Celebrating Release Day & How it feels to be a first-time author with JP Bird

First up, Happy Canada Day to all Canadians near and far!

When I told people I had written a book that was going to be published, I got a lot of “What’s it about?”.

The synopsis I gave them:

“A woman is coerced into pretending to be a psychic at a school fair. While she’s giving a reading, the crystal ball fills with smoke, and she sees a murder. GASP! (And yes, gasp was said very loudly) No one believes her, so she has to find a way to prove that the murder is going to happen and stop it before it does. She eats a lot, and there are ferrets. It’s a fun, silly, escapism read.”

Murder at First Sight is the first book in the series Suddenly Psychic, and I hope readers will laugh at the jokes, enjoy spending time in the town, and fall in love with the characters the way I did while writing them.

I come from a background where I always dreamed of being an author but never thought it could happen. I’d start writing, life would get in the way, and I’d forget how much I enjoyed it while I scrambled to adult. Work, responsibilities, and all the everyday things took center stage. Then COVID happened, and I finally had time to sit down and write.

Today is the day a lifelong dream became a reality. And it is…

Overwhelming.

That’s what this feels like.

I am the shy lurker in online writing groups, learning from other writers’ expertise but never brave enough to share or ask questions. I didn’t take any writing classes beyond the mandatory ones in school. I didn’t have a carefully mapped-out publishing plan or years of industry knowledge. I just like to write the stories that swirl around in my head.

And yet, here I am, writing a blog post about a book that was released today.

Mind. Blowing.

(For anyone who dreams of being a published author, it can and does happen!)

I originally wrote Murder at First Sight because it made me laugh. It’s a funny, happy, “I want to live in that town” kind of read. During COVID, I needed an outlet that brought some lightness into my world when everything felt so heavy. Writing Murder at First Sight gave me somewhere to escape where I would sit at my desk and giggle as Amelia would do something ridiculous.

What I didn’t realize were all the intricacies of being an author. The aspect I fret and stress over most is the self-promotion. I am terrible at that. The hours I have spent trying to come up with clever social media posts, only to delete them and start over. Putting myself out there and hoping people connect with something I created is so far out of my comfort zone.

I’m an introvert who spends hours replaying conversations in my head, convincing myself that whatever I said should have been cleverer, wittier, or maybe just have been said out loud, instead of in my head.

So, today is also very scary. Something I wrote is out there in the world for people to read. And judge.

But, though these emotions, the one that stands out as the strongest is excitement. Later this afternoon, I will be dancing in the park celebrating Canada Day (AKA Murder at First Sight Day 😉 ) and telling everyone I see that I have a book out there in the world! Today feels incredible.

About the Author

JP writes cozy mysteries with quirky characters that make her laugh when they disagree with the laid-out plans for their story and take her on a different path. She lives in Winnipeg, Canada, and hates the cold weather but loves the winter months because they’re a great excuse to hibernate with a cup of tea or a glass of red wine. When she’s not writing or reading, she spends her summers in the garden and her winters plotting how to win her neighbourhood Christmas display competition. They don’t know it’s a competition, but she plays to win nonetheless.

You can also connect with her on Bluesky.