J.J.’s Comments (group member since Aug 24, 2009)

J.J.’s comments from the Q&A with J.J. Hebert group.

Dina wrote: "How long did it take you to write Unconventional? Did you receive any rejection letters on it like James in your book?"

Less than a year. I actually wrote about 50,000 words in one month, February 2007. And yes, I received quite a few rejection letters.

I've never written a series, but I bet it's more difficult than writing a standalone. The plot of a series would need to be much more detailed than the plot of a standalone, which equals a heck of a lot of work on the author's part.

Melissa wrote: "Would you say it is best to self publish or wait until you get a publisher to take your book?"

Depends on your goals as a writer and how much control you desire. If you want to release your book as-is without facing rejections and (sometimes) months waiting for agent responses, self-publishing might be for you. Keep in mind, though, you'll have to do EVERYTHING on your own. Your book won't sell itself.

If you're not a control freak when it comes to your work and you don't mind waiting, waiting, and waiting some more, traditional publishing might be for you. In this case, you should probably look at small presses instead of HarperCollins or Random House, who both only accept "agented" material.

I got into writing many years ago...because I enjoyed it. I started with poems, followed by lyrics for songs, and then settled on books (I had always wanted to write a novel). I was blissfully ignorant at the start of my book-writing journey, and thankfully so. If I had known the difficulty of the journey, I probably would've given up before beginning. Promoting, as you can guess, is very challenging at times.

What do you want to know about me, my writing process, etc.? :-)

PC.

Word.

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