In 2014 a middle-aged mother of two got laid off after twenty-four years with the same retail company and was suddenly unemployed. At the same time, she was just finishing up her first book—which she started as a self-challenge. Suddenly, that book became so much more than a little project. She researched self-publishing, and released it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. She watched it slowly become noticed, read, reviewed, bought, and liked!!! Crazy story, but it’s true. When I first published, I had absolutely no expectations. I am a reader first and foremost, a lover of all things in the romance genre. When I decided to write my own perfect love story, I assumed three people would read it…including my mother. I made a few mistakes, one of which was publishing without a social media following or website. I didn’t have it properly edited. I had a friend “paint” my cover for me…it was awful. Not only did I spend my time writing, I spent it developing relationships with bloggers and readers while researching everything I could in regards to the self-publishing industry. Over the last two years, I published nine books, hit several bestseller lists, including USA Today, and won a few awards. My dream job came later in my adult life, and I’m so grateful it did. If I can entertain one person with my books, and have them walk away wishing my characters were real, well then I feel my job is done.

http://ammadden.com/