An Interview with Author Rose O. Sherman

Tell us about your books. What are they about?

Both books are targeted to nurse leaders. The first book, The Nurse Leader Coach, was written to help leaders become more coachlike and improve staff retention.  I wrote my second book, The Nuts, and Bolts of Nursing Leadership, because we have so many new nurse leaders who are struggling due to the recent pandemic.

What motivated you to write these books?

I do extensive consulting and work with nurse leaders across the United States. I use both of these books in my workshops, but they also provide essential yet straightforward advice on being more effective as a leader in today’s turbulent healthcare environment.

Who is your target audience for the books? Why should they read them, or how will they help them?

My target audience for both books is nurse leaders working at the frontline of care. Although the books are focused on nursing leaders, many healthcare leaders outside of nursing have also purchased the book.

Are your books tied to a business you own or work for? If so, tell us about that business and how the books and the business work together.

The books are directly tied to the business. I use the books in workshops. I also recommend that leaders use their books in their leadership development programs using a book club guide that I provide for free. Some programs I do are not related to either book, but I will send clients copies of the books to say thank you.

Are you ever concerned that the language of your books are either too technically difficult or too elementary and potentially insulting for your target audience? How do you decide?

No, I have purposely worked hard to keep the writing as simple and straightforward as possible. I have had no complaints about this, and most readers prefer books that are easy to read (which can be challenging to find in my discipline).

How long did your books take to complete?

From start to finish, both books took about six months. Because I write so many blogs, I have a great deal of content to draw from as I write.

Are you currently working on another book? Is it the same genre?

Not at this time.

What is your goal as an author?

My goal is to provide valuable content in books at a cost-effective price to nursing leaders.

Why did you decide to self-publish?

I am an Elsevier journal editor so the decision to self-publish was one I gave a great deal of thought to. Two factors led to my decision. The first was a strong desire to hold copyright on my work as I do on my blog. The second was the recognition that publishing houses don’t offer as much value as they once did to authors. The timeframes for publishing with traditional publishers from start to finish are much longer. Publishing houses want input into the content/title and set the costs. In my subject area, books from traditional publishers are twice the cost of my books.  Authors are also expected to market their own books today – I have a strong brand and have written 100+ articles, so I felt confident in my skills to sell my work. You also make more money when you self-publish, and the payment process is more transparent. Traditional publishers pay once or twice a year, and authors are never sure how many copies are sold. With both Amazon and IngramSpark, you have an author dashboard with your book sales. Payment is monthly after the first 60 days.

Did you use IngramSpark, Amazon KDP, or another company to handle the printing and distribution of your books?

I used IngramSpark and Amazon KDP for both books. Amazon published the eBook and paperback. IngramSpark only published the paperback.

Did you purchase your own ISBN or have one assigned to you by Amazon KDP or IngramSpark?

I purchased the ISBNs for both books from Bowker, submitted the book to the copyright office, and obtained a library of congress number.

Now that your books are in print, do you have any regrets?

None at all, and I would highly recommend the self-publishing route. I have had great experiences with both Amazon and IngramSpark. I order many author copies for workshops, and the print on demand works seamlessly and is fast.

What parts did you do on your own, and what did you hire out to have done? (Editing, book design, cover design, eBook, marketing, etc.)

I bought a JERA Publishing Package that included book formatting, cover design, and marketing along with the eBook setup. I did my developmental editing (I am a good writer) but used a copy editor for both books. I also use Grammarly Premium to do self-editing as I write.

What would you do it differently if you were to self-publish again?

The first book that I wrote I put on Kindle Unlimited but decided not to do that with the second book.

What was the most difficult part of writing these books?

For me, the biggest challenge is always what to put in and what to leave out. I begin each book with the end in mind. I curate the table of contents before I ever start writing.

If you could tell yourself anything as a younger writer what would it be?

Writing is a learned skill, and every author has a different process. You become better over time, so the key is always to be writing.

What motivates you as a writer? 

I enjoy taking ideas and putting them into a context that is useful for others. I keep in mind that it is not about me but rather the reader, so I work hard to provide value in what I write.

How old were you when you started writing?

Interestingly, I did not write that much until I became a University Professor at age 49 when I had to because it is part of promotion and tenure.  Once I began, though, I realized how much I did enjoy writing.

What skills, education, and/or experience have you acquired that helped you develop as a writer for this topic?

I have a doctorate, and 40 years of work experience in the field I write about.  I also edit a major nursing leadership journal.

What marketing have you done for your books? What worked and what did not?

I did a LinkedIn book launch, and I did a book launch for my blog readers. I also have my books in my email signature block and on articles I write for journals. I also sent 60 copies of my book to key influencers in nursing leadership. Many pushed the book out on their social media sites and to their staff.

Did you start marketing before your books were launched? If not, do you regret that decision?

With both books, I started early with announcements of my blog site.

How do you use social media as an author?

Has it worked well for you, or is it something you want to do more or less of?   I have built a brand by writing a twice-weekly blog for ten years with more than 7000 nurse leader followers. On my site, I advertise the books with each blog. I also have included book club guides. I also use LinkedIn extensively in book promotion.

Which platform do you use the most?

My blog www.emergingrnleader.com  and LinkedIn

How are you handling marketing with COVID closing down many events authors often do, such as book signings and book clubs.

We don’t have the advantage of bringing the book to live events, so everything has been virtual. Not ideal but it has worked out.

Anything Else?

I had a great experience with JERA publishing and have found their work to be high quality and timely. I carefully looked at other companies before choosing JERA and came back to them with my second book. I have no regrets at all about self-publishing. It has been a win-win for me, and the books have done quite well. I worried that my professional colleagues would be critical of my decision to self-publish (very rare in my world), but they have not been, and many have asked for help in publishing their work.