So You Wanna Write a Book?

To Do List:

Write Manuscript

Round of Revisions & Edits

Query Agents

Get some Form Rejections (because duh, that comes with the territory, right?)

Get some Requests for Partials

Get some Requests for Fulls

Get some More Rejections

Get an Offer To Represent

Accept Offer – Get Represented

Sell Book to Publisher

Get a Movie Deal

Make Millions

Retire

The End.

Oh, no. That wasn’t the end. I forgot to put one really important thing on this list: Wake Up Fool!

In Reality

This list has some things on it that may seem realistic and in some cases may even be realistic. But, for most writers, this is much too vague and general, too cut and dry and frankly, just too easy. Too good to be true. If it were this easy, there would be millions more books on the market –yes millions. And a whole lot more sucky adaptations of those books in the movies (while there are a lot already, there aren’t nearly as many as there would be if this list were as simple as completing each task).

Do you need to write your manuscript? Yes. But is it that easy? Not at all. Oh yes, you can just have at it – go to town on that sucker, clickety clicking away. And you can have your first draft done pretty quickly (a week to a few months, depending on the amount of time you have to spend on it), but, is it a viable piece of art? Is it something that can be sculpted into a masterpiece with a few rounds of revisions, edits, potentially the hiring of a professional editor in the final stages of polishing it up? Are you ready to query? Have you written a query? Is it a sparkling representation of your beloved, perfect in it’s own right? 

A lot of writers, especially newcomers to the scene are ecstatic to write the book and do the ceremonial few rounds of revisions and edits and then shoot off mass query letters to their favorite agents, absent the realization they will have months down the road, newly clad with rejections, turning from one to ten and then to fifty and one hundred plus. Man, does that sound like some kind of depressing adventure! Is it necessary? I don’t think so.

I honestly believe that there are only a few things required to avoid this:

First: Know how to write a story.

Yes. It’s that simple. If you don’t know the necessary components of a story, then when you write yours, it won’t be a story, it will be a jumbled mess of thoughts entangling what you thought was the best idea ever. Only, the first draft has every possible detail that entered your mind, resulting in what reads like gibberish. And the final draft only has the bare minimum because somewhere along the way someone told you to ‘trust your reader to know what you mean by that – there is no need to explain every detail,’ which is true to some extent – but you took it way too far and hacked that sucker to pieces giving it the honor of now reading like a really bad, really long poem. I found myself freely floating in that boat going downstream in that well-known creek, as they say, without a paddle. Enter the re-write, which could have been avoided, had I known how to write a story.

Having a great idea for a story is, I believe, original, but not as original as being able to turn that great idea into the masterpiece, known to readers as The Novel.

Second: Don’t skip ahead.

So many writers skip steps. Aside from skipping the first step of making sure you know how to write a story by doing your research, reading how to books, gathering tips from experienced writers, taking classes, reading the books that are similar to what you want to write about, just learning the basics, a lot of writers finish that manuscript and genuinely believe it is really just that good – and ready to go (that said with the confident, tight lipped smile, head nodding obnoxiously, that to the seasoned pro, no doubt presents you as naïve and *shudders* amateur).

So, when you’ve come to the conclusion that you know how to write a story – the basics will do at this point – and sit amazed that you’ve actually finished an entire manuscript, go on to the next step. No, it’s not time to query. It’s time to revise. Let’s say, it took you 12 weeks to write that manuscript. It could easily take you 6-9 months to revise. Oh yes. And that’s if you’ve followed step one – knowing how to write a story. For people like me – yes I’m a dummy in some ways –not all ways – but some, it takes longer. No, I didn’t flip my lid when the manuscript was complete and query every top agent I could find, but I definitely wasn’t clear on the proper way to lay out a story that could be understood and enjoyed by any perspective reader.

So, my revisions have been a long and winding road full of rewrite, revise and repeat. I’ve been saying I definitely took the long cut on this endeavor. What I did-not do, was query a single agent before I was ready. Guess what – still not ready. Getting close, but still not. And I won’t send a single query until I am.

What does ‘being ready’ mean? To me, it means that my manuscript is the absolute best it can possibly be. Not that, ‘I am done being stressed by this hunk-a-crap and one way or another this thing is moving on to the next stage – come rejection hell or garbage pile – I’m done with this!’ Not giving up and finishing, truly finishing what you started. Being one hundred percent positive that it’s ready for the next step, for a new perspective. That it’s as good as it’s going to get in my hands alone.

Third: Be patient.

To me this one is obvious. When I say, be patient, I don’t mean, ‘Wait a minute would ya?!” or ‘Man, I’ve been working on this thing for two years, I think I’ve waited long enough. I’ve been patient. I’m done.’ I mean, really, be patient, as in, when you ask yourself ‘When will I be done with this?’ and your answer is, ‘You tell me and we’ll both know’, you are okay with that. This is what it takes.

When you are truly finished with your masterpiece, you’ll know.

Now back to that list.

