A Self-Published Success

Generally, self published books don’t fare well in the marketplace. Every now and then, however, the stars align, and there’s a surprise, break-out bestseller--the literary form of the American Dream. Just a couple weeks into 2009, we may be seeing our first self-published success of the year. GalleyCat describes the Good Morning America story that resulted in over 8000 copies sold of the self-published memoir Notes Left Behind:

Last month, Good Morning America aired a segment about the family of Elena Desserich, who died of an inoperable brain cancer in August 2007 at the age of six. In her final months, as she fulfilled all sorts of wishes (from swimming with dolphins to getting a painting in a museum), Elena left little notes for her parents and younger sister hidden all over their house. Her parents decided to take those notes, and the story of Elena's life, and publish a book, Notes Left Behind, both as a tribute to their daughter and as a fundraiser for The Cure Starts Now, the foundation they created to support research on pediatric brain cancer.

Although Notes Left Behindis still available in its self-published form via Amazon (where it has a 5-star rating), the book is now being auctioned to the highest bidder. Expect a new edition from a big publishing house in the near future.