IWSG Encouragement

Today’s the day to post for the Insecure Writer’s Support Group started by the Ninja Captain. I don’t know where the time goes. Almost missed posting today. As Alex puts it, Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic.

What am I insecure about today? It’s more observation-like than insecurity, but anyway...I’ve made a small switch recently and released an MG now. Apart from the promo periods—which I’m doing in fits and starts—the sales have been sluggish. I do plan to promote more in layers than fits and starts, but life, editing and writing tend to get in the way.

In thinking about the situation, I have to remind myself to be patient and to keep plugging away. It’s easy to give up out of frustration, but who puts in hard work and comes to a dead stop without doing everything possible for a fighting chance at success? None of the courageous and sensible people I know. 

As they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day, so on I go.

On another note, Alex spoke to an interesting topic in his post and I agree with him 100%. He’s testament to the fact that we shouldn’t give up on any manuscript. I wrote my first novel, the MG one, before I knew about the mechanics of putting a book together. It was a good story, but there were so many things wrong with it. I work-shopped it, people loved it and then I entered it in a contest. Looking back, I think the organizers were kind to give it a bronze medal, but boy have I learned stuff since then. I’ve taken the book to a much higher level with repeated edits and plot additions.

My point here is that we all improve on our writing skill as time goes by. The better we become, the easier it is to see what’s wrong with a manuscript. I jokingly say that there should be a law against writing novels before we know what we’re doing. But you know what? That’s called apprenticeship and I can say with confidence that my most poignant works have come from that period. Of course, they take a lot of work to get to a publishable stage, but nothing worthwhile comes easy, right?

So to wrap up, don’t be afraid to write what you wanna and move in a different direction, even if you’ve built a brand already. Secondly, don’t give up on what might look like a lump of coal at first glance. That’s a diamond in the rough that will shine brightly if you continue to chip away at it. 

Ready to try something new with something old? Do share. 

See list of other bloggers in this hop here.