Day one as a published author

My day finally arrived. As the clock swept past midnight on 1st August, the ebook version downloaded, as if by magic. Husband uncorked the bottle of bubbles and I sat grinning like a Cheshire cat. Seriously, I did. My dream had come true!
 
We stayed up celebrating until 3am before sleep got the better of us. Though, the excitement of the day woke me early, so with hardly any sleep, we began the day. Twitter and Facebook went mental – seriously, I had messages coming in on all devices. The sound of ping, ping, ping was deafening during breakfast, but oh so lovely.
 
I received a beautiful delivery of fresh flowers from my publishers Aria Fiction/Head of Zeus. The delivery guy asked ‘what’s the occasion?’ It felt very strange hearing husband explain, even stranger when he asked if he could speak to me? Turns out the delivery guy is an aspiring author.
 
I’d decided a while back that I wanted to spend my day away from home, so we travelled to the beautiful Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. A place we have visited many times and where I wanted to be. We arrived during the mother of all thunder storms, so were forced to sit in the car for a time whilst being entertained by the dramatic lightning strikes above the stately home.  
 
A quick dash through the rain, with my coat unattractively held above me head, was deemed necessary. How soaked can one get in two minutes? Drenched, but hey. The house delighted as ever and we spent our time seeking out the delights that always thrill at Chatsworth. The grand staircase, the painted violin, the elaborate decoration in every room and my favourite sculpture, which I have to wait right to the end of our visit to see, ‘The sleeping lion’ carved by Rinaldi, which sleeps downstairs by the exit to the gift shop. I simply love him! Even the attendant laughed at my reaction.
 
The weather had miraculously changed, so we traipsed the beautiful gardens in scorching heat. British weather, you can’t beat it! We had the delight of the glorious waterfall cascade and the summer houses in all their glory. I couldn’t ask for a nicer backdrop to enjoy my day.
 
It goes without saying that the evening was celebrated with a few more bubbles, especially when we arrived home to find copies of the paperback had been delivered by Amazon.
 
It still feels very strange to know that others have purchased and are reading my book. Several readers have been in touch, via Twitter or Facebook, which has been wonderful.

Finally, my verdict on becoming a published author: well worth all the hard work to experience this, I have no complaints.