I wrote a novel, now what?
In 1989, a considerably younger version of myself started writing a collection of short stories to exercise my dream of becoming a world…
The Author Experience
I wrote a novel, now what?
Update: Finally published and available on Amazon!
In 1989, a considerably younger version of myself started writing a collection of short stories to exercise my dream of becoming a world famous author. By 1996 that habit had continued and I had managed to fill several books and binders with short stories and parallel works of fiction from English assignments over my school years. I published works in the school yearbook and newspaper. Most of my friends thought I would go on to a career as a journalist or writer.
I started work on a novel in 1995. After writing two or three failed introductions — I decided to weave the stories together to create an epic. Six years later in 2001 I had completed my first draft of “The Taking” while completing a co-op degree in Chemical Engineering. I would print and send this book to several publishers that year. Each time, I would hear nothing in response and the rejection burned my ambition.
In 2004 I revised my draft and tried yet again unsuccessfully to publish the work. Finally, I self published in 2009 after a 3rd revision with the then new blurb.com platform. Now the softcover edition of my first pride and joy is available for about $15 for purchase. I have sold 1 copy.
Retrospect
I knew nothing of self promotion, literary agents, and how to get published. When I started there was no platform to point me in the right direction as most publications were of the analog era. As the digital era dawned, more opportunities for publishing arose but I was too busy to take them. My dream to be an author conflicted with the more profitable ambition of becoming an engineer, then life as a PhD student, a scientist, and later as a product person on a software team. I became a wife and a mother. My writing career had ended with the novel. Life took over and all other ambitions faded.
Writing the novel became a check mark ticked off on a bucket list.
Lessons Learned
- I can DO anything I set my mind to. Having written a novel, I have always listed it as an accomplishment on my resume. This was no small feat. Since then I have up and moved to a strange country, completed at two post graduate degrees, and had my babies.
- Novel writing takes considerable time and resources. You have to have single minded focus to your craft. You will either write or you will not there is no middle ground here.
- There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I have since written 2 academic thesis that albeit technical research documents benefited from the knowledge that I could and would finish.
- The journey is more important than the destination. I enjoyed writing the novel. I often think fondly of locking myself down to write on various occasions and the hi-jinx that ensued. A kitchen left dirty for days complete with broken dish left where it fell on the ground because an idea was too important for trivial distractions. Waking and sleeping while in tune with a completely different dimension. More importantly, writing is not about the money or fame.
- Criticism is relative. I had two friends who were also fans of fantasy fiction genre read my book and give me feedback: one told me there wasn’t enough descriptive language to paint a picture, the other told me there was too much. Everyone is a critic. A graduate advisor needed me to change the font of my final thesis because he preferred Ariel over the default.
- Put yourself out there. When the story was fresh and a part of me, it was really hard to sell. I was worried that by reading my novel people would see something in me that I was not ready to reveal. Years later, a story is a story and even I am a changed person from the young woman who wrote it. With age comes release from the fear that causes us to hold back. Had I promoted my work with more vigour and confidence, perhaps I would have been successful at publishing it.
- I’m not finished yet. With every article I publish on Medium I have the hope growing that I will work on another novel some day. There are any number of authors who wrote their most successful works later in life.
