My whole reason for coming to London was to attend the Digital Minds Conference that is part of the London Book Fair. It’s a huge honor for me to be here and be on a panel for self publishing and being a hybrid author.

I’ll be honest – I was nervous. I felt like a tadpole in an ocean full of sharks. Around 400 of the best in the publishing world – not authors – all those behind the scenes who literally run the publishing world – were there. Who am I to speak to them on self publishing? What input could I possible have when sitting beside the big names of the self publishing industry – like Mark Lefebvre from Kobo and Mark Coker from Smashwords?

Turns out … I had a lot to say (go figure). I realized today that the publishing world is shifting more than I knew. That they realize their focus has been off and because of the rise of successful self published authors, they are needing to readjust their thinking and publishing models. They are trying to figure out how to focus on consumers  – which I find odd since knowing my readers is an integral part of my publishing strategy.

Westminster Abbey – beautiful.

All in all – it was a wonderful day! I’m so glad I came to experience the Digital Minds Conference. Across the road was the Westminster Abbey. Note to self – wear comfortable shoes while in London because you never know when you might want to go for a walk…today I did not wear walking shoes. I learnt my lesson. The plan is to go back on Tuesday and actually go inside! YES!

I did, however, take a night bus tour around the city and saw the sites. I struggled to take images … but it’s a bit ‘nippy’ and my hands were freezing and every time I went to take a picture, my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. Not good.

Tomorrow on the schedule is Hampton Court and then The London Book Fair where I will meet up with fellow members of the ALLi group (Alliance of Independent Authors) and then out for dinner with Amazon before heading back to the pub for a round of drinks with ALLi to celebrate their recent book launch and 1 year anniversary! Sounds like a fabulous day!