Journey to Self-Publishing: An Anthology

By Colleen Hunter

This book is the result of the time that I spent with a writers group here in Perth Western Australia. It is a combination of styles, my thoughts, and what I learned from a group of very interesting and talented people.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Sep 7, 2021
• ISBN: 9781446165348

Book preview

JOURNEY to SELF-PUBLISHING An Anthology

Author: C.A. Hunter

Editor: Michele Muir

Art work for cover courtesy of: 

Pixabay - woman-writing-greek-line-art-5605079

You can find me on Goodreads and on my blog on

Word Press Wordpress - Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/16195507.C_A_Hunter

My Wordpress page name is: Marushikiakacolleen.

Copyright © <2021> by

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

First Printing: <2021>

ISBN < 978-1-4461-6534-8 >

C.A. Hunter - Self-Publishing through LULU

About this book

When I first started writing, it was at the suggestion of my psychologist. His said it was a form of good therapy, a way to express feelings and frustrations. 

As I started my recovery from my first brush with suffering anxiety and depression, I wrote my first story for the amusement of those I worked with.  After this, I got stuck with what to give others for their Christmas or birthday presents and then wrote for them.

Starting to write for others is not an easy thing, you get thoughts of what if they don’t like what I write.  I then found a writers group, The Victoria Park Writers Group.  They were a local group of people who gathered to share stories and improve their writing, through feedback from the others in the group.

Lucky for me, they were a good group of people, who offered feedback in a constructive way, along with helpful advice.  Not the destructive kind which some groups of people do. (One or two of the members of VPWG told me they had attended other groups whose members tended to mainly have destructive things to say in feedback about anyone else’s work.  Particularly if they were new). 

So, in essence this book really, is dedicated to all those who belonged to the VPWG, the encouraged, and taught me the things I needed to know.

My previous books, I have listed as being restricted to 18 years older and over.  This is due to some chapters containing segments, that I personally, would not like anyone under 18 reading.  But if a parent reads one of the books and deems it OK for their under 18 year old child, then I leave it to their discretion.

This book which I feel is OK for almost everyone to read, is the 7th book that I have self-published, and contains a collection of works such as; short stories, poems, philosophical ponderings, semi-autobiographical ramblings and trial chapters of books I eventually self-published, that I did, while with the VPWG. 

The stories are sorted into year blocks, lucky for me I had saved them in files with the year listed.  Due to losing my diaries from those years, I can’t remember the dates the stories topic was covered.  I have also included some thoughts about the meetings, and things I have learned along the way. 

I hope this book gives you some ideas, if you are thinking of giving writing and self-publishing a go yourself. 

Though the way I write and the way I do my self-publishing works for me, it may not be right for other people.  It is up to each individual to work out what is right for them.  There are so many options out there, all that remains is to do some research, and test a few options out.

I hope you enjoy the stories, poems and other bits and bobs that I have included in this book.  Thanks once again for purchasing my little book…

Happy reading and writing.

C.A. HUNTER

Acknowledgements

Big thank you to you, for selecting my book to read.

Thanks to my editor once again for her help in getting this book together. 

Thanks also to Carolyn, Joan, Margaret, Darrell, Luke, Josh, Nicole and Zoe for your love and support. 

Special thanks to those who attended the Victoria Park Writers group, who gave me great feedback on my writing.  Their help and information have been so valuable.  The information provided from the meetings and workshops they held was constructive and encouraging.

Thanks to the good folk of LULU.COM for allowing us to have the outlet for our creativity. For making it so easy to get our work published.

Thanks also to the good folk at Capital Community Radio, here in Perth, Western Australia for their enthusiasm for my work.  Since volunteering at the radio station, I have had good feedback, and the occasional interview with their Events program.

Also Written by C.A. Hunter

Available through www.Lulu.com in paperback and e-book

Historic Romance / Costume drama

Keeping a Promise

Entitlement, Honour, Responsibility

Sci/Fi Romance Series: My Galaxy, My Universe, Destined Universe

Absolutely No Way - Book 1

Fleeing From Destiny - Book 2

Contemporary

Amongst the Dust and Cobwebs

Digging up Evidence

2015

The Morning after the Night before

This was the first time I had attended the Victoria Park Writers Group, so the very first piece of work I had read for them.  At the time I had just been recovering from some mental health issues, and the Occupational Therapist I saw at the time, suggested doing something I liked. 

I mentioned to her that I wrote stories for friends for presents, so she suggested looking for a writer’s group.  I came across these people on the Meetup site.

The hardest part, was walking through the door to my first meeting, it was rather intimidating as I did not know how my work would be received, I had a fear that my anxiety would make me get up and leave, and not take that next step.  Somehow, I managed to get the courage to read something I prepared. 

After reading the story, one of the long-term members who was sitting beside me commented on some of the reactions which included cringing, from the male members of the group, while I was reading certain sections. 

She pointed out it was from the story’s content, not the actual writing that was the cause of their discomfort.

