Just got over Christmas and New Year with a sigh. No matter how good a time you have, it always feels somewhat anticlimatic eh?
Oh, and I got married. You know, 'cause I had a spare few minutes. My wife is wonderful, just simply wonderful (I'll find a flaw if it's the last thing I do!) and very supportive of my writing, which really helps, obviously.
A brand new year brings with it many thoughts and feelings. For me, it brings the finished prologue, the beginning, to my second novel for Vamplit Publishing, a second novel with a far more challenging premise than Swan Song.
If I am honest, the concept alone terrifies the living hell out of me.
My idea is one that can fail on so many levels it boggles the mind. If I pull it off, meh, if nothing else, I will have pleased myself. But will anyone really care as much as I do?
And here's the point of this much belated blog post; how do you ever really know writing is for you? And I don't mind writing for enjoyment, that should always be encouraged. I mean how do you ever really know that people really like/love your work? Would they care at all if you just simply stopped? Guess you could ask...
I recently had my confidence knocked regarding Swan Song and it did rattle me. I've always been the sensitive kind (I've haven't met a creative soul who isn't) and I always take a positive from a negative but it did get me thinking, this most recent of reviews. Am I wasting my time?
How do you ever really know that your writing is worthwhile? I try to keep myself grounded, no idea is ever as good as I think it is, no sentence perfect, no premise irresistible, yet when I do allow myself flights of fancy, writing becomes truly enjoyable. This story will rock them! I think. Wait till they see how this turns out!
But what if I'm nowhere near as good or as competent as I think I am? What if the only person who will read my work in the years to come is me? What if I should pay more attention to my 9 to 5 job?
I don't have the answer, not yet, and it's the first blog of mine to end without advice of some kind, or at least a positive closer.
Maybe because I am not sure if I am the right person to give advice at this early stage.
All I will offer as I promise to work harder than ever on my stories is much more frequent blogs, far more positivity than I have even shown in my earlier posts and a genuine desire to get so selfish that even if it's only me that enjoys my writing, that's more than enough for me to carry on.
And with that...
(heads back to the important word doc with a beer in hand)
Jevron -- Congrats on getting married! Best wishes to your bride!
ReplyDeleteI do know what you mean about criticism -- I can be very sensitive too (ask Gaynor!). But the thing I've learned is that -- it's all subjective. Look at when Stephen King called Stephenie Meyer a 'horrible' writer -- I know other people would beg to differ greatly. One man's nectar is another man's poison, and for every person that doesn't like your work, two others will like it. Hang in there and best of luck in 2010!
If you write because you love it then it doesn't matter what other people say. Everyone wants great reviews, but no one gets them all the time - after all, a critic is called a critic for a reason. Write for the love of it and the rest will follow.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on getting married and well done with finishing the prologue - there are a lot of people out there who would see just completing a novel as a huge accomplishment, never mind actually getting it published afterwards!
I've read Swan Song and I loved it. Unlike most of the manuscripts I read, I asked you to write a vampire novella, which was dark and scary and you wrote it in a month. In the same time you also sent me two vampire short stories and all this was done in the most professional manner possible. Your writing need only minimal editing (typos only) my personal opinion Jevron, is that I've been extremely lucky to work with you.
ReplyDeleteWonderfully supportive comments! Thank you so much! What a negative blog that was! Apologies all around! 2010 is the year I get SERIOUS about my writing! I can't wait to start fleshing out my second novel. Oh and Gwen, are we still doing the short story compliation? I have recently had a few new ideas...
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