For a while I wrote about the writer’s life, noting its ups and downs and the lessons learned along the way. You can read about them in the Essays menu but some of the most popular are: My Real Writing Life and The Real, REAL Writer’s Life and Final Thoughts on a Writer’s Life. During my time away from blogging I continued to learn writing’s tough lessons, ultimately surviving what I now refer to as the Writer’s Black Hole.

image from youthvoices.net

In the posts mentioned above, I was very honest about my struggles. I had thrown myself into writing, trying to learn the craft and the business aspect at the same time. Like most, I sacrificed a lot--money, family time, energy and sanity to move the mountains necessary to succeed at this thing. The more I pushed to ‘make it’, running around like a possessed chicken without its head, two things were happening: 1) I was burning out, and 2) I was beginning to accept that success doesn’t happen overnight, no matter how hard I wished it to. Notice I said accept. See, I’d already realized that truth on a brain level but not at an emotional one, and the latter is where the magic happened this time around. Both points were excruciating to swallow.

I’m back! I've been out of commission a few weeks but that doesn't mean the old brain has stopped thinking about writing or blogging. Spending days alone in a hospital room—by some miracle, I lucked out and was given a private room—I had PLENTY of time to think. And to think some more. So, what conclusions did I come to during this time?

from www.genevieveng.com

Well, I decided it was time to close the book on my ponderings about the writing life for the moment, and that this last post should do it. Like anything new, understanding the writing business and my place in it took time but I think I finally came to grips with something important.

Brace yourselves.

I concluded that it’s entirely possible that this dream of making it as a successful writer could end up being little more than an expensive hobby.

Gasp!

Somewhere in the backs of our minds we already know this but hope, passion, and drive shoves the possibility aside. Only, once you get your feet wet, once you start putting in the real elbow grease to sell your books, that’s when reality really hits. This is really hard!

It’s aggravating. When I think back over these last few years and what they involved, it was the hope of success that pushed me through each challenge—I climbed those mountains because of the carrot dangling at the end of a rope. And that’s not to say that I have failed, nor is this sour grapes. I achieved my life-long dream of writing and self-publishing a book (The Purple Morrow) and I am proud of it. I've gone ahead and written the sequel and started the last book of the series. I plan to write and publish those and the other books I've got brewing in my head. I’m blessed that Morrow is selling, and, thanks to you all, my blog is doing well, and people like my stories. It’s just that the business part of this writing gig involves so much time and effort (and money!) and it doesn't always pay us back in kind—in other words, we don’t always receive according to what we've put in. Or worse, more is required before we begin to see any form of meaningful return.

Do you see where I’m headed? I don’t know about you but I've got a full-time job and a family to support. Luckily, I've made back the investment to produce my book but therein lies the truth we keep hearing all over the web: writing is also a business. In order to make money, you have to spend money. Which involves risk. Realizing that any further investment in time and money might not bring in a decent return gave me pause. How far do I want to go? How far can I go? These are some of the questions that every serious writer should be asking themselves.

I’m not at all saying that we should only write to make money. But there is a difference between writing as a hobby because we love it and writing because we want to publish so we can reach larger numbers of readers and earn something for our efforts. Most of us write because we love it. So much so that we lock ourselves away from our own families and the rest of the world to ‘live’ in another, made-up world. And that’s the way it should be, at its heart. We do what we love because we love to do it. I just think it’s important to know why we write so that we can know what to expect before jumping in with both feet.

So… is this post all about discouraging people from wanting to publish their books? Not at all. As usual, my goal is to share of my own experience for the benefit of someone else. If even one person comes away from this with a clearer and more realistic picture of what awaits them, then I’m good.

If you are thinking about writing seriously, here are some things to consider:

Writing is competitive: There is a ton of competition out there. Anyone can publish a book these days, and for reasons unknown, even poorly written books suddenly strike it rich. Does that mean quality doesn't matter? No, it definitely does. Putting your name on a book will associate you with it until the end of time. Write your book but write it well; your reputation is at stake. Also, success or failure aside, it’s important to do your best to produce something you can be proud of. Just know that no matter how well-written your book is it might not sell as well as you’d hoped. Reality check number 1.

