This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
I’m the world’s most impatient person. I was born three weeks early and I’ve been in a rush ever since. The trouble with being a writer is that you need a hell of a lot of patience. And I think that being self-published has made me even more impatient. The temptation for me when I write those amazing words ‘The End’ is to think that I’ve finished a novel. Any writer or aspiring writer knows that this is where the hard work usually starts. Regular readers of the column will not be surprised to know that that was once the point at which I submitted my first novel to agents…
So even though you’ve written the end, you need patience to get through the editing stages. Which for me is usually one read through on the Kindle to get a feel for the novel, one edit on the computer, then another Kindle read. Then the book goes off for a line edit. Comes back gets re-edited, re-read on Kindle (twice), sent to test readers and then sent back for copy-editing. Then when I get my sparkly manuscript back after it’s been edited, I lose all the patience I've accumulated. I just want to see my book on a shelf. And that’s where the ease of self-publishing comes in. Because, just like that, I can put it on a virtual shelf.
For my second book, Universally Challenged, I did pretty much that. I didn’t plan a launch, I just popped it onto Amazon and hoped for the best. Only that hasn’t really worked. The sales for the book have never been great, and whilst they do sell, I still sell more Millie and the American Wedding per day. Which means I have to tease out a little bit of patience whilst I plan the launch of my books in the future to create a buzz.
Which is what I’m doing with my third book. Today I have done a cover reveal and first chapter release or my new novel Don’t Tell the Groom which I’m launching in January. You can find them both on my website. I’m so excited about this book and I’m dying for people to read it, but I’m trying to take my time and plan a virtual launch and blog tour.
I’ve never made it past the full manuscript request stage of subbing; I don’t know how my nerves would take it if I actually got an agent and had my book sent to publishers. And then if I got my book published, imagine if I had to wait up to a year for it to come out?
I may have gotten a little more patient as my writing journey has progressed, but I’m still in need of more
How do other authors and aspiring authors cope with the waiting times involved in publishing?