Things I Won’t Do for My Next Book Launch

Look, launching a book is exhilarating and chaotic—a little like planning a wedding and then realizing halfway through the reception that you’re also the caterer, DJ, and emotional support for every single guest. I survived my debut launch, loved a lot of it, but also learned the hard way that not everything needs to be repeated.

Some things? Absolutely worth it. Others? We'll file those under "Did it for the fun of it."

So here we go. Six things I will not be doing for my next book launch—and why it's not because they were bad ideas, but because I want to be a little less feral this time.

1. Elaborate PR Boxes That Require an act of God to Ship

Did I send out beautiful, curated, handcrafted-with-love PR boxes for Without Light? You bet your bookmarks I did. Did I wrap them up like I was sending a gift to my childhood best friend? Also yes.

I spared no expense. Custom stickers. Keychains I made myself. A sprinkle of magic and an existential crisis. And while most large social media accounts posted a very aesthetically pleasing shot of the package, the truth is... that didn’t exactly translate to fast reads or reviews. They have the book—yay! And maybe one day they’ll read it—double yay! But for now, my very cute keychains live rent-free in someone’s kitchen junk drawer. (If you put it on your bookshelves, I see you. Not you!)

This time around? I’m keeping it simple. The cost, the time, the shipping (don’t even get me started on the shipping)—it was too much. I’m shifting my energy toward more sustainable and repeatable methods. You’ll still get cute content and thoughtful details, just... not a full subscription-box experience.

2. A Long Pre-Launch Hype Period That Ends in Me Whispering “Please Still Care”

With Without Light, I started hyping that thing up 8 months out. Was that wrong? Not necessarily. I was a brand-new author trying to build an audience and prove I had staying power.

But here's the thing: I blew my content load too early.

You think you have infinite angles, reels, tropes, quotes—but midway through month five you realize you’ve already used your best stuff for 12 likes and you're now down to “Here’s a blurry aesthetic photo I took on my grandmother's tablecloth. Preorder pls?”

Lesson learned. I want potential readers to find me right now and be able to go from curiosity to checkout in 0.5 seconds. The hype? It’ll be there. But I’m saving my big content punches for when I can follow them with “And guess what? You can start reading immediately.”

3. Character Art (Even Though I Want It So Bad It Hurts)

Look. I love character art. I dream about it. I stare lovingly at the pieces I had commissioned for Without Light like they’re actual portraits of beloved family members. The artist I worked with was amazing. The experience? Dreamy.

The cost? $1,000+ I didn’t plan on spending.

Was it worth it? Yes. Would I do it again for every book? I’d love to—but I also like eating and paying my mortgage.

Character art is beautiful, powerful, and often expensive—and rightfully so. Artists deserve every penny. They’re evoking emotion with color and form the same way we do with prose. And no, I will not use AI for this. (Calm down, book community. I agree with you. I’m just saying I learned quickly.)

And please—fellow authors—be careful. There are scammy accounts posing as artists using stolen images to prey on new writers. Fiverr was a great option for me to safely find someone with a style I loved, but always do your homework before paying anyone for art.

This time, I’m getting creative with stock imagery. Moodboards. Vibes. I can’t draw my characters, but I can set the scene. A single image dripping with atmosphere can do a lot of the heavy lifting if you choose the right one

4. A Large Book Launch Party

Do I regret having a book launch party? Not even a little. I felt like royalty. There was charcuterie for heaven's sake. There were friends. I had a moment, okay?

But unless I’m releasing a book once every five years, it’s just not practical to plan a full-on gala for every launch. I write too fast for that.

What I do want are pop-up events. Intimate, demure, maybe even a little out of the norm. I've got ideas. The energy will still be there. Just... scaled down to match the cadence of an author planning to be in this game for the long haul.

5. Demonizing Amazon (Sorry I need them and you might too)

Oh, the idealism. When I launched Without Light, I thought skipping Amazon might be fine. It’s a dystopian—maybe not the KU crowd. Maybe it would stand alone.

Spoiler: KU readers are the crowd. And especially for now releasing a dark romance.

And whether we like it or not, Kindle Unlimited is where a huge number of readers live.

Plus, KDP gives you a boost with ads, A+ content, and—bonus—you get to actually see your numbers without summoning a report from the depths of Mordor.

So yes, for Ruined for Her, I’m going full Amazon. Low cost of entry for readers, more visibility for me, and no need for a decoder ring to figure out if someone bought the ebook.

6. Checking My Numbers Post-Launch Like a Crazy Person

Ah, the dopamine trap. Nothing like watching your dashboard with the intensity of a Wall Street day trader to remind you you’re a fragile creative soul in a capitalist hellscape.

IngramSpark is slow as hell. I didn’t get my actual numbers until halfway through the next month. And when I did? Let’s just say, I didn’t exactly break the internet.

Did I hurt my own feelings? Of course. Did it mean my book wasn’t valuable or powerful or worthy? Absolutely not. I just forgot that I’m not here for instant validation—I’m here because I love writing stories that connect with people. Whether that’s ten readers or ten thousand, they matter.

But no, I won’t be refreshing dashboards at 2am anymore. I’ll be busy writing my next book.

So that’s the path I’m taking... for now.

I’m sure I’ll discover more launch missteps as I go. (Maybe there’s a Part Two to this blog in my future.) But for now, these are the big things I’m consciously not doing this round. And not because they’re bad, but because they need to fit the season I’m in as a growing author.

Here’s to doing things better, not bigger.

Here’s to less burnout and more joy.

Here’s to Ruined for Her, the next book coming your way October 7th, 2025.