Today we’d like to introduce you to Jayme Bean.
Hi Jayme, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I have always enjoyed writing and creating stories, but I never truly pursued it until my thirties. I had jotted some paragraphs down back in 2010 after a trip to the Amazon Rainforest–nothing more than the beginnings of a short story–in the hopes of harnessing some of the inspiration that lingered from my visit. That slowly fell to the wayside and into the pile of my “craft and hobby graveyard,” and was more or less forgotten about. It resurfaced when my then-spouse read it while we were organizing our computer files.
He encouraged me to keep writing and turn it into something more substantial. I dove into writing workshops, and writing communities on social media, and networked my way into figuring out some semblance of how to approach turning my short paragraphs into a book. Well, nine months later (thanks to ADHD hyper fixation), I had a finished full-length book and had settled on self-publishing as my route. The rest is history, as I have now had short stories published in a variety of anthologies and am featured in several bookshops around the world. It seems like a whirlwind journey, but I guess all I needed was the right catalyst.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I have certainly hit MANY roadblocks along the way, as most do when trying something new. Publishing as a whole is a complicated and giant beast with many different routes, detours, and speed bumps. I had decided to pursue self-publishing because 1) I didn’t anticipate this going outside of my immediate family and friends, 2) I wanted some semblance of control, and 3) I didn’t want to go down the path of querying agents and publishers. I was a new mom and barely had the time to write a book, let alone send out hundreds of personalized emails.
But even with “total” control of my publishing journey, I still had to rely on so many different people and businesses to make everything see the light of day. I needed to choose HOW I would self-publish, then surrender a bit of control to things like formatting options, printing costs, and distribution. I also needed to learn to market, use SEO more effectively, build a website, network with booksellers, and keep an active and engaging social presence. What I anticipated being a fairly straightforward path ended up being a rocky and winding road with traffic, pileups, detours, and pitstops.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a queer author who writes fiction across a variety of genres. My debut novel, Untouched, is a suspenseful adventure set in the Amazon Rainforest. I continue to be amazed when people say they have read it and then followed up with the fact they enjoyed it. I have also written several short stories that are published in different anthologies.
I am most known for writing atmospheric and character-driven stories that have a focus on LGBTQ+ characters. One of the things I am most proud of is being displayed and featured by Queer Lit, Manchester’s largest queer bookshop. The fact that my tiny book from Florida has not only made it around the world but is on a shelf and has been a bestseller in a brick-and-mortar shop in England blows my mind.
What’s next?
I have an audiobook of Untouched coming out soon and am in the process of writing another full-length book. Now that my son is in toddlerhood, the time for writing and authoring has slowed to a crawl!
Pricing:
- $26 Hardcover
- $16 Paperback
- $4.99 E-Book
- Free with Kindle Unlimited
- Free with Amazon Prime Reading
Contact Info:
- Website: www.JaymeBeanAuthor.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/JaymeBeanAuthor
- Facebook: Facebook.com/JaymeBeanAuthor
- Twitter: Twitter.com/JaymeBeanAuthor
- Other: Linktr.ee/JaymeBeanAuthor
Image Credits
SOPhotography
