The Slow Burn of Writing

When I was a kid, devouring books from morning to night, I developed a dream of becoming a writer. It was the same idolized dream I think most people who want to be writers have: home all day, behind a large oak desk, clacking away at the keyboard. Burst after burst of inspiration coming to you from the ether, the words flowing with no stop, the story coming together perfectly. When it's time for a break, you head to the couch for a nap, wrapped in a soft robe, dreaming away the rest of the novel. Every day is like an adventure. Then to book is published, rave reviews and money roll in, and life is good.

Boy, was I wrong.

First and foremost, writing is harder than most people think. A lot harder. Sometimes, it's a struggle to write a sentence. Sometimes, you write for pages only to realize it isn't anything worth reading. You write yourself into corners, you tangle the story into knots that you can't unwind. The plot goes sideways even as you try your hardest to keep it on the right path. And then, if you get to a point of having a finished story, there's the editing. The rewrites. The second, third, and fourth drafts. The v2-FINAL FINAL copy. The FinalForReal copy. Even then, there's things to tweak, parts that need reworked, or a completely different final act that could have worked better, had you thought of it beforehand.

The fun doesn't stop there, though. No, then you leap head first into a whole new world. You've written this thing, and you like it enough to want other people to read it. So you look into publishing.

I can't speak to traditional publishing - since that's not my chosen path - but the things I see and hear about it make it sound more daunting than finishing the manuscript in the first place. Query an agent, find someone that's willing to take a chance on your work. More rewrites based on their suggestions, to make the story more palatable. Then it's submitted to publishers, who may or may not pick it up. If so, there's more edits, more changes, and the wait for it to come out is a lifetime. Not to mention having to market it yourself, for the most part. Sure, you get an advance, but if you don't outsell it, royalties are a dream. Maybe you have enough money to live for 6 months, and in that time, maybe you can churn another out.

Self publishing is the other path, and it's not much easier. Instead of querying and having someone else find the editors and cover artists and tell you if the thing works or doesn't, you're on your own. You need to find an editor, maybe two or three. Cover artist. Beta readers. Make sure they're a good fit for you, and balance the budget you're about to drop on it all. Out of pocket costs for everything you want to do. Sure, you can do it yourself also, but you're a writer, not a graphic designer or editor or sales manager. If you are, then you have a leg up, but I think most of the people that want to write and publish are not the type to fall into those other buckets. After all that, you have to become the sales manager and marketer anyway. Go out to all the social medias, post constantly, and shout into the void about this thing you've created. You get no advance, so you definitely have a day job to work around, and after it's all said and done and the thing is out, you start all over. Finding time to write when you're on lunch, before work, after work. Crafting the story again, that you think this time will come together flawlessly.

It rarely does. Flawless things don't happen in life.

This might all sound like a bunch of whining, complaining, being upset about the path I've chosen, but it's actually the opposite. You see, the thought I had when I started this post was positive. It was simple: writing is a slow burn, but worth it.

I've told the story of my pathway to where I am today so many times, so I won't bore you with it again (for the few people that read these posts each time), but I will quickly recap. I self published the first book Fall Winds Blow in 2019, based on the encouragement of some friends that read it. After breaking the barrier, seeing that it was possible to do, and realizing that I was able to touch the dream I'd had since I was a kid, I continued on. I found a writing habit that worked for me - a few actually, changing them as needed - and I vowed to make each story better than the last. Each book better quality. Slow and small improvements, in hopes that eventually, it would all pay off.

It still hasn't per se, but I can feel it getting close.

Bound To Parish was a turning point. It was the first fully edited book, the best cover design I'd found, and the story itself was something I was truly happy with. I'd dabbled in running ads and finally found what worked and what didn't for me. I spent time crafting content for socials. It sold well enough, and the reviews came in strong. Even now, when I promote it on sale or for whatever reason, it does alright. Because of that, I decided to pursue a series.

With Refining Ties coming out March 2nd, after the amount of struggle I went through to finish it (or at least get it to a place I felt comfortable letting others read), I'm thinking about what's in store. I already have the most preorders of any book I've offered for preorder (a whole 4!), and someone has already marked it as "want to read" on Goodreads. A few people are excited for it who hadn't known me before they read Bound To Parish, which boggles my mind.

I'm not trying to get too excited about it. You never know what's in store, and it's possible people don't like it. They're not a fan of the way I took the story, they don't like the characters anymore. There's a lot of possibilities for failure. But at the same time, there are chances for success! I like the story, I believe in the story, and I believe in the series overall. The ideas for the final installment are also coming together in a way where I'm excited to work on it. I've already noticed the older books selling after people read Bound To Parish. All of this makes me think that I'm nearing a tipping point. I don't think Refining Ties will be it, but I think finishing the series will be close.

All of this to say, as I approach the release of book 5 in my journey, I finally feel like I'm starting to graze the life I've always dreamed of. Even if I never get there fully - I'm never sustaining myself solely from writing, never taking long afternoon naps in the middle of the week with Harley curled up by my feet - I can feel good about the fact that I've gotten this close. It takes time, and effort, and energy, and putting yourself out there when it makes you uncomfortable and scared and ties your stomach in knots. It's a long, slow road for most of us, but what's that they say about taking the scenic route?

It's not the destination, it's the journey.

-Dave