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I’m a Published Author …

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By marydalene

Well, sort of. It’s my own book and I’m the one who paid to have it published, but it’s still a book and it’s still got my name on it (as well as Jared and Timothy). And it’s rare too; only three copies in print. :)

Jared’s cousin Heidi was the first one to do it, but I took inspiration from her experience with Blurb and decided to give it a go myself. In April, I took our blog posts from late 2007 and all of 2008 and formatted them into a book using Blurb’s software. It took me a couple of weeks hard effort to get it all formatted the way I wanted. Not to toot my own horn, but I’m rather pleased with how it turned out. (Being a designer, sometimes the template-only option got on my nerves. The software is made for someone who doesn’t really know what they’re doing to let them get a good product. I do know what I’m doing, but I got over the limitations and just worked with what I had.) I’m happy that I have a more permanent version of our blog, since it is functioning as a type of journal for our family. I also made a DVD to go with the book that included all of the little video clips we’ve put on our blog. Such fun memories. It is something that I’ll certainly treasure in years to come.

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Comments

  1. BarbaraJune 15, 2009 at 6:59 PM

    It looks fantastic!! What an accomplishment. Congratulations. It is often really good to go back and see what happened in the recent past and how life has progressed and changed in that time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Austin's MommyJune 15, 2009 at 9:04 PM

    That's great, Mary. I've been wanting to do one too since I saw our cousin Andrea's. Some day I'll get around to it... maybe...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jason&ShannonJune 15, 2009 at 9:35 PM

    Good idea. I like the cover. I also loved Timothy's crazy hair and agree with your opinion of the part making it look crazy and not just stylish.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jocelyn RobertsonJune 15, 2009 at 11:41 PM

    Brilliant idea to include a DVD! I was wondering what to do about video clips when I make mine.

    ReplyDelete
  5. GrammyzanneJune 16, 2009 at 12:21 AM

    From a priviledged owner of the book - it is beautiful and much appreciated. Mary REALLY did a wonderful job putting it together.

    ReplyDelete
  6. JoanneJune 16, 2009 at 6:45 AM

    You'll enjoy it forever! And generations to come will enjoy it too. I love the beautiful iris picture on the cover. It makes me want to go to a gardening catalog and look for iris to plant late this fall!

    ReplyDelete
  7. LeslieJune 16, 2009 at 5:19 PM

    I've thought about doing this for our family blog. It would probably be more meaningful if I posted more often. Good for you for following through and doing it.

    ReplyDelete

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