“Behind every face is a powerful story, and nothing is ever quite as it seems.”
Wise words from Melissa Ann, author of Hope, Love, and Me: My Journey of Choices and Second Chances. In this book, her new memoir, Melissa shares her story of the second chances she was given after making a decision as an 18-year-old that had life-changing consequences. “The inspiration for my book was the countless second chances God granted to me,” says Melissa Ann. “My goal in sharing my story has been and always will be to help as many people as possible. I believe there is something in my story that everyone can relate to.”
The front cover of Hope, Love, and Me gives a hint of the ramifications of Melissa’s decision as a young adult and the challenges she has faced as a result. Her memoir walks readers through her life from the age of 16 to 28, showing that while choices matter, nothing is ever quite as it seems, and that second chances partnered with tenacity and resilience can result in taking back one’s life.
Taking control might well be a continuing theme for Melissa as demonstrated by her decision to self-publish her memoir. “I wasn’t a fan of going through the process of ‘selling my book’ to a literary agent and publisher,” says Melissa. “I wanted to maintain the full rights of my words and to speed up the process, I was advised to self-publish.”
With the assistance of 1106 Design, Melissa shares her story in Hope, Love, and Me. The author services Melissa chose were designing and formatting the book’s cover and interior, along with typesetting and proofreading. 1106 Design also helped Melissa out with the technicalities of making the book available online. Explains Melissa, “I chose print-on-demand so that every time a book is ordered, it then prints and gets sent directly to the buyer.” Reflecting on her experience with 1106 Design, Melissa says that she appreciated the app that 1106 Design uses to facilitate communication between authors and the 1106 Design team.
Even so, self-publishing can be challenging. When asked what was most challenging, Melissa admits that she found the waiting to be difficult. “All good things take time!” she says. Information-overload was also a challenge. As with most authors, the more she researched online, the more answers she found.
Melissa first sold the paperback on Amazon. The paperback was also made available on IngramSpark for distribution to other online retailers and brick-and-mortar bookstores. Melissa received so many queries from readers asking when the eBook would be available that she decided to produce an electronic version as well. “Not everyone is a fan of paperbacks,” smiles Melissa. “I guess everybody has a different preference!” Her next step is to get her book into brick-and-mortar bookstores.
When asked what advice she would give indie authors, Melissa says the following about self-publishing: “It takes grit and grace. Grit not to throw it all in the bucket and grace on yourself to just keep moving forward. If it is on your heart, put it on paper.” She adds, “Knowing that 1106 Design has me covered made things so much easier.”
Melissa, thanks for your grit and determination in making your important story of second chances available to the world. We hope that you will inspire others to take a chance and share their story as well.
Hope, Love, and Me: My Journey of Choices and Second Chances
Genre: Memoir
Author Website: www.HopeLoveAndMe.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/hopeloveandme
