Author bio

Fueled by love for God and family, Imani Hamilton is on assignment to help increase ownership within the Black community. As Founder and CEO of Finance by Faith LLC, Imani helps clients acquire real estate and build generational wealth through cash flow management and debt elimination – with a unique faith-based approach to financial coaching and consulting. Individuals, married couples, churches and non-profit organizations have been empowered by Imani’s integrity, reliability, and caring, non-judgmental approach – and her ability to leverage her professional expertise and personal financial journey to educate them on how to be good financial stewards. Imani has a B.S. in Mathematics from Clark Atlanta University and an MBA in Real Estate and Finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Tell us about your book

The Debt Denominator is a framework to getting out of debt from a biblical perspective. It is designed to show the reader that a path out of debt is in God’s word and each step is followed with questions to encourage the reader to take action.

What motivated you to write this book? 

I wanted to provide hope and a strategy to people who are overwhelmed with debt.

Who is your target audience for this book?

The target audience is people who look to the Bible for guidance.

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

Yes, I am the Founder of Finance by Faith, which is a financial coaching and consulting company that uses a faith-based perspective to help people manage cash flow, get out of debt, and build generational wealth.

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

No, I am not concerned about the language of the book. For financial terms that may be unfamiliar to the reader, I have defined them when appropriate and have included a glossary for easy reference.

How long did your book take to complete?

18 months

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

No, I am not currently working on another book, but foresee more books in the future.

Why did you decide to self-publish?  

It was an easily accessible channel to distribute the information.

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

Yes, Amazon KDP and IngramSpark.

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

I purchased my own ISBN.

Now that your book is in print, do you have any regrets? 

No regrets. I am satisfied with the outcome.

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

I wrote the book and am handling the marketing.  I hired professionals for editing, cover and book design.

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

I probably would hire a marketing team.

What is the most difficult part of writing this book?

The most difficult part of writing this book was staying focused to write on a consistent basis. With other commitments and distractions, sitting down to write had to become a top priority in order to get it done.

What motivates you as a writer?

I am motivated by my desire to help and serve others.

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

I was personally overwhelmed with six figures of debt and was able to successfully pay it off.  Additionally, I have an MBA in finance and real estate and have worked in financial services for over 15 years, of which seven years was spent in commercial real estate lending.

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

I marketed the book through social media, email marketing and word of mouth. 

Did you start marketing before your book was launched? If not, do you regret that decision?

Yes, I started marketing the book before it was launched.

Which social media platform do you use the most?

 Facebook and Instagram

Anything Else?

I would advise other authors to hire a professional for editing and book design if their budget allows. Being that this is my first book, working with professionals like Jera Publishing helped me tremendously as I navigated the self-publishing process.

Tell us about yourself.

Writer, pilot, retired law enforcement commander and former adjunct instructor at St. Petersburg College and a leadership trainer. MPA and BA from the University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida. Native Floridian. Married for almost 45 years.

Tell us about your book. What is about?

Quantum Arrow is about alien abductions. The main character is taken while flying a small plane to Key West, Florida and he’s returned 3 weeks later to the same place. He’s taken into custody by the government and his girlfriend and their friends have to try and rescue him from the military. In the process, they learn the reason behind the abductions, interdimensional time travel and a secret about the universe.

 

The ARKLIGHT Ancient Alien Adventure series is a three-book saga about alien contact, alien invasion, clandestine operations and survival.

Who is your target audience suited for this story?

The stories are geared for sixteen and older.

Do you have a favorite character in your story?

All of them are special in their own way. In the ARKLIGHT series, Tegan Strong has a warrior’s heart. In Quantum Arrow, Alexa Padgett is the driving force.

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

Working on a new science fiction crime novel. It takes place in Wyoming. No space, just lots of action and mystery.

Do you find reviews helpful?  Or intimidating?

Reviews are very helpful, most of the time. Ratings, especially non-fives, are of little value except to add to the review count. I find that Amazon’s machine-learning model for establishing percentages to be an inaccurate reflection of the actual overall rating.

Why did you decide to self-publish?

Mostly I liked the idea of controlling the process, especially selecting the interior format and cover art. No pressure on when to publish. The downside is exposure. Traditional publishing has a marketing path. Competition as a self-publisher is difficult and time consuming.

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

Ingram for HB/PB and Amazon for eBook and PB.

Now that your book is in print, do you have any regrets?

No regrets.

What parts did you do on your own, and what did you hire out to have done?

