Dear
Friend,
Have
you been afraid, well maybe not afraid, more like cautious to do something you
haven’t done in several years, but know you must do it at some point? This has
been me ever since I bought my new car. I haven’t driven, only been a passenger
several times, on the Oklahoma turnpikes in several years. Once my beloved
Trailblazer hit that 200,000-mile mark, I was hesitant to drive it out of town.
Then, as you all know, at 211,000 miles, some major issues were enough for me
to start looking at buying a new car. The universe heard my plea, and I got
that “new to me” car. And when I say car, I mean car. Going from an SUV to a
sporty luxury sedan took a couple of weeks to get used to. I decided to drive
only around town until EmBee (my car’s name, because she is a Mercedes) and I
became acquainted.
Now,
to make a long story even longer, on Saturday I was going to go to a writer’s
meeting at a library about 30 minutes away. This would mean getting on that
turnpike (which, to my surprise, the speed limit is now 80!) for 90% of the
drive. I had decided to attend virtually instead and let a friend I was
supposed to meet there know. That is, until I went out to grab lunch. While in
the Braum’s drive-thru, I heard the words “No! I’m going to that meeting!” in
my mind. A sense of calm determination swept through me, and I went to the
meeting.
Was
I nervous? Of course, I was for most of the 30-minute drive there. But on the
way home, I was relaxed and didn’t notice any anxiety about being on the
turnpike with vehicles that sometimes would tower over me. EmBee stretched her
legs (so to speak) and took good care of me as I navigated her safely back
home. I’m ready to go to another meeting on the north side of OKC in a few
weeks; that trip will be almost 60 miles from my home.
It
may not seem like a big deal to some, but for me, it was a fear I overcame with
flying colors!!
Now
onto a fear of another kind. Every time an author finishes a book, she/he
always—at least I do—wonder if their audience/readers will like it. Since I
finished Art of Deception and it is in my beta reader’s hands,
I wonder if there are plot holes I didn’t see. I know she’ll let me know.
Then
there’s the fear of starting that next book. Is my idea enough to lead to a
finished story that the readers will like? Have I done enough research? Is the
cover appealing and conveying the story on the pages? This is where I’m at with
my next book, but more on that later.
Then
there’s the fear of marketing. Most authors are required to either do their own
or help the publisher with the marketing. There’s the cost that goes into ads,
promo sites, etc., that the author is required to do almost entirely on their
own. Wondering if you’ve hit your target audience. Wondering who your target
audience is for each story you bring to life.
Yes,
writing is not for the faint of heart. The days of writing a story, submitting
to a publisher, getting a contract, and then sitting back to write the next
book while your publisher takes care of everything are gone. Even though most
days I am sitting back in the recliner in my pj’s, it’s more than opening the
laptop and writing; it’s running a business from start to finish and praying
you’ve succeeded with something that day.
I
don’t know about you, but I totally forgot to change my bedside clock on
Saturday when I went to bed. I missed church yesterday because of it. I wish
Oklahoma would just stay with one time and stop falling back or skipping
forward twice a year.
That’s
about it for the past week. I can never thank you enough for continuing to read
these snippets into my life as an author. I hope I have not bored you too much
with them. 😊 After all, other people's lives are never as glamorous as we may
think.
May
your ereader or bookshelf overflow with delightful books to read!
Maxine