Writing is time consuming: It takes time to produce something of quality. This is true whether you write part-time or full-time. You will write, rewrite, edit and re-edit until you can’t stand you story anymore, but these processes are essential. I think readers can tell when a story has been thrown together versus one where the author took time to nurture and develop the world and its characters. I think any reader who lays down money for a book expects to be treated to a well-told story, so be certain you put in the time needed to properly craft your tale.

Writing is expensive: There are many ways to publish books. There’s doing it for free on a site like CreateSpace, there’s hiring a company to help with editing, book covers and formatting, or the traditional way of going through an agent to maybe one day get a deal. In any of those cases, a quality edit is needed—again, regardless of the format chosen, it’s important to have a manuscript that is as clean and free of plot holes and content errors as possible. IMO, this means paying a qualified person to do the work. Friends and family might be okay for a beta read and to build the morale, but if you are asking readers to lay down their hard-earned money to buy your book, do them a favor and get a good edit. Again, your rep is on the line, and after all the hard work you put into the story, you deserve to have your manuscript shine in the best light possible.

Writing is full of disappointments: As high as we can feel after creating a piece we love, there are some intense lows that come hand in hand with writing. Rejection after rejection letter from agents, publishers, magazines, are some examples. A story that didn't get the attention or reaction you wanted, or a book that didn't sell as well as expected, are others. There are no guarantees in any venture we undertake, but knowing that the road ahead is not all sunshine and rainbows can help us better prepare mentally and emotionally for the ups and downs.

Writing is taxing: We all know this. Not only do we have to write well, we have to market well, we have to find and connect with the new markets, we have to connect with our readers, we have to… the list goes on. And on. And on. There is never ANY end to the number of things we have to do. And those who have more time to dedicate to it all naturally have a leg up on those who don’t. They say that writing should be considered as a second job, and in a lot of ways, it is. If you add up the hours spent writing, platform building, and in social media I’m sure you’d be surprised at how much it added up to. And we wonder why we are always tired!

So what is a writer to do?

www.picstopin.com

That’s what I have been struggling to figure out these last few months through my posts. I have been slowly coming to the conclusion that perhaps writing just might become an expensive hobby. Or, that it might take a lot longer than expected before there are important returns on the investments I have made and will continue to make. It’s sobering, but as far as I can tell, it’s the truth. I haven’t yet decided on what to do next, or how to handle this possibility, but I am taking the time to re-evaluate my priorities and expectations. I think, for the moment, that’s the best I can do.

How about you? What do you think? Where are you on your publishing or self-publishing road?

Being a writer can be an amazing and rewarding experience. We write something clever, moving, or terrifying and then sit back to wait for the responses. “Awesome job, man!” or “Oh my goodness, that was soooo scary!” are all things we crave to hear. Only what happens when we get a review where the person hates what we’ve written? And not only do they hate it but they let us know in the meanest way possible?

from www.technobuffalo.com 

Yes, I am talking about the dreaded Troll Review. You know, the one we all secretly fear but will likely encounter at one point in time. There are a lot of articles out there about how to deal with them, and most of the ones I’ve read are quite helpful. In my opinion, though, they often deal with the ‘head’ aspect, the reasoning behind how to make an appropriate response. But what do we do about how we feel? Isn’t the main reason those reviews or comments are so difficult to shrug off because they hurt?

I decided to write this article because I believe that responding properly to a tough review involves both the head and the heart. Even if you choose not to address the reviewer directly, internally some sort of response is required on our part or it is difficult to move past it. I’ve written before about the fact that when we write, the end product is extremely personal to us. Some even consider it their ‘baby’ or a piece of their own soul so of course harsh comments will feel like salt in a wound. So how do we move from the point of feeling crushed to the point of accepting the review for what it is–someone’s opinion of our work–and moving on?

