If you had told me years ago that one day I’d be sitting at my desk writing a press release — not for a celebrity, not for a blockbuster, but for me — I would’ve laughed, checked the calendar for April Fool’s Day, and gone back to whatever I was doing.

Because in my mind, press releases lived in a glittery, velvet-rope world occupied by:

• Stephen King
• Taylor Swift
• NASA
• And maybe that local restaurant that claims its new burger will “change the landscape of American cuisine”

But me?
A regular writer with a laptop, a cup of goat milk, and a cat who thinks she’s middle management?
Surely not.

But then… surprise!

Apparently, being an indie author means learning a bunch of things I never saw coming:

• How to design a book cover
• How to format pages without accidentally summoning the Dark Side of Microsoft Word
• How to pitch my writing
• And—plot twist—how to write a press release to go with that pitch

Who knew?

Writing a Press Release Is Like Wearing Heels for the First Time

You feel wobbly.
You’re convinced everyone can tell you don’t belong.
And yet… somehow you’re doing it.

I sat down to write mine thinking, “Okay, so maybe I’ll make it sound official but not too official because what if the universe notices and says ‘Whoa, wrong level, back to the minors you go?’”

Then something magical happened:

I realized a press release isn’t about fame.
It’s about clarity.

It’s a megaphone for your message.
A neat, concise “Here’s what I made and why it matters.”

And writing one suddenly felt…
dare I say it…
legit.

Learning to Pitch Myself

Pitching felt even weirder — because no one tells you that writing the thing is only half the job. The other half is letting people know it exists.

It’s like shouting into a crowded room:

“Hey! Excuse me! I made something! It’s actually good! And I’m not shouting for attention, I’m shouting because… professionalism!”

Once that clicked, everything softened.
It turned from self-promotion into self-respect.

The Sweet Surprise: I Enjoyed It

Press releases are oddly fun:

• You get to sound official.
• You get to celebrate your work.
• You get to organize your thoughts.
• You get to pretend your cat is your publicist.
  (Mine insisted we remove five exclamation points.)

And the best part?
I didn’t need a crown, a movie deal, or a seven-figure advance.
Just the willingness to show up like my book actually deserves to be seen.

So Here’s What I Learned

Press releases aren’t just for household names.
They’re for anyone with something worth sharing — which includes indie authors, poets, creative rebels, nervous system whisperers, and anyone who has ever looked at their own work and thought:

“Maybe someone out there needs this.”

And if that means writing a press release and sending a pitch…
well, Stephen King had to start somewhere too.