This is more about questions than answers.
In 2013, I became a first-time published author, sorta kinda; in the way picking up a dead frog on a flooded street and taking it home to pin it on your wall for satanic rituals makes you the frogfather. In 2020, I became a first-time dad, in the way consensually practicing unprotected marital enrichment and supporting a woman through 9 months of aching, swelling, puking, and getting cut open, makes you a dad. Books are like babies. It all starts with an intense feeling of passion and an orgasmic breath of ecstasy, followed by months of hard work. Then it’s all over and you think the work is done and then HAHA JUST KIDDING SUCKER, that was the easy part, the real labor is just beginning, and yes, it involves many sleepless nights and much refocusing of priorities and questioning of your life choices. In my experience, the line between being a teenaged broncin’ self-published and self-edited “author” and, you know, a real one* is a big fat border wall you think you’ll make someone else pay for but end up paying for yourself. Just like you may think after having younger siblings you know how to be a parent and, that’s not entirely wrong but it’s not holistically right either. Just because you can write a book doesn’t entitle you to author status without putting the work in, and just because you can get someone pregnant (or get pregnant) doesn’t mean you’re an automatic dad (or mom) without cleaning up some vomit and changing some diapers and watching 100 episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, or whatever the kids are into these days. It’s worth doing. But you have to love it if you’re going to do it right. I don’t have a wealth of knowledge to share, I just know that it’s hard. There are rules, there’s a system you have to work within, but you also have to be creative and figure out your own path. What worked for others may not work for you and your baby or book-baby. I love making babies and I love making books, but that’s the easy part, selling either is hard. Umm. I think my analogy derailed but stay with me for one more thought. Creating is easy. Preparing something for the real world, that’s hard. But if you love it, you’ll do whatever it takes. * Self-published authors are real authors! But real editors are real editors and real valuable. Real agents are real agents and real cover designers are real cover designers and the list goes on.
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AuthorWriter of words. Author of stories. Pyramid of gnomes pretending to be a human. I talk about writing and books and stuff. Sign up now to receive updates!
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