The first time I was Trolled, I felt mortified. Horrified. I sat up in the middle of the proverbial road, looking around in confusion for the train which had just stream-rolled over me. I remember thinking, “Is it possible my book is that bad?” Once I got up and dusted myself off, it took a long time to get my head back on straight. My confidence was cracked; I couldn’t tell how much of what the person had said was valid or a crock. Nor could I understand how someone could so flippantly belittle my work and all the effort I put into it. I knew not everyone would love everything I wrote, but I had expected people to be respectful in how they let me know. I certainly hadn’t expected to be lambasted!

from focusmagazine.org

In truth, I should have seen it coming. On the writing site where the book is uploaded, I had received polite reviews which mentioned some of the problems with it, and even my writing buddy tried to warn me: “You write really well, but the story builds really slowly. Some readers might like that but just know you might lose some (readers) because of it.” “Yeah, uh-huh,” I’d said, “but this is how I want the story to read. This is my vision for it.”

Fatal last words. I came to see that, often, when we hold so tightly to an idea or a concept that we refuse to change it despite evidence we should, we can expect it to come back to haunt us. Though it hurt, I reread that Troll Review a few times. The thing is, I started to see that, despite its obnoxious packaging, the reviewer was actually speaking the truth. Her comments jived with what my writing partner and the other polite reviewers had told me but which I had refused to accept. So, I had a choice to make: continue to bemoan how I was treated and ignore what turned out to be good feedback…or swallow my pride. I chose to drink a big glass of milk to help that bitter pill go down, then I sat down, reconsidered the story…and then wrote the hell out of it. Many times. It was my first book so it needed a lot of work, but I was determined to show myself–and everyone else–that I could do it. In other words, I transformed that negative situation into a positive one which I then used to my advantage.

Still, we have to be careful. Not every Troll Review is useful. But then neither are all the fluff reviews and feedback we can also get. Every piece of feedback has to be scrutinized and broken down so we can see what is useful and what is not. My point is that just because something is said in a rude way doesn’t mean we should ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater.’ Take a deep breath, read it and reread it until you can see past the crap to whatever nuggets of gold might be hidden underneath it. Then wash them off and write the hell out of your story.

Harsh feedback doesn’t get easier to take over time, at least not for me. But the experience has made me grow, enabled me to become more critical of my work and to consider points of views that are different than my own, which in the end actually benefit my work.

How about you? How have you dealt with Troll Review? Do you have any words of wisdom to share with anyone who might be dealing with this issue right now?

Canadian writer Dyane Forde has always had a love for writing and decided to get serious about it around three years ago. Striking out to achieve her goal of publishing a book led her down many interesting and wonderful roads, learning many valuable lessons along the way. Dyane also has a blog dedicated to writing with the goals of both creating a place for readers to discover her work and to also serve as a writing resource. Her articles are often geared to inspire and encourage others from what lessons she has learned, as well as to provide practical writing support and tips.

Dyane's love of writing began with an early interest in reading and of words in general leading to a life-long desire to write all types of things, from short stories, novels, flash fiction, poetry, etc. 

"I enjoy delving into genres and forms of writing that are different from what I’m used to in order to stretch myself. Every story or book represents new challenges. I write to communicate, meaning that writing becomes a means through which I seek to connect with people on a level deeper than intellect."

So today, Dyane has come here to share some information and answer questions I have for her.  We are both excited that the timing of this interview is coinciding with her book The Purple Morrow just coming out, which is the first in her trilogy Rise of the Papilion.


How long have you considered yourself a writer?

I loved writing since I was a kid and dreamed of being a writer when I grew up but life took a different route. About 3-4 years ago I decided to take writing seriously and set to writing books and stories and what not, so I suppose I would consider myself a writer from that point on.



What inspires and motivates you to write?

I love words. I love seeing what they can do when mixed and matched in various ways, how they can be used to create a mood or a feeling, to stimulate the senses or to move people’s emotions. In a world dominated by visual stimulation, there’s something special about being able to stir the heart and imagination with the written word.

What inspired the name of your blog “Dropped Pebbles?”

The idea behind the name was in regards to the ripple effect that occurs after one drops a pebble in a pond. When I started the blog, I hoped that each story, article, interview etc. would reverberate like that, connecting with and affecting readers, and over time, one day make its own place within the writing community.