the time i almost gave up on my writing career

 

Back in 2019 while I was working on a few of my now published books I was ready to give up, every rejection letter made me doubt myself and I was ready to give up; but what changed?

I got my first acceptance letter and then my second and my third and while I in the end decided to self publish wrongful love it gave me hope. Around the same time was also when HiNovel approached me and asked to sign me on for three of my books. 

I am now four years into that five year contract and while I don’t know what is around the corner for me with my journey I do know I still have doubts and feel like giving up some days but I remain strong and remind myself that it just takes one book and I could make it with my dream. 

My favourite books and who wrote them

 Stephen kings- pet sematary, Dr sleep, the shinning

Beautiful creatures series by Kali Garcia and Margaret Stohl

The Engelsfors trilogy (the circle, fire and the key). by Mats Strandberg and Sara Bergmark Elfgren

Why do i write?

 Todays blog post centres around why I write. 

I write because it helps me with anything I have struggling with; I actually have a bunch of mental illnesses and physical issues so writing has always been an escape for me; when I write I don’t feel pain nor any of my issues. I get transported into my books and can just escape everything that is going on. 

I also write because reading is another way I escape the real world and I want to help other people escape from their issues for a small amount of time to the best of my ability. 

My goals when writing isn’t to write a best seller or to earn a lot of money although I do hope to one day earn enough money to live off that isn’t my main goal I just want to get my books into peoples hands for whatever reason they like to read for. 

10 tips to treat your writing career as a business

Treating your writing career as a business can be difficult but with these ten tips you are such to be building towards  success

1. Set Clear Goals: Define your writing goals, whether it's completing a novel, publishing articles, or becoming a freelance writer. These goals will guide your business strategy.

2. Create a Business Plan: Develop a detailed plan outlining your writing niche, target audience, marketing strategy, and financial goals. Treat it like a business roadmap.

3. Invest in Education: Continuously improve your writing skills through courses, workshops, and reading. Invest in your knowledge as you would in any other business asset.

4. Build a Brand: Establish a unique author brand with a professional website, logo, and social media presence. Consistency in branding is key when it comes to social media and marketing.

5. Financial Management: Keep track of your income and expenses. Consider hiring an accountant or using accounting software to manage your finances efficiently maybe even consider opening a Business expense account to help you manage this.

6. Networking: Connect with fellow writers, editors, and publishers. Networking can lead to opportunities, collaborations, and valuable insights.

7. Marketing and Promotion: Develop a marketing strategy to reach your target audience. Utilize social media, email marketing, and book promotion techniques.

8. Time Management: Set a writing schedule and stick to it. Treat writing as your work hours, just like any other job. This can be difficult when writing isn’t your main job  but stick to writing for half an hour to a few hours after work or on weekends.

9. Legal Considerations: Understand copyright laws and contracts. Consider consulting a legal expert for advice on publishing agreements.

10. Adaptability: Stay updated with industry trends and be willing to adapt to changes in the writing landscape. A successful writing business requires flexibility.

Remember that building a writing career takes time and dedication. Treating it as a business helps you stay organised, focused, and increases your chances of long-term success.

The difference between my first book and my latest

 

Now you could think I maybe referring to the differences between wrongful love and an authors guide to writing but that just isn’t what I am going to be doing; it’s hard to compare the two when they are completely different genres with completely different goals in mind. Or you might even think I would be comparing the first book I ever published which is no longer available but I won’t be doing that either. 

No I will be comparing my first wattpad book secrets to the hybrid mate which I know isn’t even in the top four of my newest books but I do think it will be a good comparison. 

Secrets is still available on my wattpad and while it is not the same as it was when I first published it; it is still really bad. 

Now I think the most outstanding difference is the writing while I know I am still not prefect but who really is? I know I have come a long way with my writing and that is something I am proud of. 

The other key difference is I didn’t know a thing about editing when I wrote secrets where now I have learned a lot about editing. 

How I begin writing a new book

 

Starting to write a new book can be a difficult process but I like to think I have it pretty down packed now. 

Once I have an idea I like to start by writing a rough plan; now this isn’t by what I want to happen in a chapter nor is it an actual book plan but more an outline of the key points of the story. 

For example I’ll share with you the plan I had for one of my finished projects. 

The hybrid mate is about a young girl named () whose family was killed by vampires at her birthday party when she was () she spent many years training to kill vampires but sadly she was mated to a half vampire half werewolf called (). 

Throughout the book you watch as () grows to love her mate, and even falls pregnant although cursed by a witch in her pregnancy. 

As you can see it’s more a rough blurb and then I will come up with my characters and start writing; my first draft is never perfect but it is just getting my book idea good enough on paper that I can rewrite it and edit it to perfection.

How do you start writing your books? Are you a pantser? Plotter or something in between like me.