If you’re in to making lists, then make a list. But make sure you don’t get too far ahead of yourself. If you want to practice and practice your query letter – yes, do it. Who doesn’t do that? Educate yourself on all topics related to being a successful author. Research publishing – all options – marketing, networking, blogging, agents, how to write the perfect query letter, etc. Join crit groups, and participate in writing chats online, blog your progress if that’s what you like to do, but if your manuscript isn’t in tip-top shape, don’t be tempted to send out that query. You don’t want to burn bridges with your favorite agents by sending them your crap, not to mention all the time you’ll have wasted waiting for the inevitable.

There are steps to follow on the road to publication. If you go at them all out of order, it can make for a pretty stressful and long journey.

I hope this was helpful to somebody.

Andi

c:/blog.reboot

     Do you know what bugs me? If you’re reading this, it’s probably the same that bugs you. My blog has realized an unintentional theme. The, I’m sorry I haven’t written lately but I promise I will soon, theme. I hate that theme. I reject it.

   To say that I’m sorry that I said I would write once a week and didn’t follow through, suggests that I thought someone would read what I was writing had I posted once a week. I suppose it should matter that I promised I’d try and didn’t, but I haven’t been called out yet, so, I don’t feel so bad. Maybe that’s my problem. I didn't care to write about what I felt I could write about. What I deem myself qualified to write about, isn’t what I want to read about. Who wants to read about my personal writing journey – my struggles along the road to publication? Not me.

I want to write what I like to read, which is, how to be a better writer. And what it takes to create a boldly original work of art known as the novel. I know what I like to read, what impresses me in writing, and I’ve spent the past few years creating and perfecting my own story. Where I feel I fall short is in trying to share what I’ve learned along the way without spewing reverb. I don’t want to copy or appear to copy anyone and that is one of my worst fears as a blogging writer.

What I have learned over the past few years, mimics what every new writer learns. Is that a surprise? Most of what I’ve learned has been through experience – do-ing. It’s not a coincidence that once I’ve learned a lesson, figured out and corrected a mistake that could have been huge, written, revised, edited, re-written, scrapped, started from square one, fought twenty inner battles on it every day for a month, quit, started again, started something new, quit that, went back and re-wrote again, quit again, read some books on it, read some blogs on it, threw everything in the garbage, got it out of the garbage, did some more revisions, did final revisions, decided my story sucked, decided it didn't suck, decided the story was good but the writing was horrendous, changed tenses, changed back, changed POV, changed back, read some more books on the craft of writing, read some more blogs, did some more revisions and edits, considered hiring an editor, quit again, restart again, finally got that I'm not the only one going through this, then, and only then, realized, it really is the process. It’s what we all go through. The learning experience that cannot be replaced by any amount of formal education be that in a college, or in writing workshops or even in reading blogs or books on how to write the best book ever. 

While some of you are faster learners than I (or just have less kids), it is the same process. Years or months or maybe only weeks for some of you. The process must be learned and known and you must make some mistakes before you perfect your masterpiece. Learn from experience. That is my biggest lesson in writing. And the blog failure, kind of the same thing. 

SO – while I still don’t want to say and repeat everything you’ve ever read about the experience of writing – mistakes and how to correct or avoid them – I’ll attempt to post about what I’ve learned, or am learning along the way. Be warned though, as I mentioned earlier, it is the SAME THING EVERY WRITER LEARNS.

            File this under: What I learned in the attempt to maintain a blog without determining what it was ever supposed to be about. FAIL. REBOOT.

WELCOME BACK.

In the mean time ...

Enjoy my poem that I wrote a few years ago, but feel it is appropriate to start the year ...

One

 One second * One minute * One hour * One day

One week * One month * One year * One way

 Forward through time

One life keeps moving

* blink * and it's over

One chance for proving

 One thing * One action * One person * One thought

One dream * One event * One lifetime * One shot

 Nothing is forever

there's no guarantee

One chance to do your best

mess up and you'll see

 One symbol * One move * One friend * One dance

One memory * One gesture * One love * One chance

Happy New Year

I feel bad and don't want to start out the year with every entry here being an apology for ditching the blog - SO, I've decided that in order to keep from overwhelming myself with the responsibility, I'm going to resolve to write one entry per week. Yes it's more than I've done lately, but it certainly shouldn't be too much. And if nothing else, it'll just be an update of where I am with the writing/revising/querying/reading etc. I honestly didn't realize how busy I'd be with school starting in August, until holiday season ending on December 31 would be. I've got to get a better hang of this blogging thing!

To that end- my goal was to query in the month of January. Am I ready to query today, Jan. 1? Uhh, no. But will I be ready on Jan 31? Maybe. I won't hold my breath or commit myself to strict expectations - I'll be ready when I'm ready. But I will try my best to stay on my original timeline. We shall see.

In the mean time - Happy New Year! If I come up with a hard list of resolutions or A resolution - I'll be sure to let you know what they are.

Since I originally intended for this post to be a poem I wrote and it turned out to be  ... this, I'll direct you to my next post for my poem titled, ONE.

*Andi*