Chapter One Write Well Publish Right
In the Beginning…The Journey
AS LONG AS I CAN remember I’ve been a story-teller. When I was a child I would sit with notebook and pen and write the stories filling my head with new worlds, characters and realms of existence. Sometimes I would tell my sisters bedtime stories about mystical creatures and magical heroes on fantastic quests. I would sit on the stairs at school writing stories and living in my own little world. My friends would sneak up behind me, take my notebooks and sit next to me, reading the story coming to life under my pen. There is something magical about creating other worlds and other lives and watching them come to life on paper.
I decided early in my career that I was going to become a Science Fiction and Fantasy author. Although I am a veracious reader and read anything I can get my hands on, Science Fiction and Fantasy has been and always will be my favorite. When I choose these genres I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to be accepted as a mainstream artist. There seemed to be a built-in prejudice towards the concept of supernatural creatures, magic and seemingly unrealistic scientific feats.
Throughout my life my number one goal, the path I always wanted to pursue, was to become a published author. I didn’t realize the difficult path I had ahead of me or the challenges and sacrifices I would need to make in order to pursue my dream. Although I defined myself as an author for most of my life my first book wasn’t published until my fortieth birthday. In my journey to join the world of the published I made mistakes, poor choices and rushed a little too fast. I experienced a strong learning curve in the process and so I decided I needed to compile this book as a way to guide others in the pursuit of their dreams to be published.
There are many steps to becoming a published author. A person doesn’t wake up one morning and say, “I think I’m going to write a book today.” Writing and publishing a book is a process; a long, difficult, painful process. However, the process is worth it. When you have your finished book in your hands and can turn the pages and smell the fresh, crisp, clean smell of paper and ink a thrill goes up your spine and you feel invincible.
In this book we will explore all aspects of writing, from developing the story, to formatting your book for print and finally the process of bringing your book from an idea into a full-fledged novel. This is not meant to be a textbook or the end all, be all of writing and publishing. Although I have years of experience as a teacher in the classroom I don’t want this book to feel like you are sitting in a classroom listening to a lecture. I want to take you on a journey into the literary world and into the world of publishing. The journey is my story and I hope by sharing this journey you will be motivated to take your own journey into the world of authorship. The goal of this book is to teach you how to be a better writer and in return have a quality piece of work with the end result of becoming a published author.
This book is not cerebral. I will not use big words or obscure pedagogy to teach you. Okay, I know cerebral and pedagogy are big words, look them up in the dictionary. My students hate it when I tell them that, but when you go through the effort to learn something on your own because the idea made an impression on you the lesson will stick with you forever. I will teach you the way I teach students in the classroom. This book breaks down the elements of good writing and explains how you can self-publish your work without going into significant debt. This is not a how-to manual. I’m going to take you on a journey. The same journey I have been on for the past twenty years. There are no short-cuts to becoming a great writer. All you can do is work to improve and take every opportunity to learn.
The best way to learn from this text is to read it from beginning to end then go back and review the areas where you need to improve. Treat each chapter as you would a writing workshop. Read the chapter, complete the exercises and if you need more information perform research. Each concept I discuss here is a piece of the puzzle. Without each one you don’t get the complete picture. I’m not promising you will become an expert in the field of writing and publishing. The goal of this text is to give blossoming authors and publishers the benefit of my experience as I traversed the journey from concept to published novel. Once you have read the book go back and reread sections you know you need help understanding and keep this book close by as a reference when you are struggling. This book is a resource. It’s a tool to put in your writer’s toolbox along with all the other resources available to you. Despite the struggles I endured as I learned how to become a published author, I enjoyed the journey. I hope you enjoy your journey into the world of writing as much as I enjoyed mine.
