Ohh okay. I’m buzzing with excitement here. It’s the first official post on the blog. I’m going crazy thinking about it and of course it’s going to be about why self-publishing.
But like the start of every new journey. I want to give a bit more insight about me and my vision for Authorbytrade, and how it’s going to benefit you. ( While giving you some of my experience along the way.)
So, as they say in showbiz: Let’s get this show on the road.
I had originally called the post: “Why become a self-publishing author.”, but decided to change it last moment as I thought the new title was a fit.
But “Why become a self-publshing author” is a question that has weighted a ton on my mind the last couple of weeks and I bet, since you’re here, it’s something you have thought about as well.
And before I can give you an answer, I have to take you on a journey behind the curtains of my life to 4 years ago where my writing journey started for real.
Chapter 1: How boredom became the start of my writing journey.
It was a hot July evening. I sat at my desk scrolling through the internet. At the time I was a computer science student, but I had that weird feeling inside where you just know something isn’t for you.
The night started out like every other night: I doomscrolled for a bit before brainlessly switching on a show.
I had pretty much given up trying to find a direction in life, and each night, I sunk deeper into depression. And there was nothing more comforting than putting on another episode and pretending like your issues weren’t real.
But this night things changed.
During one of the transitions in the show, I caught my own reflection on the screen. It was just a second, but it was enough for me to get a glimpse into the eyes of person who looked like a zombie right before the show switched back to a scene with vibrant colors and happy days.
After a few rounds in the snacks, I had to pause the episode because my mind was all over the place.
“Jack, you gotta find something. There must be something better than this.”
I leaned back in my chair rubbing my head.
It was like a damn circus inside. It felt like I had a monkey slamming cymbals.
Cymbals, what a crazy word. For those of you who like me, who have absolutely no idea what cymbals are, here’s a realistic representation of what went on inside my mind:
Chapter 2: Trying to make sense of the circus inside my mind.
I can’t exactly exaplain how, but somewhere inside my circus mind, a thing occurred to me.
I have always loved to write and I even won a few writing competitions in classes, but as I got older other things got more important, as other people told me it wasn’t possible.
But on this day, I said screw it and did what I do best.
I decided to challenge myself:
“Jack, put on a playlist and write the first few pages of a novel. I’ll give you 45 minutes.”
It seemed crazy, but I decided what the hell. It was 10 pm, my life was a mess, so I dimmed the light and sat down at my desk again. I opened an empty document. Started the timer, played the music and got to work.
The first of minutes of the story, nothing happen, but then suddenly, it was like a the lights turned into a tunnel and my fingers took off. My brain worked overtime as I saw the story happen in front of my eye.
45 minutes went by and boom.
3 pages and around 2000 words. I felt ecstatic, proud, and high from all the adrenaline, but that was about it.
I saved the document and didn’t look at it again.
Fast forward to 2 years later
I wanted to try again. And guess what came to my rescue?
The document from that specific night.
I picked it up, wrote daily for 45 minutes, and within 3 months I had my first novel: 208 pages or 107,000 words
A novel about a boy called Marcel, who decides to follow his curiosity even though it puts him through danger and situations he’s not for.
Relatable? I think, there has to be a reason why it was so easy to write.
Chapter 3: Writing isn’t just about writing, it’s so much more.
I learned this that day.
It was such a surreal experience to write the story. I still remember the day when I placed the last period.
The happiness and excitement that shut through my body.
It was such a crazy feeling seeing something you have worked on for 3 months finally being done. Let alone have a whole freaking book saved on your hard drive.
But you know what’s even crazier? I thought you had to be a special kind of specimen to be able to do.
But now that I have done it, I know it’s possible for everybody and that’s the point I want to prove. It’s the reason I’m sitting here writing to you:
The person who wants to write, the person who’s already writing, or the person who has already finished a draft.
Chapter 4: A confession about writing and the feelings you will feel.
Now before we get ahead of ourselves, I have a confession to make: The novel is still just a draft.
It’s still laying in its first draft, why you may ask?
Because I don’t believe I can edit it into the masterpiece that I believe it deserves to be, but instead of leaving again this time, I decided to write other novels.
I currently have 3 other novel drafts waiting to get edited and published. All, so I can get better, so I can edit my firstborn novel and publish it in a way that I am going to be proud of.
Now this doesn’t mean I waited with self-publishing anything (and neither should you if you have works that are done)
I have published two books through Amazon’s self-publishing platform: Kindle direct publishing (KDP):
Wanna hear a secret? They sucked.
Did I know it at the time? Of course not, I wouldn’t have published them if I did, but looking back at them, I know what went wrong.
They were part of another one of my challenges: Publish 12 short stories in 12 months.
It was a simple and fun challenge at first, but by the 3th month, I burned out.
The reason? I wanted to push stories out, because people said it was the easiest way to make money quickly.
Simple as that.
“I don’t care if you burned out, did it work?” Got a thought like this going through your mind right now?
I don’t blame you, but unfortunately it didn’t.
I’m not ashamed to admit, I didn’t earn anything financially. (I mean look at those statistics, 16 sales over almost 2 years), but it was such a powerful learning experience that even though I cringe reading them now, I still keep them as a reminder of how far I have come.
They are a constant reminder that you learn so much more by just writing and publishing your work. Even if it isn’t the best. Something I have truly learned through writing is that you don’t learn by the result, you learn during the process.
So, if you still think you have to be perfect or special to publish, you should get rid of that thought, because you don’t. You have the opportunity to publish your stuff, even if they suck. (which of course they don’t, they just need another round of editing)
But what the hell does this have to do with self-publish then?
Let me boil it down: I might not have earned anything financially, but I learned about the processes behind how to write a novel.
Being a self-publishing author is about more than money. It’s about doing things on your terms. It’s about learning the craft, having fun, but it’s most importantly about becoming a better writer.
(Quick note: I have never done traditional publishing before and I don’t know anybody who has, but do a quick google search and I’m sure you’ll see that it can be a waiting hell and chances are the work won’t really be yours.)
Okay. That was one hell of a long story. But we’re finally back at the main question.
Chapter 5: The answer – Why become a self-publishing author?
Because it’s going to be one hell of a journey.
That’s my answer.
I’m still only at the start of my journey to become a self-publishing author. I don’t know every in and out of how to write a novel, but I have learned a lot through my little self-publishing challenge, even if it didn’t last much more than 3 months. And I believe that should be your biggest priority as a writer: To learn.
I’m expecting it to be like a crazy rollercoaster ride. The kind of rollercoaster that’s going to leave you heaving for air and sprinting to a trashcan, but you’re still willing to run back in line to feel the rush again.
Epilogue: The last bit about me and the blog
That’s the purpose of the blog. I’m going to share my progression and experiences as I write and self-publish my novels, so that you can benefit from it. To help you get past your hurdles. To show you the light at the end of tunnel when the journey seems difficult. Because I want us to become better as writers.
Oh, and the blog, it’s to satisfy the other side of my creative writing brain. The part that doesn’t want to tortured with grammar and punctuation correctness. The part that just want to spill the personal touch and say screw the world, when everything has turned to shit. (But let’s hope it doesn’t come to that, eh?)
Because as much as the blog is a reminder to myself, it’s also a reminder to you: You don’t have to be special to write and publish your own novels. You just have to have a passion for writing.
That’s it for now.
I appreciate it if you stuck until now.
I know it was a lot and I hope you can bear with me as I find my legs in the blogging world. With that said, I’d appreciate any feedback you have – leave them below or send them to me on mail – it’s all much appreciated.
Your writing buddy,
Jack