So, today, I went to the mall and sold two autographed copies of my book When Hell Freezes Over. Now, all I need to do is have a book signing so that more people can buy copies of my book. I have no idea when I would have the signing other than it would have to be on a weekend since I'm too busy with school and too exhausted during the week to go anywhere. I also don't know where to have it. Oh well, I'll figure that out when I have more time.
Two books sold. I really need to have more confidence in my writing. I get really, really nervous at the idea of people I know (well, not friends, but people I know enough to say hi and chat with whenever I see them) reading my writing.
I mean, it comes and goes in phases. I get really confident in my writing, feel really great about what I've written. Then I read it and compare it to some really talented authors (or someone else reads it and compares me unfavorably to an author that doesn't even write in the same genre that I do). Then my confidence is shaken and I get worried. Then I start asking myself: Will they like it? Will they hate it? What will they say about it? Why did I let them buy a copy?
Then I think about the good reviews my book's gotten so far and those pesky worries, fears, and insecurities are buried and my confidence returns again, spurring me on to continue working on Fanged & Dangerous, the second book of the C.L.A.M.S. series.
I think all writers go through this, this up and down rollercoaster of insecurity and pride, elation and worry. No matter how famous, how many books published and sold, it's still possible to go through all these feelings, though some of the more well-known and publicized authors have more experience dealing with these feelings since they've been writing longer and have had more books published.
The one thing that everyone needs to remember is that some people will buy the book, read it, and love it while others will hate it and both groups will air their feelings about it on the internet. Of course, another factor to remember is that you can't judge the author based on one work. An author's style can evolve, can change because the author is always growing, always learning, always improving.
For example, I've been writing since about age eight or nine. Very few people have ever seen some of my earlier writings and I intend to keep it that way. Even things I've written at eleven and fourteen are kept away from prying eyes because my writing wasn't as developed as it is now.
Even now, I can see a steady improvement in my writing, as is the case of all novels that I've written for NaNoWriMo and Camp NaNoWriMo. November 2009 was the first NaNoWriMo novel I wrote which is still currently unfinished and over sixty thousand words. It is also drastically in need of editing and will very likely remain unpublished. That was a novel that I wrote to prove to myself I could, though I will admit that I like the plot, the world I created, and the characters so I might eventually revisit it.
November 2010 saw the second novel, which was finished at just over fifty thousand words, though it could really stand to be longer. It was going to be part of a trilogy and had a good plot, far too many characters, and took place in a different time period than what I am used to writing. It was also desperately in need of editing and will not be seen by anyone until I've improved it, though I might return to it.
August 2011, the first Camp NaNoWriMo and the time I wrote When Hell Freezes Over. This one received editing, though it could stand some more. It reads very differently from anything written before due to the improvement between November and then.
November 2011 saw the fourth novel (and so far the last NaNoWriMo win). This one is over fifty thousand words and nowhere near completed. The plot was good (and evolving), the characters were interesting and multi-faceted with backstories and hidden depths, and the writing showed improvement, even as I wrote.
So, yeah, that was really long. Anyway, authors shouldn't be judged based solely on one book since authors, like artists, are always evolving and improving.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Thursday, May 31, 2012
At Long Last [Updated]!
So, at long last, it's finally happened. My book, C.L.A.M.S. 1: When Hell Freezes Over, is finally finished with the editing and proofing process. It's available for sale through Amazon and Createspace. The Amazon page will not be up for a few days (5 to 7 business days), but the book can be found at the link below.
https://www.createspace.com/3738234
I'll be sure to post the Amazon link when it comes online.
EDIT: Here's the Amazon link where you can find my book if you'd rather go through Amazon and not Createspace. http://www.amazon.com/When-Hell-Freezes-Over-C-L/dp/1468018892/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339296084&sr=1-2&keywords=when+hell+freezes+over
Also, just because I'm in love with the awesome job my best friend Carly did on the cover, here's what the cover looks like.
Again, if there's any questions about the book, the series, the characters, or anything at all, please feel free to ask.
https://www.createspace.com/3738234
I'll be sure to post the Amazon link when it comes online.
EDIT: Here's the Amazon link where you can find my book if you'd rather go through Amazon and not Createspace. http://www.amazon.com/When-Hell-Freezes-Over-C-L/dp/1468018892/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339296084&sr=1-2&keywords=when+hell+freezes+over
Also, just because I'm in love with the awesome job my best friend Carly did on the cover, here's what the cover looks like.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
College - A New Chapter
Today began my first day of college--well, the first two classes. My next two don't start until Wednesday, but still, today was a first day. A new chapter in the manuscript of my life.
I was nervous. Very nervous.
This was something new for me. I'd never been to that campus--at least not enough to know where I was going--and knew no one there, which is a hazard of being a reclusive writer. Luckily enough, the people were friendly and were able to tell me where I was supposed to go.
