So…why did I write this book?

Over the years since I went through my divorce, I have been asked by many of my girlfriends who have children to help them think through the details of their divorce. Due to the way I handled this change, I have become a “poster child for a good divorce.”

I was told frequently, “Sarah, you should really write down all of your guidance…it is helpful coaching for a mom trying to navigate through a divorce.” When my girlfriends would say this, I would say, “Maybe someday…” but the reality was that I did not consider myself a writer nor did I ever intend to write a book.

After one of these discussions in January 2014, I opened my laptop on one of my long flights and started writing. I continued writing my thoughts and guidance throughout the year during my long flights…as I think very clearly at 30,000 feet for some reason.

About a year and a half later, I engaged my girlfriends whom I had helped through their divorces…and asked them to read what I had written and provide comments. The feedback from my girlfriends was positive and encouraging…however, at this stage, I was still not clear if I would ever publish this guidance.

In September 2015, I was on a flight to California for the weekend and opened the file and said to myself, “Sarah, are you really going to do something with this…or is it going to just be a file on your laptop?” So, during this weekend, I decided to focus on finishing the book.

At this point, I also needed to start thinking through the publishing process. I researched both the traditional publishing route and the self-publishing route…and decided that self-publishing would be best.

There have been many ironic moments on my journey to write and publish this book, but one of them is when I engaged my author’s assistant to help me manage the entire self-publishing process. She told me during our first discussion that it takes 100 steps to publish a book…and she was not exaggerating.

As we started on the process, she asked, “What company will be printing the book?” I told her that I wanted to engage a print-on-demand company. My assistant said, “Sarah, the printer will not print for Sarah Armstrong, so you will need to set-up an LLC.” The irony of this moment is that I never wanted to have my own company, as I have always enjoyed working for a large corporation. Once I got over the surprise of this news, on January 18, 2016, I launched Life Journey Experiences LLC…so I now have my own publishing company.

It is important to note that my daughter, Grace, has read the book…as she is mentioned by name throughout the book…and once she read the book, she said, “Mom, this is really going to help families going through a divorce.”

So, I am excited to share with you…The Mom’s Guide to a Good Divorce. If you know someone who has decided to get a divorce and starting the process, please share a link to my book…or send them a book to help them as they start out on this challenging journey in their life.

Looking forward to continuing my book journey in order to help others, so hopefully, they can have a “good divorce.”

All the best,

Sarah

P.S. My book is “my side project focused on giving back”…I still enjoy my career and will continue to focus on the juggling act of being a working mom…raising Grace…enjoying my life…and helping others.