The day my fifteen author copies arrived from Pajama Press was SO exciting. It was the first time I’d seen the bookmarks they designed, which I love because they have a checklist for the list of jobs included in the book on the back.

One of the first things I did was donate a copy to the library where I work, process it, and check it out to myself. This was one of the best moments of this publishing journey, to do a photo shoot and display with a book that I helped write!

I also wanted to send each of the individuals I interviewed for the book a free copy of the book as a thank you for taking part. I wish I could be a fly on the wall to hear their reactions when they receive them!

I used one book for a Twitter giveaway and I’m giving away another copy at the MTS PD Day conference at which I’m speaking next week. That leaves only a couple of copies left for family and friends, so I ordered a second shipment of books to have on hand.

I also created bookplates on Canva using Jarrett’s artwork, and bought an archival pen for signing books. I’m so thankful for the authors on Twitter who share the tidbits of information I don’t know (I hadn’t considered my book signing signature should be different from my legal signature!) I wish there was a debut author manual, but I’m learning as I go.

Two weeks until the book is available in stores. I’m most excited to start hearing from young readers and hope they find the information useful and helpful when thinking about their future careers.