This story, though tidied up a bit fixing some grammatical and spelling errors since my reading of it, is the start of my journey toward publishing my first book. 

Alien Abduction

Paul Weston woke with a start.  Surely it had just been a bad, a very bad dream.  Blinking rapidly to clear his eyes, he cast a look about the room.  But the room was not his!  It looked nothing like any room he had ever seen.  Where on earth was, he?

The last thing he remembered with any clarity was a blinding flash of light, and then seeing room after room of all these men who were all good looking, tall, well-built and of many different races.  They were tied to shining tables with a tube protruding from their groin region.  They had a look of fear in their eyes.  Then nothing!

Shaking his head, he tried to think what had happened before that.  He had been talking to an interesting woman at his local bar.  She said her name was Helen, that she was a student of Archaeology at some university in some country he had never heard of.  He, himself was a Post Graduate Student in Archaeology at the University of Western Australia.  She had not been unattractive, but there was a radiance about her that drew him to her.  Normally he would never have thought of striking up a conversation with someone who looked like her.  She was definitely not his type.  He had guessed she would have been somewhere in her mid-twenties, much the same age as himself. 

People had told him he was good looking, and he always had women throwing themselves at him.  As she was an Archaeology student also, he so saw nothing wrong with sitting and discussing his favourite Theme with her. 

After several hours of eating pub food and drinking, and a very enlightening discussion, he started seeing her as the most beautiful creature on the planet.  She had asked him to walk her out to her car, as she was worried about the area they were in, and thought she may be attacked.  He was more than happy to do so. 

Just as they were nearing the car, the hairs on the back of his neck started to prickle, and a sense of unease came over him.  He was not a small man, standing six feet nine inches tall.  Well-built with well-defined muscles and he knew how to give as good as he got.  He had spent time in the gym working out as well as a black belt in three different martial arts, he was confident he could get the lady behind safe doors with little fuss. 

The feeling of unease increased the closer they got to the corner of the street where the car was parked.  He could see the laminated sign of a motel just ahead of them.  Then came the blinding light, the nightmare began followed by blankness.

Now here he was in a room that did not look at all familiar, he could see no evidence of a door.  As he was studying the wall, part of it dematerialised. Through it walked the woman he had been talking to.

Ah, Paul you are awake, said the woman he knew of as Helen.

What is going on?  Where am I?

You are on our mother ship, and on your way to the planet Zenophia.

I am dreaming, he said to himself as he shook his head.

No, Paul, this is no dream, let me explain.  Helen sat down on a strange looking chair that materialised out of the wall. 

Our planet has lost of all the males of our species, so we have no way of reproducing.  We searched the galaxies for suitable candidates to help us repopulate our world.  We are a planet of over three million women.

Paul laughed, and thought some of his friends had set him up. You’re kidding right?

No I am quite serious, Helen said casually.  "We searched your planet, as your earth humanoid species is very like ours, and is a suitable match for our reproductive needs.  We have done specific research to find the most intelligent, strongest and healthiest of your male species. 

We have managed to collect over one thousand candidates.  It will take one earth year to return to our planet, where you will help us repopulate our numbers."

So, if you have three million women, how many do we get to sleep with to help you repopulate.  I could handle two or three a night, but only for day or so, it’s quite exhausting work.

"Oh, you mistake our methods, you won’t be having sex with any of our kind.  We have learned that your planet has diseases which you catch through the sexual encounter method, we don’t want to contract any of those.    When you first arrived on the ship you would have seen the rooms with

men being relieved of their reproductive juices.  This process will be done five times a week.  You will be given nutrients to increase your sperm production.  Until all three million women have been fertilised and reproduce.  Their offspring will procreate the natural way.  Once we have achieved our goal, you all will be, as you earthlings say, put out to pasture."

With that Helen got up and approached him, Paul had a look of horror, hoping he was still dreaming.  He felt a sharp stab in his arm, and blackness overcame him.  When he awoke he was strapped to a shining table.  Looking down, a tube was protruding from under the cloth covering his groin.  Looking to either side of him, he saw two other men likewise restrained.

I have to be dreaming, surely, he said as he tried to free his hands. 

Sorry mate, said the man on his right, this is no dream, they got me three weeks ago, this is no dream, we won’t be seeing earth again. 

Paul groaned, and thought of his girlfriend, he would never see Melinda again.

Refugee

The meetings of the group were held every two weeks, so, we were given a reasonable amount of time to come up with something to read at the next meeting.  At the end of each meeting, we would discuss the theme for the next meeting.  Following each meeting notes would go up on the Wordpress site giving an overview of the meeting and commenting on each work presented.  Then the next meeting would be listed on the Meetup site, to let everyone who was registered with the group know what was coming up. 

Most of the time we could write stories of our own styles, but occasionally we would be challenged to write something outside our comfort zone. 

The story for this particular week came about from experiences I had volunteering with World Vision, or through people I had met at my regular place of employment.  Some of the people who worked with refugees in the church I belonged to at the time also were a source of information. 

Over the years I had spoken to several people who came from Africa