I remained rather quiet in the first class--a trait that most of my teachers from kindergarten on up have liked as it meant that I was paying attention. This is from nervousness and not really knowing anyone. Once I get more relaxed, I tend to talk more. Of course, I also talk when I'm nervous so whether I was a bit more at ease in my surroundings by the time we were dismissed from our first class of the day or even more nervous to the point where being quiet just didn't do my nervousness justice anymore, I'll let you decide.
The benefit of my nervous talking was that I started talking to a girl from English class who's also in my Psychology class and discovered that she and I are a lot alike. We both like writing and both have the blessed curse of being easily able to come up with new story ideas which prompts us to neglect the many we have piled up waiting to be finished.
The first day is always nerve-wracking whether it's the first day of kindergarten or the first day of college. It just is. It's because this is something new for the person experiencing it, a milestone that they're accomplishing--something they've never done before.
It's so easy to look back and say, "I can't believe how nervous I was my first day." Because we've already done it. The first day's already over. But, when the first day is approaching, there's always that twinge of nervousness which remains until the first day passes and we laugh off our fears and worries about it.
Much like an author writing their first manuscript. They worry about how well the finished product is, if it's good enough to be published, how the topic will be received by readers, if they'll actually be able to write an entire novel based solely on the idea they have.
These worries lessen and go away with every word typed, every period, comma, and exclamation point. Soon, the author no longer worries about the ifs and hows, but focuses on the amount of fun they had doing it, the amount of enjoyment they got from writing a full novel based on what could have been just a tiny idea, one scene that stuck in their heads.
That is why authors write: the joy they get from doing what they love, no matter what anyone thinks.
And, just like the author writing their first novel, someone going through their first day is nervous for a little while, but gradually, as the minutes tick by and they make new friends, their nervousness is forgotten and becomes a distant, ever-fading memory.
I was nervous. Very nervous.
This was something new for me. I'd never been to that campus--at least not enough to know where I was going--and knew no one there, which is a hazard of being a reclusive writer. Luckily enough, the people were friendly and were able to tell me where I was supposed to go.
I remained rather quiet in the first class--a trait that most of my teachers from kindergarten on up have liked as it meant that I was paying attention. This is from nervousness and not really knowing anyone. Once I get more relaxed, I tend to talk more. Of course, I also talk when I'm nervous so whether I was a bit more at ease in my surroundings by the time we were dismissed from our first class of the day or even more nervous to the point where being quiet just didn't do my nervousness justice anymore, I'll let you decide.
The benefit of my nervous talking was that I started talking to a girl from English class who's also in my Psychology class and discovered that she and I are a lot alike. We both like writing and both have the blessed curse of being easily able to come up with new story ideas which prompts us to neglect the many we have piled up waiting to be finished.
The first day is always nerve-wracking whether it's the first day of kindergarten or the first day of college. It just is. It's because this is something new for the person experiencing it, a milestone that they're accomplishing--something they've never done before.
It's so easy to look back and say, "I can't believe how nervous I was my first day." Because we've already done it. The first day's already over. But, when the first day is approaching, there's always that twinge of nervousness which remains until the first day passes and we laugh off our fears and worries about it.
Much like an author writing their first manuscript. They worry about how well the finished product is, if it's good enough to be published, how the topic will be received by readers, if they'll actually be able to write an entire novel based solely on the idea they have.
These worries lessen and go away with every word typed, every period, comma, and exclamation point. Soon, the author no longer worries about the ifs and hows, but focuses on the amount of fun they had doing it, the amount of enjoyment they got from writing a full novel based on what could have been just a tiny idea, one scene that stuck in their heads.
That is why authors write: the joy they get from doing what they love, no matter what anyone thinks.
And, just like the author writing their first novel, someone going through their first day is nervous for a little while, but gradually, as the minutes tick by and they make new friends, their nervousness is forgotten and becomes a distant, ever-fading memory.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
The Rough Drafts of Life
"Rough drafts have a lot to do with, well, everything." ~Carly
A quote from my best friend lended itself to the blog name and she's right.
"Rough draft" is a term normally heard when referring to papers and novels, but it's so much more. I consider the recipes I try to be rough drafts that go through dozens of revisions before I get them right and works of art sometimes start out as sketches before they develop into their final forms.
Movies go through editing and scripts get revised before the final product is ever shown in theaters. How many times do you think any singer rehearses a song, changing minor details--pitch, tone, lyrics--before they are satisfied with it enough to release it to the public?
Life is full of rough drafts, almost everywhere you turn. Life's rough drafts are amazing, inspiring, unique, and eye-catching...everything a rough draft is supposed to be.
A quote from my best friend lended itself to the blog name and she's right.
"Rough draft" is a term normally heard when referring to papers and novels, but it's so much more. I consider the recipes I try to be rough drafts that go through dozens of revisions before I get them right and works of art sometimes start out as sketches before they develop into their final forms.
Movies go through editing and scripts get revised before the final product is ever shown in theaters. How many times do you think any singer rehearses a song, changing minor details--pitch, tone, lyrics--before they are satisfied with it enough to release it to the public?
Life is full of rough drafts, almost everywhere you turn. Life's rough drafts are amazing, inspiring, unique, and eye-catching...everything a rough draft is supposed to be.
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