Happy Insecure Writers Support Group Day. IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh.
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going.
Thanks to this month's awesome hosts: J.H. Moncrieff, Natalie Aguirre, Patsy Collins, and Chemist Ken!
I'm skipping this month's question and going straight to my situation. Do you remember the Frank Sinatra song "That's Life" with the line "...flying high in April, shot down in May"? Last Saturday, I was flying high with the release of my middle grade science fiction adventure RESCUING MARA'S FATHER. As I usually do, I downloaded a copy from Amazon and, for fun (because I've only read the story 900 times) I started reading it that night. In the first paragraph--the first paragraph--I found a mistake. Wait, I thought I corrected that. As I read further, I found more mistakes that I'd corrected. I was sick. How did that happen?
I uploaded the wrong file. I can't blame Amazon or somebody at a publishing house. Nope. The fault is mine. First thing Sunday morning, I uploaded the corrected file. Usually, Amazon is quick to let me know the new file was accepted. Yesterday, I checked. I didn't do something right, and the setup wasn't complete. Sheesh! Could I screw this up any worse???
The revised version will be up shortly. If you already purchased a copy, thank you from the bottom of my heart and sincerest apologies for my mistake. If in the first paragraph, your copy has the words "twenty-four days" (should be "three tendays") you received the wrong file. You can download the corrected version by going to "Your Content and Devices" at Amazon. You should see the words "Update Available." Click on that button and you'll get the right one.
Another lesson learned.
To all those participating in the A to Z Challenge, have fun and good luck!
Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.
Ah, that sucks, Diane. I'm so sorry to hear. These mistakes are easy to make, but I'm thankful you caught it. A lot of authors wouldn't have made that final check.
ReplyDeleteThanks, J.H. As I said, a lesson learned. Amazon is working on notifying purchasers.
DeleteSorry about the errors you found. It's hard to catch them all. But thankfully you decided to read your book right away after it was published and load the correct version of your story. Good luck with it!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Natalie. I'm really glad I started reading right away. It's so embarrassing having those errors jump out at me.
DeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry to hear about your uploading the wrong file but I am very happy that for some reason or other you picked up the book to read it again for fun. If you had not done that you would have not noticed the error. You were able to correct the error quickly and turn it around.
Some times things like that happen.
Wishing you all the best.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange
Thanks, Pat. You're right--some times things happen. All we can do is try to fix them.
DeleteI'm sorry for your trouble. I'm sure it's just a little bump in the road. Six months from now you won't even remember it. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
Thanks for the perspective, Anna. It seems like such a big deal right now. But I'm sure you're right.
DeleteOh crap! At least you caught it quickly.
ReplyDeleteLOL, Alex. That's what I said. Or maybe something a little stronger. Thanks for spotlighting my book today.
DeleteOh no! So easy to make that mistake. You caught it early.
ReplyDelete(That same Frank Sinatra song is in my playlist this month. Not coincidentally. Mercury retrograde, they say ...)
Thanks, CV. That song keeps going around and around in my head. Not sure what Mercury retrograde is, but if Murphy's law applies, I get it. :)
DeleteOuch. I'm feeling for you. I admire those of you who know how to do all that and can survive the headaches of self-publishing.
ReplyDeleteI have openings in May if you want to do a post on my blog for promo. Love to have you again.
Thanks, Susan. Self-pubbing has its good/bad moments. More good than bad, though. Thanks for the offer to host me. I'll get in touch with you privately.
DeleteYou've had some heart-stopping moments! Good thing you re-read it once more.
ReplyDeleteAnd some arrggghhh moments, too. lol Thanks so much for your lovely review.
DeleteLove the cover makes me think Star Wars which I'm nuts about. The story sounds fun. I grabbed my copy.
ReplyDeleteWe released and anthology and had some bugs so get that dang it feeling when you think you gotta covered and oops. I don't think my partner has uploaded the new file yet but soon. I bought a copy of ours too.
Happy IWSG!
Thanks, Juneta. My whole family is Star Wars crazy. In fact, our 9-yr-old grandson beats all of us at S.W. Trivia!
DeleteThat must've been horrible to discover you uploaded the wrong file. Fortunately, Amazon allows you to fix such a mistake almost painlessly.
ReplyDeleteOh, it was horrible, Olga. I'm so frustrated that Amazon takes so long to let purchasers know they can upload the corrected version.
DeleteOh, man!! Been there. Just was reading one of my Amazon trades and found TONS of mistakes - then realized it was the proof copy I ordered that was corrected before they went on live - but it still makes my stomache hurt thinking about it. And yes, the first thing you always find in your own work is that ONE mistake!.
ReplyDeleteSee ya Friday on my blog! Can't wait to toot your horn on the new release!
Thanks so much, Nancy. Don't those mistakes JUMP out at you? Looking forward to reading your review, too.
DeleteIts a good thing you downloaded the published copy then. Every time I hit publish on a blog post, I find several errors. Done that with short story submissions too. I think our eyes see what they expect to see when we are editing. Seen it too often, like 900 times, lol.
ReplyDeleteSo true, Dolorah. I've done that, too, on a blog post or comment.
DeleteThat must have been an agonizing moment... sheesh!
ReplyDeleteAt least you caught it in time and made the necessary alterations and hopefully not too many copies have been downloaded yet.
Thanks, Michelle. Agonizing is right.
DeleteOh dear, yikes! Good thing you downloaded a copy and caught it. I've done the same thing once, and it was someone else that caught it for me. Oh, the embarrassment! Yet we learn and march on.
ReplyDeleteThe embarrassment is right, Christine. Arrggghh.
DeleteOoh ouch! Just as well you decided to read it! All the best for your sales!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Denise. Yeah, a real ouch moment.
DeleteOh Diane, what a heart-stopper! Thank God electronic publishing allows you to correct the problems. And, downloading a copy after publication is not something I would've thought to do, but it seems like a very wise idea.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lee. I'm just glad I uploaded the correct file for the print version. That would've been very painful.
DeleteI can so see myself making the exact same mistake. At least it's fixable.
ReplyDeleteThat makes me feel a little better, Lynda. I'm in good company. :) Thanks.
DeleteYikes. I've heard that MANY authors accidentally upload the wrong file to Amazon. It seems to be a rite of passage for self-publishing. :\
ReplyDeleteI hope not, Chrys. lol I've been self-pubbing since 2011, and this was the 1st time I goofed like that.
DeleteThanks so much for stopping by my blog.
ReplyDeleteWow. That happen to me before too. I was fortunate enough to be doing a cold launch and was able to correct it before others saw it. Still, it's a fear I have everytime I release a book. No matter how many times I check the files, I'm always afraid I'm loading the wrong one.
Good idea about the cold launch. I label my files well, I thought. I'm going to fear making the same mistake from now on.
Delete