Only rarely does a glib comment fall off my tongue. Recently, when a friend was having trouble finding the word she wanted to use, I explained that happens to me too. It’s why I’d rather write than talk!
I understand a lot of people study for years before they attempt a novel. I know there are guidelines and so many dos and don’ts, probably no one could keep them all straight. But writing is a magical experience for me. It’s almost as if I’m not the one doing the writing.
Even history seems to cooperate. For instance, I needed to find a location for G.I.s stationed in Europe before WWII. Guess what? There weren’t any, as impossible as that sounds to us now. Magically, I located information about servicemen stationed in Iceland shortly before the war. When I needed a legal action filed against one of my characters, I stumbled on heartbalm lawsuits—the perfect solution. Back in the day, a wealthy, jilted sweetheart wouldn’t hesitate to take her ex-betrothed for all he was worth.
I often find use for plots and subplots from my long-ago stories—the ones I imagined in the car. Sometimes I fret a bit, wondering if I’ll be able to continue creating stories as diverse as the ones I’ve been writing. Uncharacteristically—for a serious-minded planner—I continue to “go with the flow” and trust that if I don’t know exactly what happens next in my story, I will know tomorrow or the day after. Against all professional advice, I do not outline and never plan to. I do not write profiles for my characters. They are original and unique in my mind and are flawed and intact and real—to me—when they are born in my imagination.
Unfortunately, the ins and outs of self-publishing don’t come as naturally. The complications and learning process have seemed daunting at times. True, this is the best time in history to publish a book. I could have chosen to go the traditional publishing route, obtained an agent and proceeded to submit my work to publishers, but I decided I wanted optimal control. If other people can learn this stuff, so can I.
My oldest son wanted to make websites, so he made mine. It’s kind of handy. When I want something changed, I just e-mail him. Of course, I had to purchase my domain name and sign up with a web host. I got on Facebook for the first time, not to share my politics or family vacations but as a way to direct people to my website and gain followers. I have a long way to go on that. I purchased a dba for my publishing company. My younger son’s hockey buddy, a graphic designer off the rink, designed my first book cover. I took on-line classes for print on demand and Kindle e-book publishing. I read books about editing.
As I mentioned in previous posts, I have been editing for almost two years straight. Five of my books are in fine shape. My first 300,000-word epic is far from ready.
It took a while but I have come to the conclusion, I might have better English and punctuation skills than a lot of editors. Although I originally believed everyone on earth must know more about writing than I did, I have slowly come to realize, my skills and instincts are pretty good. Don’t get me wrong. I pay attention to suggestions and critiques but weeding out good suggestions and comments is an art unto itself. More about my personal editing process in the next Writing Journey post.