Jera Publishing provided the Interior and book covers for all the books and the box set.  Kimberley provided the formatting uploads.

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

Nothing.

What is the most difficult part of writing this book?

Finding the time to write.

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

Write as often as possible and seek professional assistance or get a degree in creative writing. Build contacts and inroads with the traditional publishing houses.

What motivates you as a writer?

Storytelling and hoping that the story brings joy to others. I really enjoy the creative process and bringing the characters to life.

Do you try to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

I’m original. I know from research that many authors find out what the market or literary agents are wanting to sell in order to get ahead. I create what I believe is a great story regardless of popular demand. Some, like the one I’m working on now, is a cross between a crime/mystery with an ancient alien discovery. I write to write, not to market a specific genre or audience.

How old where you when you started writing? 

For science fiction – 55. I use a pen name for those works. I’ve published academic and research works in journal and magazines since my mid-thirties under my real name. I also wrote a children’s book in my 40’s – but chose not to publish.  

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

I have tried FB, Linkedin, Twitter, book marketing groups and Amazon. I have found that the indie market is saturated. Even free giveaways tend to get lost in the crowd. So far, the return for paid marketing hasn’t matched what was spent on the ads. I look for the freebies now.

Did you start marketing before your book was launched? If not, do you regret that decision?

I did put out a few tweets that seemed to get a few pre-orders.

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 mostly use Twitter. Poor results with FB ads.

Which platform do you use the most?

Twitter

Anything else?

Write because you enjoy the process. I know that the books I write could be more successful if I spent more time on the business of selling, but that’s just not for me. I want to write and time is precious. I believe most authors feel the same way. Decide what you want out of your writing and pursue it.

Tell us about yourself.

Married, seven children, granddaughter, six siblings, so family is a big part of my life.

Tell us about your book. What is it about?

The Stableboy is a book that addresses the questions, “Who lived at the inn where Jesus was born? What was their family like? What did they do?” The book is really about family life, relationships and being generous. There are some unexpected twists at the end that have made young children really embrace it.

What motivated you to write and publish a book for children? Is there a moral or message in your book, or is it just for fun?

Yes, there are some moral messages as undertones of the book, but it is really just a fun day in the life kind of book.

Who is your target audience suited for this story? What age group of children do you suggest for your book?

The age group is 2-12. With the great illustrations that Jenn put into the book, it is a book that young children love to have read to them. For their parents and grandparents, it has been more of an experience than a book to read. So many have told me their children and grandchildren have been delighted to realize who the little baby is- it is a great “aha!” moment for them.

Do you have a favorite character in your story?

I think they each have such great qualities that they are all my favorite.

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

Not yet but I have some concepts. My Mom has given me a great idea for the second book, and I am exploring that.

Do you find reviews helpful?  Or intimidating?

Helpful.

Why did you decide to self-publish?

This would be a method of publishing that fit my lifestyle better. I am involved in a number of other businesses that demand a lot of my time and attention, so self-publishing provided me the greatest flexibility.

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

IngramSpark.

Now that your book is in print, do you have any regrets?

Just that I should have got it to market a long time ago. But no regrets- life is funny and we need to give ourselves grace too.

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

I wrote the story and am handling the marketing. Jenn Llewellyn did the great illustrations for the book. Jera helped with the cover design, book design and editing and did a great job for me which I really appreciate.

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

Set aside 90 days exclusively to get the book out and make sure the social media platforms were ready to go.

What is the most difficult part of writing this book?

Since it is a children’s book it needed to be as short as possible. Getting the story into the format and limited number of pages was a challenge but Jera provided great assistance with this.

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

Just get it done.

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

 So far just got a website up and operational. I sent out some text messages to family and friends and made a post on LinkedIn. To my surprise it hit #1 and #3 new release on Amazon for Children’s Christian People/Places Fiction for the hardcover and paperback respectively. The hardcover also hit #2 for new releases in the Children’s Christmas category and the paperback hit #6 there. What a delight!

Did you start marketing before your book was launched? If not, do you regret that decision?

No. No regrets. Life is too short for regrets.

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 am just getting to use social media for the book. I set up a website and will be exploring the other social media platforms for opportunities.

Which platform do you use the most?

Just starting.

Any advice you want to pass on to other authors looking to self-publish their book?

Focus on getting the book done as you want it done. Contact Jera Publishing to help you. That’s about all.

Anything else?

Art in any form, in my opinion, allows the artist or singer or writer or whatever to push their very unique talent into the future. For future generations to enjoy. Don’t be shy about your work – be bold.