One Week - The Road To Release

It's finally here. A week until Refining Ties comes out. The Point DeLeaux Chronicles are officially underway.

Let me tell you, my nerves are on edge.

What I can't tell you is why.

I have some ideas, but overall I think it's just the general pre-release nerves. This is my first attempt at a series, and even though I love the characters and the setting and the vibe of the entire world, I worry that it won't hit home with readers like the first one did. I worry that as a follow up to Bound To Parish, it's reaching too much. I worry that I'm trying to capture magic a second time. I worry that it ends on too much of a cliffhanger, and people will be upset about the wait until the finale is finished. On a technical side, even though I know I have all the final versions uploaded, and the cover is perfect, I worry that I missed something along the way.

I think writing has taught me a bit about managing anxiety because of this. At the end of the day, all of these worries are moot because the book is still going to get released. I'm not going to shut it down because I'm scared of what might happen. If I was this concerned over what people thought about the writing, I would probably have never published in the first place.

At the end of the day, I write for myself, first and foremost. Do I love it when readers enjoy the stories? Of course. Do I hope to make them happy? Yes. But do I need to spend all my emotional energy on concerns about how they'll react? No. I've always been one to enjoy feedback, good or bad, and regardless of how the reception of Refining Ties is, I'll get feedback. On top of that, I'm happy with the story I created, and I'm excited to explore the final novel and see it all wrapped up. Then, I'm excited to move on to something else, and see where I can go from here.

I've learned so much from both Bound To Parish and Refining Ties. Both novels helped me grow as an author on every front. I've worked with an amazing editor for each, and she's not only helped me polish both stories into something I'm very proud of, but has taught me some lessons that I can bring forward to each new work. I've learned what marketing works for me and what doesn't, and where to focus my attention and efforts. I've also learned some pretty delicious Cajun recipes.

As we get closer to release, I keep checking things off the list. The final versions of the story are uploaded and ready to go out. The ads are scheduled. As a spoiler for anyone reading this, part of the release will include Bound To Parish on Kindle being 99 cents for the first week of release. So, if you know someone that would like it, and think they might have a dollar to spare, let them know they can grab one.

I'm already six healthy chapters into the final novel, and I'm intrigued with the story. I have ideas on how it'll all play out, and I'm itching to dive into it. At the same time, I'm trying to take a bit of a break and let my brain decompress from the novel slog for a moment. Life outside of writing continues to be...well, life, and a break from the mental push to get words down is nice. I just know that I can't take too long of a break, or it gets harder and harder to get back to the keyboard to make progress. Once the book comes out and things return to baseline, then I can really throw myself back at it.

That's really all I had to say today: a reminder that Refining Ties comes out in a week, and the mental battle I'm having associated with it. It's almost here, and I think it will be good. I hope, if you pick one up as well, that you think so too.

Now, onto the next thing.

-Dave