Birds of a Feather welcomes Lydia Carey to the nest

Since moving to Mexico City, Lydia Carey has fallen in love with the motion, radiance and utter chaos that is this her adoptive hometown, and writes about it in her Mexico City Streets website where she gives us an insider’s view from the sidewalk. She is co-owner of Verbamate, a translation and editing business, the associate editor of Luxury Latin America, and the author of the “Mexico City Streets: La Roma” guidebook.

Being an author is thirsty work! So grab yourself a coffee and let’s hear about Lydia’s maiden journey into self-publishing.

Author Interview: Lydia Carey

How would you describe the type of books/genre you write?

Up until the publication of my book, most of what I had been writing was travel and food-related freelance pieces. This, my first book, is a both a living and visiting guide to a Mexico City neighborhood, Colonia Roma.

What motivated you to start writing?

I think I’ve always had a passion for both writing and reading, filling my journals with what I considered edgy poetry, writing descriptions of events in my head as they happened. Traveling for the past ten years and learning a second language taught me the powerful force of words and the vast chasms of distance that separate us when we don’t speak the same language.

My hope is to tell the stories behind the stories and connect people through them.

Tell us the journey you went on to get your books published (e.g. direct on your website, self-published, assisted-publishing, traditional publisher)

When I started working on my book, I not only felt that I didn’t have the credentials to get an advance from a publisher, but additionally that the proposal and acceptance process would take too long. I wanted to get started on my project right away. I had several friends who had published through Amazon’s Createspace platform and was convinced that that was what I would do. However, as I looked into the service I realized it had its limitations – on space, paper type, etc. Then, once I inputted my page count and the fact that I wanted to print in full color instead of black and white (color was important to me because of the book’s photos and maps) the price calculation came out as $17 for me as the author! That meant to make any money I would have to sell it for at least $20-25 a book.

When I looked at the average prices for big name guidebooks like Moon or Lonely Planet hardly any passed the $20 threshold. That in addition to the fact that I knew that the Createspace books would never look as glossy as I was hoping my book would be, made me decide to print it in an traditional way and put up a e-book version through Amazon’s Kindle’s publishing service.

So, I hired a graphic designer, who was someone I had worked with in the past and trusted, despite the fact that she didn’t have any specific book design background. I traded with a former editor that I had worked with to edit my book, had my partner, who is a native Spanish speaker, do the translation of the text, and had bevy of friends and family proofread both the English and Spanish.

Once my files were ready I went from printer to printer – which in Mexico City are located mainly in a single neighborhood – with my designer and got quotes for the specific parameters of the book (size, page count, number of tones, paper type, number of copies) and honestly, chose one of the only ones I could afford. Three weeks later I had 500 copies in my spare room. Seven months later, I had sold all but about 120 copies.

Meanwhile, I had been reaching out to conventional publishers both in the United States and Mexico using my completed book as my resume. I wanted to get a publisher for my second edition and the subsequent guidebooks. After reaching out to 5 or 6 companies in both the U.S and abroad, I connected with a Mexican publisher through another writer and they wanted the book! They will be printing the following edition and the subsequent books.

In the end I might have made more money on this first printing if I had used Createspace (considering all the other costs associated), but I liked my final product more than I think would have liked theirs.

What publishing elements do you most enjoy and most like to avoid, and why? (e.g. design, marketing, formatting etc.)

The marketing side of the book was definitely the most difficult for me, for two reasons. One, I had absolutely no experience marketing a book, either in the U.S. or Mexico, and was going in totally blind. Two, as an independent author I just didn’t have the same network to work with. Large bookstores and shops often won’t work with individual authors, only distributors or publishers.

As far as what I most enjoyed, having intimate control over the design and images was very satisfying. Working with talented people that I chose myself was a huge help logistically and emotionally. While I was going through this massive learning curve I had moments of extreme frustration that I was able to talk through with my team. Despite feeling the weight of responsibility for everything that went into the book, in hindsight it was great to have total control and it was an indelible learning experience that will serve me in the future.

With the hindsight of being a published author, anything you would have done differently?

There were things I could have avoided paying for and things I wish I would have spent more on. For example, I hired someone to make my maps but in the end my graphic designer had to re-do them to fit with the final design. I rushed into a decision about a printer because I had someone bail out on me at the last minute and was on a deadline. I should have taken my time in finding the right person.

What tips or advice would you give an aspiring indie author who is looking to self-publish?

Following up with what I just said about having patience with the process, I also think there comes a time when you just have to stop editing, stop adjusting, make decisions and move on. I had moments of real inertia due to fear and just had to push through them and get things done.

I also think its important to surround yourself with people you trust and that do good work, You can’t do it on your own and its important to have a strong team – for both professional and emotional support.

It’s also important to use your networks and contacts – for advice, for help, for getting an outside perspective. I reached out to everyone I could that had written a book, designed a book, written a guide or self-published to get their input.

What marketing or promotional tools or techniques do you use to reach your readers?

I hosted several launch parties in various locations, approached local businesses to sell the book at their locations, wrote guest posts on other travel websites, and constantly posted on social media.

I also listed the book on Amazon through their outside book seller program and uploaded both a Spanish and English language kindle version. I followed up with everyone that I had a contact for that purchased my book and asked them to write me a review on Amazon. I continue to promote the book on my website and through email marketing campaigns.

What impact do you want your books to have on your readers?

I hope they will help to peel back the layers of one of Mexico City’s neighborhoods. I fell so deeply in love with La Roma and Mexico City during the time that I was writing the book and I want that love of place to be transmitted to my readers. I hope it will encourage them to visit one of the most amazing cities on earth.

What is your latest book about?

I’m currently updating my Roma guidebook and working on my next (no spoilers!) as well as an online guide to all things Mexico City for English speakers

What’s next on your writing journey?

I continue to freelance for various online and print publications. While I continue to love writing about the food, drink and history of Mexico City, I am looking to shift towards work that involves a greater level of investigative research.

Author Bio for Lydia Carey

Lydia Carey is a freelance writer and translator living in Mexico City. She is the author of “Mexico City Streets: La Roma” and regularly blogs about her adoptive hometown on her blog www.mexicocitystreets.com. Most days you can find her, taco in hand, enjoying the view from the sidewalk.

Connect with Lydia on:

• Twitter: @MexCityStreets
• Facebook: @MexicoCityStreets
• Pinterest: @CareyLydia8
• Instagram: @MexicoCityStreets

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