I have just self-published my first book and it was quite a journey!
My book is a true story biographical novel based on the incredible life of William Turnour Thomas Poulett (1849-1909), a man born into British aristocracy who led a double life, first as an actor working in the Victorian theatres and music halls and then as an organ grinder performing on the streets of London and Southsea. He had several trials in his life, including a fight for his inheritance, which went all the way to the House of Lords.
I first came across William while researching a potential book about Italian organ grinders in England, inspired by our own family history. From the moment I discovered his name in the British Newspaper Archive, I was captivated.
William’s name appeared in countless articles, not just in Britain, but in newspapers from the United States, Canada, and Australia. The more I read, the more fascinated I became. His resilience in the face of repeated misfortune was extraordinary, a testament to his unbreakable spirit and despite his once-prominent name, only small mentions of his story exist online. It seems like nobody knows his full life story … until now! I was compelled to write it and I sat down and wrote the first chapters in one go, as if I were watching a film unfold and simply transcribing it.
If you enjoy history, I hope you will enjoy my book. I went into rich detail about Victorian theatres and life in London. Did you know that back then, on each evening’s bill, you could get a dramatic play, comic sketches, opera singers, dancers, magicians, and much more? It was a full evening’s entertainment with often hundreds of performers engaged.
William’s contrasting lives as both a gentleman and an organ grinder were dramatic, yet he embraced both worlds, moving effortlessly between the aristocracy and the destitute. I will not spoil the story here, but you can read more in the Amazon description. The book is available in Kindle and paperback editions.
I was eager to share William’s story with the world and I was too impatient to go the traditional publishing route. This book was never about profit. It was about giving William the recognition he deserved. From the very beginning, it felt like he was guiding me. Whenever I had a question, I would somehow discover the answer when I believed I had read everything there was to read. It was uncanny.
At one point, I worried that I was including too much detail only to find an interview where William proudly claimed he always remembered and recounted everything in vivid detail. It was like he was giving me his blessing.
One particularly amazing coincidence occurred soon after I began my book. At the Donkey Sanctuary charity shop in Carvoeiro, in the window, was a large, sepia-toned canvas photograph print of the Houses of Parliament, exactly the spot I imagined William and his son, Willie, would have stood, looking out across the river toward what William believed to be his rightful inheritance.
I bought it, even though it did not fit in the back of my tiny Smart car and I drove home with the boot open. It now hangs above my desk and whenever I doubted myself, I would look up at it and find renewed inspiration.
The book is based heavily on historical documentation, newspaper articles, census data, and court records. William’s interviews with journalists are reproduced mostly in his own words. I did take creative liberties with imagined conversations and scenes to bring alive his daily life and to portray moments of both joy and hardship.
I also created my own imprint called Goldspinner Creations and published through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), which was both empowering and challenging. The platform is straightforward, but not without its frustrations. My son designed the book cover, and my mum proofread earlier versions. I read the manuscript at least four times myself, but after a while, you stop seeing the words as you know them by heart. Spellcheck was another hurdle, especially as the book uses Victorian phrasing that modern grammar tools do not recognise.
Originally, I planned to submit the book to HarperCollins for their March 2025 deadline only to find that my book was 60,000 words too long. Every paragraph felt essential to me, and I could not bring myself to cut it down. That is when I turned to self-publishing.
I also liked having full creative control and did not want to be tied to a publishing schedule that potentially could have required travel or promotional events (I don’t fly) – assuming I was successfully contracted, of course!
Although KDP supply ISBN numbers for free, I purchased my own (€61.50) so I could sell beyond Amazon, and I also copyrighted the book (€another 60), both easily done online in Portugal. These services need to be applied for in your country of residence.
Formatting for the KDP templates was perhaps the trickiest part. Despite carefully following the instructions (or so I thought), I received several formatting errors until I eventually realised I had misunderstood how gutter margins worked because I was ‘seeing’ the pages in Word the wrong way round.
Another misstep was uploading the paperback before the e-book version. The e-book flagged eight spelling errors, which meant I had to wait three days for the paperback to go live, then upload the corrected version, and wait again. It was frustrating, and I suspect a few minor errors may still have slipped through, despite all my efforts.
Promoting the book is now the big challenge. You need keywords, visibility, and persistence to stand out in Amazon’s massive catalogue. I have not yet run Amazon ads, but it is something I need to explore as well as to learn how to offer promotions.
KDP allows your book to reach a global audience, and I love that paperbacks are printed on demand so there are no upfront costs for printing and storing. Authors can order copies of their books at printing cost which means I can give away or sell copies directly. It is also exciting to be able to see the KNP detailed sales reports.
Being an author is both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. But writing is something I have loved since I was a child, and this story felt like it chose me. I hope people enjoy reading it, and I welcome any comments or corrections. I am now working on my other book ideas, so watch this space!
So now you know!
