How I Wrote a Book and Self Published it While being a Big 4 Auditor

Writing the book while also working full time at a Big4 firm

The idea of writing a book was thrilling but I wasn’t sure that I could pull it off especially with a hectic job!

I had to balance the demands of work and home alongside writing the book. I knew it wouldn’t be easy and I was prepared to give up a few things to make my dream a reality.

I was determined. I knew deep down that it was time for me to push myself. 

From late March 2019, I began to write the manuscript, using all my vacation days from work to brainstorm and draw up outlines for chapters. Even weekends and public holidays in the year were spent in writing and refining what would be the very first manuscript I had ever written.

Writing a book is deeply personal and quite demanding.  Despite the exhaustion, the stress, the self-doubt and many other personal challenges that wore me down, I wanted more than anything to pour my heart and soul into the manuscript.

Hiring a publisher and finally bringing the dream to life

Finally, once the first draft was done, I had my close friends review it and give me feedback.

I didn't go through the traditional publishing route which would require a literary agent or a book deal, neither of which were available to me...instead, I decided to self-publish.

Since this was the first time I was publishing a book, I engaged a publishing house to help me self publish my book and put my book out into the world!

Though this offbeat path seemed slightly expensive...however, given my inexperience in the writing field, I realised this was the best option for me.

I also enlisted the help of an illustrator to draw the art for the book.

The editorial team put my manuscript through 3 more rounds of editing and 4 more rounds of typesetting.

Finally, on 29 Feb 2020, I was delighted when my publisher told me that the paperback version of my book was finally available for purchase online.

The moment I had been waiting for had finally arrived. All those days of struggle had finally paid off!

"How Should I self publish my book?"

For a first time author, self-publishing is a wonderful way to showcase your work.

You can just focus on creating the content and developing the idea for the book while the publisher takes care of the editing, publishing and marketing process seamlessly. There are many avenues for self-publishing.

I recommend checking out Kindle Direct Publishing on Amazon, Reedsy.com and Notion Press to get started.

"How did I market my book?"

I advertised my book on my Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn to create interest amongst friends and family.

I also spoke about it at book clubs and requested a fellow author to talk about it on their social media.

I was overjoyed when I saw reviews of my book on platforms like Amazon and Goodreads! It's an exhilarating experience to see that my words had impacted lives in a positive manner.

That said a word of caution about the marketing and monetising process. It is quite difficult to make a great deal of money from book sales - even though I've had good sales numbers, the royalty that's received is not a staggering amount of money per copy of the book. This can be a bit disappointing because I had always imagined writing to be a glamorous profession.

Despite having experienced the non-glamorous reality, I think that there is an innate satisfaction and joy that comes with writing something uplifting and hearing strangers tell you that they felt empowered after reading it.

To me, that is priceless and something money can never come close to. If this resonates with you, I think there is merit in writing a book and sharing it with the world.