Meet Nicole Loy! (Author Success Stories)

Welcome to our latest Author Success Story! This month we're featuring children's book author, Nicole Loy.

Meet Nicole Loy:

Nicole Loy writes fun, read-aloud stories that bring laughter and excitement to reading. An educator by day and dessert enthusiast at heart, Nicole lives in rural Ohio where she enjoys biking, hiking, and exploring new places with her husband and daughter.

Website: hurrybackbooks.com

AHA: Hi Nicole! Every author has an origin story. Tell us yours!

Nicole: If you were to have asked me when I was a child what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would have confidently stated ‘author.’ At some point in college, however, I felt compelled to choose a more practical career path. Then, nearly two years ago, I had what I lovingly refer to as my ‘early mid-life crisis’ where I changed career paths (I love my new job) and decided to act upon my dream of being an author (best decision ever). I am so much happier now than ever before.

AHA: Love the mid-life pivot! Did you have any experience in writing before you started?

Nicole: My previous career involved various aspects of writing - I’ve written press releases, speeches, workshops, etc. While each of those require some level of creativity, I’d always felt stifled by it. Writing books is the creative outlet I’d been looking for.

AHA: Deciding whether to self-publish or pursue traditional publishing is often one of the first big decisions a new author faces. How did you make that decision?

Nicole: Thinking of the number of years and the amount of luck it would take to secure a literary agent and/or a publisher produced so much anxiety. I knew that if I wanted to have fun, self-publishing was definitely the way to go. Not only does the writing process bring me so much joy, I have absolutely loved being able to select my own editor, illustrator, and formatter. And, although an eternal battle, I’ve really enjoyed the challenge of learning how to get my books into the hands of kiddos.

AHA: Ah, yes. The eternal challenge of marketing! Got any advice?

Nicole: Marketing is definitely my weak spot and one I haven’t spent enough time learning about or taking risks on. When my debut book was released, I focused solely on gaining author visits, as it didn’t cost me anything to pursue. They proved to be successful for me but, now that summer has hit, I need to focus on other ideas. I’m hoping to learn more about Amazon ads and will be a vendor at an upcoming festival this July, so we’ll see how those efforts turn out!

AHA: You mentioned above that the years of waiting that might be in store for traditional publishing was a reason you chose to self publish. So how long did it take you to self publish your first book?

Nicole: My debut book, Saving Sir Stud Muffin, took 11 months from conception to physical copy.

AHA: SO much faster than traditional! But, self publishing can be expensive. How did you fund your first book?

Nicole: I self-funded my first book. (More about costs below!)

AHA: Overall, has the process of publishing your first books been more or less difficult than you expected? Any surprises?

Nicole: I’m not sure I would have ever been able to navigate the publishing process without At Home Author. The Profitable Picture Books course was a game changer. I also really benefited from the list of vetted editors, illustrators, and formatters At Home Author provided. Having that list helped me maintain confidence in each person’s ability and professionalism.

The most difficult aspect post-publication has been marketing. It’s really difficult to stand out in the crowd, especially as a self-published author with no distributor. I have a lot to learn, but I’m excited to do it.

AHA: If you could give one piece of advice to someone hoping to self-publish, what would it be?

Nicole: Allow yourself to be vulnerable. If you don’t put yourself in the realm of possibilities, not only will you not sell any books, but you won’t have a good book to sell. It takes a lot of vulnerability to show someone your work and let them critique it, even more vulnerability to ask people to buy your book or to host an author visit, and yet even more vulnerability to see people’s reviews and reactions to your book. But without opening yourself up to potential rejection, you won’t find or experience the amazing opportunities that also lie before you.

AHA: So true! What are your plans, as an author/publisher, going forward?

Nicole: Being an author and publisher has brought me so much joy - I can’t imagine stopping anytime soon. My second book, There’s a Bad Guy in this Book, released April 29, 2026, and I have a third one currently in the illustration phase. I plan to spend more time this year focusing on marketing so that these books can get into the hands of even more kiddos.

AHA: We can't wait to see what's next! Thanks for joining us, Nicole!

Nicole's Stats:

Title:	Saving Sir Stud Muffin
Release Date:	October 29, 2025
Printer:	Offset: Print Ninja and Guangzhou Hangton Packing Product Limited (Note: I was very reluctant to order from an overseas printer, mostly because I was afraid a larger order would just sit in my basement forever. My first 500 books were printed via Print Ninja, but when I sold out two months after the book’s release, I took the plunge and ordered through a company in China. The pricing is SO much better - I could have recouped all of my expenses much more quickly had I just gone through the Chinese-based printer first.) POD: IngramSpark
POD or offset print run?	Both - I’m still learning the best way to put my books on Amazon so, right now, those are being distributed through POD. All in-person sales are through offset.
Formats Available:	paperback, hardcover, ebook
Total Investment: (All amounts are rough estimates provided by the author and should not be considered 100% accurate or used as estimates for your own project. Do your own research!)	Editing: $84 Illustrations: $3149  Formatting: $928 Printing through US-based printer (500 copies): $2000 Printing through China-based printer (1500 copies): $2579 Total: $8740
Total Number of Books Sold To Date:	1036

Click here for a more complete breakdown of the costs involved in publishing a children's picture book.

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