn't end and the road that does.
Who knows?
Who cares?
I do. But then again, I'm coo-coo!
Be seeing you soon,
- Ud Din
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