Was having a long conversation with myself about where my writing is going.
It's sort of dying off where I haven't done any promoting. My self-publishing career is dead in the water. I think the books are just as good, but as far as sales are concerned, it doesn't matter what I think.
I have three books coming out with publishers over the next year--I think. Two of the publishers are new for me.
I'm writing for a publisher a book that I have lots of doubts about. So I was working through that and by accident asked myself the question: "Do YOU like the book?"
And the answer is a most definite: "Yes, yes I do."
I mean, I still have to pop the ending and I'm asking my subconscious to come up with a corker, but even the ending I have so far isn't bad.
In every case where I question the direction of the book, it's been because of some sort of awareness in my head that what I'm doing might not work with the publisher.
But I think it's very, very dangerous to write to other's expectation.
"Do YOU like the book?"
"Yes, yes I do."
I like the characters, the plot, the setting, the writing. I like the measured beginning, the middle alone-part, the quirkiness of the Bulletproof Bigfoot costume being another character in the book.
I like the relationship between Nicole and Hart. I like the McGuffin. I like the premise. I like the somewhat goofy humor (always amazes me that I write that goofy stuff.) All these are somewhat problematic commercially.
So far in my writing I've written what I want to write when I want to write it--and only then have I asked myself where I could place what I've written.
When I was told by the "big-time" agent to write "100 kickass" pages," I tried to write it the way I thought he would want it. I took out a couple of chapters, changed the beginning, and moved chapters around.
He rejected it outright. So I went ahead and wrote it anyway, the way I wanted, restoring the original story, and it was this book that the bigger publisher took.
I know in my business that I decided a long time ago to do what I wanted, instead of always chasing the almighty buck, and build on the small successes because in the end I had to live with the store on a daily basis, and doing it for money only was a recipe for burn-out.
My attitude to writing from the beginning was "Just write it. Don't question it, trust your subconscious, have fun."
So I need to ask that question more often, instead of getting hung up on other things.
"Do YOU like the book?"
"Why, yes. Thank you for asking."
It's sort of dying off where I haven't done any promoting. My self-publishing career is dead in the water. I think the books are just as good, but as far as sales are concerned, it doesn't matter what I think.
I have three books coming out with publishers over the next year--I think. Two of the publishers are new for me.
I'm writing for a publisher a book that I have lots of doubts about. So I was working through that and by accident asked myself the question: "Do YOU like the book?"
And the answer is a most definite: "Yes, yes I do."
I mean, I still have to pop the ending and I'm asking my subconscious to come up with a corker, but even the ending I have so far isn't bad.
In every case where I question the direction of the book, it's been because of some sort of awareness in my head that what I'm doing might not work with the publisher.
But I think it's very, very dangerous to write to other's expectation.
"Do YOU like the book?"
"Yes, yes I do."
I like the characters, the plot, the setting, the writing. I like the measured beginning, the middle alone-part, the quirkiness of the Bulletproof Bigfoot costume being another character in the book.
I like the relationship between Nicole and Hart. I like the McGuffin. I like the premise. I like the somewhat goofy humor (always amazes me that I write that goofy stuff.) All these are somewhat problematic commercially.
So far in my writing I've written what I want to write when I want to write it--and only then have I asked myself where I could place what I've written.
When I was told by the "big-time" agent to write "100 kickass" pages," I tried to write it the way I thought he would want it. I took out a couple of chapters, changed the beginning, and moved chapters around.
He rejected it outright. So I went ahead and wrote it anyway, the way I wanted, restoring the original story, and it was this book that the bigger publisher took.
I know in my business that I decided a long time ago to do what I wanted, instead of always chasing the almighty buck, and build on the small successes because in the end I had to live with the store on a daily basis, and doing it for money only was a recipe for burn-out.
My attitude to writing from the beginning was "Just write it. Don't question it, trust your subconscious, have fun."
So I need to ask that question more often, instead of getting hung up on other things.
"Do YOU like the book?"
"Why, yes. Thank you for asking."