Guess what?! It’s a book birthday celebration for my first book! That’s right, ROQUI’S PANDERO BEAT turns three this year! Here are some lessons I learned along the way, a look at the first original cover, and some fun facts about this 2021 release! +Book marketing tips, sharing the book with baby, & book sale 🎉
Lessons Learned
I self published this book in 2021 (wrote it around 2019). Self publishing taught me how to do a print run, how to do page layouts, manage shipment, handle contracts…phew, it was a lot! Did I mention this project cost close to $10K? Yup that’s the average cost of self publishing especially when paying for an illustrator, editor rounds, wholesale shipment (most orders must be a min of 500-1000 books), & book rewards to name a few expenses
I was unfamiliar with the importance of review so I didn’t go out of my way to request reviews (and I should have!). Reviews help authors so much! If you’d like to review the book and want a free sticker as a thank you, fill out this form
Also, I didn’t ask for people to request this title at their local library. If you have the chance, could you request my book at your local library? Here’s the ISBN: 978-0578742755. It’s free to do so, just fill out your library’s request form
I wish I would have simplified some sentences and had found a critique group back then but I did have an amazing editor! I highly recommend Laura Bontje’s services (linked here)
I probably won’t be making bead bracelets in the near future as book rewards. It took over 180 mini clay beads to make ONE bracelet and my overachiever self thought this was a good idea…I mean they were cute but it took too long to make
Original Cover
I worked with my illustrator to create the cover. At first I wasn’t sure how I wanted it to look and let my illustrator do this creation and then we tweaked it to have more of a musical side. Here’s the first cover:
Fun Facts
I wrote this book inspired by my Puerto Rican students and for my future baby (we’re raising a bicultural/bilingual baby). I got to read it to him for the first time last month
I had a bomba y plena band (Kadencia) be my sensitivity readers and met them in person (picture here) when I lived in VA. Long story short we found out my husband’s brother and a Kadencia member share relatives (small world!)
The illustrator created a variety of characters including a parrot who’s a janitor in once scene and wearing a full bomba skirt outfit at the end
The illustrator and I went to the same high school. He’s an amazing artist, his art portfolio can be found (here).
The main purpose of the book was to teach kids how to clap out syllables by clapping out the phrase “cafe-con-pan” throughout the book. Syllable learning helps with reading…so check it out!
Get a signed hardcover copy for $10 HERE (free shipping too) from May 22-June 22 just put code “Newsletter” in the comments section of the form
I made a free read aloud of the book on Youtube too (linked) so educators can share and stream into their classrooms
Marketing Tips
How to showcase a product without posting the cover/item over and over? Some things I’ve done with my titles:
Bring it along for a trip (here we went to Europe)
Collaborate with others who share the same topic/theme (example here)
Tell us your “Why” (mine found here)
⭐️Check out 15 more ideas (here) on an SCBWI post I did back in the day.
That’s all for now! If you have a copy of my Roqui book, please tag me on socials (@aventuras.en.esl). I appreciate everyone’s support 💛
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Until next time! I’ll be featuring mini interviews with authors in my upcoming monthly newsletters!
Looking for diverse books? Check out my AMAZON or BOOKSHOP store front. Using my affiliate links helps support my work at no extra cost to you. Looking for a specific book? Send me a message for the book link.
Did you know I do educator guides & other work?Check out more of my work (here).
P.S. Excuse the typos, I promise there’s a human behind the screen and not a 🤖.
-Delia Ruiz @Aventuras.En.ESL
Happy book anniversary! 🤩💜