(updated 7/26/22)
Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week

From the first moment that people did the strange thing of asking me to talk about their books on my blog, I’ve been impressed by the quality of a lot of what’s been published by authors going out on their own, taking all the risks, shouldering all the responsibility and doing all the work to get their words, their dreams, their blood, sweat, and tears. This should be celebrated—it’s definitely appreciated, as we’re trying to show this week.

Because I completely forgot to plan, I didn’t have a lot of new-to-me Self-Published works to talk about this week, so primarily I’m dusting off and updating these posts from last year—highlighting the self-published works that I’ve blogged about over the last few years—just a sentence or two. Hopefully, this’ll be enough to make you click on the link to the full post. Beyond that, it’d be great if I inspired you to add a few of these to your TBR. Also, be sure you check out the other posts over at the SPAAW Hub.

Today we’re going to be looking at Self-Published Non-Fiction—which are primarily memoirs at their core, it’s what the authors do with the memoirs that makes these really stand out. But there are a couple of other things, too.

bullet Life and Death Behind the Brick and Razor: Code Red Diamond by Isaac Alexis, MD—A prison doctor uses his experiences to give suggestions for a healthy/healthier life. (my post about it)
bullet How Not to Be an *SS: Essays on Becoming a Good & Safe Man by Andrew J. Bauman—Bauman calls men to an authentic, Biblical masculinity—one built on humility, kindness, and service. While offering concrete ways to set aside patterns of abuse and neglect. (my post about it)
bullet No Problem, Mr. Walt: Building a Boat, Rebuilding a Life, & Discovering China by Walt Hackman—Hackman was one of the first self-published authors to reach out to me, and I’m so glad he did. A fascinating read about a man deciding to have an authentic Chinese junk built for him to use as a houseboat in California. (my post about it)
bullet Finding Hope in Hard Things: A Positive Take on Suffering by Pierce Taylor Hibbs—The central premise is that God uses the “hard things” in life to shape us into the people he wants us to be, and uses some of the hard things in his life as case studies to demonstrate how they were used so the reader is equipped to look at their own lives and see the purpose in their suffering. (my post about it)
bullet In Divine Company by Pierce Taylor Hibbs—Pierce’s treatment of prayer focuses on the communicative nature of God and His image bearers and then nurturing that in our lives to improve our prayer. (my post about it)
bullet Struck Down but Not Destroyed: Living Faithfully with Anxiety by Pierce Taylor Hibb—Drawing on what he’s learned from over 12 years of anxiety, Hibbs talks about learning to see what God’s purpose in the suffering is (anxiety disorders specifically, but easily transferable to other types), understanding that His hand is guiding all things—including our problems—so how do we in faith (without denying the suffering) rest in faith. (my post about it)
bullet And Drink I Did: One Man’s Story of Growing Through Recovery by Jay Keefe—It’s all there in the subtitle, Keefe tells about his OCD, his alcoholic days, his getting sober, and how he’s trying to help others since then. Powerful stuff. (my post about it)
bullet How to Take Over the World: Practical Schemes and Scientific Solutions for the Aspiring Supervillain by Ryan North—A tongue-in-cheek way to talk about some of the most advanced science around and how it can (and in some ways is) be used to destroy the world. (my post about it)
bullet The Genius’ Guide to Bad Writing by R.T. Slaywood, R.C. Martinez—A guide for the writer who is tired of success and wants to reclaim their lives from answering the siren call of fortune and fame that comes to every author. Slaywood and Martinez have a 10-Step program guaranteed to ruin a novel or two and stop a career dead in its spot. (my post about it)
bullet Uber Diva by Charles St. Anthony—a humorist writes a memoir of a Lyft/Uber driver mixed with a guide to starting/surviving/thriving as one in a tough market. St. Anthony also has a few other books out now that are probably worth a read. (my post about it)
bullet Flying Alone: A Memoir by Beth Ruggiero York—A female pilot’s memoir of her path from flight school to flying for TWA (now that I have a son learning to fly, some of her more harrowing experiences keep flashing through the back of my mind). (my post about it)

 

If you're a self-published author that I've featured on this blog and I didn't mention you in this post and should have. I'm sorry (unless you're this guy). Please drop me a line, and I'll fix this. I want to keep this regularly updated so I keep talking about Self-Published Authors.