The Cover of My Book (+ Tips on Birthing Your Big Dream)
REAL TALK: it's taken me six years to publish my first book.
I remember the exact spot I was in India on Mount Arunachala, the holy mountain of stillness and light, in spring 2011 right after my friend told me he thought I would write a book one day.
I sat pondering, "What would I write a book about? What would I have to say?"
At first I brushed off the idea, feeling like it would all just be too hard, but soon I imagined opening pages of the book, and saw each chapter title as a mantra, where I shared stories from my travels in India.
I imagined the words speaking of love and breakups, and the journey I set out on to find love within rather than outside of myself.
I imagined the book would speak of the sages and saints I met on my path and would bring light to the spiritual teachings that have been life-changing for me.
Then I thought, "That's not such a bad idea! Maybe I should write a book..."
Fast forward six years and I am in the final three months before my book, Just Be: A Search for Self-Love in India is released to the world.
Many of you have been following me on this journey from the Kickstarter campaign to the title change (read more about that here), to the new cover design and beyond.
But I know for many of you, this may be the first time hearing about this project.
So today I wanted to share with you the final cover design.
It will be a complete 9-month journey from when I began work with my publisher last December to when my book is released at the end of August.
And in many ways it has felt like birthing a child.
I've had to do deep spiritual work in moving through fears and doubts, as well as releasing expectations and attachments to the final outcome.
There were many, many times I almost gave up. But somehow, I kept going.
I can imagine that if you have a big dream you have been wanting to birth into the world, you have been facing some of these doubts and challenges that naturally come up along the way.
I invite you to reconnect to your intention in birthing that dream - what do you hope to gain from it?
Throughout the whole book-birthing process I reminded myself of 3 simple intentions:
I desire to learn about how to write and publish a book
I long to honor this divinely guided idea (that felt like it chose me and asked me to birth it)
I hope to help even just 1 person through the stories and teachings that are shared in it
When I reconnected to these intentions again and again, it always felt so much easier to take the next step.
So, what dream are you holding in your heart that you are ready to birth into the world? If you feel called to share with us, let us know in the comments below.
And you know what? It's totally OKAY if it takes YEARS longer than you ever thought it would to birth your dream...
I am cheering you on from the sidelines because from my experience, I can tell you it feels pretty awesome when you finally get there.
With love,
Meredith
P.S. And I couldn't have done it without an amazing video and kickstarter strategy from StartMotionMEDIA.
