NO MORE WAITING!
Sometimes if you want something done…
After having slogged away at my debut novel, To Die For, since first drafting it as a NaNoWriMo project, I really have pushed to have it published this year, and I intend to make it happen.
In January I wanted to get it out by June, but after getting some advice from fellow writers who are more experienced than me, it was the importance of spending a good chunk of pre-publication marketing time that made me move that back to 1st August.
I also chose the1st of August because that marks a year of being in the first job I have had a professional writer. Having spent 18 months hunting for work, with everyone turning me away — and we’re talk hundreds of applications — I finally had an employer take a punt. What interested them was my writing skills and how they could be used in the company.
But it meant more than that. It was a chance. Hundreds of “no” really hammers the self confidence, even for the most experienced of individual. Being turned away from job after job for being “over-qualified” boiled the frustration. The killer blow in most cases was simply hearing nothing:@ no reply, no feedback, no chance to develop or set realistic goals.
So I made a decision a while ago: no more waiting.
I got frustrated with writing theatre because after so long spent researching and writing a play you then have to spent too long waiting for someone to pick up it and stage it. And the chances of that happening for an unknown writer are as near damn close to zero as you might as well get.
So…no more waiting.
Then came the curve ball. I was shown an amazing competition to enter that was perfect. Intended for new, unpublished writers; crime thriller genre; astonishingly great prize; possibly a writing career launched in one go. Entries had to be in by 5th May (in hard copy, so posting time needed to be factored in). The winner and runners up would be informed by the end of June, so in theory I could still aim for my target release date.
I got to work on preparing for it. It was short notice and I only had a couple of weeks to prepare. So I recruited some enthusiastic readers who said they would give it a read — which was really good. I needed the notes back in a week, no matter how many or few they were, so I could spend the weekend tweaking and then post it off. So it was a tall ask — but still, I made that clear and assumed those who’d agreed would get me something back at least.
Saturday comes…and nothing. I hear from one of the group of readers to make their apologies, but it was more time spent waiting and get nothing from it.
So…no more waiting.
I have changed my mind.
No more God — damn — shitty — bloody — fucking — waiting.
The competition meant sitting on my arse for another two months waiting to not win and, worst of all, not even any chance of feedback. It’s my turn to be in charge now. No more waiting for other people.
I am in charge of this novel.
I am in charge of getting it professionally edited.
I am in charge of getting it out to my readers by my deadline.
I am in charge of launching my own brand for publishing and my book can start it all off.
I am in charge.
So I have contacted a professional editor to get a quote. I’ve identified a couple of potential issues that I want to tidy up in the story. I will be in charge of putting it together. I have got the ideas for the cover design. I’ll teach myself the technicalities of preparing the book for publishing and e-publishing. I’ll sort out the ISBN number and find the best source of printing. And I’ll do all the marketing work.
Because…
…if you want it done…do it yourself.
I might not get it right — in fact I pretty much expect to get things wrong along the way. But I am prepared to learn along the way. But I will do it at my pace. And I will make it work one book at a time and in as many words as it takes.
NO. MORE. WAITING!
NO MORE WAITING! was originally published in In As Many Words on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
